I'm confused... my child took health A, the summer before 9th online.

It’s not that it can’t be taken in full by rising 9th, but instead that 1) it was intended to be taken in 9th and 11th so the content aligned with kid’s lives/experiences and 2) there are still a number of students in c/o 25’ and 26’ that must be prioritized first.

Anonymous wrote:at our rising 9th grade parents night (tonight) they told us Health b could not be taken freshman year- only health a. so a lot of jids do 1/2 year PE + 1/2 year health in 9th and 10th. I think its good to split it up.

Did they say whether Health A could be taken this summer for rising 9th graders?

I think our middle only told us about this parents night this morning….

at our rising 9th grade parents night (tonight) they told us Health b could not be taken freshman year- only health a. so a lot of jids do 1/2 year PE + 1/2 year health in 9th and 10th. I think its good to split it up.

They should let kids test out of this. It is just a waste of time for many.

Many, if not all, course requirements have their basis in ensuring an understanding of basic skills that allow for (even if they don't guarantee) individual success, and, as a consequence, improve societal contributions/reduce societal burdens. Both the individual and societal benefits are important, and new or changed requirements are natural consequences of societal development, though they often lag considerably.

That said, MCPS does not, and public school systems in general do not, offer efficient ways of demonstrating existing mastery of those skill sets to allow avoidance of specific coursework, which should not be necessary and, indeed, would be redundant for those having mastered the skills through alternatives -- self-study, extracurricular activities, etc. They should make this a priority, and both Health and the new personal finance requirement being considered would be excellent candidates for test-outs and other rigorous alternatives.

It's not as though testing out or the like isn't envisioned. Even something as fundamental as Algebra I isn't required by the state -- one can show mastery by successful completion of a course for which Algebra I is a prerequisite (e.g., Algebra II). How to do that? Test-out. (I'd not advise that, though, without a very broad and strong independent knowledge base and great consideration for social & knock-on effects.)

It's just that the apparatus for doing so isn't robust. It's not clear that the costs of such will be less than the instructional savings (if any -- that slot in Health A/B would end up as a student's elective), but there should be some leeway given, there, in acknowledgement of the benefit to students (course selection/schedule flexibility, in addition to the aforementioned avoidance of devoting time in class to something already mastered).

Thinking of requirements without common-sense alternatives/accommodations, I'm reminded of this recent plum:

https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/06/europe/belgian-couple-bureaucratic-struggle-french-intl/index.html

Let's be better than France, here.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The full year health class is such a spit in the face of both kids and teachers from the state legislature. Everyone hates health class. The kids do. The teachers do. So they doubled it! Because no one care what kids actually want to learn or what teachers think they need to learn.

I think almost anything a kid could take would be better than this. Let them take Econ, or sculpture, or yoga. I would like to know who was behind this colossally dumb mandate.

The fact that the schools can’t even provide enough courses for all the students to take this unwanted class is just the cherry on top.

Any chance of them revisiting this decision and dropping the requirement?

Write your state legislature.

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know whether rising freshmen will be able to take Honors Health A and B in same year in 10th grade? What about rising sophomores ‘27? Is this an option for next year? Or is space still an issue for B?
Are kids still Required to wait until 10th grade to take health or can it be done in 9th or summer school after 8th?
What a mess these health classes have been for ‘25 and ‘26.

The central office is very understaffed and can't implement these programs. All their efforts are limited to various surveys related to equity.

Does the dual enrollment health class count as honors as well?

Anonymous wrote:My kid took health a last summer online after 8th. No idea what you are talking about. They did not offer b online, in person only.

I asked Rockville HS about taking health classes (Health A) right after 8th and was told there’s nothing to take this summer. Is this school dependent?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our HS would not allow this last year. Most kids do these classes in the summer online. A pain but makes for way easier scheduling.

You can take health A at any time but there seemed to be rules on health B.

I've been told summer health A will be $300 and summer health B will also be $300.

My kid is class of 2025, and I just got an email from MCPS about this today, basically outlining their options for getting Health B in before graduation. It said they won’t charge Class of 2025 for summer health classes.

It didn’t say explicitly, but the implication seemed to be that the classes behind 2025 will have to pay for summer health. But it also said nobody has to pay for the online course during the school year.

Doesn’t sound like they’ll be offering in-person summer health, just online.

This is being voted on by the board on Thursday. Relevant section:

Honors Health B Prioritization and Availability
Students in the class of 2025 will have a two-week priority registration window for the Health B course.
Students who register for the Health B course during registration window are guaranteed a spot.
Health B will be:
● available both in person at regional high school sites and virtually through the CHSSP.
● offered free of charge to students in the class of 2025, as this graduation requirement has not
been available during any of the free summer programs since 2020.
● offered in both session 1 and 2.

https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/CZB3NK7E7787/$file/FY2025%20Summer%20Programs%20240111%20REV%202.pdf

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The full year health class is such a spit in the face of both kids and teachers from the state legislature. Everyone hates health class. The kids do. The teachers do. So they doubled it! Because no one care what kids actually want to learn or what teachers think they need to learn.

I think almost anything a kid could take would be better than this. Let them take Econ, or sculpture, or yoga. I would like to know who was behind this colossally dumb mandate.

The fact that the schools can’t even provide enough courses for all the students to take this unwanted class is just the cherry on top.

Any chance of them revisiting this decision and dropping the requirement?

I have been asking this same question since they instituted the requirement. Write to your state legislators.

Anonymous wrote:The full year health class is such a spit in the face of both kids and teachers from the state legislature. Everyone hates health class. The kids do. The teachers do. So they doubled it! Because no one care what kids actually want to learn or what teachers think they need to learn.

I think almost anything a kid could take would be better than this. Let them take Econ, or sculpture, or yoga. I would like to know who was behind this colossally dumb mandate.

The fact that the schools can’t even provide enough courses for all the students to take this unwanted class is just the cherry on top.

ya it's an awful course that has tons of pointless busy work

Anonymous wrote:The full year health class is such a spit in the face of both kids and teachers from the state legislature. Everyone hates health class. The kids do. The teachers do. So they doubled it! Because no one care what kids actually want to learn or what teachers think they need to learn.

I think almost anything a kid could take would be better than this. Let them take Econ, or sculpture, or yoga. I would like to know who was behind this colossally dumb mandate.

The fact that the schools can’t even provide enough courses for all the students to take this unwanted class is just the cherry on top.

Any chance of them revisiting this decision and dropping the requirement?

The full year health class is such a spit in the face of both kids and teachers from the state legislature. Everyone hates health class. The kids do. The teachers do. So they doubled it! Because no one care what kids actually want to learn or what teachers think they need to learn.

I think almost anything a kid could take would be better than this. Let them take Econ, or sculpture, or yoga. I would like to know who was behind this colossally dumb mandate.

The fact that the schools can’t even provide enough courses for all the students to take this unwanted class is just the cherry on top.