Career center classes approved to include embedded credit

The Jackson school board approved granting embedded credit for students in three programs and approved the addition of a mass communication class at their meeting Tuesday night.

Students taking classes at the Career and Technology Center now have the option of earning math or English credits if they meet certain requirements. The move is an effort to make classes more rigorous and make sure students are able to meet increasingly stringent graduation requirements. In the past, some students had difficulty gaining enough credits in core subjects to graduate while attending the career center.

To gain an English credit, students will be required to write research papers and review journal articles, among other tasks. For math, students will have to pass tests to show they have mastered 20 standards. An additional teacher has been hired to push into classes at the center to cover specific math concepts.

Students will also have the opportunity to gain a science credit through an agriculture class at the high school.

"Rigor and relevance, I keep coming back to those. It's the application of sciences into what really happens on the farm or in real life," said Rick McClard, principal of the high school.

The Mass Communication and Society class will be a dual credit class through Southeast Missouri State University, taught by Kara Cracraft.

At their meeting the board also approved May 22 as the graduation date.