HIGH
SCHOOL STUDENT/GRADUATE LEVEL 1 OUTLINE
HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT/GRADUATE LEVEL
2 OUTLINE
PARAGRAPH This idea is like the biggest change in the education system ever. I have two levels of a high school graduate. When a school meets the requirements of a level 1 High School grad they will move on to level 2. You will have no cutting corners on a graduate of either level high school student; you will take all the classes listed. A level 1 High School student/graduate will need to take at least 26 credit hours to graduate from High School, which is a higher standard than any state standard in the USA. The standard is fair for the students, fair for the teachers, and fair for the business community as well. This standard will create better grads, which is always a good thing. Math classes for a level 1 & level 2 High School student/graduate are a totally new set standard which has to be met. Also a new set standard for the college level math classes is they are 2 periods in length which will make it a whole lot easier on the student to get a good grade and for the teacher to teach the material necessary to get a good grade as well. I do give them a choice of math classes to take in this standard which is a good thing. The choices are there because different college majors needs different types of math taken. All of the college level math classes are 100% free for the students to take and can easily be taught at the High School they go to. Get a grade above a C average and we can easily wipe those classes off a college diploma saving you the student money that is certainly a good thing. One final thing on the math classes is that for major like Physic and Computer Science you are 100% forced Calculus as your math because it is the best fit for the major and because if you only wind up getting a 2 year degree as a High School level 2 student/graduate you need to have the proper math. English classes for a level 1 & level 2 High School student/graduate also get the college level treatment as well with 2 writing courses. Writing to me is barely stressed in the High School level and under my educational system I want to stress it more. For the level 2 class I do want to go over resume writing as part of the course. The same thing applies with the math classes, grades above a C average in these classes will mean we can get to wipe them off your college degree. Also for the level 2 High School student I would even allow them to swap out the 11th grade English class with a third college level English class. That class could have a one time fee for it for people that are not going for the 2 year degree in English. Fee for a class like this I would have at a few hundred bucks at most here. The major benefit of taking the college level math and college level writing classes during the High School years can be found on the SAT'S, ACT'S, ETC... part of this website. Vocational/Technical classes also get a touch up as well. If you take classes like plumbing, carpentry, electrical, etc… the bare minimum of classes you will take is four one period classes followed by some on the job training. The on the job training can take place either during the school year or during summer school. The more classes a school can offer in something like plumbing before you do the one the job training part of your education the better. Computer science majors, broadcast journalism majors, health majors, etc… fall under Vocational/Technical section for a high school level 1 student / graduate only. They will be able to take up to a total of ten 1 period classes. I will allow these classes to be taken for college credit, but I do think quality is a concern for me at this level so I will not issue a college degree at this level. The differences between a level 1 and level 2 Vocational/Technical high school student is the amount of time available to schedule classes inside a Vocational/Technical major, on the job training time during the school year, and that a level 2 student can squeeze in one extra certificate. A level 1 Vocational/Technical high school student includes majors like computer science and health classes, but as a level 2 student I will call them a college student. Vocational/Technical students will get certificates of completion for the major or majors they take when they get a high school diploma. Foreign Language class is dealt a little bit differently while in high school. A level 1 high school student continues on with the language they are taking and if they are a majoring or ignoring in foreign languages they will probably wind taking like a class or 2 in another language to complete the major or a minor. A level 2 high school student foreign language major will select 2 languages they want to study and go through 1 class a year in that language. Now if they are continuing a foreign language they have taken in the middle school years they will take a refresher class in the 9th grade that if they pass will give them the college level credit they need and will allow them to move on to the more advanced classes for that language. Sex education pops up again for a full year for a level 1 & level 2 High School student/graduate which does include the D.A.R.E Plus program again as well. This sex education will get down and dirty on sex, nothing will be held back in this class. I also want this class to talk about the cost of having a kid again which to me is highly important. The one music or art class you take is only like included to have more of a balanced education. I do think this is a nice class to have and I do include it as part of my set standard, but if a school district decided to skip this class as a graduation requirement I would have no problems at all. When a student takes a High School Level Gym class it is a half period class that is taken every other class day no matter if they are a level 1 or level 2 High School Student / Graduate. A major for a level 1 High School student/graduate is at least 5 classes of one subject matter for a minimum of 5 credit hours, a minor is only 4 classes for a minimum of 4 credit hours. These will be determined in eight grade but can be changed in the High School Area. The Economics class that I want to be taught is not a nation wide set standard at this point of time. Only a few of states like New York even have a class like mine as standard course required for graduation. I want this course as a set standard because it is very important people understand what the word retirement means. I want students in this class to understand how to read financial based newspapers/ magazines, know the basics of different types of mutual funds, bonds, etc.. I want to discuss the basics of supply/demand curves, NGP, GDP, etc.. The students need a class like this so they will be better prepared for the wild world after high school and college. This will be a 12th grade class only and with my high school student requirements it does take the place of any history type classes that would be taught. The one full year Government class I would like to have does talk a lot about current events. This class will discuss the basics of how the government works today and who is in charge. Some government history will be taught as well, but the main focus of this class is to tackle issues head on and come up with ways that they may solve the issues. I want this class to be heavy on thinking and solving, not so much on learning facts and figures. The other new mandenatory course that a High School level 1 & level 2 student takes is a class on college admissions, loans, ways to pay for college, etc... Not only will this half credit course be useful for the students, the information learned in this class will be useful as well for the parents. This class will help students get more information on what choices he or she can make especially in making the college experience as cheap as possible in an expensive college. If your school district moves up to a level 2 High School student / graduate you will be able to take many more college level classes if you want them. Up to eight more in a four-year period. This will allow students to graduate with a High School Diploma and a 2-year college degree for almost every single major except for some degrees in the medical field in four years. More info on medical majors for a level 2 High School student / graduate will be discussed in another paragraph. The 2-year college diploma you will receive will be 100% FREE. To get a 2-year degree they will have to pass all the college level courses with a C or better average. They will be able to get any major the college they go to will allow which can cause problems if like a college does not have a meteorology degree that that you want, but you can substitute it for something else like Physics which is a good thing. The major benefits of doing this are big. Students will get 2 years chunked off going to college if they graduate on time. Two years less of college tuition, dorm, book, food fees, etc.... Two more years to get retirement savings. Get your 2 year degree during your High School years, then go to the military for 4 years, then get the money from the GI bill, and then depending on the college you go to finish the rest of your college education FOR 100% FREE. Have a better chance to moving out of the low wage paying job sector, which is very tough to do with only a high school diploma. A major, college level classes only, under my plan is taking 6-8 college level classes in one subject matter except for certain medical major students. This will allow students to make changes at the end of the ninth grade and still be able to graduate with a 2-year degree. Students in majors such as English, economics, education, philosophy, etc... Go three periods a day. These majors wind up getting that all-important study hall class. This class will give the student time to do home work and ask questions. This time can also be used for extra exam time. Certain medical majors such as Nursing are such a special major that even I do not think you can easily finish off a two year degree with all of the other High School Classes you 100% must have to take. Majors such as this have a lot less fluff and big 8-10 credit hour courses you would be taking if you went to college. You will be able to do more than one years worth of classes that does includes summer school time for on the job training at a local hospital. As a nursing major student in your High School years the high school level science classes will not be taken. On the job training at a local hospital certainly will limit what school districts can offer this major. This is the first type of major that I have come up with at this point of time where an extra year as a High School Student taking only classes like a regular college student in the set major to get the degree is going to work. Liberal Arts degrees are discouraged under my plan because students will be working to get a degree in one specific field. I would like them to choose a field they would like to study in the 8th grade and see if they like it. They do have a chance to change majors under my plan so it can work out for them. Science majors and Computer science majors wind up taking 4 periods a year except for 11th grade which is 3 periods because we have to 100% throw in a sex education class. They do not get a study hall period because they have lab time, but the lab period can be done to do class work / home work if necessary. Math majors go 4 periods a year except for ninth grade that is 3 periods because of that one High School Level math class left for the student to take. They do not really have the study hall period other majors have, but it is like thrown into the second period of the class anyway. Under my plan I will allow seniors that are graduating the chance at internships. Although the smaller the city the less an opportunity to get one this is something I still want to have. The teachers inside the major that you have taken will have the final say on who gets a shot at them. They will look at the grades for all the classes you have taken and then come up with a final list, interviews with the companies will be set up and then if the company likes you will be hired for the internship. The internship time might be a short one because of the time you graduate high school and then go off to college, but if they did like you well enough in that short time you can be hired by the company at a much better pay than say a do you want fries with that job at McDonalds. Under my plan you will only get one teacher per grade level for your major. This is a good thing for scheduling reasons like lab time in a geology class and for the study hall period certain majors have. The college level classes you take during your High School years will have more classroom time than a typical college level course that is a good thing for the students. Which leads to these simple examples in the small table below for a sample class period length of 45 minutes per period.
First I will go over classes taken as a college student. I think these three examples gives us a major cross section of different college classes a student will take. Most college classes’ imo wind up being the 3 periods of 50-minute instruction or 2 periods of 75-minute instruction type classes for 15 weeks. Calculus and a bunch of other math classes are usually 4 period variety for 50 minutes at a time for 15 weeks. At least at the introductory level for science classes you go 3 periods of 50 minute instruction or 2 periods of 75 minute instruction type classes for 15 weeks plus that almost 3 hour lab as well for 15 weeks. All of these classes offer a whole lot less instruction then when taken under my plan at the High School level. The classes taken as a High School student in the table above are 100% equal instruction wise to the college level course. You will easily see that you take an extra 21 weeks of the class and that you go 5 days a week for any class that you take. Those 2 things alone drive up classroom instruction up big time. I feel with all this extra class time a teacher can teach all the material a typical college level version of a course like calculus 1 much better, wind up being able to teach more material than before, graduating students will wind up being better prepared for business world and better prepared for taking classes to get a master or PHD in a major like math. The only three differences that you would find in these classes than the traditional college level version is that since you are still a high school student, field trip permission forms still apply and that final projects like a research paper would be smaller. The third difference is that for some of the classes that you will wind up taking, the size of the class will be a lot smaller. This will all depend the area that you live in, what classes the high school already offers and what online distance leaning courses are available for you to take. Introductory classes at a big university can be well over 200 students in some cases, which to me is no good. Some states like California have exit exams all the students must take. This exam is given out to high school students only that they have to pass in order to graduate out of high school. This exam will not be needed under my plan because since my set standard is so high and I do feel it is more important for your GPA to stand out more than just one measly test score. I also do not need these exit exams because we will have more stringent controls on who moves onto the 9th grade. Students go nine periods a day for the level 2 High School student / graduate so we can get in that extra period, usually a study hall or lab time for the college level classes inside your major which is very crucial imo. You can't go less than this because it will ruin quality of the students that graduate at the age of 18. Any college level class you take in your high school years may have to have a time limit put on it of possibly 10 years max after you have graduated from high school of being able to use it so you do not have to take the class again in college. I would test them though to make sure they do not have to take the class again if it has been too long from going to college. Q&A Why are Computer Science classes not part of my High School curriculum??? To me it is not needed unless you are a major in that subject. Computer
Science in its strictest of forms is learning programming languages and
only programming languages. The Computer Science sector is not that hot
right now because of outsourcing. I do not like outsourcing, but that
alone will not be enough to say that all students must take at least
one Computer Science class to graduate from High School. Even learning
a piece of software like Adobe Photoshop to me is not even a necessary
class. The best time to talk about careers with computers under my plan
is in the career exploration class students take in the eighth grade. Would I allow states to have a third year of high school level science??? Although this can easily be done by moving the sex-ed course to the twelfth grade and moving the study hall over to the eleventh grade giving a student enough time to take such a course I will say that is a class they do not need to take, to me two clases is plenty. Some states have or will be enforcing a third year of High School level science for students and I disagree with them. Will you have a 13th or even a 14th grade level?? This is something that I would like to avoid as much as possible. For the nursing major and other medical majors as discussed above it is not avoidable at all. A 13th year of High School could be used for internships and more on the job training though. I did my best at first on the class schedules so that every single High School student can complete a two-year degree in four years as a level 2 student, but in the end that sure did not work out. Are there any more levels of a High School graduate?? Yes you can have a third level of a High School graduate but it does not work at all. First off some college majors are 5-6 year degrees, which can't be taken in full under a 9 period class high school day or even work for the 4 years you are even a High School Student. Plus the vital imo study hall type classes for the level 2 High School student/graduate would be wiped out which is a big no no and would cause a massive drop in quality of a level 2 High School student/graduate. If you go any higher than level 3 you are now going to have to cut the college level classes in half which imo is a major no no. Classroom instruction is still better than a typical college level class, but I think you need one full school year to take a class for best quality. Plus if you are only going to a 2-year school what do you do for the rest of the classes that you can't take. This idea looks better on paper if you are going to a 4-year school, but I still feel this is a bad idea. Can a high school student / graduate change majors?? Yes they can. They do not have much time to do it, but they can change majors and they do have summerschool which is where they can make up for some missed classes. Can a level 2 high school student / graduate graduate with only a high school diploma?? No. I want to see my set standard 100% enforced to the max eventhough I do know they may not ever stay and continue on with the major they took in high school.. I would like for all students to use the major they took while in high school as something to fall back on if and when they need it. Can a level 2 high school student / graduate graduate with both 2 year college degree and a Vocational/Technical certificate?? Yes. You are very very limited though to only one certificate and math major, but it can be done if and only if you goto summer school for one year as well to complete all requirements for this. Can a level 2 high school student / graduate graduate with more than one 2-year college degrees?? I say this can only be be done if they took summer school classes. Certainly for the Math and English 2 year degree as they have forced classes. Not really for nursing as they have no credits to get rid of. I think they would have to pay some sort of a one time fee for each of those extra classes they take though. Credit hours would count towards four year degree though. Do they have stick with the 2 year college degree or Vocational / Technical certificate they get while in High School??? NO. I would never allow this. They can graduate high school with a 2-year degree in Biology and wind up in college finishing off with a degree so you become a doctor and that will be 100% fine with me. What if the high school is no where near a college?? Oh boy this is a big problem. Online distance learning of college level classes would be the only way to go and this could limit what you could learn big time. It may be so bad in some places you may not even be able to do the online distance learning at all. Do any local rules change for cival service exams because of my plan?? No. Eventhough you may have a 2 year college degree at the age of 18 under my plan, if a city wants a 21 year old age limit before you get hired to do cop work for instance then that is the rule.
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