Socratic Seminar Debrief P.4 by Miguel Sanchez

Halle Kirksey (95 words)

hkirksey1 — 2025-09-30 19:14:51 UTC

The comment made that I agreed most with was that we need to give more students resources to succeed in and out of an AVID program. A lot of students that are not in AVID, dont even know what A-G is, but that is not their fault. They need to understand what A-G is and how to become it by not having to be in AVID. This is important for these students to graduate and be able to go to 4 years, and that will then fall on the counselor if not informed about it.

Alex Cortez (112)

acortez202 — 2025-09-30 19:16:08 UTC

The comment that I disagreed with most was that the biggest reason kids aren’t going to college is because of the parents. I definitely disagree with this statement because there are a lot of parents out there who genuinely don’t know what colleges are even down the street from them. I can go home after school and tell my parents what we discussed in AVID and they’d be genuinely surprised about certain things because they never knew. I will say that there are some parents who push their kids to save money, but there are others who never got a degree to begin with so they wouldn’t even know where to start.

Melanie Agopian (82)

magopian1 — 2025-09-30 19:16:38 UTC

If I were to give our seminar group a letter grade for the seminar, I would give our group a B+. I think we did really well on contributing because most of us asked questions and provided our insights on other people's questions. However, I believe that we could’ve used our resources better. We were given articles and videos, but only utilized a couple of them, and I believe that using the other ones could’ve enhanced the conversation to a higher level. (82)

Stanley (90)

sfiliaga1 — 2025-09-30 19:16:53 UTC

I think the comment I agreed with most was when we were talking about people being A-G someone said that we should make it a requirement. I agreed with this because I feel like if we did make it a requirement then there would be so much more benefits to us. everyone would be able to have a chance of getting into their dream school. I also feel like it will help a lot of people out with having a higher chance of getting into a UC or CSU school

Jennifer Mauricio (104 Words)

jmauricio006 — 2025-09-30 19:17:14 UTC

The comment in the seminar that I was most proud of is of my answer to the question: If you could help prepare high-schoolers in California to be A-G qualified, what would you do? I responded by saying AVID 9 should be a mandatory class for all freshman. This is because AVID can help freshman prepare and chose classes that relate to their major or subjects they might enjoy. I did not take AVID until my Junior year of high school. Most students who are not in AVID are ignorant when it comes to post-diploma education. AVID definitely helps when talking about future goals.

Cody Deffenbaugh (86 words)

cdeffenbaugh1 — 2025-09-30 19:17:31 UTC

I agreed with the comment saying that high schools care more graduation then getting people to complete A-G. I believe this is true but I don't completely blame the schools for this. If students don't graduate, then they have a very low chance going to any college at all, so it's important to focus on those before working on A-G. However not putting in any effort is pretty bad and schools should always be working to inform students about these things that they need to know.

Jared Caldino (75 words)

jcaldino1 — 2025-09-30 19:17:53 UTC

If I were to give a letter grade to the seminar, I would give us a B+. We were able to hold the conversation for most of not all for the duration of the seminar. I think we could have touched certain topics such as the differences of tuition costs between 2 year and 4 year schools. We were able to create questions and many of us were able to elaborate our thoughts and opinions.

Josh Martinez(77)

jmartinez1503 — 2025-09-30 19:18:05 UTC

If I were to grade our class as a whole I would give our class a B+. Our group talked a lot and asked really important questions but there were only a handful of people actually talking the most and it was mostly the same people talking. I think if everyone had talked a good amount I would be more willing to give our class an A. But overall our class did great communicating with each other.

Halle Kirksey (83 words)

hkirksey1 — 2025-09-30 19:18:06 UTC

The comment that I disagreed with the most was that it wasn't the students fault if they are not A-G. The reason I disagreed with it is because yes, it does fall on educators and counselors for not informing more students about what it takes to be A-G, but it also falls on the students AND the parents of that child for not self advocating, and ensuring that they know every single thing that goes into being in high school, and graduation requirements.

Jack Callo (89 words)

jcallo21 — 2025-09-30 19:18:08 UTC

If I had an opportunity to revisit the seminar, I would ask more questions. The question that I should have asked was: if someone knew they had to take six years to get their bachelor's degree, would they do all six years? Would they take the extra time to finish their bachelor's degree, or would they stick with an associate's degree if anything? I wonder this because that is a long time to do school, and maybe someone might think their time can be used more effectively somewhere else.

Jackson Riedmiller (76)

jriedmiller1 — 2025-09-30 19:18:40 UTC

I don ´ t think AVID should be a requirement freshman year but I do think that students should be involved with what is going on in the AVID community. The biggest thing for freshmen I think would be for them to take school seriously and worry about core classes. Then once they understand what high school is really about, then they can start to explore other things like AVID.

Gracie Johnson(93)

gjohnson119 — 2025-09-30 19:18:46 UTC

I think the comment I disagreed with the most was that Community Colleges are essential for 4 years. I disagreed with this statement because while the transfers from 2 years to 4 years definitely help the 4 years there are so many more students who go straight to 4 years. If the number of transfer students from 2 years to 4 years was higher then I could see how they are essential but since only about 1/3 of college students transfer from a community to a 4 year, they are not essential.

Tyler Hiji (110)

thiji1 — 2025-09-30 19:18:48 UTC

The comment I disagreed the most with during the seminar is that "AVID should be a requirement for all freshman." This doesn't make sense to me since to me it seems like its just a waste of a period and I don't think many students would like that. All the information we get in AVID can get looked up or researched, but a lot of people don't have the time or are to lazy to find the time to help themselves. AVID does help a lot because they give you the information in class and make it easier. Just thinking making it a required class isn't a good idea.

Lukas Huizar (78)

lhuizar2 — 2025-09-30 19:18:50 UTC

I think the comment I disagreed with the most was that AVID should be required freshman year. I dont think that everyone should have to take the class because not everyone wants to go to college after high school. I think it is advertised enough and available to everyone, so everyone that wants to take it can. Kids that really do care just need to look for it and get in the class if they really want to

Alex Cortez (81)

acortez202 — 2025-09-30 19:19:01 UTC

The comment that I agreed with the most was that students at ACHS and also in general don’t have that much assistance when it comes to deciding on going to community or a 4-year school after high school. There are so many students outside of AVID who have no idea what A-G requirements are at all and this is due to counselors and teachers not reinforcing them and not pushing their students to try to go above and beyond those requirements.

Camila Anaya

canaya22 — 2025-09-30 19:19:18 UTC

A comment that i agreed on was "people not in avid lack advisory, I agree with the statement that students who are not in AVID often lack advisory support. Advisory provides guidance, mentorship, and a structured environment where students can discuss academic goals, personal challenges, and college preparation. Without it, many students might miss out on crucial resources and encouragement that help them succeed in high school and beyond. AVID ensures students have consistent support, helping them stay on track, build confidence, and develop skills for future success. (75)

Stanley(84)

sfiliaga1 — 2025-09-30 19:19:30 UTC

I think the comment I disagreed with the most was when someone saying that we should make avid a requirement for freshman year. I feel like that does not need to happen. I feel like it will be more effective if we taught everyone about the A-G requirements instead of just teaching it in avid. I feel like we should advertise avid more to the students and show them he benefits but I don't think we should make it into a requirement freshman year

Arianna Rodriguez(87)ee

arodriguez1712 — 2025-09-30 19:19:35 UTC

The comment that I disagreed with the most was that it was the students fault that they were not a-g eligible. The reason that students are not all able to complete a-g is the school system itself. It's not just a one school problem its a state problem. School need to be more open with college counseling and make classes required because as a teenager I only enrolled in AVID to have a elective and didn't even know what it was really about freshman year.

Cali Howe (83)

chowe23 — 2025-09-30 19:20:18 UTC

I agreed that we needed more support. I do not think we have enough support from people around us. I think a lot of teachers just want us to be able to graduate highschool and no enough people educate us on college or going to college. There are also a lot of people who are just scared to reach out and ask for help, which i think it shouldn't be that way, and it kids should be comfortable with learning about their features.

Halle Kirksey (111 words)

hkirksey1 — 2025-09-30 19:20:28 UTC

If I were able to give a grade to the seminar, I would give it a low A. The reason I say a low A is because I believe that my group worked very hard to have no awkward silences, and always have something to talk about. We did work really hard to always ask questions, but the one critique I will give is that when someone was about to be done answering a question, we all got nervous and immediately tried to ask another question. That interrupted more people from being able to answer the question previously asked in more detail. Other than that I think that we did amazing.

Samuel Crowder (92 words)

scrowder11 — 2025-09-30 19:20:40 UTC

If I was able to revisit the seminar, I would've brought up how that only 15% of students earn a bachelor's within 6 years, and how factors such as lack of financial aid and poor advising for students contribute ton that percentage. I feel that would have been important to include in the discussion because from there we could have brainstormed ideas on how to provide financial and advisory support for students that need it, which in turn would boost up the percentage of people that are able to earn their bachelor's.

Josh Martinez(77)

jmartinez1503 — 2025-09-30 19:20:52 UTC

The comment I agreed with the most is that AVID should be mandatory at least in freshman year. A lot of students do not know what being A-G is and some kids here will probably never know because no one taught them about it. If we were to make AVID mandatory even if the students do not continue to do all 4 years of AVID they will at least be more aware and have a better understanding.

Lessly Villasenor (75)

lvillasenor21 — 2025-09-30 19:21:00 UTC

A comment I agreed with the most was that parents assume that high school will automatically prepare their students for college. Some parents are not connected with the school's social media or programs and are not informed that high school does not necessarily prepare their students for college. High school is just what gets them started but there are some factors and courses that not all high school students are aware of and have taken.

Jared Caldino (75 words)

jcaldino1 — 2025-09-30 19:21:07 UTC

The comment I agreed with is that schools do not prepare students well enough in college. Many students going into college do not have a good plan for college. Some students may assume that their journey will just work out. This is more heavy on community college students who plan on transferring to a 4 year. Some students are unaware of credits that they need to transfer or the certain classes they need to take.

Jennifer Mauricio (87 Words)

jmauricio006 — 2025-09-30 19:21:22 UTC

The comment that I agreed with the most was that high-schoolers are ignorant when it comes to education after graduating high school. After this comment, someone mentioned that most students cannot advocate for themselves and primarily rely on the little passionate teachers or counselors that are provided at their high school. Also, schools need to prioritize educating high-schoolers on A-G eligibility because most students who are not in AVID are basically clueless. People need to advocate AVID as well and talk to their counselor 1 on 1.

Jack Callo (97 words)

jcallo21 — 2025-09-30 19:21:26 UTC

I believe the comment I agreed with the most is the overall topic about A-G and AVID requirements. I believe that many students don't know or understand what A-G or AVID really is. Both of these can stunt the student and their ability to graduate on time and move on to the next step. I believe schools should have a way to inform everyone about both subjects, or make AVID a required class to graduate (at least for a year), for someone to have guidance for what they want to do in the future after high school.

Camila Anaya

canaya22 — 2025-09-30 19:21:32 UTC

A comment in the seminar that i was most proud of was ¨making avid a year requirement because The comment I was most proud of in the seminar was suggesting that AVID should be a year-long requirement. I felt this was important because AVID provides students with essential skills, guidance, and support that help them succeed academically and personally. Making it a required year ensures that more students benefit from the program, including those who might not otherwise have access to advisory, college prep resources, or consistent mentorship. It promotes equity and preparation for the future.

Andrea Licea (130)

alicea41 — 2025-09-30 19:21:47 UTC

If I had the opportunity to revisit the seminar the statement that I would add into the conversation would be to talk more about how AVID has helped students and the way it should be a requirement. This was brought up in my group but it was also later on talked by the second group. I thought it was very interesting and would help us understand more into why we are here and why we chose to stay even tho AVID is an elective and takes space in our schedule. I would also talk about why going to a 4 year is better in the long run because many people still believe that going to a 2 year is cheaper and is easy to transfer when in reality its not.

Alex Cortez (115)

acortez202 — 2025-09-30 19:22:08 UTC

The comment that I was most proud of making was talking about how we can spread the word about AVID. What I said was that we can have someone go into freshman classrooms or even other grades and just give a simple presentation on what AVID is all about and maybe persuade students to take it. Ms. Scardino did the same thing last year, she went to all of the Junior English classes and discussed the possibility of joining the Harry Potter class and it got students interested in taking the class. If we did the same thing for AVID I’m sure there would be students out there who would highly consider taking the class.

Laynee Flores (78)

lflores1417 — 2025-09-30 19:22:17 UTC

The comment I disagreed with the most was when someone asked how we would defend the statement that community colleges are key for successfully getting a bachelors later at a four year. I disagreed with this because there is such a high percentage of people that do not even transfer out of a Community College. The Community College route also does not prepare students for a four year so they will be behind when they start to transfer.

Leslie Sierra

lsierra116 — 2025-09-30 19:22:28 UTC

I disagreed the most with students talking about going to a community college with the highest chance of transferring to to a 4 year. It may be beneficial for students who live at or near Santa Monica because they are staying close to home in a city that they are familiar with. For a students that is living in Camarillo, you will most likely spend around or even more money than what you would spend going straight to a 4 year. You are looking on spending money for transportation, food, and living area. I truly believe that if a student wants to go to community college they should stay local but stay aware that the transferring process is difficult. (119 words)

Stanley (76)

sfiliaga1 — 2025-09-30 19:22:38 UTC

if I were to give a letter grade to our Socratic seminar I would give it like a B because I feel like we got into some pretty good discussions and we were able discuss our thoughts on what could help out students more this year to bring up stats from last year like making sure our A-G stats come up and beat the percentage that we were last year and making sure everyone graduates A-G.

Halle Kirksey (78 words)

hkirksey1 — 2025-09-30 19:23:36 UTC

If I could go back and revisit the seminar, I would make the statement that includes adding onto the topic of AVID being a required 9th grade class. I would love to add onto this by saying I agree with this, but for me I think it should be a required class each year. I think AVID being required all four years would show an insane differences in our statistic for graduation rates, and A-G rates as well.

Jerome Esguerra (110)

jesguerra21 — 2025-09-30 19:23:51 UTC

I would give both our groups a B+ for our Socratic Seminar Discussion because I think that the participation was really high- along with the amount of subjects we covered in a span of 12-13 minutes. One small improvement I think we can make in our discussion is to include more people in the conversation. There were some people who spoke only once throughout the whole discussion. Without a doubt, I was one of those people, so that's something I need to improve on myself for future discussions. At the same time, people need to be more accountable for themselves and their participation, and to get out of their shells.

Melanie Agopian (112)

magopian1 — 2025-09-30 19:24:06 UTC

The comment that I agreed with the most was the comment that being A-G should be a high school requirement. I agreed with this comment because I took notes on the interactive A-G data maps, and I saw how many schools in areas I know that had high percentages of students lacking A-G courses. This is a major reason why many students attend community colleges. Even if they wanted to attend 4-year universities, they couldn’t because they wouldn’t be eligible. Many students in high school aren’t even aware of what being A-G is, which is the devastating part. Therefore, having A-G be a requirement for high schoolers could boost those percentage numbers. (112)

Jared Caldino (117 words)

jcaldino1 — 2025-09-30 19:24:12 UTC

The comment that I disagreed with the most is that parents are the main reason on why students do not go to college. While parents may heavily influence or aid students to going to college, I do not think they are the determining factor on why students go to college. I think the root of the problem is in high school. I think most students do not know what A-G is. This is an issue because if you aren't A-G, you can not apply to any CSU or UC school. I think high schools should have a class for one semester or year about A-G or college readiness to inform students about college to better prepare them.

Alex Cortez (77)

acortez202 — 2025-09-30 19:24:34 UTC

If I were to give myself a letter grade for the seminar I would go with either a B+ or an A-. This is because in the first round I only spoke once but after I talked with Halle about what else I can say or contribute to the table I ended up talking a lot more and sharing more thoughts and opinions that I had on my own topics and other peoples for the second round.

Gracie Johnson(82)

gjohnson119 — 2025-09-30 19:24:45 UTC

The comment that I agreed with the most was that AVID should be required at-least for freshmen year. There are so many students who don't even know what AVID is and I think if it could be a required class for freshman it could not only help them start off their high school experience on the right foot and teach them proper note taking skills but could also recruit so many new people that otherwise would not have known what AVID is.

Jennifer Mauricio (110 Words)

jmauricio006 — 2025-09-30 19:25:00 UTC

If I had an opportunity to revisit the seminar, I would ask a question. Before the seminar begun, I wrote down a few questions. My favorite was: Do you think community college students or students who immediately go to 4-year colleges are more financially stable? This is because it could spark a debate about the short term and long term benefits. For instance, those who are "undecided" on their major will save money by not taking classes that are related to a major they might regret taking. However, some May mention how community college students waste money because they might have to take an extra year in a 4-year college.

Tyler Hiji (93)

thiji1 — 2025-09-30 19:25:06 UTC

The comment that I agreed the most with is that. "High schools don't fully prepare students for college." I agree with this because they really don't. I stand by what I think which is that the schools don't advertise or make it seem like everyone should go to college. I feel like I never see anything about colleges, or it's just the bare minimum. They really need to have more stuff about college, and show that they care about it. I also think that the counselors should do a better job with this.

cali Howe (99)

chowe23 — 2025-09-30 19:25:06 UTC

I was very proud of the fact that the A-G rates got brought up. The percentages that were on there show how much support schools have. I was looking at the map, and it showed that the schools that had lower A-G rates were like continuation schools. I think those schools alone should have the MOST support and help. More importantly, I still think we need more counselor meetings with everyone because they are the only ones who talk about A-G half of the time,e but they still don't talk about it enough unless you are in AVID.

Arianna Rodriguez (78)

arodriguez1712 — 2025-09-30 19:25:11 UTC

The comment I was most proud of saying was when I made a statement about majority of CC students being minorities because schools that have majority minorities don't have that level of education to be able to give to the students. The saying that you are what your around also makes this statement more true because if your only surrounded by kids who don't have access to education you yourself wont be able to get good important education.

Josh Martinez(83)

jmartinez1503 — 2025-09-30 19:25:14 UTC

If I were to revisit the seminar I would ask more questions but also give better responses. I felt like I did good with asking questions but not as much as giving good answers or more in depth answers. So I would try to explain my answers more and also ask better questions so that our group could also come together and go into depth about said questions. I also wished I went more into the stats instead about the topics in general.

Cody Deffenbaugh (82 words)

cdeffenbaugh1 — 2025-09-30 19:25:23 UTC

If I could revisit the seminar, I would want to ask about the independence of students and if they are benefited more by it. I was wondering if there are more benefits to a student staying independent and I wish I would've asked that. I would also question more about the area that I live in and what our demographics look like. I could then research some more about how the data is spread out and talk to my group about that.

Stanley(77)

sfiliaga1 — 2025-09-30 19:26:30 UTC

if I had the opportunity to revisit a question during the Socratic seminar I would want to talk about the transfers and what schools could do to improve the amount of students that have successfully transferred. I feel like it is not talked about enough on why so many CC's fail to help students transfer. like in the article it says that they lack the support they need in order to transfer to a 4 year college

Andrea Licea (96)

alicea41 — 2025-09-30 19:26:44 UTC

If I were to give a letter grade for the seminar the grade I would give would be an A overall for my group. This is because I felt that many of my classmates came prepared and with questions that made us analyze the content deeper. The topics would naturally shift without having an awkward silence in between. The comments said were also very focused on the main theme while also bringing other topics such as how high schools prepare students for college rather than only focusing on the comparison and contrast of the 2 years and 4 years.

Lessly Villasenor (81)

lvillasenor21 — 2025-09-30 19:26:49 UTC

A comment I disagreed with the most is that if you start at a community college you will be saving money. This is sadly not the case because with the information the article provided us it mentions that if you do start at a C.C. to earn a bachelor's degree, it will take you longer to complete. It will probably take you longer than 2 years which will lead to you having to end up spending money you were saving.

Lukas Huizar (84)

lhuizar2 — 2025-09-30 19:27:09 UTC

The comment that I agreed with the most was that counselors lack to educate non-AVID students on A-G requirements. This is shown in the data. 45% of students at ACHS are not A-G, and I believe this is because counselors do not really help them as much or educate them on A-G. They should be teaching them about A-G requirements and talking to more of their students. Some kids probably do know their stuff, but others are probably not very educated on these things.

Laynee Flores (90)

lflores1417 — 2025-09-30 19:27:21 UTC

The comment I agreed with the most was when someone said that more people need to be notified of what A-G requirements are and how they are going to be notified. I think counselors should emphasize the importance of it but I also think the school as a whole should be notifying students about them. I didn’t even know what A-G was before I got into AVID and I was just planning on following the classes my sister took. AVID should be a required class at least for freshman year.

Leslie Sierra

lsierra116 — 2025-09-30 19:27:26 UTC

I agreed the most with the topic of all students taking AVID at least one year. I depend so much on AVID when it comes to college, money, and scholarships, I think every student should have the ability to experience what AVID is like and what it can teach you. AVID should be required for all incoming freshmans. It is a great resource for students who don't know how to receive information about college or don't know what they want to do in the future. Every student in high school should know what the A-G requirements are. How is one aware of their academic progress without it? Therefore, I truly believe that Avid should be required for all freshman's. (119 words)

Jerome Esguerra

jesguerra21 — 2025-09-30 19:27:49 UTC

If I had another opportunity to revisit the seminar, I would make an effort to address more of the students themselves, and how they should take accountability for themselves. Because I feel like, part of the reason why a lot of students aren't earning bachelor's degrees, or are struggling with transferring to four-years is because they aren't holding themselves accountable and taking action. I think this is a point that could've been mentioned in the discussion.

Camila Anaya

canaya22 — 2025-09-30 19:27:53 UTC

I disagreed with the comment that “a big reason students don’t often go to college is because of their parents” because it oversimplifies a complex issue. Many factors influence a student’s decision to attend college, including financial constraints, personal interests, academic readiness, and access to resources. While parents can have an impact, it is not usually the main reason students choose not to pursue higher education. Other systemic and individual factors play a much larger role. (76)

Josh Martinez(78)

jmartinez1503 — 2025-09-30 19:29:01 UTC

The comment I had disagreed with the most is that Community College is essential for a four year. While students who transfer from a two year college into a four year college can benefit from that four year it overall does not have a big effect on the school or student. Also there are a lot more students who just go straight into a four year school rather than transferring so I do not think it is essential

Jennifer Mauricio (89 Words)

jmauricio006 — 2025-09-30 19:29:27 UTC

The comment that I did not agree with the most is the idea of making community college classes transferable to all 4-year colleges, which would push people to go to community college before transferring to a 4-year. This is because although it would save money to transfer instead of immediately going to a 4-year after high school, there would be no point in offering immediate 4-year undergraduate applications. I believe that if all community college credits would transfer, all general education classes should not be taught at 4-year colleges.

Tyler Hiji (81)

thiji1 — 2025-09-30 19:30:18 UTC

If I were to give myself a grade on this seminar I would give myself a B. This is because I responded pretty good to questions, but throughout this I lacked asking my own questions, which I think would make a bigger impact on the seminar. However I think my responses were good enough to get me to a B or maybe a B+. If I had a question or 2 I would say I deserve an A on this assignment.

Jared Caldino (112 words)

jcaldino1 — 2025-09-30 19:30:29 UTC

If I had an opportunity to revisit the seminar, I would ask, "The United States used to lead the world in the number of college graduates in the population, why don't we anymore? Have other countries surpassed the United States, or has the United States education decreased? I would ask this question because I would like to hear other people's opinions on this question. I think the United States education has decreased because of COVID. I think high schools have become a little softer and made it easier for students to graduate high school. Because of this students are not prepared enough for college which causes students to drop out of college.

Cali Howe (77)

chowe23 — 2025-09-30 19:31:10 UTC

If I were to give us a letter grade, I would probably give it a B. I would give it that because I think we all collectively made really good points, and we all talked very well. I also think that we could have added more and talked a little bit more about the percentages and some more about the UCs and CSUs. And I think there could be more conversation about the questions that were asked.

Camila Anaya

canaya22 — 2025-09-30 19:31:24 UTC

I would say I disagreed with the comment that students often don’t go to college because of their parents because it overlooks the many other factors involved. Decisions about higher education are influenced by financial challenges, personal goals, academic preparation, and the availability of support and resources. While parents can have some influence, they are not usually the primary reason a student chooses not to attend college. Multiple social, economic, and personal factors play a much stronger role.

Tyler Hiji (81)

thiji1 — 2025-09-30 19:36:42 UTC

The comment in the seminar that I was most proud of is that I answered a question about who is the blame on why students don't have a high A-G rate. I said that it is mainly the students fault because they high school or education system could have all the information in front of you, but its really the students job to retain that information and use the resources for your own good. You cant blame the system if the students don't want it.

Leslie Sierra

lsierra116 — 2025-09-30 19:40:07 UTC

I would overall give myself a C. I did respond to a couple of questions and answered one but I do think I could have done better, 100%. I think I definitely was more on the quiet side and would have liked it more if I stepped out of my comfort zone. Next time I would much rather talk a lot more and even take more notes during the Socratic seminar and give my opinion a lot more. (78 words)

Laynee Flores (79)

lflores1417 — 2025-09-30 19:43:12 UTC

The comment I was most proud of was when I suggested that during freshman year or before freshman year, students should have a debrief with their counselor talking about A-G and graduation requirements and then they can plan out their classes for the next four years. I think if we did this kids would already be aware of the options they have and we would have a higher percentage of kids not only graduating, but graduating with A-G met.

Melanie Agopian (86)

magopian1 — 2025-09-30 23:42:43 UTC

The comment I disagree with the most was the comment about how 2-year colleges are essential for 4-year universities. I disagree with this statement because I don’t believe that every student needs to go through community college in order to succeed in a 4-year university. In my opinion, if the students are somewhat prepared, then community college would act as an unnecessary step. While many have different opinions on community colleges, I don’t believe it is essential or necessary for the transition to a four-year university. (86)

Melanie Agopian (101)

magopian1 — 2025-09-30 23:56:57 UTC

If I had an opportunity to revisit the seminar, I would make the statement that close to all schools have poor advising on A-G data as well as on attending a 2 year school versus a 4 year school. I would then follow up with a question about what we can encourage that staff at schools actively do to increase their numbers of students who are A-G. I think that it’s great that we identified the issue but now we need to decide what the best plan would be to work towards better advising and informing students about possible future paths. (101)

Cali Howe (88)

chowe23 — 2025-10-01 04:33:57 UTC

If I could revisit the Socratic seminar, I would talk more about the bachelor's degrees and why it takes longer to get a bachelor's degree if you go to a community college. That just blows my mind when people say that. I would also bring up the transferring. The transfer process is extremely difficult and I would have wanted to go more into depth about it. Also why students who can afford 4 year colleges choose to go to a community college?

Andrea Licea (110)

alicea41 — 2025-10-01 07:08:05 UTC

The comment that I agree with the most would be that AVID and being A-G should be a requirement for high school students. This is because the program is designed to give you advice and support for college. You spend a whole class period learning and exploring about college to help you later on. I think it should be taken by freshman but most importantly by seniors since they will have the time and guidance when applying to schools. In addition, being A-G will ensure that students not only graduate from high school in good standing but also give them the option to go to college If they want to.

Andrea Licea (87)

alicea41 — 2025-10-01 07:14:12 UTC

The comment that I disagreed with the most was that the ones to blame on why students are not attending college is because of their parents. I personally do not agree with this since there are many 1st gen students who have all of the responsibility in their back. They need to figure things out on their own and do not have that opportunity to ask for help when they need it. Some parents might know more than others but overall it should not be their fault.

Jerome Esguerra ()

jesguerra21 — 2025-10-01 15:39:28 UTC

Jack Callo (114 words)

jcallo21 — 2025-10-01 15:53:26 UTC

The comment I disagreed with the most is that it isn't the students' fault that they aren't A-G. Even though it can be challenging to stay informed across different schools, and the learning environment may not be the same for everyone, you still need to keep on top of your work/learning. Yes, students might not have the proper guidance on the classes they should take or the classes they need, but they could also be slacking off on their work, messing it up for themselves in the future. So I believe that it can be on the student for not staying on track, or at least getting the classes done that they have.

Jack Callo (93 words)

jcallo21 — 2025-10-01 16:35:54 UTC

If I were to grade our seminar, I would probably give it a B-. I think our group had a productive conversation, and we maintained it for the majority of the time. However, there were times when we would have pauses, which could've been filled with another point. Also, another thing to mark us down on is the number of people talking. There were definitely people who talked way more than others. I think we need to have more people who either answered the questions or gave out new points to think about.

Jerome Esguerra (84)

jesguerra21 — 2025-10-01 17:24:35 UTC

A point brought up in the Socratic Seminar that I agree with the most is how much programs such as AVID benefit students and their preparation for college as a whole. For me, AVID has helped me grow in many aspects. Without a doubt, I wouldn't have known as much about college as I do now, nor about how to make myself stand out as an applicant. But mainly, it has made me more well-rounded as not only a student, but a person overall.

Leslie Sierra

lsierra116 — 2025-10-02 06:32:37 UTC

If I were to revisit the seminar I would bring up the infromation I recieved from the articles. There were a lot of good points that the articles went over such as graduation rates from different schools and a comparison between money from a 2 and a 4year. I would go back an give a lot more examples and prepare myself a lot more with thought ahead questions and an idea already in my head on what I will bring up in the socratic seminar.(85 words)

Lessly Villasenor (84)

lvillasenor21 — 2025-10-02 16:46:40 UTC

If I had an opportunity to revisit the socratic seminar a statement I would bring into the conversation would be how could we advertise AVID to the lower grades? The idea of making it a mandatory class for the 9th graders is not a bad idea but maybe it could be mandatory up until your sophomore year and then decide whether to stick with it or not. I feel like your sophomore year is when AVID really starts to teach you more about colleges.

Lessly Villasenor (75)

lvillasenor21 — 2025-10-02 16:57:08 UTC

If I were to give a letter grade for the seminar I would give it a B. I would say our group did a great job discussing and asking questions. The conversations did a good job on ping-ponging back and forth with some students answering each other's questions. Another thing that was done well was providing evidence when disagreeing with someone's questions or claim and getting the point across to the rest of the students.

Gracie Johnson(88)

gjohnson119 — 2025-10-02 19:25:33 UTC

If I were to give our class a grade for our Socratic Seminar I would give us a A-. I think my group did very well at not having any silences and kept a consistent conversation going. I give us a low A because while we could have had stronger topics it was our first Socratic Seminar of the year and we are off to a pretty good start. I also think we did a good job at feeding off each other to keep the conversation running smoothly.

Gracie Johnson(93)

gjohnson119 — 2025-10-02 19:30:58 UTC

If I had the opportunity to revisit the seminar I would bring up the fact that someone in the other circle asked if people agreed with the statement "parents are the main thing keeping students from going to college" I would go back and comment on the fact that I think this is very false. While parents may be a factor for some students regarding where and if they can attend college it is ultimately up to the students whether they want to attend community, a 4 yer, or no college at all.

Arianna Rodriguez(81)

arodriguez1712 — 2025-10-03 16:22:54 UTC

The comment I agreed with the most in the Socratic seminar is that majority of students don't have the correct support and education to be able to be "a-g". The reason a lot of kids are not A-G is because majority do not even know about a-g. Schools need to be upfront about what a-g is even if its not a course taken because students may not know they aren't eligible until it's too late.

Arianna Rodriguez (93)

arodriguez1712 — 2025-10-03 16:28:05 UTC

If I had an opportunity to revisit the seminar the statement I would make is that its a school system issue. The low a-g rate is not just a ACHS or even Ventura county issue. It's a statewide probably nationwide issue. This shows that it's not just a little issue and its a bigger issue that leads back to how the school system is laid out. They need to make it more clear and have resources for kids not in college preparation classes to get higher a-g.

Jerome Esguerra (83)

jesguerra21 — 2025-10-03 16:46:43 UTC

The comment in the seminar that I´m most proud of is the one I made about how not only the lack of guidance to students is linked to the numerous failures of the four-year transfer process. But also the lack of accountability from the student's themselves. Sure, students need guidance to get them in the right direction, but they also need to take action for themselves- because them achieving success (whether in college or beyond) is truly up to them and their commitment.

Jackson Riedmiller (75)

jriedmiller1 — 2025-10-03 19:23:56 UTC

If I had to give a letter grade to our socratic seminar, I would give it a B. The reason I give it a B is because I came prepared and used some evidence, but not every time, and I could have built on others’ comments more. Overall, I contributed to the discussion, but there is still room to grow in preparation, depth, and collaboration.

Jackson Riedmiller (81)

jriedmiller1 — 2025-10-03 19:27:30 UTC

As a group, we agreed that both 2-year and 4-year colleges have valuable benefits depending on a student’s goals. We recognized that 2-year colleges are much more affordable, especially for completing general education classes, and can be a smart way to save money before transferring. At the same time, we agreed that 4-year colleges often provide more opportunities for involvement, resources, and networking, as well as the full “college experience.”

Jackson Riedmiller (80)

jriedmiller1 — 2025-10-03 19:28:16 UTC

I am most proud of how I contributed to the discussion by pointing out that choosing between a 2-year and a 4-year college really depends on a student’s personal goals. I explained that some people might value saving money and transferring later, while others might want to jump straight into the full 4-year college experience. I’m proud because my comment helped the group see both sides fairly and sparked more conversation.

Lukas Huizar (75)

lhuizar2 — 2025-10-03 19:29:14 UTC

If I were to give a letter grade to the seminar, I would give it a B+. Our group was talking the whole time and asking a lot of questions. We did a good job of staying on topic and talking to eachother. We kept it professional and academic the whole time. I think that I did not really do that good of a job becuase I did not talk a lot during the seminar.

Samuel Crowder (117 Words)

scrowder11 — 2025-10-03 19:29:34 UTC

If I had to give a letter grade for the seminar, I would give it an A-. Throughout most of the seminar, everyone was asking questions as well as giving their input, and I think that there was a lot of good comments that were brought to the seminar, including many that talked about the issues that come with transferring from a community college to a 4-year college. One thing that I think holds the seminar back from being an A+ is that there were few comments about who should be held accountable for the lack of care when it comes to advising students about being A-G and transferring to a community college or a 4-year college.

Bianca Lira

blira11 — 2025-10-03 19:34:39 UTC

Lukas Huizar (86)

lhuizar2 — 2025-10-03 19:37:35 UTC

If I had an opportunity to revisit the seminar I would bring up the fact that people who do not transfer to a four year are estimated $500k less in lifetime earnings. This is a lot of money to lose in a lifetime and I wonder if it would change many people's choices on whether or not they should transfer to a four year or stay at a community college. I think am not really sure if this statement would bring up much of a discussion.

Laynee Flores (81)

lflores1417 — 2025-10-03 19:43:42 UTC

If I were to give our Socratic seminar a grade I think I would give it an A-. I think we shared a lot of good topics and ideas with the time we had. We also did a really good job staying away from the awkward silence and kept the conversation rolling. We got everyone to make at least one comment and almost everyone was able to ask a question which was hard with the short amount of time we had.

Samuel Crowder (93 words)

scrowder11 — 2025-10-03 19:54:51 UTC

The comment that I was most proud of during the seminar was my comment about how most institutions don't pay mind to students of color. From there, everyone else in the seminar was able to give their input on this situation. One intriguing reply that I heard was that schools are not putting in the care to help students of color understand what being A-G means and how to become A-G. This led to others sharing their ideas on how to make sure students are able to understand the importance of being A-G.