Have you ever wondered just how many people would shove, push, or even knock you down in the hallways each day? I have, and on October 29, I decided to find out for myself, so I performed the most obnoxious hallway gesture: I stood in the middle of every ones way. After each one of my classes, I stood in the middle of the hallway and counted how many times I was shoved out of the way.

My experiment started outside the journalism room before first block. These times of day is normally when most people are slower, more tired, and tend to not be as aggressive. The day started off slow, only eight students bumped into me. None of the bumps were particularly painful, but I heard no apologies.

After first block, I went to the math wing where I stood in the middle of the hallway. This is about the time when most people feel more awake, so maybe it would be worse the second time around. This time ten people bumped into me. Once again none of them were painful, but there were also no apologies.

After the first half of school was over, I thought maybe my previous opinion was wrong. Then, I stood outside of the JAG classroom, where I was shoved, pushed, and almost knocked down twenty-one times. Apparently lunch had sparked the violence in the students.

I thought that after the third block massacre the hallway rudeness could not get worse, but I was wrong, again.

During the fourth block hall change, I again stood outside of the journalism room to see if the problem had gotten better or worse. My results were shocking, not only did I get shoved for a daily high of twenty-six; I also heard quite a few unkind comments.

Fearing for my life, I refused to stand in any hallway after the dismissal bell.

After being shoved sixty-five times, I decided that I think some people in the school need to enroll in anger management classes. Hall change shouldn’t be a war zone; children should be able to tend to their studies without fear.

I think that if all of the students here at Keyser High School tried to be more tolerant of their fellow classmates in the hallways then KHS would be a much better place to be.

Words like “Excuse me” in place of shoves and curses can get someone farther in life and in the hallway. So in conclusion, let’s help to make hall change a kinder, friendly place and use some manners or invest in stoplights and traffic signs.