This year at Chaminade there has been a change in how you leave the classroom. In previous years students could ask their teachers to leave classrooms without needing anything but permission. When a student left, their teacher couldn’t be sure of where they were going. This led to students roaming around the school and being out for too long, causing them to miss important parts of class.

This year introduced the hall passes, which consist of a lanyard for bathroom use and a green slip of paper for other out-of-classroom needs. When a teacher sees a lanyard, they know a student has asked their teacher for permission to use the bathroom. The paper is used for other needs, such as visiting a teacher. The hall passes make it much easier for teachers to track the locations of their students, as well as how long they have been gone.

For hall passes, all a teacher needs to do is write their name, the student’s name, his destination, and the time he leaves the classroom. Some even require students to confirm their activity by requesting the signature(s) of the teacher(s) they visit. Many returning students were surprised to see this addition after using the old system, but as we get further into the school year, people are adjusting to it.