Cabell Midland changing freshman honors course

ONA — Cabell Midland’s achievement levels have not improved in reading, language arts and math for a number of years, so the school is making a significant change, hoping to trigger higher scores.

The long-standing, cross-curriculum humanities course, which started at Milton High School and continued at Cabell Midland, will become a requirement instead of an option for incoming freshmen starting next school year. All freshmen will be required to take the honors-level course, but those wanting the honors credit will be able to put together a portfolio.

While Principal David Tackett and Assistant Superintendent over School Improvement Geraldine Sawrey believe this will be a success, some parents are convinced teachers will teach to the middle. They’re afraid the lower-level learners will benefit at the cost of the high-level learners.

“If all the students are in there, then the learning level of the honors students won’t reach its potential,” parent Nancy Newfeld said.

Her son, Eric, now a sophomore, said the freshman humanities class, which covers English and history, was rigorous and questions whether teachers will be able to present it at the same level. He said they did advanced reading, had thorough discussions on deep topics and also did an in-depth poetry project that included defending the poem’s killer as clinically insane in today’s time.

“The amount of kids who would be saved will not be as many as those who will be brought down,” Eric Newfeld said of the change. “This can work, if it’s done with the right support.”

Mary and Bill Niemann, educators and parents of one current and one future Cabell Midland student, also believe making the class mandatory for freshmen will not be successful. But Tackett said freshmen need to be introduced to high school with a course that challenges them. If they succeed, they can choose to take the humanities course in 10th and 11th grade.

“Our ultimate hope, our goal, is to raise the achievement level of the students involved in this project,” Tackett said.

Starting Jan. 18, the humanities teachers will begin staff development on differentiated instruction, a concept that maximizes learning for all students, regardless of skill level or background. According to http://differentiatedinstruction.com, the instructor uses the best teaching practices and strategies to create different pathways that respond to the needs of diverse learners.

Sawrey said students will be able to utilize their own strengths, which means high-level learners shouldn’t be negatively impacted.

“We are in no way discouraging higher-level thinking,” Sawrey said. “I think (students) will be very pleasantly surprised at the level of rigor.”