BY BRADEN CARTWRIGHT
Daily Post Staff Writer
The Palo Alto school board voted 3-2 tonight (Jan. 21) to eliminate honors biology, instead grouping all freshmen in the same introductory class.
Board members Rowena Chiu and Josh Salcman voted to keep honors biology while Alison Kamhi, Shounak Dharap and Shana Segal voted to move to a single course.
Tonight’s meeting was about freshman science, but it reflected a broader debate around “de-laning” — when should students be allowed to advance, and when should they be grouped together?
In this case, teachers said they had a consensus that a single class would make the transition easier from 8th grade to 9th grade, when students are still learning what level is appropriate for them.
“We’re so excited to teach this course because it’s truly about the learning, and not about a label for honors or for a grade,” said Joshua Little, a science teacher at Gunn High School.
Teachers have been working on a single biology course for seven years. They don’t want to make changes to honors chemistry or physics, said Liz Brimhall, who has taught science at Palo Alto High School since 1997.
“We really want to give all students a really strong foundation and springboard so they can access our various science pathways, including honors,” Brimhall told the board.
Salcman said he wanted to see more data around the decision, and he was interested in trying a pilot course first.
“I don’t feel completely confident that our other experiences with de-laning have been unqualified successes,” he said.
Chiu said she’s heard from students and parents who fear the district will eliminate other advanced classes.
“Do we trust our high school students with autonomy and choice, to decide for themselves what their learning journey looks like?” Chiu asked.
A handful of students and parents said they want a biology class that challenges them, and they’ve been bored in middle school.
Students said the change would disproportionately impact girls, who are more likely to try biology than other kinds of science.
“I’m very passionate about STEM, including life science and biology,” said Katie Hu, an eighth grader at Greene Middle School. “I want to take a science class that challenges me and moves faster than a regular class, and I was really looking forward to honors biology.”
Teachers said they can challenge their advanced students while supporting their struggling students.
Ken Dauber, who was on the board from 2014 to 2022, said voting against a unified class would discourage teachers from innovating in the future.
“You’re not professional educators, so you don’t have the ability to make the kinds of technical educational decisions that they’re making,” Dauber told the board.
Dharap had the same perspective.
“People have concerns, but they don’t work with our kids every day,” Dharap said. “To not vote for this would be a disastrous mistake”
Segal also said she wanted to trust teachers.
Kamhi said the decision was tricky but in the end felt the vote was limited to biology and not a broader approach.
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