As you look through courses and try to decide what might work best for you, you may be wondering - how do I know whether I should choose Advanced Placement, Honors, or Curr. A.   This page will give you guidelines on this process.

Course Levels offered at AHS

The following course levels are offered at Arlington High School:

• Advanced Placement - primarily for students in Grades 11 and 12, AP courses offer a fast-paced, intensive, college-level, exposure to a specific curriculum.  Students in AP courses must take the AP exam, offered by the College Board, at the end of the school year in order to receive AP credit for these courses.

• Honors - for students in Grades 9-12, Curriculum H courses are driven by independent student work and, along with Advanced Placement courses, require the highest amount of student discipline, energy, effort, and organizational skills.

• Curriculum A - for students in Grades 9-12, Curriculum A courses are college preparatory courses that cover rigorous content, college preparatory skill development, and specific instruction from teachers in study skills.

• Curriculum B - for students in Grades 9-11 with teacher and school counselor approval only, Curriculum B courses allow for some remediation while still providing preparation for college and career. Students who are interested in Division 1 or 2 college athletics will need to satisfy NCAA Eligibility Criteria which is available on their website, www.ncaaclearinghouse.org.  Historically, Curriculum A, Honors, and AP courses have met these standards.  Please note that the NCAA has not approved Curriculum B core classes at this point in time.

• Heterogeneous courses - Courses with this designation are offered to all students. Students access the same curriculum at the same time with the same teacher. Teachers will differentiate instruction to ensure that all students are appropriately challenged by the curriculum and can reach their full potential. Although this practice is not new to Arlington High School, we are making an effort to ensure that all students take at least two heterogeneous classes in core content areas before they graduate, as required by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). Students have the option of earning Honors Credit through more challenging research and project work. Students who are interested in earning Honors credit will inform the teacher in September.

Guidance on Choose Course Levels

An overview of our suggested Criteria for choosing a course. There is a section here dedicated to rising 8th graders, but all information is applicable to students who are at AHS, OMS or transferring from an outside school.

Course Selection Aid: Chart

The following worksheet applies to the information from above into an easy to easy chart where students can fill in their information to help determine what course level may be appropriate to sign up for next year year.   This form can be helpful when meeting with your counselor to discuss scheduling. 

Course Selection Worksheet.pdf

Description from the Program of Studies

The information contained in this Program of Studies is designed to guide students and guardians/parents in making important educational decisions for the upcoming school year. All course offerings are dependent on the finalized school budget, enrollment, and student need. The school reserves the right to delete or amend course offerings based on financial considerations. 

Philosophy of Course-Level Enrollment

The Arlington Public Schools encourage all students to meet their maximum potential. Recommended prerequisites are intended to identify the skills and competencies students should possess prior to enrollment in order to be successful in a given course. Required prerequisites that are not tied to sequential course offerings, i.e., you must take Spanish II before you can take Spanish III, are inconsistent with this vision and shall not be barriers to course selection. Teachers and counselors can provide specific assignments and samples of coursework to help students make their choices about appropriate courses and levels of study. While we encourage students to seek a challenging course of study, a schedule with 3 college-level courses (e.g., Advanced Placement) is generally considered to be our most demanding program.  

Course Selection Guidelines

• School Counselors work with students to choose the appropriate number and selection of required and elective courses for each individual student. 

• The number of students in a particular course will vary based on the requests of students. If there are an insufficient number of students requesting a particular course, the course will not be offered, and those students who have requested it will be assigned to one of their alternate choices.

• Students who select a particular course at the time of the initial course selection should choose the appropriate level at that time. It may not be possible to adjust that level at a later date given the tightness of the class size/course selection process. Students should consult with their teachers and counselors to make the most appropriate educational choices. Changes will not be made in the fall if a class overload would result.

• Students who are interested in college athletics will need to satisfy NCAA Eligibility Criteria which are available on their website, www.ncaaclearinghouse.org. All of the courses offered at AHS are designed to prepare our students for college. Historically, Curriculum A, Honors, and AP courses have met these standards, while Curriculum B courses have not.   Students and parents are encouraged to look at the website to confirm for themselves that their courses meet these standards.

• All Freshman, Sophomore, and Junior students attending classes at Arlington High School will be scheduled for 32.5 credits per year (minimum).  All Seniors will be scheduled for 30 credits (minimum) per year.  Exceptions to the credit minimums must be approved by a school administrator.

• All course schedules are subject to final approval of the administration

Special Note on Foundations of English Grade 9

Rising 9th graders will be presented with a choice of honors or advanced for Foundations of English grade 9.  Please choose the course that you feel the most comfortable with.   All students will be placed into the heterogenous course at the start of the school year.  They are then given 2 weeks to solidify their level choice (honors vs. advanced).   

We have students complete this information now so that we have rough numbers to work from in developing our sections for the next year.  Also, it assist with our data collection on this process and how it informs student's decisions.