Principal Litz’s vision of a school in which every student has taken an honors course is receiving support from the Parent Teacher Association.
To bolster student enrollment in higher level courses, the PTA planned four Learn receptions at which students currently enrolled in an honors or IB course could receive a free cookie. These receptions coincide with course selection to encourage higher-level course enrollment and show appreciation for students who push themselves academically.
The effectiveness of the receptions in influencing coursework decisions was debatable.
To receive a cookie, students just had to claim they were taking a course. There were no checks or references to ensure that the student was actually enrolled in an honors or IB course, and students could come on multiple days if they lied about their grade level.
“The counselors didn’t really do a good job of checking either their grade level or whether or not they were taking an honors course. A few of my friends went on multiple days,” IB Diploma candidate and junior Tom Freebairn said.
Additionally, one cookie’s influence over nine months of rigorous coursework was debatable.
As senior and IB Diploma candidate Mohamed Abdul Kareem put it, “While I participated, I doubt that cookies can incentivize students to take a more rigorous course load,”.
Some students were offended by the cookie and the lack of appreciation for how much work an honors course really entails.
“I think that the system was kind of patronizing. There were better ways to reward us than a single cookie for a course load of all IB classes,” Freebairn said.
Principal Litz wants to transform Marshall into a school at which every student challenges themselves.
The PTA hopes to realize that vision, one cookie reception at a time.