A Tale of Two Schools

Analysis

A Tale of Two Schools

Courtney Collier – December 12, 2011

The similarities and differences between a big and small school.

Compare a riverboat to a cruise ship. There’s a pretty big difference in size, right? The riverboat can fit a small amount of people, maybe a couple hundred or so, but the cruise ship can fit thousands.

Now think about two other objects, places, or even people that are almost completely opposite in size. What do you think of? A grape and a watermelon? An ipod Touch and a desktop computer? How about Grandview Heights High School and one of the Dublin schools?

There is a crazy difference in size with those two. Along with that, there are so many other things that are different between these two schools. There are different electives, sports, clubs, rules, and so much more.

To get more information on these subjects, I held an interview with a student from Dublin Jerome. Her name is Madeline, and she’s a junior.

Q: How many students are in your high school all together?

A: Oh God. There are probably around 1,700? Maybe 2,000 students at Jerome.

Q: How many students are in your junior class alone?

A: The number of kids in my grade is probably like, 450-500? There are definitely more students in each grade than there are in your high school. (GHHS).

Q: What sports are offered at your school?

A: Jerome has a variety of sports. Everything that Grandview has for sure. We also have lacrosse, diving, crew (rowing), and more.

Q: Do you have AP courses?

A: Jerome does offer some AP courses. We have APUSH (AP U.S History) and APES (AP Environmental Studies), but we also have IB courses, which are kind of like honors classes in a way.

Q: Could you name everybody in your high school?

A: Hah. Hahaha. Good joke. I meet someone new everyday at my school! Plus naming everybody would probably take forever.

Q: Do you have open lunch at your school?

A: I wish! Even our seniors have to stay at the school for lunch. I can’t believe Grandview is able to do that!

Q: Are there any cliques at your school?

A: Meh. Yeah, I guess you could say that. They’re not really defined cliques that you see in the movies, but you can definitely tell who belongs to what “group”.

Q: What are some of the clubs at your school?

A: TI! (Like a youth to youth), Key club, Foreign language club, Theatre. You know, the normal.

Q: Do you have your graduation ceremony at your school or somewhere else?

A: Since our school is so big, we have our graduation at a different building. I think this year it’s at the Schottenstein Center.

Q: Have you ever gotten lost walking around your school?

A: Many times. The first day of school especially is when a lot of students tend to get lost. It’s a very large, confusing building!

Q: Are there any annual gatherings or events that take place at your school?

A: We always have the Fourth of July carnival at Coffman, which is another Dublin high school. There’s lot’s of people, bands, food, and things to do.

Q: Is there a variety of cultures at your school?

A: More so than Grandview I’m guessing! Yes, we do have a big variety.

Q: Does your school have a bus system?

A: Yep. Some kids walk if they’re close enough to the school. Some kids drive themselves, but the majority takes the bus.

Q: How often does your school get called off for snow days?

A: We don’t get enough in my opinion… But I guess I’d say a fair amount. At least three snow days each winter.

Those are some of the things that I learned about a big high school. There are some similarities between Jerome and GHHS, but as you can see there are also many differences. I think that the most interesting thing that she told me was that she meets a new person in her hallway everyday at school. That’s crazy! At GHHS it seems as if everybody knows who everybody is, and I couldn’t imagine it any other way.