Imagine you’re a junior at Lexington High School, knee-deep in The Great Gatsby, but you can’t help but wonder if you could explore a genre of your choice, like fantasy or creative writing instead. What if this wasn’t just daydreaming? For non-seniors at LHS, the opportunity to take English electives could turn that wish into reality. Non-seniors should have access to English electives because such classes would allow students to explore diverse topics, develop specific skills, and discover passions that might not emerge in the current core curriculum.
Currently, the first three years of English at LHS follow a standard progression: Literature and Composition I, Literature and Composition II, and American Literature in junior year. While this structure ensures strong foundations, it limits students’ ability to pursue their own literary interests.
Expanding English electives for non-seniors would allow students to choose additional courses that align with their preferred genres, similar to math and science electives.
“It would be really wonderful to have more electives that include multi-grade students,” Dakota Durbin, an English teacher, said. “Getting to expose students to more topics, different styles of literature, and different mediums of literature would be really cool.”
Connecting with peers from different grades would give students the opportunity to meet those with similar interests, especially in a subject like English that involves expression, discussion and opinion. These electives could strengthen the LHS community as a whole. Moreover, students would be able to discover new interests through greater freedoms in course selection.
“I would love the opportunity to explore more diverse English topics, like history-related literature or creative writing, earlier in high school,” Sami Hassan, a sophomore, said.
Electives provide practical benefits as well. Focused courses could strengthen specific skills that are applicable across various fields.
“Because reading and writing are so interdisciplinary, being able to improve and work on your writing and reading in English would benefit students in their other classes as well,” Durbin said.
Increased exposure to literature and fundamental English skills could help in fields completely unrelated to language as well, like STEM where proficiency in reading and writing, and perhaps creativity, remain core to success.
English electives could also prepare students for life beyond high school.
“The more exposure you get to different content, the better. It helps you develop new perspectives, which is valuable for college and beyond,” Noah Wilds, a junior, said.
Some may feel that such a drastic change in course offerings is academically unnecessary or a waste of staffing and space budgets.
“There is enough variety in the content of the core English courses to have something that appeals to everyone. Students are exposed to a range of voices, styles, and mediums so that they can make an informed decision about their deeper study as seniors,” Jane Day, LHS’s English department head, said.
Despite these challenges, the potential benefits of English electives outweigh the difficulties. Offering new English classes could foster creativity and enhance the level of education. It might even inspire underclassmen to pursue English and literature at the college level.
“Exploring new topics can never hurt. Learning is learning, and the more options you have and the more diversity you have exposure to is better for the future,” Hassan said.