Choosing what classes to take in high school is a big deal and can impact how prepared students are for their future. With a variety of options, some struggle with deciding what to take each semester. Counselor Shari Schaake said she helps students with enrollment for the upcoming year.
“This year’s going to be a little different, because we’re going to have kids enter in their selections through Xello,” Schaake said.
Xello is a platform that helps students plan out their high school career to better prepare them for what they want to do after high school.
“In theory, freshmen are going to start adding those courses and be able to plan out their future,” Schaake said. “So they’ll know what they plan to take sophomore, junior, senior [year].”
While there are a lot of options to choose from when deciding courses, Schaake said following a passion and being introduced to new things can help narrow down the wide selection.
“Choose for yourself, not for your friends [because] really you have to have some kind of an interest in the course,” Schaake said. “I want everybody to feel like they have free choice and really have a good understanding of what they’re signing up for, which is why we do all the [enrollment] fairs.”
Enrollment for the upcoming school year happens right after winter break.
“That first week, we’re going to start hitting kids with science fair stuff, Johnson County stuff and [the] elective fair,” Schaake said. “We’ll start talking to people and then they’ll receive their enrollment cards on Jan. 13 that next week.”
The further along in high school students get, more opportunities become available to them.
“I love our CAPS program, even if you just have a small interest in something, get involved in that and see if that’s something you can see yourself doing,” Schaake said. “[There are also] so many Johnson County trade programs, you can get trained for a trade and be making bank right out of high school.”
In order to explore these options, prerequisites and graduation requirements need to be accounted for in order to qualify for these programs.
“You do have to plan ahead because we’ve got to get the basic stuff out of the way, like biology and the physical sciences,” Schaake said.
The counselors have one-on-one conversations with students to make sure they are clear on what they want to do and what classes they are taking.
“I know we all value those [conversations] and try to answer questions and help guide them in the right direction,” Schaake said. “Sometimes they don’t have a lot of direction, so we try to help point them in the right one.”
Overall, Schaake said the main goal for the students’ courses is to make sure they are able to explore but still enjoy their high school experience.
“Make sure you’ve got some freedom in your schedule where you can have a little fun and be a high school kid,” Schaake said. “It’s your education. Enjoy it.”
