My colleague wrote an interesting story about a freshman orientation program at Webster Groves High School. You can read it here. It sounds like an excellent way to help students make the transition from middle school to the high school jungle. But what gets me is this paragraph:

The program may be the only one of its kind in the area. Students get a quarter of an elective credit for participating. The students stay in 10 teams, and teams compete throughout the week in activities such as the relay race and a team cheer contest. They’ll also see which team dumps the most change in their team buckets to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

While this sounds like a worthwhile program, why in the world should students receive elective credit for participating in relay races and team cheers? This is purely social learning, not academic. It should not merit academic credit of ANY sort.