FEATURE: Say Hello to Xello

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Ashanti Riccardo

Freshman Corinne Kingsley said Xello can be beneficial, but also feels more like an assignment that she has to do than something that would really help her in school. “It’s a great way to find a career fit to you and figure out how you learn best; Students would be more likely to focus on the lessons if they weren’t as long though,” Kingsley said.

Xello is a college and career planning website that creates an idea and plan to help students with their oncoming futures. However, while some students think it is a good way to help prepare for the future, others think that it is time consuming and unnecessary. 

Xello has been implemented during Extra Class Time [ECT] as it is a graduation requirement, but students have mixed opinions about whether it should be used or not. 

“I don’t think anyone actually takes into consideration what Xello actually says to us,” freshman Corinne Kingsley said. “Maybe people should, but I don’t think that as a whole we really listen to it. Some of the things are helpful, but not everything because there are topics that aren’t as important and don’t matter as much as others.” 

Xello uses its algorithm to determine what best fits you, whether it be a good college, or simply what personality type best fits you.

“No one really takes it seriously, so no one genuinely gets the concept of it,” freshman Taylor Andrews said. “But,if you do take it seriously, people can find out new information about themselves and know what to do for the future.”

Xello does not grade students based on how quick they answer the questions nor do they time quizzes.

Other freshmen agree with Andrews and Kinglsey, saying that Xello isn’t a very useful website.

“A lot of people rush through it and don’t actually answer the questions just to get it done,” freshman Braylon Ramsay said. “So I don’t think it’s too helpful.” 

Ramsay said that many kids just do it to do it instead of taking the time to sit through it and take in the information that Xello provides.

Although some students think it isn’t helpful, others disagree, saying that it may be resourceful to those that need assistance for their futures.

“It is a useful resource for people who don’t know what they want to do in life and to help people that do know what they want to do narrow it down,” freshman Dae Martin said. “Xello helped me find a career path. At first, I didn’t know anything. I didn’t know what I wanted to do, and it helped show me my interests and pick a few options.” 

Xello has given students an opportunity to expand their curiosities about their futures in ways they usually couldn’t.

 Students go through different lessons on the website, including multiple quizzes that can help them choose a career path that is best fit for them.

Freshman English Teacher Sophia Coen has stayed in the middle, saying that it is helpful as much as it is unhelpful.

“It’s important for students to have a career plan, but it’s also important for that plan to feel like it actually means something,” Coen said. “I don’t know if Xello always helps them feel like it. I personally don’t have a problem with it, and it’s not so time consuming that it creates an issue.”

Xello will continue to be implemented into schools for the rest of this year.