Despite the ongoing belief that students prefer ease over challenge in the classroom, a handful of students are determined and willing to challenge themselves past the level they are automatically placed at. Some students yearn for the thrill of an academic challenge, whether that be in the form of AP classes, a more advanced course load, or simply more work in class. However, many feel they lack the opportunity to advance and challenge themselves fully beyond their class level and are worried they will be unable to keep up with the extra challenge.
“To not be completely challenged, I do have to manage what I’m doing. There may be challenges that I could do individually, but if I stack too many of them simultaneously, well, I can’t do everything. This year, I achieved a perfect balance by doing dual enrollment. I can do fewer classes at once while also doing more challenging classes,” said Paul Frilingos (‘24).
Many would like to take an extra challenge in their classroom; however, standardized testing is often at the root of the issue due to the role it takes in determining class placement at some schools. However, the tests (and their scores) usually do not accurately reflect students’ work ethic and responsiveness to classroom challenges.
“[What stops me from being challenged is] that I’m often put in lower classes due to my test scores. I’ve never been a good test taker,” said Glory Jones (‘25).
Regardless of class placement, teachers could do more to create a sophisticated lesson plan that allows students to engage with course material fully.
“[I am not challenged] because all my teachers are boring and don’t teach that well,” said Anderson Cole (‘26).
For some students, the fear of failure prevents them from challenging themselves in the ways they’d like.
“The fear of having low grades definitely stops me from being challenged,” said Jones.
The slow pace in students’ classes is often something they also struggle with.
“I believe, for a while at least, there were [limits being placed on my academic abilities]. First, the lessons simply could not go fast enough for my liking in elementary school. Then, through Kittredge and middle school, I was ready to learn so much, but there were no opportunities to advance,” said Frilingos. “In high school, they wouldn’t let me take AP classes I wanted to take as an underclassman simply because I was an underclassman. As a senior, I finally feel free to take the classes I want and challenge myself as much as possible. It took long enough.”
Despite the lack of opportunities, students have found other ways to challenge themself. Multiple things motivate them to try and get a challenge elsewhere—often including the doctrine of “the more advanced courses, the better.”
“My biggest motivation probably comes from the fact that [taking harder classes] will look good on college applications,” said Jones.
This sentiment is echoed frequently, with students looking towards their future colleges and careers sometimes as soon as they enter high school.
“Getting to a good college is what motivates me; my future inspires me to be challenged,” said Cole.
For these more advanced classes, there is a reward that follows the extra work.
“When being challenged, my motivation is setting achievements and feeling a sense of accomplishment. Something that stops me from completely being challenged is doubt that it will get too stressful to a point I want to give up on the challenge,” said Kimberly Resendiz (‘25).
Similarly, some students opt out of the transcript-focused course rigor race and instead choose more difficult classes for the academic stimulation they provide.
“I do feel like my classes are now challenging me. Mostly, I am taking college-level classes, so I feel it is challenging to do my best. It took a while to get to classes that challenged me, but this year, with dual enrollment in math at Georgia Tech and AP Physics C, I feel challenged. High-level math and physics are linked, and both require a lot of critical thinking, way beyond simply just following the formulas that had made most math relatively easy for me,” said Frilingos.
Unfortunately, this same fondness for a challenge is often not universal.
“Most of my peers don’t like being challenged. They like knowing everything. I also think some peers do want to take a challenge and are planning that for next year, and some really don’t know if they should or shouldn’t because they don’t know if they are ready for it, but I think that there are many people that are capable of doing it and it’s a learning experience,” said Resendiz.
Some are understanding of their peers’ situations-recognizing that everybody’s high school journey is different.
“Honestly, many of [my peers] want a challenge; it’s just not always what school offers. Sometimes, school is too many different things that not everyone is built for. Some people are terrible at math, and it’s really a lost cause trying to teach them, but there are things they would love to learn. Everyone’s own challenges will be different, but the school requires everyone to do many of the same things to graduate,” said Frilingos.
Overall, students are eager to discover new things and advance their abilities academically, both in and out of the school environment. Many students want to take the extra step and are learning to navigate the perfect amount of challenge without pushing themself too far or too little.