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Moving out of Algebra I
The decision to drop from Algebra I is important. The information below is meant to help families as they face this decision.
First let’s talk credit:
As you are aware, your student is currently taking Algebra I. Since this is a high school credit course, students receive 0.5 credit for the first semester of Algebra I and 0.5 credit for the second semester of Algebra I. To earn credit for each semester, a student must have an overall semester grade of 70% or higher. An additional way of earning credit for Algebra I is through grade averaging. Essentially, if a student failed one of the semesters of Algebra I but passed the other semester in a way where the overall average for the whole year was above a 70%, the student would earn the 1.0 credit for Algebra I.
Next let’s talk PACE track in high school:
A student who continues on the accelerated track in high school will have the following sequence:
9th: Pre-AP Geometry or Regular Geometry
10th: Pre-AP Alg II or Regular Alg II
11th: Pre-AP Pre-Calc or Regular Pre-Calc
12th: AP Calculus (or AP Statistics)
While it is an option for a student to end their math courses after their 11th grade year with four credits in high school math, this is not recommended by LISD or most colleges.
Next let’s talk about decelerating:
I’d really reflect on this decision as a family and make sure you make it with as much information as possible. Something you may want to reflect on is how your student did in prior math classes. In other words, are there gaps in her learning which is making Algebra I difficult for your student? This is important for two reasons: (1) If your student was to drop back to Math 8, he/she would be learning the exact same skills learned last year as a 7th grader, and (2) If dropping back to Math 8 this year, it would affect the student’s opportunity to take a Pre-AP math class during the 9thgrade year. For instance, the sequence would be as follows:
9th: Algebra I (no Pre-AP option available so weighted on a 5.0 scale)
10th: Pre-AP Geometry or Regular Geometry
11th: Pre-AP Alg II or Regular Alg II
12th: Pre-AP Pre-Calc or Regular Pre-Calc
While your family ultimately can make the decision to stay or move back to Math 8, I would make sure to get as much information and include the teacher in the dialogue as well.
Timing of the deceleration:
If a student does not have huge gaps in the 8th grade material, the timing of the drop back to Math 8 is not a concern. In other words, if a child has shown mastery of the content for the first 12 weeks of Math 8, then there is no hurry to move that student to Math 8 as the material is a repeat. In this case, we might as well allow the student every opportunity to stay in Algebra I. I usually suggest that the student stick with Algebra I as long as possible assuming a few things: (1) It isn’t completely wrecking the students overall world (including UIL eligibility), (2) greater gaps in learning are not being created, and (3) other classes are not being adversely affected.
If the environment is good, I suggest making the decision to stay in Algebra I or drop to Math 8 prior to the end of the first semester. That way your student will not have earned the 0.5 credit and can take Algebra I at VRHS/RHS for original credit for both semesters. If your student stays all the way through the semester and then drops, her grade will be reflected on her high school transcript even after she retakes in high school. If the family is absolutely certain, dropping just before the semester makes certain that the student has a clean slate to take the course again at VRHS/RHS. That’s just my opinion – there are other ways to look at this as well and each decision will be unique for each child’s individual circumstances.
If my student receives credit for Algebra I, can he/she take Algebra I again at VRHS/RHS?
Some families decide to wait the whole year in Algebra I. Then, with a full year under the belt as well as the End of Course exam, the family can decide if they want the student to take Algebra I again at VRHS/RHS and decelerate at that time. Here are the scenarios for this:
If the student has not earned credit for either semester, the student will retake Algebra I at VRHS/RHS for original credit.
If the student has passed one semester and not the other and grade averaging does not allow them to earn credit for the course, the student can either retake only the semester failed at summer school or retake the entire course at VRHS/RHS. For the semester passed, the student would be taking the course for local credit. For the semester failed, the student would be taking the course for original credit.
If the student passed both semesters or earned the 1.0 credit through grade averaging, the student could retake the course but the entire course would be considered local credit since the student has already earned the credit for the course.
Side notes:
High school courses taken at the middle school do not count toward GPA.
High school summer school courses do count toward GPA
Local credit/repeated courses do not count toward the GPA. However, the grade the student receives for all high school courses taken will show up on his/her transcript.
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