By Morgan Hill ’16

The Maryland State Department of Education requires all students who attend a public high school to earn a technology credit in order to graduate. MCPS offers four classes that satisfy the technology credit requirement: Introduction to Engineering Design, Designing Technology Solutions, Foundations of Technology and Principles of Engineering.

Due to the limited number of classes that offer credit for the technology requirement; many students find themselves stuck in a full year class that they are apathetic about. This prevents students that are not interested in technology from taking another class that may interest or benefit them. With busy schedules filled with important academic classes, students find it difficult to fit in a required technology credit.

MCPS also requires students to earn one fine arts credit and one physical education credit. However, the same problems with the technology credit are not an issue with these required credits. There are 65 classes offered by Montgomery County that a student can earn a fine arts credit in, ranging from dance to photography classes. There are 22 classes where a student can earn physical education credit, giving students a much broader spectrum of choice. Although not all of these classes are available at every school, a school that offers even a fraction of them provides a larger margin of choice in how students spend part of their school day.

Montgomery County offers numerous other technology classes, such as Digital Electronics and Civil Engineering. These classes are more specific and target students who are especially interested in technology. Although these classes offer half a credit, they are supplemental and do not satisfy the technology credit requirement. Students that are interested in one of the supplemental classes are likely to opt out of them and instead take one of the other classes that offer credit. With the busy schedule many students have, there is no room for students to earn the required technology credit. This causes many students to be trapped in a class that has little value to them.

While it is important to offer classes covering a wide variety of subjects, students should be able to choose whether or not they want to take a technology class, and should have a variety of technology classes to choose from.