At first glance, the incoming freshmen may seem “selfie obsessed” as they run around taking pictures on various parts of the campus. But in fact, they are following their teacher’s instructions as a part of a new program. Rocklin High School’s geography program has introduced new curriculum for the first quarter to better connect the freshmen to the campus. Despite good intentions, this plan has created controversy amongst the students.

The goal of this program is to help the freshmen become more familiar with the campus. Instead of covering geography content, the freshmen class have been going on scavenger hunts, conducting interviews, and learning about what Rocklin High has to offer.

“It guarantees every freshman that they will be exposed to key things for success at Rocklin,” says geography teacher, Mr. Ryan Shull.

All advanced and regular geography classes have implemented this curriculum into their first quarter plan.

The freshmen have learned how to utilize their planners and Schoology and how to build communication skills with teachers. To familiarize the students with the school, they have gone on a Twitter scavenger hunt to talk to different teachers and find specific locations on campus. At each location, they must take a selfie to prove they found their destination.

“They can ask questions that they aren’t usually comfortable asking and learn things that normally freshmen have been expected to learn on their own,” says Mr. Shull in reference to the goals on interactive learning.

Besides interactive activities during the class period, the freshmen are also expected to attend school events, visit clubs, and connect themselves to Rocklin High. A typical assignment might require the students to visit five different clubs that month. By having the freshmen go out connect themselves to the campus and their peers, the teachers hope to give the students a better start to their high school career.

Freshman, Clare Zianno, expressed her liking for the first quarter plan and feels that it is a constructive use of time. She feels like the campus is now not as foreign as it would be and is a positive way to introduce her to high school.

Will Gladden, who is also a freshman this year, disagrees with the plan’s philosophy: “I feel like I know more about the campus but a lot of it feels unnecessary,” he explains after he said that he would rather jump right into the curriculum.

While the new freshmen geography plan has been met with mixed reviews by the students, it remains to be seen whether it will become a standard part of the class in the future.