This year, the ASFA Math/Science department began to admit seventh graders for the first time. This allows the Math/Science department to begin instructing kids earlier, though even before the fact there was some strain on the amount of teachers teaching grades 8-12. So, how has the department changed in order to accommodate the new seventh graders?
As it turns out, the scheduling changes as a result of this mainly only affect the eighth graders. To alleviate stress on teachers and shorten the middle-schoolers' day to the standard 8 a.m.-3 p.m. school day, what used to be the eighth graders' ninth period Science specialty class was moved to third and fourth period and made to include both seventh and eighth grades. Similarly, the two grades were grouped together for the Introductory Computer Science class, though here the grades are somewhat separated by period. Since Mathematics courses are on a more linear scale of progression, these remain separate during eighth period, with the seventh graders being taught by Ms. Hungsin Chin, chair of the Math/Science department.
This also raises the question of how the seventh and eighth grade Science and Computer Science classes will exchange material. The current plan is similar to that of third- and fourth-year AP Language classes; even though both classes are combined, they learn the material on a two-year rotation so everyone going through them will cover all the required material. This is a solution for seventh graders, but what about the newly admitted eighth graders? If there are classes on a two-year rotation, then some eighth graders will have to skip some material they would have learned in ASFA’s seventh grade year.
Another consequence of this new schedule is that Math/Science eighth graders no longer have a free elective period. In the past, this period could have been used to begin a world language, and therefore, they could take the language AP in the junior year. With this change, however, taking a language AP requires a commitment in all four of their high school years, and any scheduling conflict with another class disallows them from taking the AP course.
While this may seem like a heavy restriction for some Math/Science students, the effect may be less drastic than it seems at first sight -- other specialties, like music, have never had this option for eighth graders in the first place. And even within Math/Science, courses filling up with older students in previous cases would sometimes have the same effect.
This entire process is still highly experimental, so many of these problems may be addressed in coming years as the processes involved become more refined. It’s even possible that, with some of the new developments, especially regarding the new strategic plan, seventh graders may no longer have to share classrooms with the eighth graders and above. But for that, only time will tell.
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