By Yvette Lin
Staff Writer
Bacon began teaching at TCHS 3 years ago and was originally a teacher for Pre-Algebra and Consumer Math. He currently teaches two periods of Geometry Honors, three periods of Algebra 1, and the fifth period Algebra 2 Honors class.
Algebra 2 Honors teacher Gary Ledger, along with Algebra 1.1 and Geometry teacher Carol Zurla joined TC Virtual Academy and left behind two open positions for in-person learning. For the first four weeks, daily or weekly substitute teachers filled those positions and assigned students videos and worksheets to watch and complete.
“I felt behind without a teacher, and I was told that we were one chapter behind everyone else,” sophomore Samantha Lee said. “Most of the substitutes were P.E. and English teachers, so they weren’t really able to help us.”
Students in Ledger’s and Zurla’s classes received emails from Principal Fil Lujan on Sept. 29 informing them of a change in plans. The school hired Bryan Lee to fill in for Zurla’s classes, but they still needed a teacher for Ledger’s classes.
As a result, administration split the remaining five periods among current staff members Barry Bacon, Jeff Bulgin, Michael Kidd, Florence Lee and Nate Slaymaker. Bacon, Kidd, Lee and Slaymaker will teach one period of Algebra 2 Honors each while Bulgin will teach one period of Geometry. The school plans to keep the current teacher positions for the rest of the school year.
“Students don’t need more teaching to conquer learning loss, they need more effective teaching,” Kidd said. “On the student side, students need to put more energy into asking questions and into seeking information. Teachers don’t always know what students don’t know.”
The first five weeks of the Algebra 2 Honors curriculum include material that is also covered in later chapters. Kidd plans to focus on that moving forward and provide background information for concepts that students may have missed.