Unfiltered Insights into the Junior’s Experience Thus Far

We've officially reached the two-month milestone of the school year, and already, emotions are surfacing around the junior grade as though it feels like so much, and yet so

little has transpired in just this tiny bit of time. It is a confusing description, yes, but

accurate to the feelings of many juniors this year, including myself. After a couple of

months of transitioning into the IB experience, some Juniors feel a sense of levity in their

classes, in contrast to the difficulties of sophomore year. Generally, 11th grade is

regarded as a uniquely challenging grade level, characterized by more rigorous

coursework and college preparation–IB classes even more so. So, where is the source of

these feelings of ambiguity coming from among the junior grade? Is this too good to be

true, or is it simply the initial foray into the inevitable challenges of the world of 11th-

grade IB? To unravel these feelings further, I interviewed a couple of my classmates on

the matter, asking them the central question: “How would you describe your overall

experience as a junior so far in the school year?”

Here is what they had to say:

Miranda

“I think this year is a lot like 10th grade, where there is a mix of having both an

overwhelming amount of work some weeks and other weeks where we have completely nothing to do. I think this can be due to the fact that classes are now requiring us to be more independent, in the sense that our ‘hands aren’t being as held’ as they were in previous years, and we are expected to do a lot on our own. It's not like I’m worried or anxious about this year; it's more about the impending stress coming from the expectations of being a junior. I think also the fact that I don’t know exactly what my grades are or even if I’m doing well in my classes adds to the uncertainty of feelings. I would say history is the class I think is most challenging for me so far. Socially, though, I think our grade has opened up way more and is less clicky this year.”

Matisse

“I think the grading of work has become more challenging, but the workload itself is similar to last year. I don't find school to be stressful so far, but I feel like there's an expectation for me to be stressed because it's Junior year. I know we just started school, but strangely, it feels easier than it's ever been before. Because we have entered IB, unlike in previous years, there's now a specific set of guidelines within specific timelines that we need to follow in every class, especially depending on if you are taking an SL or HL class. So it's like we're moving pretty fast-paced in some classes but also way slower in others, causing an imbalance of some people feeling like school is super easy while others think it's more challenging because they have a larger workload for their specific class.”

Sadie

“Like everyone else, I think school so far has generally felt easy, but I think that's because we have to worry about the more underlying topic of college on top of all the classwork we need to do. There's a big difference between all my classes in that, mainly depending on the teacher, some classes are a lot harder than others. This year, it also feels like there's been a general shift in how classes have been functioning with the new phone policies and increased focus on in-class work.”

Lara

“My overall experience has been stressful, but in a way that is exciting because we are more immersed in our chosen subjects, and we get to learn more based on the classes we are specifically interested in. Economics is a class I find particularly interesting and challenging at the same time. However, I am excited that it’s a new class we are able to take.”

Anonymous

“In almost all of my classes, I’m basically studying a continuation of what I did last

year. Which I think is great because it means I have been prepared well for IB, but it also

feels like I’m missing something in my learning experience. It's kind of like last year I was just learning these skills, but now I’m genuinely mastering them. I am generally satisfied with my progression through all my classes so far, but I definitely feel an impending sense of way more work ahead of me, especially from what I’ve been told from previous juniors, so I'm enjoying this care-free life while I can.”