What’s with all of the honors and AP courses? Why don’t they make regular courses more challenging?

[Anonymous]

So it seems like a lot of students (even freshman) take a huge number of honors and AP courses in MCPS. Why? I understand they get a grade boost but if so many of these students are ready for college level work years before college, maybe the district needs to adjust their own courses. I am a teacher and a parent and my son will be in high school next year. People are asking me what AP courses he will be taking. If he is ready for college level classes as a freshman, something is wrong with the coursework in high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So it seems like a lot of students (even freshman) take a huge number of honors and AP courses in MCPS. Why? I understand they get a grade boost but if so many of these students are ready for college level work years before college, maybe the district needs to adjust their own courses. I am a teacher and a parent and my son will be in high school next year. People are asking me what AP courses he will be taking. If he is ready for college level classes as a freshman, something is wrong with the coursework in high school.

because many other kids are not ready.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So it seems like a lot of students (even freshman) take a huge number of honors and AP courses in MCPS. Why? I understand they get a grade boost but if so many of these students are ready for college level work years before college, maybe the district needs to adjust their own courses. I am a teacher and a parent and my son will be in high school next year. People are asking me what AP courses he will be taking. If he is ready for college level classes as a freshman, something is wrong with the coursework in high school.

because many other kids are not ready.

This. While many kids take AP and honors classes, the majority don't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So it seems like a lot of students (even freshman) take a huge number of honors and AP courses in MCPS. Why? I understand they get a grade boost but if so many of these students are ready for college level work years before college, maybe the district needs to adjust their own courses. I am a teacher and a parent and my son will be in high school next year. People are asking me what AP courses he will be taking. If he is ready for college level classes as a freshman, something is wrong with the coursework in high school.

They have adjusted their own courses... by offering honors and AP. If you’re asking why they don’t just make “grade-level” social studies as hard as “honors” social studies, it’s because there are many, many students in the county who aren’t that advanced. Maybe not your son or his friends, but many kids.

[Anonymous]

It seems that they have passed the buck by offering all of these AP courses. The private schools are getting rid of these classes. I wonder how MCPS will react to this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It seems that they have passed the buck by offering all of these AP courses. The private schools are getting rid of these classes. I wonder how MCPS will react to this.

I predict it will backfire for private schools. They will insist their graduates are much more skilled than public school grads but will have no evidence to back it up.

[Anonymous]

Because the non honors is basically remedial level but no one wants to call it remedial because that is offensive to some in this politically correct country. Facts are no longer acceptable. So instead of saying remedial history and regular history, we say history and honors history.

[Anonymous]

So ES school teachers are expected to have all of their students at benchmark but in high school, it becomes okay for them not to be all in the same level?

[Anonymous]

Don't get hung up with the labels. APs are the most challenging and most rigorous. They are usually not quite college level, but are close to a freshman-level college intro class. They vary from somewhat to very challenging. Honors is what used to be called 'on grade level'. You can be annoyed by the inflation of labels, but except in the cases of a few classes, this is what college-bound students ought to take. Many 'regular' classes are essentially remedial, though in some advanced subjects (pre-calculus comes to mind) the course is a good option for many college bound (not math oriented kids).

We aren't pushing the kids too hard-- society has just relabeled these three categories.

[Anonymous]

pp here. I should mention that the although APs aren't exactly college-level courses, they have the advantage of an external test (college board) which keeps the teaching more consistently high level through the year-- at least for schools who want their kids to do well on the end-of-year exam.

[Anonymous]

Because private schools get to choose who they accept! And public doesn't. So they need to cater to all levels. Ap is already a defined courses and curriculum so each school/teacher doesn't have to figure it out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because private schools get to choose who they accept! And public doesn't. So they need to cater to all levels. Ap is already a defined courses and curriculum so each school/teacher doesn't have to figure it out.

Awesome! Leave it to others to do your work for you! And if these AP courses aren’t quite college courses , why do so many colleges give credit for them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because the non honors is basically remedial level but no one wants to call it remedial because that is offensive to some in this politically correct country. Facts are no longer acceptable. So instead of saying remedial history and regular history, we say history and honors history.

But don’t Honors classes get weighted higher in gpa?

[Anonymous]

AP is now "honors."

Honors is now regular/on level.

On level is now skills.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because private schools get to choose who they accept! And public doesn't. So they need to cater to all levels. Ap is already a defined courses and curriculum so each school/teacher doesn't have to figure it out.

Awesome! Leave it to others to do your work for you! And if these AP courses aren’t quite college courses , why do so many colleges give credit for them?

fewer colleges give credit for them now than they used to