by Colette Nguyen, staff writer
For the 2014-2015 school year, English teachers Amy Futagaki and Joey Barro are assigned subjects that they have not yet taught before.
Futagaki has taught English Honors 1 and CP English 4 at FVHS for 14 years. This year is her first time teaching the AP English 4 course, and she recognizes its differences from the CP class.
“The senior AP class moves at a faster pace. They’re doing additionals plays, additional novels, so there’s just more reading and more writing. It’s a little more elevated; we’re going more in depth with the text, but the text is the same.”
With two AP 4 and three CP 4 classes, she is no longer an English Honors 1 teacher.
“I love the seniors, don’t get me wrong. But I do miss the freshmen because they’re sweet and innocent; you can still mold them.” Futagaki said.
Futagaki is taking over the classes for Annalise Attreed, another AP English teacher who is taking the year off of teaching.
“Assuming Mrs. Attreed comes back, she will take her AP classes back and I will get my little freshmen back!” Futagaki said. “But it’s good that I now have those AP classes because now I know more what to do with the freshmen, to prep them to be in that AP class.”
Because of this change, Joey Barro is this year’s new English Honors 1 teacher. This is his second year teaching at FVHS, but his first year teaching a freshman honors class.
“I was told that I was going to be teaching English Honors 1, and I enthusiastically accepted.” Barro said.
Having been Futagaki’s student teacher in 2011, Barro bases part of his teaching on the former English Honors 1 teacher’s style.
Barro stated, “In a certain regard, there is a lot of modeling and sharing curriculum.”
Barro enjoys the transition of teaching seniors to freshmen each day as the CP English 4 and English Honors 1 teacher.
“Although freshmen are well behaved and not squirmy, with the seniors there’s a natural maturity level there. They’re entering into adulthood and finishing up their high school experience, and so my goal is to prepare them for college and the real world beyond high school,” said Barro. “Where the freshman it’s almost a step back from that; I’m trying to prepare them for the rest of their high school experience. It’s definitely different perspectives.”
