Grade 9 Class 5

After attending class for three months and a half now, I have witnessed many things going on in my grade 9 class 5 classroom. The middle school ranges from grades six through nine while the high school ranges from grades 10 through 12. What sets my class apart from the other middle school classes is that they are currently taking high school courses half a year earlier than the rest of their grade. The students had to take a placement test to see which class they were suitable for and the students in my class scored the highest, placing them in class five.
Typically, at the end of ninth grade, the middle school students have to take and pass the zhong cao to move on to high school, however, by doing well in school and having enough smarts to be in class 5, my classmates are kind of exempt from the zhong cao. They still have to take it though, but only to signify that they have taken it. The score they get on it doesn’t really matter. Although they are part of the middle school, they can also be considered part of the high school since they are learning high school material.
Right now, my class is in an awkward transition between the two schools, middle and high school. They wear high school uniforms but they don’t participate in any of the high school activities like the high school singing competition and middle school activities. During the all school spring outing, my class stayed behind at school and didn’t go because they were not considered part of the middle or high school.
I think the closest Newton South class level equivalent to my 9-5 class is honors. The students in my class are the brightest in their grade and they have a difficult and face paced curriculum. However, if a student fails to consistently do well, then they can be bumped down a class level.
How a student does on a test ranges extremely. Since there are fifty students in my class, it’s hard for a teacher to take the time to pin point each students weakness and help him or her correct it. On a typical test, only a few students will get above an 80% and below a 50%. The majority of the student’s grades will range from 50 to the high 70s. There is a big margin separating the students who do extremely well and the kids who are failing. Typically, in America, grades aren’t that scattered.
As time is winding down and I’ve only got a couple weeks left here in China, I realize how much I will miss my class.