In both math and science, Ridley earlier this decade adopted a hands-on, integrated approach to teaching math, and a science program that presents big-picture ideas and begins with a physics course, Ignatuk said. The changes included intensive teacher training and upgrades to middle-school course offerings. "There's a lot more thinking about problems, more hands-on work and real-world applications to make it interesting. Our kids aren't asking, 'Why do we have to learn this?' It's clear why it's relevant to their lives."
The push to promote math and science has paid off: The number of students achieving math proficiency/advanced on the 11th-grade PSSAs climbed to 70 percent last year, compared with 40 percent in 2001. Students taking Advanced Placement science courses this year number 145, compared with 9 five years ago.
During the fall and winter, The Inquirer surveyed about 400 public, private, charter and technical high schools. The results describe the myriad ways schools are beefing up their curricula - from adding dual-credit courses by agreement with area colleges, to expanding language offerings, to boosting enrollment in math and science classes.
The push for more challenging material is coming, in part, from colleges that lament that students are coming to them unprepared to do college work.
Many incoming students "are in for a rude awakening," said Jerry Parker, president of Delaware County Community College (DCCC), which enrolls more than 7,000 full-time students and 3,000 part-time. Two thirds of them, he said, "are not college-ready" and need remedial instruction. Too many, he said, eventually drop out.
