Middle School to High School: Rocky Road or Smooth Sailing?
The switch from 8th grade to high school is preceded by a short summer break, but is that enough time for a middle school graduate to prepare for the next four years of their academic and social life? According to many MVHS students, it’s all about what happens during those three years before high school--the critical years of middle school.
Since Mission Vista is a magnet school, students come from many cities, from many backgrounds, and from many middle schools, however it’s clear that coming from anywhere to MVHS can be a leap.
Mission Vista’s vision is to “be the model of educational excellence through discovery, education, and growth.” Since MVHS is a magnet school, students are pulled from all over the county. This also means that students chose to come here. The 4x4 plan promotes students to make their own advanced path for high school. Because of the multitude of students that come from different schools, there is no clear answer as to whether middle school has or has not prepared the incoming students.
Freshman Emma Schroeter, who attended Phoenix Learning Center, a small charter school, before coming to Mission Vista, recalls “It was like a sea of people. That’s the first thing I saw: the people.” First Impressions are everything. The first thing people see as they walk through Mission Vista’s doors shape the way they view it throughout their high school life.
“I remember when I first came to this school, seeing the floor, and noticing how there was no gum anywhere,” laughs freshman Allison McLaren who came to MVHS from Martin Luther King Middle School. “I thought they weren’t allowed to chew gum, but it turns out we just have some great students and they just don’t want to put gum on the floor.
As students become more incorporated into the MVHS routine and atmosphere, it becomes clear that high school doesn’t just look different than middle school. “I feel like at MLK there were no difficult subjects. Everyone was on the same level, taught the same things,” says Allison. “At Mission Vista, there are so many opportunities to get ahead in life.”
“I went to Guajome. There was definitely less work there, and the material was slower paced,” says freshman Joshua Deal.
Schroeter, describes a different experience. “Middle school was actually harder. It was high school prep, so they treated us like high schoolers. Although there are tough classes here that challenge us, high school has been fairly easier,” she says.
One thing is clear, though, and that is that Mission Vista is a choice. Many students choose it because they want to be challenged. This must say something about the middle schools our students are coming from. They have, in some way or another, taught them to want to grow.