How electives will help you later in life

Oakton students who choose to take electives share what they think those classes can do for their futures.

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Getting yourself through school day after school day can prove to be difficult, with the typical strain of less sleep and more stress. Taking notes can get repetitive, and testing gets dull quickly. Most students, however, have at least one class in their day where they can indulge in their interests- those classes being electives.

Oakton, as well as many other high schools, has a great selection of specialty-based, student-chosen elective classes. From drawing to weight training, they’re all a great opportunity for students to work at what they’re best at, and have a letter grade reflect that.

However, a lot of students believe that classes like these are a ‘waste of time’ when we have many other advanced academic (AP, etc) classes at our disposal that we could fill our schedules with instead. The truth is that electives can help you develop skills for later in life- and a few Oakton students had some specific examples of how these classes are helping them.

Photography

Jazzy Young, 10, is currently enrolled in Oakton’s Photo 2. Before coming to high school, she had enjoyed taking pictures on her phone. Because of this, she was excited to see that one of her biggest hobbies could be one of her classes.

Jazzy makes a point that “In our society, you take photos all the time, so knowing how to take them well can make them look that much better.”

Film Study

One of the lesser known English electives, Film Study is a great choice for any film lover. You watch, review, and even make your own movies throughout the course of the year. Kari Tan, 11, is currently in (and enjoying) this class. Although it seems like it won’t prove much of a purpose besides being a relaxing break in the day, Kari begs to differ.

“Film Study allows me to develop my critical thinking skills. The ways we analyze movies can also be applied to other things, such as literature and art,” she told.

Film Study is also a great class for those who are considering a future in the movie or television industry.

Marketing

Probably based on the success of our highly-talented DECA team, Marketing has become one of the most popular electives at OHS. They even offer marketing-centered classes besides Levels 1, 2 and so on- such as Sports and Entertainments Marketing. It’s this class that Emma Wagner, 10, loves spending an hour and a half in every other day. Not only does she get to indulge in one of her largest interests, sports, but she also develops valuable life skills.

She explained, “We give lots of business and proposal presentations. I think it could really help students who need help developing public speaking skills.”

Drama

Everyone’s a fan of Oakton’s theatre department- from their astounding spring musicals to the hilarious improvisation team. While most of what we see from them appears extracurricular, there are plenty of students enrolled in Theater Arts 1, 2, 3 and 4, as well as the behind-the-scenes class, Technical Theater. Students like Sophia Bavisotto, 10, have a good time putting on plays and participating in acting games as a group.

It’s an extreme arts class, that’s true- and some students may not be interested for that reason. It’s not something everyone can make a career out of, but you can still learn some valuable lessons.

“Drama really helps people get comfortable performing in front of people, giving presentations and things like that. It’s also just fun.”