Before the era of Facebook, relationship statuses, instant messaging and iFlurtz questionnaires, teenagers had to cope with the same ups and downs of relationships in high school. Couples in the halls and public displays of affection were as prevalent before as they are now. However, teachers almost a decade in age difference responded with vastly different accounts of high school dating experiences. Through the years, relationship trends have varied from the exclusive long term relationship to the blurry casual relationships.


The official couple:

    As for relationship statuses, prior to Facebook, couples had a more difficult time publicly announcing their relationship. 

  “It was all kind of blurry when you went official,” said social studies teacher and Charles W. Woodward (currently Tilden Middle School) graduate Michael Williams.  “One person might have thought you were a couple but then the other partner would think ‘oh, we’re just hanging out.’”  However, customs existed such as the exchanging of class rings or jackets that still allowed couples to publicly announce their relationships.

    “We were a lot more into school rings back then, so when you went out with someone, you’d give them your school ring,” said English teacher and High Point High School in Prince George’s County graduate Melanie MacFadden.

    The typical “dinner and a movie” date was the most popular. Rockville and Bethesda were not as developed, so destinations such as Georgetown were hotspots for couples to go on dates. 

   Just like the relationships of today, some relationships were short-lived while others lasted through college. 

    “If you were going out for two months, that was for real,” said Williams. However relationships also typically lasted into college.    

“[Relationships] would tend to last into college because back 25 years ago we tended to not look at as many options,” said MacFadden.  “At my high school, most of us ended up going to [University of] Maryland, so you ended up with the same group of people.”

The last time a man swept the damsel in distress off her feet was probably during the age of knights in shining armor. However, without the ability to send an impersonal breakup text, relationships were typically more polite and chivalrous.

“I think that manners overall are a little bit more lax than they were 20 or 30 years ago,” said MacFadden.

…and now

Although the fundamentals of relationships have not changed from a few decades ago, relationships today are progressing faster than ever with new inventions and new ways to communicate. Text messaging allows for non-stop communication and web cameras can make long distance relationships more bearable by providing face-to-face contact.

“[Communicating through technology] has become basically 50 percent of the relationship,” said senior Natalia Wannon. “There is a lot less human to human contact.”

In a survey conducted in 12 third period classes from February 17 to February 23. 47 percent of students said that a relationship is official when their significant other calls them and asks them to be in a relationship. But without the exchanging of class rings or letter jackets, how do couples announce their relationship to their friends?

“A relationship is official when you tell all your friends or when it’s on Facebook,” said senior Jean Ra.

Relationships are easy to broadcast over Facebook through the various selections of relationship statuses. However, statuses can also lead to very public and uncomfortable breakup announcements.

    With the many renovations and new developments being built in the Montgomery County area, it would seem that there would be many more options for a typical date. However, many couples prefer to “hang out” at each other’s house or go to the movies.

“We like going to Rio to eat or see a movie or my boyfriend just comes over to my house,” said Ra.

“A thing that has changed is that there are no more arranged marriages,” said sophomore Dennis Tran. While there may not be any more arranged marriages or even high school relationships that end in marriage, relationships at WJ vary. Some couples last into college while others break up after a few weeks.

“I know that my friends and I are more into long term relationships but I know that at parties people are more into hookups,” said Wannon. However, recently, more people have become interested in long-term relationships.

“I kind of see the trend returning to more longer term relationships in comparison to five years ago,” said MacFadden.

Today’s first dates are less likely to involve bringing flowers and expensive chocolates or opening the car door.

“Back in the day guys seemed a lot more romantic,” said Wannon. “Guys have become a lot less creative.”