It was only last year that Communications High School’s (CHS) Principal Emily Bonilla revealed to students that they were getting a new schedule.
Almost two months in, the discontent regarding the change is widespread. Still, this backlash is uncalled for. After all, the new schedule still poses many benefits for students’ futures.
Since the arrival of the new schedule, the old schedule has been nostalgically romanticized, despite having had multiple flaws. Oftentimes, CHS students were faced with burnout and stress from having the same, nearly 90-minute-long classes daily.
Additionally, students faced two dreaded waves of midterms and finals as a result of classes being squeezed into semesters. As a result, students were constantly cramming information into what always seemed to be a limited amount of time.
The new schedule provides CHS students with fewer large exams. Students will have more tests overall, but they’ll be spaced out over the week instead of packed into two stressful days.
Although burnout has already been reported within the CHS student body as a result of the schedule change, the benefits of year-long core classes cannot simply be brushed aside.
“Having math the full year and Spanish the full year is helpful because if you do it 50-50, you’ll fall out of practice,” junior Ruchira Nekkanti of Marlboro said.
Via the new schedule, Bonilla has also incorporated new Advanced Placement (AP) classes into the curriculum. With this shift, AP classes have become more accessible to students of all grades with AP Seminar being a required course for all sophomores and AP Spanish available to juniors and seniors. These accelerated classes are a vital part of a student’s schedule, allowing them to skip future college courses, saving potential class slots and money.
While opposers may argue that the inclusion of AP classes places more work on students, the Pacifican explains that AP classes “demonstrate academic ambition and a willingness to challenge yourself—qualities that college admissions officers value.”
Despite the workload, AP classes are an amazing opportunity to develop a better sense of the subject and gain college-level skills that can be applied to enhance students’ academic work and success.
The Class of 2029 already adjusted to the schedule because of how similar it is to their middle school schedules. Freshman Daniel Flynn of Manasquan explains he has been able to adjust nicely to the schedule despite the change.
“I know it’s a change in how CHS has worked in the past, but at my last school, there was a typical schedule,” freshman Daniel Flynn of Manasquan said. “I like the change here and how you don’t get burnt out after one specific subject.”
Though the new schedule may seem backwards right now, it should be noted that CHS isn’t that far into the 2025-2026 school year. Just as every wave of CHS freshmen had gradually adapted to the old 90-minute schedule, current CHS students will learn to adapt to the new schedule over time.
The rewards of the new schedule will become more prevalent as time passes, and the schedule can easily be improved upon through student feedback. As much as it may appear constraining, the new schedule is, in reality, filled with new opportunities.
