Libby Stanford

This year students were surprised with a new program regarding student behavior. This program is called CI3T (Comprehensive, Integrated Three-Tiered Model of Prevention). It uses a “matrix” that describes how to be respectful, responsible and give best effort in the classroom, hallway, cafeteria/commons, bathroom, activities, parking lot and the bus.

Students were presented with the rules through a series of PowerPoints and then learned about the opportunity to receive tickets or rewards for acting according to the matrix.

With these tickets, students have the ability to “buy” different items such as school supplies or a t-shirt. Students can also put their tickets into a raffle for larger prizes such as good parking spots, fresh baked cookies or a lunch with the principal.

Manners we learned in elementary school we are being rewarded for now. Programs like CI3T have been instituted into schools nationwide, but it feels a little late from the point of view of a high school student.

While I will admit that there are some students at this school who need to learn how to behave, the majority have been behaving how they are supposed to for years. It is hard to feel respected when you are rewarded for bringing a pencil to class and saying thank you to teachers as you leave the door.

Kindness and respect are important attributes for students to learn, but they should not be rewarded as if they aren’t expected. Bribing students does not help them behave appropriately. In the workplace, employees are expected to be on time and do their work as they should. When students are rewarded for behaving as they are supposed to, they will expect a reward every time in the future. This is not realistic and prevents students from being prepared for professional life.

This program is not helping prepare students for the future. If anything, it is teaching them their bad manners are expected and good behavior is extraordinary.

Maame Britwum

Inside my planner, held together by a paperclip, sit five Talon Tickets. When I started receiving Talon Tickets, I wasn’t sure how to feel—although I was pretty sure I didn’t like them.

Around the school, I heard chatter about how useless the tickets are, and all the rant sessions started getting in my head. I was prepared to collect as many tickets as possible and let them sit there as a quiet defiance. I went a solid three weeks as a silent soldier, prepared to fight the good fight against Talon Tickets.

After hearing Mr. Graber and Ms. Boyd explain the point of Talon Tickets it made more sense. The tickets aren’t necessarily meant to keep me and other hard working, dedicated students in line: they’re meant as a thank you for doing our job. But for struggling students the tickets are meant to nudge them in the right direction.

Since the Tickets have been explained to me in a different perspective, my stance has softened. Even if we don’t realize it, the Tickets are supportive, encouraging and reaffirming. Whether you’re an at-risk student or a part of the majority, we can all benefit from a little positive reinforcement.

I will concede, however, that the mechanism in which we receive this reinforcement is very strange. Having to keep an actual stack of tickets reminds me of my sixth grade class where we were given “money” for doing things like completing our homework on time. Regardless of the whole idea of a physical ticket being odd, I don’t think I hate it.

Now I’m teetering towards approval of the tickets simply because they can help at risk students, plus the stellar parking spots aren’t bad. I’m still not sure what to do with my tickets, so I might just quietly amass a humble fortune for a little while longer before unleashing my Talon Ticket wrath in the raffle. All in all, Talon Tickets are a good addition to our school, even though they’re somewhat childish.