Ninth-grade redesign plan needs more conversation

Recently, the Harwood administration revealed a proposal to remove honors classes from the freshman curriculum and create all heterogeneous (mixed ability) classes for incoming ninth-graders. These changes would be part of the administration’s plan to redesign the ninth-grade community. All students, regardless of ability level or interest, would be in the same classes, learning the same material. This is a departure from the current system, where students choose between regular level courses or advanced honors classes.

Under the new design, freshman students who want to receive honors credit for some subjects may elect to take independent studies to go “more in depth.” While the original plan, which was first presented to the school board at the Dec. 19 meeting, was to implement the proposal next year, the administration has delayed implementation until the 2015-2016 school year.

There are several problems with this proposal. First, the reason why teachers decided on the current class structure is because every student learns at a different pace, asks different questions and needs help on different subjects and skill areas. To maximize effective teaching time, students are grouped with peers of similar abilities. If a teacher answers a question from one student, there’s a good chance that many of the other students in the class have the same question.

A second issue is that high school students follow different paths after graduation. One might go on to be a history teacher, another might become an artist, and another might become a mechanic. These different paths should be supported by different course options. One student might take honors history and English, while another focuses on science and math. Creating heterogeneous classes destroys the choices Harwood Union students currently enjoy.

Proponents of these changes say students will be motivated by the performance of other students if honors students are grouped with those who take non-honors classes. It’s unclear how the majority of the student body will benefit from being overshadowed by higher-performing peers.

I had an experience along these lines in elementary school when I was placed in remedial spelling. They didn’t call it that, but I and the handful of other students in the group were a couple of years behind the rest of our grade, and we recognized it. I benefited from being in that class. I felt comfortable working next to people who wouldn’t judge me, because they weren’t better spellers than I was. In addition, there were only five people in the class, and we received more one-on-one help from our teacher than the more advanced students. While I’m still not the greatest speller, I’m no longer significantly deficient in the subject.

Perhaps the greatest flaw with this proposal is the lack of supporting evidence for its success. Despite statements by proponents, there is minimal evidence supporting the effectiveness of heterogeneous classes. While there are scattered studies that could be used in an argument for the proposal, I have found no meta-studies supporting the removal of honors classes. The two meta-studies that I have found, each of which drew off of dozens of studies, found heterogeneous class systems to be inferior to homogeneous class systems. I have also had teachers from other high schools with heterogeneous classes tell me the new system doesn’t work in their schools.

It’s time for the Washington West community to take responsibility for their high school. Too often students, teachers, parents and community members are silent in the decision-making process at Harwood. All of us have, or will have, spent 13 years as students. We owe it to future students to protect their learning opportunities.

Schools are the heart of any community, and to disregard such a vital part of our lives is to throw away our communal bonds of friendship. Our state motto is “Freedom and Unity.” Unity doesn’t mean universal consensus of opinion, but it does mean we need to participate, discuss and make decisions as one community.

While I am confident that this proposal will not be successful in providing a better education to students, I recognize that the administration is trying to do its job, and I believe our community will be able to rally and solve any problem Harwood confronts. It is our job to provide solutions, not just to tell the school “no.”

Ethan Carr, of Moretown, is a senior at Harwood Union High School. To read more comments from students who are concerned about proposed curriculum changes at Harwood, visit facebook.com/groups/568681476540809.