Thing That Will Make My School Better (Final)

I just moved to a new school district with a very good reputation. In my opinion, it is even better than the district I used to live in. Although I attend a good school, there are many things that could be ameliorated. Some of them are: the lunch trays should be cleaner, there should be more time to get to class, and the school should improve its communication system.

First of all, at lunchtime students should have cleaner lunch trays. The school has reusable lunch trays, and everyday after lunch, all the cafeteria workers do is rinse the trays. This disgusts me because I know that I'm eating on a lunch tray that has also been used by other people. I would prefer for my school to use plastic throw-away lunch trays, so that students are using fresh clean lunch trays, rather than dirty ones. The food at my school is pretty good, but anyone could lose their appetite if it's on some dirty tray with stains and puddles. This has happened to me and probably happened for many others.

Another problem is that there should be more time between classes. The school is very large and students should have longer to get to class. The school policy of giving detention for being late to class is harsh, and they should at least make longer periods to get to class, if the school enforces the rule. Every 7th period, the 7th graders have to get to the cafeteria. My 7th period class, 221, is right next to the cafeteria. I have to make my way through all the 7th graders to hopefully arrive in time for my 8th period class in 118. Some problems occur where people rush and crash into each other.

The final problem is the school communication. Whenever the office needs to send a message, they annoyingly announce them loudly. This annoys many people, like my English and Reading teacher. One day, my Reading Teacher was analyzing the plot for a story, when the office makes a broadcast to send a student to the Nurse. Another time, my English teacher was talking about important information to study for a quiz, when the office orders a janitor to fix a locker jam. The office should have an efficient system for communicating, and should make all announcements in homeroom. They should only make other announcements for emergencies, like if there's a lock-down drill or the staff need a teacher badly.

My school is still very enjoyable. I enjoy the gym classes and after-school activities like Wind Ensemble and Computer Club. The environment is safe and friendly. Learning new things from school is fun and entertaining. Although my school is excellent, it still has some things to improve: the lunch trays should be stainless, there should be more time for students to get to class, and the school communication could be more efficient. With these improvements, going to school would be a totally pleasant experience, just like visiting a utopia.

Which is More Important: Participating in Sports or Winning? (Draft)

Goal! The Blue Team wins! "Darn!" Red Team grumbles. Have you ever been in the situation of the Red Team before? In sports, people question whether participating in sports or winning a game is more important. Some people think that sports are great if you try and have fun. Others hate to lose and and their only ambition is to win. Losing teams have always complained about being beaten, while their coach tries to persuade them that it doesn't matter who wins or loses, unless everyone has fun. Participating in sports is obviously much more important. Players can learn from their mistakes. Coaches can know if a player is actually trying. And winning too much can get to your head.

First, players can learn from mistakes they make if they lose. Studies show that people learn much more from mistakes than just getting it right the first time. This applies for sports too. If you learn from your mistakes, you'll get better and better. Take this scenario. A goalie in soccer isn't that good. He always lets the ball in. After losing ten straight games in a row, he finally understands the proper way to prevent the ball from coming in. He leads his team to victory. While winning teams do learn how to overcome an opponent, a losing team is learning as much as the winning team is. Losing teams could apply their mistakes and the victorious team's strategy to possibly win next time.

Secondly, the coach can make sure that all the players are trying. For teams that always win, there might be a few slack-offs who don't do anything at all and some players who do all the work. In a team where having fun and participating is important, everyone is contributing to the game and exercising. Participating also promotes teamwrok with other players, to throw a ball to each other or to support someone when he is blocked by the goalie. Take this situation. There's a basketball team that always wins. However, the only reason is because there is one exceptionally good player. The other players always relax and do nothing. However, a different team loses most of the time. But, the team is made up of players who love to play basketball and have fun. Everyone helps score points. Which team do you think is better? In real life, it's true that most teams have some players who never do anything. If participating was held important instead of winning, all the players would contribute to the game.

Finally, winning can get to a player's heads. Some people believe that they'll always win and there's no need to even practice and try. Winning too much could even turn a whole team arrogant. Teams who lose resolve to try better next time and practice more and get better. Winning too much could make a whole team go downhill. Look at this story. A baseball team, let's say team A, is always winning. All the players get cocky and don't even try anymore. Another team, team B, loses several times. Nevertheless, B makes into the finals. They find out that they're versing A. B lost to A before and are determined to try their best. On the big day, A loses the game: 0 to 7. Though this only happens sometimes, it can affect anyone. So, sometimes even losing can help you.

Winning always feels nice. It gives a team satisfaction and proves to them that they're better than the other team. Everyone loves to win. However, participating is much more important than winning. Players learn from mistakes, participate more, and prevents them from getting too egoistical. Think about it. What's really more important: participating and trying your best or winning repeatedly. Next time you attend a sports game, don't think about winning but having fun and doing your part in helping the team.