NEW STANDARDS
* Half credit of physical education*
* Half credit of personal finance*
* One math class each year of high school*
* Higher standards affecting mostly math and English, approximately a grade level above previous standards
* High school requirement
Source: Hamilton County Schools
Well, kids, vacation is over and it's time again to hit the books.
And this time around, be warned, your classes probably will seem harder. Because they are.
That's the message teachers are giving parents and students today as the Hamilton County Schools system starts classes for the new school year.
This week, public schools across Tennessee begin implementing much-discussed new standards that the state board of education approved last year. They include more rigorous curriculum and testing standards meant to better prepare students for college and the workplace.
"Students are actually going to be learning a whole grade level above what they're in," said Danielle Clark, spokeswoman for Hamilton County Schools. "What was taught in fifth grade last year will be learned this year in fourth grade."
The changes will be seen mostly in math and English, said Ava Warren, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction. Teachers taught the old standards last year until students were finished with state standardized tests, when they got a jump-start on the new material, Dr. Warren said.
Even so, the transition likely will prove challenging, she said.
"We're doing the right thing for students, it's just going to be a little rocky as we make the transition," Dr. Warren said.
And some state officials express concern about how Tennessee will measure up to federal requirements established by the No Child Left Behind Act.
Dr. Connie Smith, the state's assistant commissioner for the division of accountability, teaching and learning, said officials with the U.S. Department of Education told her Tennessee faced "a daunting task" in raising its standards.
"You will see a drop (in test scores) across the state," she said. "I hope I'm wrong, but generally when you transition into a new set of standards, it's called an implementation dip."
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Staff Photo by Dan Henry Fourth grade teachers Katie Hetrick, bottom left, Debbie Rosenow, middle left, and Carrie Hoover, top left, help Katie Beeson, right, prepare for her first year teaching at Battle Elementary the day before the start of the 2009 school year on Tuesday.
In addition to more rigorous coursework and testing, this year's ninth-grade students will have a new set of graduation requirements. To earn a Hamilton County high school diploma, those students now will have to earn a half credit each in physical education and personal finance.
High school students already had to take four math classes, but a new requirement is that they take at least one math course each year of high school. Previously, students who took algebra I in eighth grade didn't have to take a math class their senior year of high school.
Dr. Warren said some teachers spent time this summer and in the last school year learning how to teach the new standards.
"I think the teachers are ready. I just think our students are going to need some support," said Dr. Warren, who added that most schools offer tutoring at various times throughout the day.
Once school starts, parents with questions about the new standards should call their child's school, she said.
"We're all working really hard, and we want parents to understand why we're doing this," she said.
Kelli Gauthier covers K-12 education in Hamilton County for the Times Free Press. She started at the paper as an intern in 2006, crisscrossing the region writing feature stories from Pikeville, Tenn., to Lafayette, Ga. She also covered crime and courts before taking over the education beat in 2007. A native of Frederick, Md., Kelli came south to attend Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in print journalism. Before newspapers, ...
I wonder how they will adjust to skipping ahead a year in learining. What about the stuff they weren't taught last year? Will that conflict their learning process into somehting in a grade higher than they are? I didn't start Algebra 1 until 9th Grade. My daughter as a 4th grader has already been bringing that stuff home. My fear is that since I had so much trouble in math, when she starts to ask me questions and for help with her homework by the time she's in high school, I won't be able to help her because she may be in triginomity or calculas, in which I was never subjected to as a High School student, not even as a Freshman in College. I don't understand why they are trying to push harder and heavier laerning into a kids brain. Kids should be kids and not be stressed about Algebra and Geometry at 9 years old. I think it's about time that they were taught personal finance classes, though, because I was never taught anything about managing a credit card or a personal checking account and when I graduated my senior year at Hisxon, I was given a credit card for my first year of college...big mistake. I didn't no what and APR% rate was or a principal. I didn't know anything about interest... I thought I had free money and could jsut pay on it as I go along.
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