Esformes has taught classes that mix AP and regular students at T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, Virginia, for the past five years. In fact, it's difficult to discern any gap between AP and regular students in Esformes's classes. Nearly all students pay rapt attention to the energetic Esformes and fire back replies to his ongoing demand to consider both sides of every issue. AP students in his mixed classes, meanwhile, tend to achieve just as well as AP students in exclusive AP classes. Both regular and AP students also report that they leave the mixed classes with a deeper understanding of viewpoints from other social and academic backgrounds.
Students see others getting involved and getting good grades, and they begin to want to do the same.
Esformes can cite numerous parents who have expressed gratitude to him for helping their children recover their self-esteem and motivation. Teens who used to avoid class participation, fearing being labeled as nerds, now join in intense, complex debates on topics ranging from freedom of speech to school violence. It also helps the smarter kids see that those who are lower achievers can do better academically. Esformes traces his interest in teaching classes of mixed achievers to his dislike of student tracking. To avoid possible opposition from the parents of AP students, Esformes created his mixed class by making AP student participation voluntary.