Kempsville offers a variety of DE classes, including Public Speaking & Interpersonal Communication taught by Mrs. Boubouheropoulis (Mrs. Boubou). Some classes have requirements in order to take the class, such as the DE Precalculus and Calculus course, where students must qualify to take that level of math before they will be accepted into the course.
“DE classes are an amazing opportunity for students to earn college credits, and most are available for everyone to take,” says Mrs. Boubou.
Academy coordinator Mrs. Timlin says that “the dual-enrollment classes offered at Kempsville are a great opportunity for students,” allowing for students to take free college classes whose college credits can be transferred to almost any college in Virginia.
According to an article by The U.S. Department of Education, dual-enrollment classes have a positive impact on students, with those who take the classes being more likely to enroll in college and have increased academic performance.
Though DE classes are a great opportunity for students, it is important for students and parents to have a serious conversation about whether or not the student will do well in the classes.
One student who has taken DE classes since freshman year is Ian Jones, who is currently a senior at Kempsville. He said that he “knew that the TCC classes would be hard, but jumping from high school to college level classes was harder than expected.”
Some courses, such as Public Speaking and Interpersonal Communication aren’t as rigorous as some other courses offered, such as Precalculus and Calculus, or the Accounting and Biology courses offered on TCC’s campus.
“If you can’t keep up with mass amounts of information, then you won’t do well. These classes are building blocks, the first units help build up to the last unit,” says Jones.
Students who aren’t able to keep up with large workloads and homework that takes longer than 30 minutes to complete won’t do well in these courses, but can do well in some of the easier DE courses offered at Kempsville.
“With classes like mine (public speaking and interpersonal communications), students aren’t typically struggling, but in other classes offered, it can be hard to keep up with the content if you aren’t used to doing a lot of work in short periods,” says Mrs. Boubou.
School counselors, such as Mrs. Thompson, meet with students and plan classes for the next school year in January, when students are informed of the classes that they are eligible for.
“We meet with students to decide classes, and we go over all of the classes offered, including dual enrollment classes,” says Mrs. Thompson.
Increasing receptiveness about the DE classes can help students become aware of the opportunities that Kempsville has to offer. One way that Kempsville can increase awareness is having a group of students that have gone through DE classes and have them visit 9th and 10th grade classes to inform them of the different classes that they could take and how they are beneficial.
Those students can also advocate for how hard on-campus classes are, and ensure that students understand that if they aren’t equipped to deal with hard classes, they should not take the DE classes. If students who are not prepared for college-level classes decide to take a DE class and they do poorly, it brings down students’ GPAs. Students who aren’t aware of the consequences of poor performance in dual enrollment classes must understand that there are consequences. There have been students who have failed DE classes because they weren’t focusing on their academics.
According to an article written by Frederick Hess in AEI, 87% of college students have thought that a class was “too difficult.” Students in four-year colleges are facing issues with taking some of the courses offered, so it is important to think about how high schoolers will do in the college-level classes that are offered at Kempsville.
Though dual enrollment courses can be great for students who are willing to do the work on time and study outside of class, it must be understood that they aren’t always best. If you struggle in some academic areas, such as math or English, then dual enrollment courses may not be the best route. If a student wouldn’t do well in AP, then they more than likely wouldn’t do well with dual enrollment courses.
By taking advanced classes, such as honors and AP when given the opportunity, students can gain the knowledge necessary to be prepared for DE classes and develop skills for studying that are necessary for college classes. Students can get more opportunities for gaining college credit, as well as a chance to have an extra boost on their college applications.
