Before I begin to rant, I would like to start this article by stating that I am unbelievably grateful for Schoology and the way it helps me stay organized. However, sometimes, I am not so pleased with the conduct of both students and teachers on the app. 

I was introduced to Schoology in fifth grade at Ramaz Middle school, and it is without a doubt a tool without which I would be lost. I was thrilled to be able to message my teachers, access an accurate schedule of exams and extracurriculars, and see my progress as a student. Then, students never would have thought to post on Schoology for any reason whatsoever. So the moment I began high school, I was shocked by the disorganization of the webpage. 

For the past year and a half, I have been extraordinarily bothered by the number of unnecessary posts on Schoology. N notifying the entire school of someone’s lost coat, the fact that your club is meeting again, (at the same time as last week), or that a teacher won’t be here. It is all extremely unnecessary and frankly, quite annoying. 

Firstly, Schoology is not a lost and found. Your backpacks and calculators do not grow legs and walk out of the building, so there is no need for you to spam schoology, relying on other people, most of whom do not know who lost what, to find their missing items and retrieve them. 

Secondly, in September, we were introduced to the Club Hub, a webpage that organized all of the co-curricular activities at Ramaz. This had so much potential to be a step back from ridiculous posting on Schoology, yet it seems to be forgotten, making my Schoology notifications off the rails. At the club fair, a certain numberamount of students were interested in a specific club, they signed up, and the club had its members. Group chats were made and posting could be avoided. So why constantly post about your club meeting week after week if no one is interested in attending? Students’ minds do not magically change from a Schoology post. Unfortunately, it is not that simple. These constant notifications regarding clubs makes schoology tremendously disorganized and difficult to maneuver. 

So how can this issue be avoided? There are many Wwhatsapp and iMessage group chats circulating around the building, and for all of the time students spend on their phones during the day, we should be able to contact our friends and classmates about clubs and lost items more efficiently. Additionally, we should further enforce the idea that Schoology is an educational platform, not a schoolwide group chat. Another efficient way to organize Schoology in a way that we’re not stressing and searching for important information is making groups. By instituting groups on the app, organizing our day- to- day lives becomes tremendously easier. By taking baby-steps, an organized Schoology could impact the school positively. 

I know that Ramaz is more than able to manhandle Schoology so that students and teachers can stay more organized and sane. It is so frusturating to have to scroll miles through Schoology to find a post that is actually important. There are so many ways that the situation can be dealt with, and utializing Schoology for the wrong reasons is extraordinarily frustrating.