What Elective Do You Wish Your School Offered?

Does your school offer elective classes? Have you taken any? If so, which have been your favorite? Why?

Are there any elective classes you wish your school offered?

For example, would you be interested in a class that teaches you about where your food comes from?

In “OK, Class, First We Shoot the Deer,” Mark Josephson writes about a Missouri high school program that teaches students just that — in a very hands-on way:

At Maysville High School in Maysville, Mo., population 1,100, classes can be a little tough for the squeamish. Course work can involve assigned reading and algebra, but also a serious amount of blood and guts.

In 2022, the high school, an hour’s drive north of Kansas City, added an elective farm-to-table course run by a family and consumer science teacher, Amy Kanak, who works with an agriculture teacher, Brandi Ellis. Students were already learning to harvest and process livestock and wild game in their agriculture classes, and dissect the organs in science classes. The new course gives them the opportunity to cook meals using the harvested meat, a logical conclusion to the hard work of students in other classes. Ms. Kanak provides instruction on the tail end of the nose-to-tail process, in meal prepping, yield, budgeting and bulk cooking.

But it all starts with the most difficult and messiest part: culling animals and breaking them down. For many students, it’s their first time holding a knife and butchering. Ms. Kanak hopes that students will finish her course with an understanding of where their food comes from.

Ms. Ellis, who finds the classes to be vital in a time of rising grocery bills, said, “It forces them out of their comfort zone a little bit.”

Students, read the entire article and look at the images (though beware if you’re squeamish, as they can be graphic). Then tell us:

• What do you think about the farm-to-table course at Maysville High School? Is it one you’d like to take? Why or why not?

• What is one elective you wish your school offered? Use your imagination! What would this class look like? Whom would you want to teach it? What would you hope students would learn from it? Why do you think it would be important?

• Tell us about the best elective class you’ve ever taken. What made it so meaningful to you?

• How essential do you think it is for schools to offer elective classes? What do you think students learn from these classes that they may not learn from the regular curriculum?

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public and may appear in print.

Find more Student Opinion questions here. Teachers, check out this guide to learn how you can incorporate these prompts into your classroom.