The Truth About Honors Classes - S2 Ep5

Mastery For All with Mr. James O'Neal

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I did not know anything about honors classes until my 8th-grade year when I was invited to take Algebra 1 as an accelerated class by Mrs. Simmons. I knew the gifted kids always left our classes and did other things; I just never knew why I was never invited.

After teaching for the last 15 years, I have realized several truths about students who end up in honors classes.

1. They have a larger amount of parental involvement compared to students who are not in these classes.
2. Economically, they are more established.
3. Many of them have had private tutoring and still receive tutoring.
4. They grasp foundational understanding of mathematics much better.
5. Their parents are HIGHLY involved in their schooling.

I repeated the last one on purpose because what I have found is that parental involvement is not just a matter of "care"; it's a socio-economic issue. Parents who have done well in school usually fare better than those who have not and are less intimidated by the system. Therefore, they are more likely to be involved and have higher-paying jobs, which affords them the opportunity to, once again, be involved. I have had the opportunity to interact with families on both sides of the aisle, and I know for a fact that money is a significant indicator of whether a student will be in my advanced classes or not. In this podcast, I share what teaching advanced courses has really taught me about access. #MasteryForAll
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