By Braden Currey
Contributing Writer
Two years ago, the Costa administration decided to cut basic classes, which do not offer eligibility for a four-year college, and students and teachers are negatively affected by the repercussions: College Prep classes are too heterogeneous.
Students in current CP classes vary wildly in levels of skill and academic competency. Classes move too quickly for some students and too slowly for others. The current system is hurting the “middle students,” who are stuck between CP classes below their level and Advanced Placement classes in which they may struggle. Costa needs an overhaul, not only of what constitutes a CP class, but of the entire way it differentiates its curriculum in order to create classes that effectively address the needs of every Costa student, regardless of skill level.
As the system currently works, subjects are either segregated by difficulty, as in CP or AP, or certain subjects like math use “tracks” of courses for year-by-year progression. For example, after taking Geometry, students can choose to take Algebra 3/4 one year and Trigonometry with Probability and Statistics the next year, or take Algebra 3/4 with Trigonometry one year, and proceed directly to Pre-calculus. This type of system is a good start, but students need more of a choice, and it should be expanded to other subjects.
According to a workshop held by the Manhattan Beach Unified School District, Costa used to offer five levels of courses: level three, equivalent to basic classes; level two, aimed at the type of student once served by AVID, a study skills program; and level one, the “standard” class.
In some subjects, students could also choose from two more levels, Honors or AP classes. While the number of AP classes offered at Costa has increased dramatically over the last 30 years, the tiering system has been completely dismantled, streamlining the scheduling system but reducing student’s ability to choose and teacher effectiveness.
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Mira Costa needs to return to a tiered class system. Class structure should start with a base “CP” level, aimed at meeting the curriculum goals set by California for a UC-certified course. Ideally, these courses would move at a slower rate than CP classes today and would offer kids who need to spend more time on core topics the chance to do so without frustrating their peers or becoming lost, filling the gap created by the removal of basic classes.
For the “middle student,” Costa needs to expand the honors program to offer a more in-depth course without the accelerated pace of an AP class. For each existing CP class, there should ideally be an accelerated alternative: either a more in-depth course or one offered in a different format, similar to the senior English seminars. By creating a more differentiated system of classes, the school can help make homogenous environments that will allow teachers to effectively deliver lessons, which will benefit students of all skill levels. It won’t cost the district any more money either as class sizes will remain constant. Students will be with a similarly skilled peer group and teachers can teach in a more specific way.
Instead of fixating on the rate of participation in an AP program that has become increasingly watered down and commercialized, the administration should focus on building an academic system that prioritizes what’s best for each student. Students will perform best academically when offered multiple class choices. Costa students need a classroom filled with their respective intellectual peers, not one where they are intimidated, or frustrated with the pace because they are ill-prepared.
Mira Costa does an excellent job catering to the top and bottom 25% of the class; it’s time for the middle 50% to have a fair and equal chance to succeed both in the classrooms at Mira Costa and at their college education.
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