<p>075014,</p>
<p>Most American high schools require a mix of mandatory courses with elective courses. At my sons’ high school, everyone is required to take English each year for four years. The course content (whether American literature or European literature, etc.) is not elective. However, better students are placed into honors level or AP level courses.</p>
<p>Similarly in math, science and history. Every student must take certain core courses - only the levels differ, whether regular college prep, honors or AP. Every student at my sons’ high school must take three years of a foreign language. There is some limited choice as to which language, but everyone must take it.</p>
<p>As for “sport,” most schools require at least a year or so of physical education, often with no choice as to the curriculum of the class or classes.</p>
<p>Furthermore, American colleges and universities, especially highly-selective schools, will be looking for specific minimum numbers of courses in different subjects, and specific topics within those subjects.</p>
<p>A long-time high school teacher and administrator that I know calls this “the rule of 20.” Generally, top colleges and universities are looking for a minimum total of 20 courses from five subject areas: math, science, English, history (or social studies), foreign languages. In math, they like to see four years ending at least in college prep pre-calculus. In science, they also like to see four years, including biology, chemistry and physics. In English, they’ll want to see at least four years and will often look for at least a year of English literature and at least a year of British or European literature. In history, again, they’d like to see three or four years, and they’ll look for at least a year of world history and a year of US history. Many want to see a class in US government. They want to see at least three years of a foreign language.</p>
<p>That leaves some flexibility. Both my sons will have taken only three of history. But my older son had six years of one foreign language and four years of a second foreign language. My younger son will likely have four years of one and three or four of a second foreign language. My older son took AP Calculus BC in his senior year to round out four years of math. But my younger son will likely do multivariable calculus in his senior year, ending, in effect, with five years of math.</p>
<p>At my sons’ high school, the school itself requires a minimum of 24 courses over four years, and most students do 28 or more. With those extra courses beyond the “core,” they’ll take the courses they really want to take, whether it’s extra math, science, language or social studies, or band or chorus or other music courses. Beyond the one course in physical education, there are no other “sport” courses, but many students participate in team sports, which are extracurricular activities for which one receives no grades, and are not counted as courses.</p>
<p>High schools can vary significantly in the United States, as each school jurisdiction sets up its own curriculum, its own rules, its own policies. And then, there are the countless private high schools (my sons’ high school if private) that are independent of and differ from the high schools sponsored and run by the government school jurisdictions.</p>
<p>But my sons’ high school is pretty typical of high schools in the United States, at least academically.</p>