MICHELLE WILLARD
Posted: Monday, September 14, 2009 10:26 am

When high school freshmen enter the classroom this fall, they will be met, not only with a need to complete more classes, but also with higher standards.

“It’s going to be a challenge for students, teachers, administrators and everyone involved, but it’s better for the students in the long run,” Tennessee Department of Education Deputy Director of Communications Amanda Maynord Anderson said.

Tennessee students are going to have a harder time in high school starting this year because of the Tennessee Diploma Project, which increases the number of classes required for graduation and raises the bar to pass those classes.

“It will be a challenge,” Rutherford County Schools Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum Don Odom said.

The changes in graduation requirements and curriculum difficulty are intended to better prepare Tennessee students for college and the job market, Anderson said.

Rutherford County freshman will need to complete three additional credits to graduate – a fourth mathematics class is required as is a new class in personal finance and an additional wellness/physical education class – both half credits. RCS added an additional elective credit also, requiring students to complete 23 credits to graduate.

The additional classes will be easier to complete with high schools using a seven-period day this year, Odom said.

The main difference is not necessarily the number of classes required but the extra math, Anderson said.

Rutherford County Schools will offer math support classes for students not gifted with numbers. The system has also hired an extra math teacher for each of the larger high schools to keep up with demand, Odom said.

“If we’re successful with the supports, then we won’t see a drastic change in the graduation rate,” he said.

All students will also be required to complete two years of foreign language, one year of fine arts and complete an elective focus. But students who aren’t going to college may be able to opt out of the language requirement, Odom said.

The elective focus is three elective classes in a certain area, like math and science; career and technical education; or International Baccalaurate, among others.

Odom said the elective focus will help career and technical students the most because it will give them a leg up in industry jobs.

“They’ll come out with a sub-set or beginning set of skills,” he said.

On top of extra classes, students and parents will also see a shift in the difficulty of all the other classes, Anderson said.

“You may be taking the same English course, but it will be more difficult,” she explained. “Even though you’re not taking more courses, … it’s going to be a more in-depth look at it.”

Anderson said the changes are two-fold: first the state wants to make students more competitive on the national level and second the curriculum needs to be more difficult to prepare students for the real world.

“We’re setting up students for what businesses are looking for,” Anderson said. “We want to make sure they get a head start.”

And to make sure high school students get a head start, middle schools and even younger are going to need tougher standards.

“Middle schools are going to have to work to prepare students for the courses,” Anderson said.

Parents of middle school students will see a shift in subject matter with algebra being introduced in the fifth and sixth grades, Odom explained.

“Parents helping students will see the biggest change in math,” he said.

Most Tennessee teachers have been trained in the new standards and eventually all grade levels will see changes in curriculum.

“We’re hoping to take a holistic look and start with the kindergarten students,” Anderson said.

The state is still in the process of developing new standards for elementary and even pre-kindergarten students.

Michelle Willard can be contacted at 615-869-0816 or mwillard@murfreesboropost.com.