Plan to eliminate honors classes becomes issue in Bay Area school board races
Some districts have proposed “detracking” — removing accelerated classes — as one way to close persistent academic achievement gaps.
The school board voted last year to eliminate ninth-grade honors biology, placing all students in the same class and asking teachers to “differentiate” instruction for students at different levels.
“Merging courses promotes equity by ensuring all students have access to the same foundational coursework and higher expectations,” according to supporters, Gibbs writes. It removes the stigma of non-honors classes.
But two of the three candidates for two open school-board seats oppose de-laning. “People go to private school and that takes dollars out of the public school system,” said John Craig, an engineer. Tech executive Avery Wang also promises to maintain honors classes. The third candidate, Linda Henigin, a teacher’s aide, said she sides with detracking but also wants students to have access to advanced courses.
“Craig and Wang are part of a larger group of school board candidates across the Bay Area running on the promise to push back against the trend in the region’s school districts — including in Oakland Unified, Fremont Union, Morgan Hill Unified, San Francisco Unified and Los Gatos-Saratoga Unified,” reports Gibbs.
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Related: Madison West High School English 10 and eliminating honors courses.
