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

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

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=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.[/quote]

In MCPS, kids used to be tracked into 3 different levels of classes with a few APs thrown in for the very best students.  Kids were in either class level 3, 2 or 1.  I would say that level 3 was for kids who now typically take on grade level classes.  Most kids were in level 2.  The very best students, labeled “gifted” were placed in level 1.  Only some “gifted” students were permitted into the AP class because there was only one AP class.  Space was limited. My school had AP English.  Grades at that time were not weighted.  We currently have a problem in MCPS because there is nothing between Honors and on grade level.  Some students who can’t handle the rigor of Honors classes are stuck in on grade level classes that provide them with no challenge and are too easy.  So I wouldn’t say that the classes have been relabeled.  An entire track of classes has been eliminated, and there is a true need for that track.  At my kids’ school, it is the exception to take on grade level. Most take at least Honors level classes.[/quote]

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