APS HS Intensified Classes?

[Anonymous]

Do these matter? 9th grader doesn't want to take any more intensified classes - says all they do is make you work harder with no benefit. For example, intensified Chemistry has to do the science fair but "regular" Chemistry does not.

For parents with older kids, is there any benefit to taking intensified versions of classes - other than challenging yourself?

Thank you.

[Anonymous]

My kid is in 10th. I don’t know the real differences… I think officially, intensified students have to do a project, and regular classes don’t. I can say that intensified English 9 and intensified world history were not especially taxing/were not a ton of work. The science classes more so, but I don’t know what the non-intensified ones looked like.

One benefit can be weeding out kids who don’t really want to be at school/don’t care.

[Anonymous]

Our APS HS counselor told us that colleges do not see the difference unless they are AP classes- meaning- think of the 10000s of applications they get- they are not looking through them 1 by 1 to see if someone is in honors vs intensified vs whatever word that particular school system uses. And how would you compare an honors class in rural MS vs one in APS? They don't have time for that. I'm not going to name the counselor but they said they let the parents think it makes a difference b/c the APS parents are nuts and want to feel like their kid is on the most intense path possible. That being said - they counselors DO put a note in the application that says if your kid is taking the "most advanced path" but since that is subjective, they write that for many kids even if every possible class isn't intensified/AP.

And to be transparent- my kids do take AP and intensified classes. One kid dropped an intensified class freshman year and that's why we had this discussion with the counselor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid is in 10th. I don’t know the real differences… I think officially, intensified students have to do a project, and regular classes don’t. I can say that intensified English 9 and intensified world history were not especially taxing/were not a ton of work. The science classes more so, but I don’t know what the non-intensified ones looked like.

One benefit can be weeding out kids who don’t really want to be at school/don’t care.

I think that depends on your school... at Yorktown English/History 9th intensified had quite a bit of work. That being said, my student learned so much and their writings skills drastically improved.

[Anonymous]

AP and IB classes matter. Intensified is only better because it weeds out the kids who truly dgaf. They really aren’t that much more rigorous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is in 10th. I don’t know the real differences… I think officially, intensified students have to do a project, and regular classes don’t. I can say that intensified English 9 and intensified world history were not especially taxing/were not a ton of work. The science classes more so, but I don’t know what the non-intensified ones looked like.

One benefit can be weeding out kids who don’t really want to be at school/don’t care.

I think that depends on your school... at Yorktown English/History 9th intensified had quite a bit of work. That being said, my student learned so much and their writings skills drastically improved.

Are English 9 & history 9 combined at Yorktown?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is in 10th. I don’t know the real differences… I think officially, intensified students have to do a project, and regular classes don’t. I can say that intensified English 9 and intensified world history were not especially taxing/were not a ton of work. The science classes more so, but I don’t know what the non-intensified ones looked like.

One benefit can be weeding out kids who don’t really want to be at school/don’t care.

I think that depends on your school... at Yorktown English/History 9th intensified had quite a bit of work. That being said, my student learned so much and their writings skills drastically improved.

Are English 9 & history 9 combined at Yorktown?

Yes, they are handled as a joint/block class. The teachers partner together. Eg what you are reading/writing about in English will pertain to the era you are learning about in history.

[Anonymous]

The real benefit of intensified is the peer group. I do know a lot of kids who skip intensified bio and chem because they don't want to do the science fair.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The real benefit of intensified is the peer group. I do know a lot of kids who skip intensified bio and chem because they don't want to do the science fair.

At Wakefield, you are required to do a science project in intensified bio & chem, but you aren’t required to present it at the science fair (at my kid’s teacher didn’t require it).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:AP and IB classes matter. Intensified is only better because it weeds out the kids who truly dgaf. They really aren’t that much more rigorous.

This. The difference between intensified and regular is that your child is with kids who take school a little more seriously, but they aren't as intense as AP. My kids both did intensified in the subjects they were less interested in, AP in the classes they really liked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our APS HS counselor told us that colleges do not see the difference unless they are AP classes- meaning- think of the 10000s of applications they get- they are not looking through them 1 by 1 to see if someone is in honors vs intensified vs whatever word that particular school system uses. And how would you compare an honors class in rural MS vs one in APS? They don't have time for that. I'm not going to name the counselor but they said they let the parents think it makes a difference b/c the APS parents are nuts and want to feel like their kid is on the most intense path possible. That being said - they counselors DO put a note in the application that says if your kid is taking the "most advanced path" but since that is subjective, they write that for many kids even if every possible class isn't intensified/AP.

And to be transparent- my kids do take AP and intensified classes. One kid dropped an intensified class freshman year and that's why we had this discussion with the counselor.

I don’t think that APS counselor gave very good advice. Have you ever looked at a transcript? It says “intensified.” And admission officers’ jobs is to know the school systems in their assigned area. They know the difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our APS HS counselor told us that colleges do not see the difference unless they are AP classes- meaning- think of the 10000s of applications they get- they are not looking through them 1 by 1 to see if someone is in honors vs intensified vs whatever word that particular school system uses. And how would you compare an honors class in rural MS vs one in APS? They don't have time for that. I'm not going to name the counselor but they said they let the parents think it makes a difference b/c the APS parents are nuts and want to feel like their kid is on the most intense path possible. That being said - they counselors DO put a note in the application that says if your kid is taking the "most advanced path" but since that is subjective, they write that for many kids even if every possible class isn't intensified/AP.

And to be transparent- my kids do take AP and intensified classes. One kid dropped an intensified class freshman year and that's why we had this discussion with the counselor.

I don’t think that APS counselor gave very good advice. Have you ever looked at a transcript? It says “intensified.” And admission officers’ jobs is to know the school systems in their assigned area. They know the difference.

Do you think they’re looking at thousands of applications and tallying up on a piece of paper how many have seven intensified classes versus eight?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our APS HS counselor told us that colleges do not see the difference unless they are AP classes- meaning- think of the 10000s of applications they get- they are not looking through them 1 by 1 to see if someone is in honors vs intensified vs whatever word that particular school system uses. And how would you compare an honors class in rural MS vs one in APS? They don't have time for that. I'm not going to name the counselor but they said they let the parents think it makes a difference b/c the APS parents are nuts and want to feel like their kid is on the most intense path possible. That being said - they counselors DO put a note in the application that says if your kid is taking the "most advanced path" but since that is subjective, they write that for many kids even if every possible class isn't intensified/AP.

And to be transparent- my kids do take AP and intensified classes. One kid dropped an intensified class freshman year and that's why we had this discussion with the counselor.

I don’t think that APS counselor gave very good advice. Have you ever looked at a transcript? It says “intensified.” And admission officers’ jobs is to know the school systems in their assigned area. They know the difference.

Do you think they’re looking at thousands of applications and tallying up on a piece of paper how many have seven intensified classes versus eight?

Yes colleges absolutely look at the rigor of high school courses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our APS HS counselor told us that colleges do not see the difference unless they are AP classes- meaning- think of the 10000s of applications they get- they are not looking through them 1 by 1 to see if someone is in honors vs intensified vs whatever word that particular school system uses. And how would you compare an honors class in rural MS vs one in APS? They don't have time for that. I'm not going to name the counselor but they said they let the parents think it makes a difference b/c the APS parents are nuts and want to feel like their kid is on the most intense path possible. That being said - they counselors DO put a note in the application that says if your kid is taking the "most advanced path" but since that is subjective, they write that for many kids even if every possible class isn't intensified/AP.

And to be transparent- my kids do take AP and intensified classes. One kid dropped an intensified class freshman year and that's why we had this discussion with the counselor.

I don’t think that APS counselor gave very good advice. Have you ever looked at a transcript? It says “intensified.” And admission officers’ jobs is to know the school systems in their assigned area. They know the difference.

Do you think they’re looking at thousands of applications and tallying up on a piece of paper how many have seven intensified classes versus eight?

Yes colleges absolutely look at the rigor of high school courses.

Rigor of your classes is incredibly important. With grade inflation many many kids will have unweighted 4.0s. How do they distinguish? Who took the harder classes. How many APs. Scores on AP exams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our APS HS counselor told us that colleges do not see the difference unless they are AP classes- meaning- think of the 10000s of applications they get- they are not looking through them 1 by 1 to see if someone is in honors vs intensified vs whatever word that particular school system uses. And how would you compare an honors class in rural MS vs one in APS? They don't have time for that. I'm not going to name the counselor but they said they let the parents think it makes a difference b/c the APS parents are nuts and want to feel like their kid is on the most intense path possible. That being said - they counselors DO put a note in the application that says if your kid is taking the "most advanced path" but since that is subjective, they write that for many kids even if every possible class isn't intensified/AP.

And to be transparent- my kids do take AP and intensified classes. One kid dropped an intensified class freshman year and that's why we had this discussion with the counselor.

I don’t think that APS counselor gave very good advice. Have you ever looked at a transcript? It says “intensified.” And admission officers’ jobs is to know the school systems in their assigned area. They know the difference.

Do you think they’re looking at thousands of applications and tallying up on a piece of paper how many have seven intensified classes versus eight?

Yes colleges absolutely look at the rigor of high school courses.

Rigor of your classes is incredibly important. With grade inflation many many kids will have unweighted 4.0s. How do they distinguish? Who took the harder classes. How many APs. Scores on AP exams.

Yes, but not as much focus on how many “intensified” classes. There’s no standard across schools w/r to what makes a class “honors” or “intensified” UNLIKE APs.