MBUSD holds CP class workshop

By Courtney Hughey
Staff Writer

The Manhattan Beach Unified School District and Costa teachers discussed college preparatory classes at the Dec. 6 MBUSD Board of Trustees meeting.

Common Core State Standards alignment, smaller class sizes and course rigor were the main topics at the MBUSD workshop.

“These workshops were interactive,” Board President Ellen Rosenberg said. “We get a perspective on how to reach goals that the district is proposing.”

The discussion was dedicated to whether or not decreasing class sizes is a legitimate solution to creating a more effective learning environment for students.

“Class sizes are a very pivotal focus of any learning environment,” Costa English teacher and department chair Pamela Jenning said. “We want to look at it in terms of how the curriculum is delivered to give students the opportunity to improve their learning experience.”

According to Costa Vice Principal Ian Drummond, financial limitations are an obstacle in making immediate changes to classes.

“I don’t think it is possible to reduce class sizes right now,” Drummond said. “Budget constraints limit what the district is able to do.”

The workshop attempted to propose goals to increase consistency within departments by establishing a Common Core Alignment in CP classes. This program would include common student evaluations, department collaboration and similar grading strategies.

MBUSD staff emphasized the importance of helping the “middle student” in the workshop.

“We want to provide resources for students in order for them to be successful,” Board member Bill Fournell said. “We want to make sure that CP classes are challenging students.”

MBUSD has observed Palos Verdes School District’s common classroom program as an example of a program that could be used to improve CP classes.

“There’s a hypothesis at [PVSD] that students who are successful tend to be with the same successful students from freshman to senior [year],” Fournell said. “Maybe there could be a program where students could work with other students at the same performance level.”

At the next district board meeting on Jan. 16, MBUSD will continue to discuss these issues.

“CP classes should be rigorous enough for students,” Jenning said. “I hope these discussions can find ways for improvement.”