The Mount Michael student is no stranger to academic pressures. Freshmen deal with world history, biology and geometry; sophomores learn in chemistry and algebra II; juniors unravel some universal mysteries in physics and probe the past in Advanced Placement United States history; and seniors have a choice of several Honors and AP classes.
      Each of these courses offers unique challenges, along with unique opportunities, to Mount Michael students. The freshman and sophomore courses build a strong academic base for each student while the junior and senior courses offer college credit and advanced learning.
      In order for these courses to succeed in preparing students for college, they must place students in situations in which they must mentally stretch themselves. In other words, these classes apply pressure to the students.
      Mount Michael students must learn to deal with this pressure as they begin their careers as freshmen. 1999 Mount Michael graduate John Roshone, the teacher for both the freshman world history class and the junior pre-calculus class, believes that freshmen need to be placed under the most pressure. “When they (freshmen) leave my class,” he says, “they need to be able to write an essay.”
      In dealing with juniors, Roshone is slightly less strict. “When they come to my class, they will have already been here for a couple years, and they will basically know what to expect. If they understand what I am teaching them, I can decrease the amount of pressure a little bit.”
      Sophomore year is frequently called the easiest of Mount Michael years because of its lack of multiple higher-stress courses. Chemistry, taught by Aaron Musson, is generally considered to be the hardest class that sophomores will face. Next to chemistry, Jason Mackeprang’s algebra II is sometimes considered the hardest class of sophomore year. Sophomore Sam Hasterlo said “Besides chemistry, algebra II is the hardest class.”
      With Patricia Dowd’s Advanced Placement United States History and Father Michael Liebl’s physics, junior year is regularly considered to be the hardest year for Mount Michael students. Junior dean and world religion teacher David Cormier witnesses the effects of the stress on the juniors firsthand. He said “They should work more consistently. If they stay on top of all of the work, review the material frequently, and do all of the written work conscientiously, then they will be better prepared for tests, will not have to cram, and will not be as stressed out.”
      Dowd feels that the pressure that she places on juniors is a necessity. Both junior and senior Advanced Placement students are required to take the nationally standardized AP test in May of every year. Each test is graded on a scale of one to five. Those tests scoring about a certain mark earn college credit in some schools, while those that score below the mark do not earn college credit. “I don’t think that a teacher purposely puts pressure on students. I think it is the nature of my course.”
      Seniors at Mount Michael have a less restrictive schedule than other classes. While many seniors continue to take high-pressure classes, some can and do take fewer courses to lighten the work load. The seniors that do take more difficult classes will deal with courses such as Dowd’s Advanced Placement European history, Liebl’s AP physics, Musson’s AP chemistry, and Alan Wasmoen’s AP biology. If the seniors do choose to take the difficult road, senior year can rival junior year as Mount Michael’s hardest.
      The wide range of classes taken by each Mount Michael student helps to prepare him to deal with the challenges that face him during the rest of his life. For these classes to be effective, each teacher must place pressure on his or her students in order to stretch them and make them better. Article by Aaron Wiese