What's the point of honors?
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Anonymous
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I'm completely confused.
This is our first semester in the Montgomery County System. We have a 7th grader (Westland) and a 9th grader (BCC) So... math the kids are tracked. Any my 9th grader is in AP GOV. The rest of their regular academic classes are all marked honors (except science for the 7th grader b/c I guess there isn't' any). However, all of their classes are mixed on level and honers. AND, there is no differentiation in the class. Even to the extreme where my 9th grader's English teacher (a class of mixed on level and honors students) told them if that if there schedule isn't marked honors they should ask to be switched into honors because then they will get the extra point for their GPAs. Two questions. Are there classes that are actually honors only? Do I just need to ask for them to be placed elsewhere? What is even the point of having an honors track? It seems terribly unfair that some students that are supposedly already ahead (as indicated by the honors designation) get a grade boost for the same work as other students. I feel like I must be missing something. I don't need/want my kids to be in honors classes but I would like them to be challenged. And yes, we come from an equally strong (probably stronger) district, so my kids should be in the more difficult classes in this county. |
Anonymous
| Not from your middle or high school but..at our middle school there was differentiation within the classroom for honor and non-honors kids. Different books/hw/tests..not always hugely different but something. In HS, honors classes are totally separate from grade level...my kid is in honors english, math, language, science and ss. I know not all schools are run the same way but I would checkin with the HS counselor. |
Anonymous
| Which then makes it sound like the teacher is planning to teach the class at one level and so it telling the kids who aren't registered as honors to get the schedule fixed because the kids in the class with honors are taking the same class but getting more credit for it? |
Anonymous
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It is designed so parents can say their kid is in honors or AP classes.
Just like when they apply to colleges and people ask them where they applied. The kids could care less |
Anonymous
| I agree that honors should not get the extra point-only IB or AP and probably only if you have an A, B or C |
Anonymous
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It is a scam for school rankings and recommendation. My daughter went thru and all these honors are not true honors. It is a curriculum with a few extra test questions that 3/4 of the high school can pass. Does that sound like honors to you? Colleges see right thru it. Even the AP classes are getting so much easier. My second born breezed they AP gov. that my oldest worked her butt of for. She isn't in the top 5% of her grade. How is a 14yr old breezing they a legit college course designed for 19yr olds?
OP, you know your answer. You know it isn't right. You know it is because all the helicopters want their kids in honors. It appeases everyone. It challenges no one. |
Anonymous
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I think it is not the same at all schools. Sometimes there is an entirely honors section in both MS and HS and sometimes the class is mixed (this is based on numbers and the budget). In my experience when the classes were mixed, there WAS different HW and different assignments for the two levels. Grade level might be multi-choice, honors, short essay and multi-choice.
Stay engaged, ask questions, advocate for your child. Mine is getting an IB diploma and I asked for 1 non-IB class, the IB coordinator didn't want to do it, but I insisted and won. IT is also true that some schools cave to parents and call classes honors when they are not. |
Anonymous
| Honors is just to bring up the grades. Why do you think so many bombed final exams? |
Anonymous
| Obviously not everyone is in honors so they offer more than the non-honors. My HS has specific requirements ..like you must maintain over an 85% in honors math to be recommended for it the next time. You must have a ?? (more than 85) to move from regular math to honors. The pre-recs are all on the website. I don't think they deserve the same weight as AP/IB |
Anonymous
| At our private, honors and regular classes are separate. The textbooks are even different. Honors classes usually have fewer students. So glad we went to private. |
Anonymous
They are separate at my mcps too with different books depending on the class. I don't think smaller classes for top students is right though... |
Anonymous
Why not? They earned it by working harder and taking school seriously. The content is more challenging, therefore justifying a smaller class. Plus, considering that they are an elite group of kids...there won't be so many of them. |
Anonymous
Incorrect. They are not separate. They are worked together and the kids have extra homework occasionally and a few extra questions on tests. My daughter's one "honors" class has two refugee kids who barely speak English and have only showed up to class about 4 times. |
Anonymous
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And now you get it, OP! The system is completely ridiculous! |
Anonymous
It depends on the school. They are separate at our current school, but we're not at our previous school. |