I wanted to do for high school kids what he did for me. The challenges that I face each day in the classroom are just a bit different than ordinary high school English teachers. I teach in an alternative high school that offers a semester's credit in eight short weeks. My greatest challenge is reinterpreting the curriculum to ensure that my students get eighteen weeks of material in just eight weeks. I have modeled the program after the university summer school courses.
Students come in once a week for two hours for each class.
During class time, I need to review the last week's work and preview the following week's work. The literature courses are the most rigorous. Too many students join my program not knowing how to write. Another challenge is keeping my students in school. All of my students are former dropouts.