Last year EUHSD noticed there was an issue with freshmen being credit deficient in English. To be able to graduate students need 40 English credits. Students receive 10 credits for the year long class or five credits per semester. When students fail one or more semesters they end up credit deficient.
“When you fall behind, It can kind of lead to not getting more credits and falling further and further behind, and you keep feeling defeated,” English teacher, Katelynn Beamish, said.
After the district saw a need for credit recovery options for students, the Teachers Union helped come to an agreement on how students could recover credits in this class. They focused on the workload and what would be expected of the teacher. Beamish volunteered to teach the class. She became part of a group with people from the district and other teachers that worked to create the curriculum for this class.
“Each teacher brought their unique strengths, insights, and experiences, which allowed us to create a curriculum that was meant to meet student needs,” A-G coordinator, Carissa Duran, said.
The Project Based Learning credit recovery English class became available for enrollment this school year. The idea behind the class was that students can get 10 credits in one semester by completing two projects. Beamish co-teaches this class with Aaron Vargas, Teacher candidate. Vargas is a candidate from Point Loma Nazarene University. This class is a smaller group with about 15 students currently enrolled. A small group allows students more one-on-one support between the students and teacher.
Beamish helps students find the task they need to work on.
(Amber Cardenas)
“If I’m stuck on something like a writing part, I just ask for help and she knows how to explain it really well,” Hugo Escalante, 9, said.
A main focus for this class is giving students valuable life skills. Using arguments, claims and evidence is something all students learn in English class, but this class teaches students how to apply these concepts to real life. The curriculum for this class is different so students don’t have to struggle through concepts taught in a way that didn’t work for them last semester. Instead students get to choose what they want to write about and apply it to their life.
“I’m working on a project about role models, and I wanted to do It because I have a little sister at home, so I want to be a good role model for her,” Escalante said.
The class has a quicker pace, since it’s a semester long. Students in the class say they like how their week is planned out for them because it makes the class feel easier. A typical week consists of Mondays being time to catch up, Wednesdays the students take notes and learn together, and on Fridays the students have time to work on their personalized projects.
“I think this class is important because not only is it helping students to make up their credits and be on track for graduation, but it also is a new way to look at learning,” Beamish said.
