Why Stevenson High students won't have homework next Tuesday
Administrators and teachers at the Lincolnshire school are encouraging teens to talk with their parents that night about their short- and long-term goals.
For underclassmen, that could be talking about classes for the 2017-18 term. For seniors, it could be a conversation about college or career plans.
"It'll be a great opportunity to just talk about where you think you'll be in 10 years," Principal Troy Gobble said in a YouTube video about the activity, which has been dubbed "Let's Talk About Your Future."
It's primarily an effort to get parents involved in students' decisions about course selection, Stevenson spokesman Jim Conrey said.
"Anecdotal evidence in recent years has suggested that students often looked to their friends first for advice on course selection," Conrey said. "While peers might offer some help, we believe students should look first and foremost to their parents for wisdom and guidance."
Teachers have been ordered to assign no homework Tuesday night and for no tests to be administered on Wednesday. Likewise, no projects will be due Wednesday.
The timing of the no-homework night is deliberate. Course offerings for the 2017-18 school year are being mailed to families this week.
Sophomores must make selections in early November. Freshmen go next in late November, and juniors make their choices in January.
"Based on conversations they have with their parents and then with our guidance counselors, we think students will be well-equipped to make informed decisions about their future courses at Stevenson," Conrey said.
Parents will receive emails that suggest some areas of the course catalogs to review during Tuesday's discussions. The emails also will include a game families can play.
Students and parents will be asked to complete a work sheet for the activity. Students who turn them in by Oct. 28 will be eligible to win a $25 gift card to Jazzman's, a snack shop at Stevenson.
Officials also will seek feedback from parents and students through social media.