By: Adrian Jacobs
The clear answer for a senior like me is, yes, teachers should be more lenient with kids being late to class and here is why:
- High school students have extracurriculars outside of school
Everybody knows that school is just the start of the day for almost all highschoolers as they have extracurriculars such as sports, dance, or music lessons after school. When students are given lots of homework, their schedules change. They must not only make it to their enjoyed activity, but also finish homework either before or after. For example, my soccer training starts at 6 and is an hour away from home so I have 30 minutes after school to get ready. This leaves me 9 o’clock and on to finish homework for all 4 of my AP classes and don’t get me wrong, it is hard. Same goes for many student-athletes around the world.
Ultimately, the point I am trying to convey is that students tend to stay up later because of their extracurricular activities leading to less sleep and worse performance in school. When they wake up 20 minutes later to earn back some of their lost sleep, most of the time they get to school a couple minutes late. Strict teachers mark those students tardy and they are one step closer to receiving a detention.
- Setting rules to how late a student can arrive so that class is not always disrupted
Although some people may show up 15 or 20 minutes late to class, setting rules for how late a student can be, could be quite beneficial. Students who show up a couple minutes late to class are obviously showing an effort to make it to class on time while later then a few may be just laziness.
If teachers were more lenient with this time gap, students would be encouraged to make it close to on time rather than just skipping the whole class to avoid receiving a tardy. This would increase first period attendance and create a better environment for learning.
It would also build happier relationships between students and teachers as this lenience teachers offer might be returned with more focused and determined students eager to fulfill the respect the teachers should always receive, but now more prominently.
- Would you want to be in detention for all of lunch? Huh?
Detentions suck. A whole 45 minutes of doing absolutely nothing except for listening to the walls creak and occasionally hearing screams of people having fun outside. No talking. No eating. And no fun.
If teachers were in our position and received tardies for being a few minutes late to when they are supposed to be at school, they would absolutely hate it!
With the little power students have, they cannot petition the district, they need help from teachers. As it may be hard to put oneself in others’ shoes, the least teachers can do is be more lenient on tardies. All it takes is coming to school seconds after the bell and you’ll find yourself in the darkest place known to man.
- Morning Traffic
Last but not least, there is SO much traffic in the mornings. With the increased number of seniors shortening their schedules, chaos lurks in the mornings within highschool streets. Even getting to school 5 minutes before the bell rings, students are almost guaranteed to be late with the amount of backups. In this case, it’s not their fault!
All in all, it only takes 5 tardies to receive a detention, so teachers should be more lenient with tardies and show more sympathy. “Practice random acts of kindness, the world needs it more than you think.” – Boonaa Mohammed
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