For high school seniors next year, there will be no regular English class.
There has been a debate about which 12th grade English class the English Department will offer next year: CIS (College In School) or AP (Advanced Placement). It does not include regular English.
The head of the department, Mrs. Pimlott, explained the differences between CIS and AP. “Both of them are taught at college level, so students experience a class as if they were freshmen on a college campus,” she said.
“The main difference is that CIS deals with, writes about, talks about, reads, more contemporary literature. AP is much more rigid in that it reflects what English teachers call the ‘canon’, and these are books that have been established as classics throughout time.”
This change away from regular English would create more work for the teachers. Both AP and CIS teachers have to be certified to teach these classes.
“AP teachers are certified through the college board certified transfer, usually in a summer session,” said Mrs. Pimlott, who went through an AP training course that was 5 days a week, 8 hours a day. “CIS teachers are trained by the University of Minnesota, because the CIS class has to be exactly like a freshman would get sitting on the campus of U of M.”
But how much more work for the student? Mrs. Pimlott said the work load is not that different between regular English and AP English. There is more reading in AP English, and the classes study different literature.
The biggest difference is that AP English moves further in their readings every day, so students who fall behind will not be able to pass the tests.