Homewood-Flossmoor High School s H-F Gifted Academy: Four-Year Overview For further information, contact Dr. Nancy Spaniak, Director of Curriculum, Instruction & Professional Development: 708-335-5330, nspaniak@hf233.org
An Introduction to the H-F Gifted Academy The H-F Gifted Academy a four-year program for academically talented students aligns with Homewood-Flossmoor High School s (H-F) mission to uphold the highest standards of intellectual growth. In general, most schools do a good job of supporting struggling students but do not provide enough enrichment for academically talented students. While H-F traditionally has serviced students well through its honors and Advanced Placement (AP) program, the school wanted to do more for its highest academic performers. As a result, a committee of administrators and teachers worked for more than a year to develop the H-F Gifted Academy. Established in the fall of 2011, the H-F Gifted Academy is designed for students whose mathematical achievement and scores on Homewood-Flossmoor High School s 8th grade entrance exam rank them at the top of their class. Via an application process, a cohort of academically talented rising 9th Graders is selected to enter the H-F Gifted Academy to experience honors courses, along with an accelerated Advanced Placement program, during their freshmen and sophomore years. After an extensive multi-year application process, the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) granted IB World School status to Homewood-Flossmoor High School in the spring of 2013. As a result, H-F became the first public high school in the Chicago suburbs to offer the IB Diploma Programme. Homewood-Flossmoor High School proudly joined the exclusive group of approximately 3,000 IB World Schools that dot the globe across 138 countries. A non-profit organization, IBO was founded in 1968 in response to the demands of European diplomats who were seeking a rigorous, relevant, and consistent academic program for their children as they traveled from country to country. The IB Diploma Programme provides upper-level high school students with an academically challenging and balanced program of study to develop students content knowledge in a systematic fashion as it fosters their maturity. IB Diploma Programme graduates are recognized internationally as well-rounded, top students who possess strong critical thinking, research, writing, and oral communication skills. AP, a pillar of Homewood-Flossmoor High School s nationally recognized curricular framework, is regarded around the world for its rigorous preparation of students for high-level university work. Coupled with experiencing the AP program, H-F Gifted Academy members enter the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme as juniors. Thus, the H-F Gifted Academy immerses its members in the two most challenging and internationally recognized high school curricula: AP and IB. 1
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme Curriculum Framework As illustrated below, the IB Diploma Programme curriculum framework consists of courses in six groups, which are offered either as one-year standard level (SL) courses during students junior or senior year, or two-year higher level (HL) courses during students junior and senior years. Within the six groups, Homewood-Flossmoor High School offers the following courses: Group 1 Studies in Language and Literature HL English Group 2 Language Acquisition: SL French and SL Spanish Group 3 Individuals and Societies: SL Economics Group 4 Sciences: HL Physics Group 5 Mathematics: HL Math Group 6 The Arts: SL Art and SL Music. In addition to earning their H-F diploma, H-F Gifted Academy students have the opportunity to earn an IB Diploma upon graduation. Highly prestigious, the IB Diploma is, in the words of the International Baccalaureate website, a passport to higher education across the globe. Students who wish to earn an IB Diploma must take courses and pass rigorous IB assessments in all six groups. Additionally, they must enroll in the twoyear Theory of Knowledge (TOK) course, compose a 4,000-word Extended Essay (EE), and complete the Creativity, Action and Service (CAS) requirement outside of the school day. (See pages 6 and 7 for further descriptions of TOK, EE, and CAS.) The global pass rate for the IB Diploma is 80%. Although H-F Gifted Academy students are not required to seek an IB Diploma, as juniors and seniors, they all must take IB courses in Groups 1-5. Non-IB Diploma-seeking students who earn successful scores on IB end-of-course exams are awarded Certification of Mastery, which is recognized by universities around the world for college course credit. While encouraged to complete the TOK, EE, and CAS requirements, IB certificate students students not working towards the IB Diploma are not obliged to do so. 2
H-F Gifted Academy Four-Year Course Overview COURSE GROUPS GRADE 9 GRADE 10 GRADE 11 GRADE 12 IB Group 1: English *English 1 Honors (#1900) AP Language & Comp (#1901) v*ib HL English 1 (#1902) v*ib HL English 2 (#1903) IB Group 2: World Language *Spanish 2 Honors *French 2 Honors *Spanish 3 Honors *French 3 Honors *Spanish 4 Honors *French 4 Honors v*ib SL Spanish (#1920) v*ib SL French (#1921) IB Group 3: Social Science *AP World History (#1910) *AP U.S. History (#1911) v*ib SL Economics (#1917) Music Ensemble Other Elective IB Group 4: Science *Biology Honors *Chemistry Honors *Chemistry Honors AP or Honors Elective v*ib HL Physics 1 (#1940) v*ib HL Physics 2 (#1941) IB Group 5: Math *Algebra 2/Trig Honors (#1930) *Pre-Calculus Honors (#1931) v*ib HL Math 1 Calculus AB (#1934) v*ib HL Math 1 Calculus BC (#1932) v*ib HL Math 2 Advanced Math Topics (#1933) IB Group 6: Fine Arts vmusic Ensemble vart Studio or Other Elective vmusic Ensemble vart Studio or Other Elective vmusic Ensemble vart Studio or Other Elective vib SL Music (#1960) vib SL Art (#1961) or Other Elective Other *PE/Health Honors *PE/Driver Education vib TOK 1 (#1914) Other Elective vib TOK 2 (#1915) Other Elective Yellow-highlighted courses fulfill H-F core course graduation requirements. / * - Indicates courses required for all H-F Gifted Academy students. v- Indicates courses required for all IB Diploma candidates. / 900 course numbers indicate cohort courses in which only H-F Gifted Academy students are enrolled. 3
H-F Gifted Academy Freshman Year Overview During 9th Grade, all H-F Gifted Academy students take English 1 Honors*, AP World History, Algebra 2/Trig Honors, one semester of Freshman Physical Education and one semester of Health Honors. Gifted Academy students who have not taken Geometry Honors in junior high must do so in summer school prior to their freshman year. Gifted Academy students not enrolled in summer school Geometry are encouraged, but not required, to take Biology Honors in the summer. Those who take Biology Honors in summer school take Chemistry Honors during 9th Grade. Freshman year cohort classes: English 1 Honors (#1900) AP World History (#1910) Algebra 2/Trig Honors (#1930) Only H-F Gifted Academy students are enrolled in course sections with 1900 numbers. Additionally, only one teacher instructs each of these 1900 courses; therefore, the freshmen all share the same teachers for English 1H, AP World History, and Algebra 2/Trig H. In addition to collaborating with one another to establish common student expectations and norms, as well as to coordinate major projects and exams, the H-F Gifted Academy freshman teacher team members articulate with their sophomore, junior, and senior year teacher team counterparts in order to ensure a smooth transition from one grade to the next. Along with the above-mentioned courses, all H-F Gifted Academy students take either French or Spanish. Most earn H-F French 1 or Spanish 1 credit from their junior high course work. These students all enroll in either French 2 Honors or Spanish 2 Honors as 9th Graders. Students who have not yet taken a World Language course enroll in Spanish 1 Honors as 9th Graders. Prior to 10th Grade, these students take Spanish 2 Honors in summer school in order to be prepared to enroll in Spanish 3 Honors with the other H-F Gifted Academy students their sophomore year. Finally, H-F Gifted Academy students seeking an IB Diploma must take four years of either art or music; therefore, IB Diploma-seeking students take art courses (Photography, Graphic Arts, or Art Studio) or musicperformance courses (Band, Choir, or Orchestra) freshmen through junior year in order to prepare for senior year s IB SL Art or IB SL Music. IB certificate students those not pursuing the IB Diploma choose other elective courses to fill each year s art/music slot. Exam taken at the end of freshman year: AP World History Homewood-Flossmoor High School pays for all AP and IB exams taken by students in the required H-F Gifted Academy AP and IB courses. *For specific course descriptions, see the Homewood- Flossmoor Academic Course Selection Book, available on the H-F website at hfhighschool.org/academics/curriculum/course-selection/ 4
H-F Gifted Academy Sophomore Year Overview As sophomores, all H-F Gifted Academy students enroll in AP English Language and Composition, Spanish 3 Honors or French 3 Honors, AP U.S. History, Pre-Calculus Honors, one semester of Sophomore Physical Education and one semester of Driver Education. Students who have taken Biology Honors in 9th Grade may take Chemistry Honors either in summer school prior to 10th Grade or in 10th Grade. Students who take Chemistry Honors prior to 10th Grade are encouraged to take an AP or honors Science elective as sophomores, but they may also use this slot to take an elective from another discipline. H-F Gifted Academy sophomores seeking the IB Diploma must also enroll in either an art studio or music performance course. IB certificate students may use this art/music slot to enroll in either one yearlong elective or two semester electives. Sophomore year cohort classes: AP Language and Composition (#1901) AP U.S. History (#1911) Pre-Calculus Honors (#1931) Exams taken at the end of sophomore year: AP Language and Composition AP U.S. History H-F Gifted Academy Students say... My courses are interesting and challenging. I feel that I can actually use what I ve learned at school not only for tests and quizzes but in real-life situations, too. The... college trips we are exposed to... give us information that s important to our future. I enjoy how many of our classes share inter-related topics. Government, for example, is reoccurring in both AP U.S. and AP Language and Composition. As a result, we will have knowledgeable exposure. The teachers are amazing best teachers I ve ever had! 5
H-F Gifted Academy Junior Year Overview H-F Gifted Academy students begin their IB Diploma Programme coursework in the 11th Grade. Junior year cohort classes: IB HL English 1 (#1902) IB SL Economics (#1917) IB HL Physics 1 (#1940) IB HL Math 1 Calculus AB (#1934) or IB HL Math 1 Calculus BC (#1932) In addition to the above courses, all H-F Gifted Academy juniors also enroll in either Spanish 4 Honors or French 4 Honors. Additionally, IB Diploma-seeking students must also enroll in IB Theory of Knowledge (TOK) 1 (#1914), a fifth cohort course. Finally, they must take either an art studio or music ensemble course. IB certificate students may use the TOK and art/music slots to take other elective courses. As stated earlier, H-F Gifted Academy students who are not seeking an IB Diploma are encouraged to take TOK because the course as explained on the International Baccalaureate website helps students develop a coherent approach to learning that unifies academic disciplines. TOK students expand their critical-thinking ability as they inquire into the nature of knowing and deepen their understanding of knowledge as human construction. During their junior year, IB-Diploma-seeking students begin fulfilling their Extended Essay (EE) and Creativity, Action, and Service (CAS) requirements. Through their TOK course, students receive instruction in the independent research required to conduct a thorough, indepth study of an EE question, which each student develops in regards to his/her personal interest in one 6 of 22 Diploma Programme subjects. For approximately one year, from November of their junior year through mid-november of their senior year, the students research and write their 4,000-word EE. In addition to receiving instruction from their TOK teacher, the students work one-on-one with an EE-trained faculty member who supervises their research and writing process. According to the International Baccalaureate website, the purpose of CAS is to embark IB-Diploma-seeking students on a challenging and enjoyable personal journey of self-discovery. As its name implies, CAS provides a counterbalance to academic studies by engaging students in creative endeavors, physical activity, and community service. Homewood-Flossmoor High School s CAS supervisor assists students with developing and implementing their personal CAS programs. Students are expected to be involved in CAS activities throughout their two years in the IB Diploma Programme and to reflect on their experiences, in writing, on a regular basis. To prepare for junior year standardized testing, H-F Gifted Academy 11th Graders are encouraged to enroll in Viking Test Prep. All H-F Gifted Academy students Viking Test Prep courses are paid for by Homewood- Flossmoor High School. Exams taken at the end of junior year: AP Microeconomics AP Macroeconomics AP Calculus AB or AP Calculus BC IB SL Economics end-of-course exam External examiners mark both the AP and IB end-ofcourse exams.
H-F Gifted Academy Senior Year Overview Senior year cohort classes: IB HL English 2 (#1903) IB SL Spanish (#1920) IB SL French (#1921) IB HL Physics 2 (#1941) IB HL Math 2 Advanced Math Topics (#1933) In addition to the above courses, IB-Diploma-seeking seniors take IB SL Art (#1961) or IB SL Music (#1960), and IB TOK 2 (#1915). All IB students have an open period during which the IB-Diploma-seeking students may fit a music ensemble or other elective course. As in other years, IB Certificate students may use one or both of the TOK and IB art/music slots to take further electives. Exams taken at the end of senior year: IB HL English end-of-course exam IB SL Spanish or IB SL French end-of-course exam IB HL Physics end-of-course exam IB HL Math end-of-course exam IB SL Art or IB SL Music end-of-course exam AP Literature and Composition AP Music Theory AP Spanish or AP French AP Physics 1 AP Physics 2 Along with the above end-of-course exams, students also complete assessment tasks in their IB courses, which are either initially graded by their teachers then marked by external moderators or sent directly to external moderators. Grades awarded for each IB exam range from 1 (lowest) to 7 (highest). Students can also be awarded up to three additional points for their combined results on the TOK assessment and Extended Essay. 7 The IB Diploma is awarded to students who earn at least 24 points subject to certain minimum levels of performance across the whole Diploma Programme as well as satisfactory participation in the Creativity, Action, and Service requirement. The highest total a Diploma Programme student can be awarded is 45 points. IB assessments are criterion-related, which means student performance is measured against prespecified assessment criteria based on the aims and objectives of each subject curriculum, rather than the performance of other students taking the same examinations. The range of scores that students have attained remains statistically stable, and universities value the rigor and consistency of the Diploma Programme s assessment practice. AP exams are graded on a scale of 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest). As colleges and universities often do with IB exam results, many award college credit for students AP exam scores of 3 or better.
Grade Weighting and Class Rankings Because of the rigor of their four-year course plan, H- F Gifted Academy students are poised to graduate at the top of their class. In order to rank students, Homewood-Flossmoor High School uses a grade-weighting system that recognizes differences in the challenge of courses at the various levels of Academic Core, College Prep, Honors, and AP/IB. The following table represents the 4-tier grade weighting system. Ultimately, the grades a student earns, combined with the rigor of the curriculum taken by the student, determine a grade point value that results in the student s class rank. The student with the highest weighted grade point average (GPA) is ranked number one in his or her respective class (i.e. freshmen, sophomore, junior, senior classes). All required H-F Gifted Academy courses with the exception of Freshman PE, Sophomore PE, and Driver Education are taken at the honors or AP/IB level. All Homewood-Flossmoor High School students must take their PE courses at the college prep level; however, according to school board policy, each school year, students may take one yearlong elective, or two semester electives (including Driver Education), on a pass/no pass basis. Courses taken in this manner do not affect a student s GPA or class rank. While the Homewood- Flossmoor High School credits students earn in junior high for Spanish, French, Algebra 1, and Geometry count towards graduation, they do not affect students GPA or class rank because these grades are recorded on their Homewood-Flossmoor High School transcripts as P for pass. HOMEWOOD-FLOSSMO HIGH SCHOOL S 4-TIER GRADE-WEIGHTING SYSTEM A B C D F AP/IB 7 6 5 2 0 Honors 6 5 4 2 0 College Prep 5 4 3 2 0 Academic Core 4 3 2 1 0 8
H-F Gifted Academy Qualifying Criteria 8th Graders are invited to apply to the H-F Gifted Academy based on their Homewood-Flossmoor entrance exam scores. They should also meet the following application criteria: m Have a history of high test scores and grades. In particular, students should have earned As and, perhaps, an occasional B during the first three quarters of 8th Grade in their English/Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Science, and World Language courses. m Be on track to complete 8th Grade with an A or B in Geometry Honors or, at the minimum, an A in Algebra 1 Honors. - Students who complete Algebra 1 Honors in 8th Grade must take, and earn an A or B in Geometry Honors in summer school prior to freshman year. Once accepted into the H-F Gifted Academy, students must maintain, at the minimum, a 3.0 unweighted grade point average in order to sustain their Academy enrollment. Additionally, to continue their Academy status as upperclassmen, students must complete courses in at least five of the six IB Diploma Programme groups. m Be on track to complete 8th Grade with an A or B in Spanish 1 Honors or French 1 Honors. - Students who have never taken a foreign language must take Spanish 1 Honors in 9th Grade followed by Spanish 2 Honors in the summer prior to sophomore year. m Be prepared to continue to earn high grades throughout high school. m Be prepared to take seven classes all four years of high school and tackle at least two to three hours of homework per night. m Be prepared to get involved in at least one sport or activity each semester of high school. 9 Future H-F Gifted Academy students can look forward to many group and one-on-one sessions with Homewood-Flossmoor High School s college counselors throughout their four years in the program. They can also anticipate taking field trips to such prestigious campuses as Northwestern University and the University of Chicago. Additionally, H-F Gifted Academy students receive a book chosen by the H-F Gifted Committee to read each summer, and they are invited to participate in all special programs and events hosted by the Gifted Committee. Ultimately, the H-F Gifted Academy s honors/ap/ib curricular experience combined with unique field trips, programs, and events poises its students for high levels of post-secondary academic and career success.