Hello, I just moves to the US and I am a junior but I think the schedule doesn’t seem like one I expect to be. Here it is:
Algebra 2
Business Law
American Government
Art Foundations
English 11
Team Sports Activities
I am not saying it is bad because it is just for the first semester but I took Art and PE for 10 years and they still give to me. I also had Algebra 2 with Trigonometry and Distinct Math last year and I am feeling very weird about this. Another issue is the schedule might lower admissions or something.
I am really concerned right now and I need an answer.
Most high schools in the states have some sort of fine arts and physical education requirement, so whoever formed your schedule was probably trying to help you meet those requirements.
I’d talk with your guidance counselor about the math situation. If you’ve already taken algebra 2, they should not stick you in that class again. Explain the situation to them.
Best of luck in your junior year!
Please talk to your guidance counselor and make sure you discuss all the classes you’ve already taken that you are scheduled for this year. Maybe the school did not realize that you already have done PE and art. US schools have different requirements, but most only require one year of art or none at all. Two years of PE is common but some may require more or less, and some may give PE credit for participating on a sports team after school. If your English is not too good it’s possible they put you in those classes because they thought it would be easier for you as you adjust and learn more English.
For the algebra2, if they want you to repeat the material, ask if you can take a placement test. It sounds like you should be scheduled for precalculus.
Also, is business law something you requested? Unless you are particularly interested in business or in law, I think you should find another class.
How good is your English? Does the school have an English class for English language learners? That might be more helpful to you. Also, most US high schools and colleges expect foreign language study. This may be less important for you since your native language is not English, but it still may be expected and you should find out about this now before it’s too late.
There might be a few reasons why I have this schedule. It is obvious why I don’t have any foreign language in this year because I already take one and it requires only two credits for foreign language. Algebra 2 is also a course where most juniors take and precalculus is taken less by juniors in my school because I think precalculus is taken mostly by seniors unless they take AP Calculus AB or AP Statistics after that in junior year. I didn’t request Business Law but it is a prerequisite for juniors and seniors only and it is only a 0.5 credit which is only for this semester. As for Art and PE, it is required one and two credits respectively, despite taking them for many years. They don’t really know what I took before, because they only see “Mathematics”, “Fine Arts”, and “Physical Education” in my transcripts. I translated my transcripts into English and gave it to them and they weren’t sure what to do. As for English, I have taken it since 3rd grade, but it was my first language I spoke, because I was born in the US but I moved somewhere else at a younger age, but I came back after 10 years and a half. Back then, speaking in another language was messed up for me and everything got confusing now and I don’t like it, really. I also think science was replaced by one of the subjects I am having because I already took Physics, Chemistry, and Biology before and I finished 3 credits of science. I was always a good student with a 4.0 GPA every year, except last year (sophomore) which was 3.7 GPA, but it is still above average I guess. I don’t have any Honors/AP classes as of now, because in the place I lived, there weren’t any of them, just regular classes and I am not sure about this: If I get a high GPA this year, I don’t think I can get any of these advaned classes next year. This might be a problem in the future for me and I am going to be so disappointed really. I am very worried right now, really. This is all I am going to say.
I still suggest a serious meeting with your guidance counselor. Bring your parents along with you as well. The only chance for something to get fixed is for you to attempt to change it.
Please do not worry about what other students are doing. Your background is different and you may need to take different things than some other students are taking. Try to get the classes that are best for you. You really should meet with your guidance counselor and discuss all your concerns. It may not be possible for them to change your schedule, but maybe it is, and you should try to change anything you don’t feel is a good class for you to take. It is not so unusual for students to make changes to their schedules at the beginning of the year, but usually there is a short time in which you are allowed to do this and usually the faster you ask, the better chance you have to change things.
Make sure that you will finish all the requirements for graduation, but also look at requirements for colleges you might like to attend. Some colleges expect students to do more than just the minimum to earn the high school diploma, and you don’t want to find this out when you apply and don’t meet their expectations. For example, your high school may only require 2 years of foreign language, but some colleges expect 3 or 4.
Honestly, the schedule you have doesn’t look very demanding for a junior, probably ok for community college but not what I think most 4 year colleges would be looking for. If you can do more advanced math, and add science and foreign language, that would be more like what many colleges are looking for. I have the impression the school just stuck you in any old classes and you need to speak up for yourself. If you didn’t request business law, find something you want to do and request it. If the school didn’t understand your transcript, meet with them and explain it.
Hmm…
Okay, I’ll take your advices and go to my guidance counselor to speak about this situation. This is how they give it to me, because they said “we’re gonna look at your transcripts so we can create a schedule for you”. Wow. -_-
They gave my schedule on the first day of school and one of the people who works for the school told someone to show my classes for A SECOND and I didn’t have time to change it earlier. So, tomorrow I am going to the counselor and discuss it about this issue. Hopefully, it is not late for me.
Well, I know I replied very late, but nothing worked. I went there by myself weeks ago and the counselor said she doesn’t see Algebra II on my transcript, only Math 10 and she said I didn’t take Algebra II yet and I have to meet the requirement. I asked for a test, but she said we don’t have any tests for examination and the classes were full for me to join in. A bad reason she stated is that I moved to the US and I was not allowed to take harder classes, because it is different. She showed my transcript, even though I already found out it obvious to know my transcript. She said I have 15 credits so far and here are the subjects I took last year based on my transcript:
Albanian Lang and Lit 10
English Lang 10
Latin Lang
Math 10
Biology
Physics
Chemistry
History
Geography
Civics Education
Economics
Environmental Science
Music Education
Fine Arts
Technology
Technology (ICT)
Health
Physical Education
Yeah I know there are a lot of subjects I took last year but my old school was different than the one I am attending now. Another major difference is that I started high school at 10th grade, rather than the usual 9th, but this doesn’t affect anything I guess. The counselor said I need to have more elective credits in order to graduate. My family went to my school too, but the same issue happened. I don’t know what to do next and my next semester’s schedule is going to be different as well. Everything was messed up and I felt weird about this. I don’t know what classes should I take in my senior year. I mean I know I can choose the classes I want, but the permission of the school staff is tough. I hope my future schedule will be better than I expect it to be.