News

With the new Texas Heartbeat Act, the debate on abortion has been brought to the forefront of news in America again.

First signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on May 19, 2021 and coming into effect on September 1, 2021, the bill makes any member of the public able to sue anyone who preforms an illegal abortion for a minimum of $10,000 USD.

The Texas Heartbeat Bill, also known as the Six Week Abortion Ban, bans an abortion from being preformed after the detection of a heartbeat. The Texas law defines a heartbeat as, “a cardiac activity or the steady and repetitive rhythmic contraction of the fetal heart within the gestational sac.”

BHS students have a variety of opinions on this new bill.

“I feel like women should be able to make their own choices regardless of somebody else’s opinion and I would rather have a choice than be told what to do,” Radina Kalatchev, BHS junior, said.

Made by the Texas state legislature, they are all older white men who will never have to go through a pregnancy or have any medical experience.

“When you have a baby,” said Radina, expressing her concern over the lack of female and medical input on the act, “Then we can talk about it.”

Regarding the other side of the argument, Flowerjoy Burly, senior at BHS, expressed her excitement for the act saying that she, “believe[ed] the right to life should be granted to everyone regardless of circumstance or situation.”

A concern many people have with the bill being enacted is the state of the foster system. If women are going to be giving birth to children they do not want to keep, this is most likely where most of them will be going.

“I believe that if we’re going to stop abortions, can we please focus on the ways in which we can fix the woman’s situation not just for her, but for her future and for her child?” Burley said.

When discussing the Heartbeat Act with the one male perspective, Alex McGillivery, a sophomore at BHS, when asked what it must feel like for the women to have the choice to decide what’s best for themselves, to have that right taken away from them.

“I think it’s best that they see trained professionals like doctors who can figure out if the abortion would be best, rather than listening to politicians and people who have less knowledge than doctors,” Alex McGillivery, BHS sophomore, said. “Seeking medical advice is always important when it comes to things like [abortion]. This isn’t something that should be political.”

Burlington High School is looking like it is almost back to normal for the 2021-2022 school year, and teachers, staff, and students are all seeing the benefits!

As you know, the pandemic made quite the difference on the way the school was run in the past year. From cohorts and social distancing to no buses for sports, Burlington High School definitely had a strange new approach for the school year.

This year, however, many of the previous COVID protocols have been altered or removed due to the fact that much progress has been made not only in our local area, but in the country as a whole as more people are getting vaccinated and cases are declining.

The lessening of restrictions is seen as a strong benefit to students on academic levels from all around perspectives; teachers, staff, and students themselves.

“I have been learning much better this year with everyone in school full-time,” Grace Meehan, a BHS sophomore, said. “Because the desks are closer, I can reach over and ask a friend for help without having to shout and disrupt the class, and I am already grasping materials better.”

Students are clearly understanding the curriculum of their classes better with being back fully in-person this school year; it was a challenge for many in the previous year as a lot of students learn better in a hands-on manner and last year was nearly completely virtual.

“I think from an equity perspective, having everybody in school with a kind of equal playing field where there is access to teachers and resources really helps a lot of kids out.” Mr. Sullivan, the principal of BHS, said.

It is much easier for students to ask each other for help as well as communicate any concerns with teachers when everyone is in the building at once as there are simpler and more natural ways to communicate.

The fewer protocols also strongly benefit the mental health of students as they are able to be with people, take part in more activities they enjoy, etc.

“Having kids in a routine and being back in-person everyday compares positively to last year when there was a lack of social interaction as well as a lot of anxiety and depression in students.” Sullivan said.

There was a lot of anxiety formed due to the way last year was run. Whether that was from struggling to get to remote classes on time, talking and being seen on the video calls, not having much social interaction, extra curriculars being limited, or other restrictions of the same sort.

“It is nice to see the hallways filled, and students back with their normal schedules and being able to do after school sports again,” Mr. Larkin, Assistant Superintendent of BHS, said. “I think from a mental health perspective that’s really great.”

Although nobody wants to consider it, the possibility that cases will rise is still there so there has to be some level of preparation for this despite the fact that there are many benefits seen from lessening restrictions.

“We don’t have a well-articulated plan, but we know that we can go fully virtual or scale back if having so many bodies physically together in a close setting became a problem,” Larkin said. “But there are no concrete conversations to do that since nothing has happened yet.”

Despite the fact that there is no current plan in place of what would be done if cases were to skyrocket at the moment, the experiences of what BHS did in the past show we are capable of retreating back to some form of hybrid or full remote learning if it came down to it.

There is nothing simple about this pandemic, but there are two simple things which can be done by individuals in an effort to preserve our current school environment which has been positively affecting many: getting vaccinated and keeping your masks on!

“I miss being able to proceed without having to worry about restrictions,” Mrs. Anderson, a BHS business teacher, said. “For instance, we have a DECA leadership conference coming up where there is the question of an overnight, and we have to take into account COVID in deciding what students will or will not be able to attend.”

If the effort is put in now to keep our school on the right track, such as always keeping your mask above your mouth and nose when in the building as well as getting vaccinated, BHS can continue to progress with lessening restrictions/protocols to get as close to fully normal as possible.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Education, if a school has an 80 percent or higher vaccination rate, students and staff in the school who are vaccinated will no longer be subject to the DESE mask requirement.

With this, it is likely more opportunities as well as experiences will open up in the long run such as field trips, world language trips, dances, etc. So, if you would like to see these things, as well as not have to wear masks, make sure to follow all protocols, stay safe, get vaccinated, and keep your mask on!

The month of November has finally come to a close, igniting and ending the season of one of the most controversial academic events of the year: Poetry Out Loud (POL). POL is a dynamic recitation contest among high school students across America.

According to the POL foundation, “Poetry Out Loud has grown to reach more than 4.1 million students and 68,000 teachers from 17,000 schools and organizations in every state” since 2005. Despite being a widely influential and powerful program, why does the vast majority of the student body have a strong resentment for the contest?

Considering POL beyond the stress it may bring upon students, others see POL as a learning experience and opportunity to build and expand their public speaking skills and self-confidence through the art of performing poetry.

“Personally, in freshman and sophomore year [Poetry Out Loud] was very taxing and stressful,” said Serena Hawkins, a senior and Writing Fellow leader at Burlington High School. “In junior and senior year, I enjoyed the process more and I felt that it was a healthy amount of stress.”

Poetry Out Loud is notorious for causing Burlington High School’s students stress. Many students not only complain about its uselessness for their education, but also how much pressure and anxiety it brings upon them.

“I get a lot of anxiety,” said Josie Toland, a senior at Burlington High School with an avid distaste for POL. “It literally is so scary when you go to the front of the room. It is a lot of stress, especially when you’re an introverted person. Your introvertedness is not something you can control, which I think is unfair to the students who are.”

Oftentimes, Poetry Out Loud is assigned to be practiced at home or in students’ free time. Many students don’t have the opportunity or time to dedicate to memorizing their poems, as they can be busy with work, sports, or extracurricular activities.

“There is literally no point,” said Toland. “For me, and many other students, it does not add to my learning. It’s just a lot of added stress and cramming the night before– overall, a waste of my time.”

What is most daunting about Poetry Out Loud to students is how threatened they feel by the severity of it, and the impact it has on grading and their education.

“You are not allowed to opt out,” said Toland. “Reciting the poem is already very stressful… but the biggest anxiety-inducing factor is how intensely our recitations get graded. It’s harmful to students that aren’t as extroverted or confident… you get judged for not being able to give a theatrical performance when most people are scared or uncomfortable to go up there in the first place.”

So, the big question is: what do we do now? Is Poetry Out Loud something that students are willing to work together in order to improve for all-inclusive benefits, or is Poetry Out Loud something that should be completely wiped from the education system?

“If grading for recitations was loose and considerate across the board, I think more students would be open minded towards the event” suggested Hawkins.

In order to improve Poetry Out Loud, the education system needs to be considerate of even the smallest of factors– beginning with providing students more freedom with what poem they can recite, and allowing them space to decide whether they even feel comfortable reciting at all.

“I feel like the general culture around the idea of POL needs to change, as many people see it in a negative way when it comes around every year,” said Bella Gill, a senior and Poetry Out Loud finalist at Burlington High School. “While I don't necessarily see it as a huge necessity, I understand that there is an immense amount of people that enjoy POL, including myself. I feel like certain individuals should be given the opportunity to opt out if it truly is anxiety-inducing. However, I feel like it is really beneficial for students, as many people will have to get up in front of people one day and deliver some sort of memorized speech or proposal. Additionally, I feel like POL allows students to look at, analyze, and recite a very unique form of art, and that is something that should not go away.”

For those confident within their skills, they seek Poetry Out Loud as a way to express their character and identity.

“For me, POL has always been sort of a creative outlet,” said Gill. “I know this may seem crazy because a lot of people see it as a stressor, but I see it as a unique way to express myself. I love public speaking, especially when it’s something that I am passionate about.”

Gill, and many other students, also seek POL as a safe space to express themselves beyond their identity, being granted the opportunity to further emphasize their moralities, values, and ideals within the world in order to voice their opinions on the societies around them.

Gill reiterates the importance of her freedom to be able to perform, “I am to choose a poem that really showcases who I am every year. I pick poems that are important to our world today. My goal is always to showcase who I am and what I stand for.”