Have you ever wondered what students and staff’s motivation to come to school is? Well, we went around our school, Waverly High School, and asked just that. We asked the student body varying from 9th to 12th grade. and some staff. We decided to ask a wide selection of people to get a variety of answers.

As you can guess, most students come to school due to the necessity to be here. Such as Jadelynn Mann, who said her mom makes her come (11th grade), along with Quinton Hurd (11th grade) who said his parents are his reasoning and motivation. Also, we got some genuine answers that show that high school isn’t as bad as it can be made out to be. A senior, Dylan Smith stated that his motivation was, “to prepare myself for college”, and a sophomore, Sereniti Smith, who come to school for “Art”. Lastly, we had some interesting answers that weren’t as expected, as in Bree Wilson’s (10th grade) to come to school. She claimed. “to not have to do chores at home.” We expected this, but we thought we would have more students avoiding chores than to only be coming because they have to. We at least expected to hear that people wanted to see their friends.

Secondly, we asked a range of teachers and staff what their motivation to come to school each day was. You can imagine, almost every reason was lovely. Mrs. Dickens stated. “I love my students. I like to hang out with you guys.” we also got a few more heartfelt responses from some other staff members. Including a custodian. Hank, who commented that his motivation to come to school/work is, “To see all your smiling faces.” Mrs. Prall, a guidance counselor, said that she comes to school each day in hopes of helping at least one person and “To be purposeful.” Not only Mrs. Prall, but Mrs. Smith, the art teacher, said, “My motivation to come to school is to be a good example for kids and students in the community.”

So, most students seem to not really want to come but their parents push for their success, and other students push themselves in order for their own success. Also, many staff members truly do enjoy their jobs and genuinely want their students to do good and go far in life, even ones that may not seem to.

Next, we asked one more question in order to  possibly be able to make a positive change. We asked, “What would help motivate you to come to school?” Surprisingly, we got a wide variety of answers. Some students want time changes, such as DJ Lydelle, who claimed, “A fifteen minute break; a recess.” and Jonaecy Bryant, who said, “If school started later…” In addition, a teacher, Mr. Salyers, commented, “Four day work weeks” would better motivate him. Lastly, a few other teachers stated that “free food” would help them want to come to school/work, which we completely agree with them. Teachers should get free food if all of us students do.

In conclusion, most students struggle to find their own motivation to come to school, and so do some staff members. However, most of our staff come because they simply enjoy their jobs. Lastly, we have concluded that a shorter week, a later start time for school, or free food for staff would better motivate out students and staff to come to school.