History classes studying overpopulation throughout time will now get to live the experience. Class sizes in the History Department have reached a peak in comparison to recent years, according to Peter Drench, Chair of the History and Social Science Department. Though class size fluctuations have occurred in the past, increases this year may be due to the desire to keep lower-level courses small, a large admissions class, popularity of electives and the natural fluctuations in hiring teachers, said Drench. Nine out of fifteen History 300 classes are currently over the size limit. Many history electives are also either full or over their limit, including all five sections of economics. “Course cap is determined by a calculation of many factors, including educational considerations, workload of the teacher and size of the classroom,” said Drench. History 300 is capped at 15 students and electives at 16. History 100 and 200 classes are capped at 14 and 13 students, respectively. The class average is still 13 per class for the school, according to Paul Cernota, Scheduling Officer. “The [high] enrollments in English and History are pretty typical for Senior-level courses…These classes are almost always all full by the end of the first week of the term,” Cernota said. Drench said, “We want to keep History 100 and 200 courses small in order for the younger students to receive more individual attention and support from the teacher, which means more sections.” “I believe most of the students talking about big classes are the Uppers in U.S. History. [In trying to keep 100 and 200 courses small], something’s got to give,” continued Drench. There are 580 students enrolled in required history courses, and over 175 students are enrolled in upperclassmen electives. “Most departments would rather have more [teachers] than fewer teachers, but hiring is not always a solution. Where does the money come from? The classrooms? It’s just not that simple,” said Drench. “We have deep, but not unlimited resources at PA. They need to be spread out [across the school] and must take care of a lot of needs,” said Drench. Students, particularly upperclassmen, have recognized the increase in history class sizes. Chase Ebert ’09, a student in economics, said, “Bigger classes have not really been an issue. Everybody who has cared to speak and contribute has been able to get their say. Also, in this discipline, having a bigger class might even lend itself to the learning process, since you can get even more diverse opinions.” Eliza Flynn ’10, a student in U.S. history, said, “It ends up working out since the table’s big enough. The class is discussion-based, so having more people is good for more ideas.” As with all departments, the History Department tries to find the balance between required and elective courses. “We strive to create the optimum experience for kids,” said Drench. He continued, “We need to staff the required courses, while also providing a broad and deep elective program. Electives are popular and heavily prescribed. They also enhance student and faculty interest.”
