High Schoolers take Winter Keystones

For Pennsylvania one option to graduate under Act 158 is to pass all three of the Keystone tests. The three Keystone tests consist of Algebra 1, English, and Biology. Students get two chances to pass, and after not passing those two times, they would have to graduate with another option under the Act 158. On January 9, and 10 HAHS students in grades nine and ten had the chance to retake Algebra 1 Keystones. 

     One ninth grader, Bethany Stufflet, unfortunately did not pass on her first try in eighth grade for the Algebra 1 Keystone. She was one of the many students in cafeteria two retaking the Algebra 1 Keystone. With not being in Algebra for a whole year, she was unsure of how she was going to know the information for retaking the test, so she went to her Algebra two math teacher, Miss Heckman. Miss Heckman was able to give Bethany and other students of hers retaking the Algebra 1 Keystone, packets where she would go over what the students were unsure of during flex. With this practice for Bethany, she felt more confident retaking the Algebra 1 Keystone this year rather than taking them for the first time last year.

     Algebra two teacher, Miss Heckman has been preparing students of hers who have had to retake the Algebra one Keystones for years through three Algebra 2 classes, Honors, PS, and Basic. Depending on the class, Miss Heckman teaches Algebra 1 more, as it may be needed more in other classes than others. In Honors, Algebra 1 is reviewed for a little, but the main thing taught is Algebra 2, as it is needed for the classes in the upcoming years such as Honors Geometry and Honors Precalculus. In PS, Algebra 1 is lightly reviewed in the first semester for extra review. In a basic class, Algebra 1 is reviewed in a larger amount for students who may have struggled in the previous year of Algebra 1. In any of these classes, any extra preparation for Keystones needs to be scheduled for a flex date with Miss Heckman. 

     The number of people who pass the Keystones the second time varies yearly as some students increase their score by 60-70 points or get around the same score from the previous year. For some of the basic and below scores, they seem to result from students who have a hard time remembering the material or by being someone who is a nervous test taker. All of this information on the Algebra 1 Keystone came from Algebra 2 teacher, Miss Heckman. 

    Students who had the opportunity to prepare for the Algebra 1 Keystone with Miss Heckman ahead of time probably had it a little bit easier when retaking them. Hopefully all of the students who had to retake the Algebra 1 Keystone again did well and are able to pass this second time.