<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1aLx3S_1GsvPQYa00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1aLx3S_1GsvPQYa00" width="1170" height="985" ></figure>Tight classrooms this year have led teachers and students at this school to speculate about how much class sizes have increased. Students and teachers report feeling cramped and claim they’re often out of chairs. According to AP teacher Ashley Ducker, class sizes are indeed larger in recent years and have fluctuated previously.“Historically, my class average rested around 25 students per class, giving me roughly 100 students to support,” says Ducker. “When the individual class sizes increased to 33 students per class, my teacher load and responsibility effectively multiplied by roughly 32%.” For a class to run, it needs at least 25 students signed up. This number has fluctuated over the years. “When I first started here in 2021, some class sizes, not all, were sitting at like 13, 15, maybe 18, and now, because we are scheduling tighter, class sizes are larger than what they were then,” SLC principal Terri Patterson says. This minimum student number may cause specialized classes or classes with lower demand to not have the opportunity to run, even if the school has the right teacher/resources for the class.The maximum size a class can be is 33 students. When the school needs to place more students in an already full class, Skyline administrators have to put in an override request with a valid reason explaining why the class size needs to be increased. “The overrides have not increased any more than any other year,” Patterson claims.Some classes, however, are consistently large, continuously hitting the maximum of 33 students. According to Skyline’s Fall class size report, shared by administration, about 15% of offered academic classes are full or over capacity. However, an additional 50 classes are almost at capacity (within 2 people). Overall, about 32% of classes are full, over the limit, or nearly full. “I have so many more desks and chairs in order to fit 36-plus students in my class,” says AP Lang teacher Cristopher Cole. “I had to remove my class library and rocking chair, which students have loved sitting in.”The effects of crowded classrooms go beyond the loss of classroom space. Across English and science courses, 43 classes are at, near (within 2 people of the limit), or over the class-size limit. Teachers notice an increase in grading workload when classes are larger.“With AP classes, it’s the grading workload,” says AP Lang teacher Carina Seitz. “We write more, and they [students] want more feedback. And so, the more students you have, especially if a teacher is working to only what their contract allows them to, [students] don’t get the same amount of feedback, and they don’t get back as quickly as they would like.” Many students have speculated whether teachers leaving Skyline has contributed to the perception of larger classes. However, Patterson says no, because teachers who leave are typically replaced.“We’ve had teachers who retired and who have left to go to other buildings,” Patterson says. “But we hire back in those spots.”However, even when teachers are replaced, larger class sizes can still affect the workload of the teachers who remain.</div></body>

Block Source: skylinepost.org

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Tight classrooms this year have led teachers and students at this school to speculate about how much class sizes have increased. Students and teachers report feeling cramped and claim they’re often out of chairs. According to AP teacher Ashley Ducker, class sizes are indeed larger in recent years and...

English and Science Classes Increase in Size

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Tight classrooms this year have led teachers and students at this school to speculate about how much class sizes have increased. Students and teachers repo

English and Science Classes Increase in Size

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