A mutiny is among us. The kings and queens are losing their thrones. Who will win the war of class competition?
The friendly “whose house” competitions at pep assemblies has grown to something greater. As the year has progressed, the members of the sophomore class have gained confidence in themselves. The fight between who rules the school has created a snowball effect, but it is no longer winter.
Naturally, in a high school environment the upperclassmen are the leaders. This is mostly based on age and experience. It is assumed since they are the oldest, they obviously get seniority. The problem here is the concept of seniority has been buried in the sand.
With seniority typically comes leadership, but there seems to be a lack of overall leadership coming from the senior class. Instead of a democratic style of leadership, seniors immediately appoint themselves to lead everything. This causes problems because a leader needs followers, and if underclassmen do not see eye to eye with the current system, it becomes corrupt and unnecessary class competitions break out. This may be the reason younger classes think it is their job to take over.
It is reasonable that seniors get some special treatment, but only to a certain extent. Upperclassmen argue they should be able to sit in the front row at all sporting events, particularly at volleyball and boys football and basketball games. The only reason they can muster up for this privilege is the age difference. In the 2013-14 seasons for volleyball, football and basketball, the amount of varsity sophomore athletes more than doubles the amount of seniors. If there are sophomores on the field and court competing along with seniors, why should only upperclassmen get best spot to watch their peers?
The most bothersome part about the whole deal is how uncivilized it has become. It is almost as if there are two different schools trying to one up each other. Unity is the goal but it is not very easy to be unified when seniors put themselves on a pedestal and name underclassmen unworthy of something as simple as where they can sit. There is a shared goal here; we just need a refined way to get there. The problem of class competition also gets inflated when people post degrading comments on the internet. When one class says something about the other, there must be retaliation to defend one’s class and it creates large problems out of nothing. It is simply a matter of disrespect towards peers.
It is questionable why one should think so greatly of upperclassmen who do not treat others with respect. Respect is demanded from seniors, purely because they are seniors. Senior year is sentimental. It is the last glance at high school, and it should be the best year considering all the benefits. It seems like too much time is spent obsessing over who is the best class rather than actually enjoying said benefits.
Most underclassmen will not understand what it is like to have a last game, a last homecoming, or any final high school experience. They are too busy doing it for the first time. Seniors should be valued for their experience because in the following year they will be gone, but they could leave a lasting impression on the school if they showed proper leadership to the classes below them.
