Walking through the halls and cafeteria of Centennial High School, I have observed an overwhelming amount of loitering and barbaric behavior.  

It seems not uncommon to see cliques of friends in a crowded hallway jabbering on about whatever it is they must share in that moment.

Furthermore, I find students reacting as if faced with a major inconvenience when asked to move, or to relax their behavior.

It is clear to me that some students struggle to understand the reality of this shared environment, that CHS is a space for everyone, and not an empire for the careless behavior some people chose to manifest.

These issues are clear, but what seems to be ambiguous is the underlying cause of this.

Perhaps an underlying disregard for fellow school-goers, or perhaps an inherent flaw in the schools principles and schedule.

One proposition I have is to change the approach is to take on discipline for students who create chaos as well as crowd the halls.

I feel that if loitering were a punishable misdemeanor, students would be discouraged to stand and chat for too long during a passing period.

Students could be marked down, and similarly to tardies, after three to four reminders have some kind of punishment/repercussion in place (ie. A call home to parents or a minor referral).

Such action may seem shocking, but it is key that students understand the importance of respecting the shared space they are in as well as the people around them.

I feel that such a thing would also push students to get to class on time, as they would have less distractions and obstacles on their way to class, thus increasing student participation in class.

Not only with this show students the importance of punctuality, but also the importance of thinking of others.