Since the state of Indiana has adopted the common core standards, a set of standards being implemented across the nation designed to prepare students for college and the workforce, the English department will be putting some changes into effect for next year, according to English department chairperson Maureen Borto. Indiana is also a part of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC), which is a group that essentially aims to provide the common core standards in education.

The common core standards issue in a few minor albeit notable changes. First, the standards are more skill based rather than content based. Borto said, for example, that before there was a focus on reading different types of literature whereas now the stress would be on solely reading, writing, speaking, listening and grammar. There will also be an emphasis on nonfiction and informational texts.

In addition to the change in the focus of next year’s curriculum is the combination of speech and English for English 10. The common core standards system, via PARCC, will require an end-of-the-quarter assessment, which tests all of the standards. Because of this change, speech and English cannot remain taught as two separate semesters and will instead be combined into one year-long course.

Sophomore Ema Beeler said she prefers speech being kept separate from English.

“I think it’s important to integrate the curriculums but at the same time English and speech aren’t the same things. As my speech teacher said, English focuses on writing for the eyes, but for speech it’s writing for the ears,” Beeler said. “I see things in different spheres, like this is English, this is speech, this is math, this is chemistry. But for students who can make that connection (between English and speech), it could help them understand the language as a whole. I think it might be beneficial to try it (the common core system).”