Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Course Selection topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Student reps tell Elmbrook board course selection choices driven by interest, rigor and graduation requirements
Summary
High-school student representatives told the Elmbrook School Board that students prioritize interest, rigor and graduation requirements when choosing courses, and offered specific suggestions for improving the course-selection process.
Student representatives from Brookfield East and Brookfield Central delivered the high-school student report and summarized what their classmates said about course selection.
Student reps said three main factors guide course choices: personal interest or intended major; perceived rigor and workload; and meeting graduation requirements. Brookfield Central noted that students also consider prerequisites, peer recommendations, future career goals, and class lengths.
Students reported generally positive alignment between course offerings and future goals thanks to district "launch" career strands and career-cluster pathways, but both schools noted gaps. Brookfield East students said some respondents wanted more global-studies, law and politics options outside of Advanced Placement courses. Brookfield Central students said some clusters are heavily skewed toward healthcare or engineering and asked for broader STEM alternatives.
Suggestions for improving the course-selection process included:
- an easier, more intuitive course-selection interface (students described the current IC layout as unfriendly for freshmen); - built-in course descriptions and an academic planner so students can preview a multi-term schedule; - semester-length launch courses (several students said they'd take a launch course if it were a single semester rather than full-year); and - more opportunities for individual counselor meetings (students said group meetings exist but awareness and uptake of one-on-one counseling could be improved).
Student reps also asked the board to consider pushing some course-selection deadlines later so students can use third-term grades to decide whether to move into more advanced classes like AP Language. Board members noted scheduling and budget timelines complicate moving the districtwide deadline but said the feedback would be considered.
Why it matters
Course selection affects future college and career paths and helps define staffing and budget projections; student feedback may shape how the district schedules counseling and course-registration tools.
What's next
The board thanked the students for the report; administrators said they would consider the recommendations and how they fit into the district's scheduling and budget calendar.
