Lately at Hunter High, there have been quite a few announcements in between class periods regarding “Hall Sweeps”. If you aren’t sure what a hall sweep is, then you most likely and luckily haven’t been caught in one. A hall sweep is a much more strict way of taking attendance, and is enforced to try to lessen the amount of students that are late to their classes. When a hall sweep is announced, teachers are instructed to shut their doors when the bell rings, and any late students are required to get a special “hall sweep pass” from the Commons in order to be marked present in their class.
How do students feel about hall sweeps?
After interviewing students not only at Hunter, but at other schools as well, such as Copper Hills and Kearns High, I learned not only the obvious fact that most don’t enjoy hall sweeps. Something prevalent throughout my interviews is that hall sweeps are counterproductive, and they make students more late than they were before, if not completely absent altogether. Gage Rolfe, a sophomore at Hunter High, claims that hall sweeps are only effective in some cases, as it will teach some students to “rush to class” to avoid getting caught in a sweep, while others just “leave school until the period ends to avoid it.” Similarly, Jerry Galeana, a sophomore who attends Copper Hills, stated that while he “doesn’t like going to class in the first place”, hall sweeps don’t make him want to go anymore. He says that they create “unnecessary anxiety” for students due to their repercussions, and the fact that they result in more missed class time. Shockingly, these were opinions that were shared with all of the students that I interviewed. Many described them as “stupid and pointless”, while others just said they were annoying. Overall, it seems that while the Administration intended hall sweeps to improve attendance and push students to be on time for class, they are actually doing the opposite.
Interviewees:
Kelson Lowe: Hunter High School Sophomore
Emma Duheric: Hunter High School Sophomore
Anonymous Hunter High Sophomore
Gage Rolfe: Hunter High School Sophomore
Jerry Galeana: Copper Hills High Sophomore
Richard De Leon: Kearns High Sophomore