<p>Parents who have been through Junior/Upper year--we are debating whether to really push the Honors classes or be more moderate to allow D to excel next year. I know the jr. year is stressful in any case, so we waiver on whether we should advocate for a more moderate schedule (still tough, i.e. 3 v.s 4 H?AP) or go with the conventional wisdom of take the most challenging course load you can. Input?</p>
<p>I lean towards GPA, which is one of the major elements the Colleges look at when evaluating students. The final decision maker was our son with the blessing of his advisor and the teacher. It was a juggling act in that he wanted to do well and push it but not over his head. Some honor courses he got and some the teachers said no. GPA starts in the freshman year. IMO GPA is very important, so even it out. A good advisor should be looking over his or her shoulder with the decision process.</p>
<p>Colleges all say they are looking for the most rigorous schedulea student can succesfully handle. So if there are lots of H courses but a precipitous drop in GPA that is an indication of a bad choice. That said, it is still true that given the same GPA the more H/AP the better.</p>
<p>In our experience junior year academics really ratchet up. Junior year also generally brings more significant time committments to ECs/sports/leadership. That said, a good advisor will really help determine whether D is up for the challenge or in danger of getting overwhelmed. The other factor is how easy is it to drop down a level if you start with more H courses. It is always hard to go up a level, but if changing schedules to step down is easy it makes it easier to give it a try and be prepared to change it up if it does not go well.</p>