Three Schools, Zero Brains

While I was waiting for this extremely efficient Westdale Secondary School computer to load, I had about an hour to think of a topic that I could write about without boring myself. With no success, I concluded that I would address an issue that I heard  on the radio while commuting to school today.

The HWDSB is debating on the closure of not one, but three Hamilton high schools; Barton, Sherwood, and Mountain. Their claim is that low enrollment rates are coercing them to sanction this decision, but such dramatic actions would force many students to relocate, perhaps out of catchment, creating myriads of transportation problems, and, consequently, attendance difficulties. Students would have to wake up earlier to commute further, and lates and absences would inevitably increase. Knowing many teenagers are prone to go to sleep later, this change in sleeping would leave numbers of desiring learners exhausted, effecting their ability to accrue information and deteriorating their memory. This could be detrimental to their success during exams, tests, and anything else pertaining to scholastic abilities.

Furthermore, this proposal could be altered to accommodate the needs of both students and the school board. By closing one of said schools, the enrollment would increase in nearby schools, therefore satisfying both the board's expectations and the students' situation. Obviously this is easier said than done, but if the HWDSB plans to potentially shut down three schools, then the closure of one should be no big deal to them. They have thought the whole situation through, indefinitely. The above point can be exemplified by the fact that, if Barton, Sherwood, and Mountain were to all terminate operation, hundreds of students would have to be relocated, potentially overpopulating other schools, and catalyzing the need to re-open one of said schools, or to erect portables to host the extra students. And portables, we all know, are to be extolled for their aesthetic properties, their beautiful paint jobs, and their eye catching railings and windows.

Lastly, if the proposition to close these schools is a success, then so is the abrupt change in many teachers' lives, and not for the better. Many jobs would be lost, and many qualified adults would be effected financially and mentally. Teachers, caretakers, counsellors, all to fall victim to an irrational, idiotic decision. Is it worth all this trouble? Probably not. Common sense is not so common.