Every year, there is a time when you have to make choices. Choices that will probably affect your future. Choosing the subject, program, option, or school you are going to can be difficult.
In middle school and high school in La Camaradière, these decisions are made around March, except for seniors choosing their CEGEP or DEP, which is more around the end of February.
Many things can create stress or pressure for a teenager when making these choices.
Parents are a big source of pressure for certain people. Some parents can pressure their child into taking a certain course. They can force them to do something that they themselves would have liked to do. Some parents already have their child’s future planned.
On the other hand, the parents may lack confidence in their children and belittle them, leading them to forget their dream and choose a less challenging course or something less demanding.
Also, sometimes guardians are not there to help their child or offer advice, which can lead to bad decisions and regret.
Grades play a big role in the lives of certain teenagers and can create a lot of pressure. To enter certain programs at the school, you need a certain average. For example, to take the SN math course in Secondary 4, you need an average of 75, and the same goes for choosing Environmental Science and Technology in Secondary 4. Some people can’t achieve these kinds of grades and can’t choose the option they really want. This can be a big disappointment, especially if you need that option for, say, your CEGEP program.
It can also happen that students focus on money and the highest-paying jobs, so they choose options based on the idea of having a great job that wouldn’t even interest them.
At La Camaradière, Teachers and career counsellors come into your class to talk about different activities or options, but these conferences are sometimes not enough for some people to understand everything. Some students talk about information leaks that lead them to make poor decisions.
Friends can also influence your choice. Older friends can tell you not to take a certain course because they found it too hard when they took it, or because they found it boring or not worth it. On the other side, these friends could be telling you it was easy and that you should take a certain course because it doesn’t differ at all from the “easy” choice. But you need to remember that not everyone is the same, and it’s their opinion from their perspective.
Friends from your grade could also influence you just by taking an option and wanting you to take it with them. You can also feel the pressure of wanting to prove something to your friends.
“An older friend of mine told me Math SN was really hard, and he is actually really good in school, so it made me very scared, and I might change my choice,” said one of the concentration’s students.
Also, nowadays, the math courses you take in grades 4 and 5 are called “strong math” and “weak math,” but we shouldn’t think like that. The so-called “weak” math courses are simply a less demanding program, but just as difficult for some people. It’s the same for the science courses, which are now called that, making people who choose “weak” math or science courses think they’re stupid. But we shouldn’t be ashamed of the choices we make just because we’re struggling. We should always think about ourselves and try to understand what we truly need, even if it’s very difficult.
We have to keep in mind that everyone is different and has different levels and grades at school.
Another thing that can affect choices is fear. The fact that supposedly harder course options are advertised with talk of more homework and more studying can scare people away. Some options are advertised as having 1.5 hours of homework per class, even though these statistics aren’t always accurate. But the fact that they say it might also make people understand that this option will be difficult and that they need to be prepared.
Lastly, some people don’t know what they want to do later, which option they want to take, or which program to choose. When you’re in grades 1, 2, 3, or 4, you can’t, for example, take a gap year; you don’t have all the time in the world, and you really have to choose. But for some people, of course, making a decision is extremely difficult.
“I actually don’t know at ALL what to choose because I’m really scared of regretting my choice,” said Ève Jobin
At La Camaradière this year, students are making their course choices in class. Depending on whether you are in Sec 1, 2, 3, or 4, there are different options; you choose them yourself on paper and on Mozaik. This way, your parents can’t make them for you or influence you at home.
If you regret your choice, you can change it by scheduling an appointment with the counsellor.
