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Anthony Neal

Professor Kardell

Honors English 101

October 19, 2018

High school vs. College; an ethnographic study

Canyon View high school opened its doors in August of 2018. Due to this, classes are

exclusively offered to freshmen, meaning that there is not an age gap between students,

providing them with seclusion and lack of interaction with those that are older. Estrella Mountain

Community college was opened in 1992, this has given it over 20 years to become established

within the community and form a history and legacy for itself. Through observing both schools,

many comparisons and contrasts can be made in regard to the effect on both students and

instructors relating to community, school work and the buildings themselves.

As previously discussed, Canyon View High School only has one grade level, I noticed

that everyone seems to know each other in one way or another there because of that, many have

classes or lunch with one another while others are friends of friends. That being said, there was

sets of clearly defined cliques and niches that are commonly seen throughout high schools. In a

physics class, the “nerdy” kids sat with one another, carefully listening to instruction; whereas

“jocks” would be together, typically not paying attention and slacking off. This was not only

apparent in class but also at a Football game I attended. People interested in sports medicine

were on the field with the athletic trainer, athletes were on the field, band kids were in their own

section and various students sat in their defined friend groups. While these distinct groups help
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students to be accepted within their cliques, as a result there is not much conglomeration as a

whole. This separation inherently leads to confrontation be that verbal or physical and is perhaps

the main reason for harassment or bullying within the secondary education system. Throughout

observations and first-hand experience with EMCC, there is no great divide between individuals

or groups of people on campus. This is the case for a number of reasons, the first being age. At

the High School, students are aged 13-15, thus they have not met maturity, puberty does not only

come with a number of physical changes but mental developments as well. Underclassmen in

high school, for the most part, have not been exposed to many of the things within the

environment that assist in the maturation of maturity, therefore they base much of their beliefs

and personality upon what they see portrayed in their families and popular media. Constantly,

teen movies force the ideas of separation among classes whether it be between the wealthy and

poor, blacks and whites or athletes and academics. Very rarely is it seen in content created for

young teenagers, that a conflict of some degree between classes does not take place, therefore

impressionable youths seek to act out what they believe high school really is; a set of cliques that

are involved in a number of feuds with one another without common conglomeration outside of a

classroom. However, in a community college student are all working together to achieve one

common goal, passing. While the majority of students at Estrella Mountain Community College

only fall in the range between 17-20, there is a clear distinction in personality that results from

both biological maturity and experiential learning. By the time that students begin college, they

have learned that a separation is not necessary for a fulfilling academic career. Many different

individuals from various backgrounds and ethnicities work together much more outside of the

classroom than their younger counterparts do. This is seen in group aspects such as study groups

and tutoring.
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The underlying similarity between the two groups is the need of acceptance and

inclusion. Both EMCC and Canyon view share a similar small classroom size that does its best to

provide the opportunity of everyone’s voice to be heard. It is apparent while watching students

participate in the classroom that they wish to be included in discussions even if they are not

speaking to the class, they will mention things to peers either for comedic effect, to critique or

just to answer a question without all the attention being drawn upon them. This develops a small

feeling of community when someone agrees or laughs about something they say henceforth

reinforcing the idea that regardless of age, a student does not wish to go unheard.

Another key difference between College and High school is the way classes are taught

and the presented material itself. The interview conducted was with a physics instructor at

Canyon View High School, she confirmed and reinforced a number of observations that were

seen, primarily with the way that instruction goes. Within High School, the instructor teaches

what the students need to know in order to pass exams, write effective essays, write lab reports,

so on and so forth. The teacher spends a given amount of time at the head of the classroom,

giving clear instructions on what to do and how to do them in a manner that the pupils can finish

the majority of work in the classroom. On the flip side, there is a large difference between High

School teachers and College professors as well as the work they assign. Most professors do not

proverbially hold their student’s hands through lectures and in few cases do not even teach the

class, but rather expect the students to learn via textbooks or dedicated websites while

additionally being three times the workload that High School administers. This can negatively

impact a freshman’s success in college as much of their first year is spent adapting to this new

self-taught way of learning, leading them to deal with much more stress than the 14-year-old

would. That being said, college is clearly much more preparatory for life as this added stress can
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help condition them to manage their time better and focus harder to achieve better grades. The

similarity drawn here though is adaptation to a new environment. Both EMCC and Canyon View

High School freshmen are being exposed to new people, instructors, and environments leading to

the learned trait of adaptability. If a student does not successfully adapt to their new

environment, they will not succeed.

Lastly, is the comparison of the physical structure between the two schools and how they

promote or demote conducive learning. Canyon View High school is brand new and therefore

has a modern design with an emphasis on an enriching learning environment. One wall of the

class is clear glass creating a sense of openness to the outside and lack of restriction from the

surrounding world all while stopping noise from becoming a distraction. In addition to projector

screens, laptops and desk tops; most rooms have a Television to assist in visual learning for

students and to promote the feeling of innovation within the learning environment. The use of

technology extends to teachers as well. Rather than having to carry a laptop back and forth along

with papers to grade, instructors are given a desktop and area to work on before and after school

as well as within their prep hours. Professors at EMCC however must carry any written papers

home if they cannot grade them in class. The interviewee pointed this fact out stating that it

helped greatly and was coinvent for the teachers that make use of the opportunity. The layouts of

the opposing schools are similar, Estrella being a college is inherently larger but outdated in

certain places. The classrooms in older buildings clearly take the traditional route of confining

students to a certain area for a given time, making sure that they only see and hear what the

instructor wants them to. That being said, newer developments employ the same technique of

unconfinement with large windows overlooking the campus, providing natural sunlight. Lastly is

the issues coming from the difference in size. At first, the sheer area of EMCC can be
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intimidating as freshman often find themselves looking at maps of the school or asking others

where certain locations are, meanwhile the high school can be figured out within a day. All in all,

the construction of the two does not vary greatly apart for the age differences and larger scale of

Estrella mountain community college.

The similarities and differences between Estrella Mountain Community College and

Canyon View High School lies in the students due to their age and maturity, the way material is

taught and how building development and technology impact learning. The gap between the

groups of students lies in their levels of maturity due to age and life experience, college students

being more mature in part because they have gone through high school and have live more years

of life. College students essentially have to learn how to teach themselves material in order to

succeed however they are similar to high schoolers in that the freshmen of both categories must

adapt to their new lives due to the drastic change of learning style as well as the introduction to

the environment. Finally, although the designs of both schools are similar they have key

differences, the main one being age in that EMCC is older and has buildings that do not reflect

student’s needs and is also much larger than the former, leading to an open campus with more

confused new students.