2022-23 Program Changes

Things to Know

• We removed Honors Intermediate Algebra, Honors Geometry, Honors Advanced Algebra and Honors Pre-Calculus. We did this because we offer accelerated courses at both Richfield Middle School and Richfield High School and the honors courses provided the same curriculum. Teachers, students, parents and administrators felt it was inequitable to provide an honors title for the same curriculum students receive in a core math class. 
• We offer compacted 6/7 and 7/8 math courses to accelerate students who demonstrate on multiple measures that they would benefit from a more challenging math class. Compacted 6/7 covers all of sixth grade math and half of seventh grade math in one year. Compacted 7/8 covers the second half of seventh grade math and all of eighth grade math in one year. Thus, the pace is much faster than in the core pathway and some skills are learned or reviewed independently through supplemental summer work before students take the course. 
• To identify students for compacted math courses, we use multiple measures. Students must consistently exceed grade-level standards in mathematics. We also review student scores on the NWEA MAP assessment, MCA assessment and classroom assessments. 
• The chart below shows the Math pathway for students in the core math program, accelerated program and double-accelerated program. 

Things to Know

• The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) released new science standards that must be fully implemented by the 2025-26 school year. These changes have implications for the courses we cover in grades 6-12. Because there are so many changes, we will slowly implement the new standards year by year. The charts below show the courses that we will offer each year, with full implementation of the new standards in year 2023-24. Graduation requirements include three years of science, including biology and chemistry or physics. 
• Physical Science will move from ninth grade to eighth grade. This year’s eighth grade students are currently learning Physical Science. 
• All ninth grade students will take an environmental science course which covers earth and space science standards through an environmental lens starting in the 2022-23 school year. Students will no longer have the option to take Biology as ninth graders. 
• We will remove College Prep (honors) Biology in 2023-24 and add AP Biology as our advanced biology course. Students will need to take Chemistry prior to AP Biology as the AP Biology curriculum assumes students have a fundamental understanding of chemistry.
• The new standards are more inquiry-based than the current science standards and ask students to think like scientists to make sense of the world around them. Teachers will use everyday phenomena to engage students in learning science through a very hands-on approach. The new standards also ask for students to use scientific skills and practices to learn science such as developing arguments with strong claims and evidence, asking questions, designing experiments and interpreting data. 
• Honors Chemistry in 10th grade is a prerequisite for AP Biology in 11th grade.
• AP Biology can also be taken as an elective in 12th grade.  

Things to Know

• The Exploratory Spanish course provides sixth grade students with a fun introduction to conversational Spanish, including basic vocabulary and grammar. It also teaches students about a variety of Spanish-speaking countries and their cultures.  
• Slowing down Spanish 1 from one year to two years allows time for middle school students to engage in the language at a deeper level, review concepts at a more appropriate pace, and ensure they are ready to be successful in Spanish 2 at the high school level. 
• We added a Spanish 4 course because feedback from students and teachers suggested that an additional year of Spanish language would more adequately prepare students for the demands of the AP Spanish Language course. 
• Completion of both Spanish 1A and 1B at middle school are required to earn a high school Spanish 1 credit and to enroll in Spanish 2. If only Spanish 1A or 1B is completed, then students will need to take Spanish 1 at the high school.
• Regardless of the Spanish classes taken in middle school, students can opt to take a different global language course (German or French) at the high school.
• The chart below shows the changes to our Spanish Global Language program starting in 2022-23.

Things to Know

• Students will now need to take both English Language Arts and Spanish Language Arts. In the past, the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) allowed our Spanish Language Arts class to count for English Language Arts credit if we aligned our courses to the standards. With changes at the state level, MDE has removed this as an option. Because students must earn four years of English Language Arts credit, students will now have to take both courses. We will adapt the Spanish Language Arts curriculum at the high school level to focus more on language production by aligning to the American Council of Teaching Foreign Languages standards. These are national standards that teachers utilize for supporting students in learning additional languages. 
• We removed the Spanish math courses from RHS because Spanish math is not currently at the middle school and we want courses that are vertically aligned from sixth grade through 12th grade to help build on academic language skills. Additionally, we want to focus on strengthening our current 6-12 Spanish Language Arts and Social Studies offerings.   
• The Spanish World History course is no longer designated as an AP Spanish World History course because AP World History has a very aggressive scope and sequence in terms of content, which makes it difficult to embed academic language skills into the curriculum. We want the focus of Spanish World History to be both on mastering the state standards in this course as well as continuing to develop students’ biliteracy. The course will cover much of what is on the AP exam, and students can still take the AP test at the end of the year. The instructor will designate which standards/content will need independent study to be successful on the exam. 
• We removed Spanish Language Arts 10 and replaced it with AP Spanish and Language. Our data shows that the content in the AP Spanish and Language course is more appropriate for earlier grades to better match students’ language development and proficiency. 
• We added the course History and Culture of Spain and Latin America. This course will give students a foundation to be successful in the AP Spanish Literature course.