Another Graduation Question

[AGDee]

They announced a bit of a warning before Hypo's graduation about it being a serious ceremony and applause was expected but screaming and whistling was not. Some people did it anyway. The same ones who did during every concert, etc.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by AGDee

They announced a bit of a warning before Hypo's graduation about it being a serious ceremony and applause was expected but screaming and whistling was not. Some people did it anyway.

A similar announcement was made before my son's middle school graduation. (Yeah, I know.) After it was all over, he commented that he guessed all the kids in his school who seemed to be incapable of following simple directions came by it naturally.

[ASTalumna06]

At my high school graduation in 2002, cheering loudly and extensively was discouraged - with over 900 students to get through, they had to say everyone's name pretty quickly, and they didn't want anyone's name to get drowned out. I remember them saying, "I'm sure you would be upset if you couldn't hear your own child's name, so please don't ruin this day for someone else."

No one went crazy then, or at my college graduation in 2006, but of course it happens.

Whether it's become worse recently, I don't know.

[carnation]

I've seen some of it at college graduations, which I find really appalling given the tradition and planning that go into graduation ceremonies. It can ruin high school ceremonies too, though.

Our kids' high school has tried out various measures to stop the rudeness. The only one to have much of an effect was limiting the number of graduation tickets to 5 per graduate. This infuriated some parents but then they were the same kind of enabling parents who go ballistic when they find out that kids who don't pass senior year don't get to walk at graduation until the year they do. This year, I only heard 3 air horns and that's quite an improvement. A nearby high school has had some improvement by stationing the coaches in the aisles of the stadium.

The thing that makes me angriest, though, is when graduates' names aren't heard because the family of the one before them played the fool because they decided it was their right. To heck with anybody else's kid!