Welcome!!Junior High Parent Meeting

8th Grade Electives

• 5th Period: Choir, Band, Rosetta Stone, Study Hall, Art

• 6th Period: RS, SH, Art, Computer (1 semester)• 6th Period: Health (1 semester)

(Audition is required for Choir and Band, if not taken in 7th grade.)

There will be a mixture of classes for all academic classes except math.

Bible may be a combined grade 7 and 8 class.

High School!

• Each one of your high school students is in the process of starting their high school transcripts.

Health Class fulfills the high school requirement for Health; thus the grade for the class will be on the student’s high school transcript.

If your student is taking Algebra 1 this year, the grades for the class will be on the student’s high school transcript.

Students who took a Rosetta Stone foreign language course have the option of receiving credit for the class taken in 8th grade.

State of Ohio graduation requirements• This law describes graduation requirements for the Class of 2014 and beyond.

These requirements are as follows:

• English – 4 units • Health – ½ unit • Mathematics – 4 units, including Algebra 2 • Physical Education – ½ unit • Science – 3 units, must include physical science, biology, and 1 unit of

advanced science • Social Studies – 3 units • Economics and Financial Literacy (not necessarily as a separate course)• Electives – 5 units • (also a unit of fine arts must be completed in grades 7-12)

MCS additional requirements

There are also MCS requirements for students.

1. The number of credits required for an MCS diploma is 24.

2. MCS students must take Chemistry and an additional science.

3. MCS students must take World Geography, US History, American Government, and Economics.

4. MCS students must have one unit in a Fine Arts area.

5. Bible is required for each year in MCS high school.

6. There are three College Prep diploma options at MCS.

Student grades will be reported on a semester basis, with semester exams in all core subjects. GPA is calculated on semester grades, which includes semester exams in all core subjects (counts as 10% of semester grade for classes with a semester final).

Ohio Honors Diploma/CPIII

The State of Ohio has an honors diploma.

Requirements – 7 of 8 criteria must be fulfilled

English – 4 credits Science – 4 credits (must include chemistry and physics) Social Studies – 4 credits Mathematics – 4 credits (Alg. 1 and 2, geometry, and an additional higher

level course) Foreign Language – 3 units of one language or 2 units for two different

languages Fine Arts – 1 credit 27 on ACT or 1210 on SAT (not including optional writing portion) GPA – 3.5

Bible is also required for the MCS College Prep III diploma.

OGT

• Your students will probably not be taking the Ohio Graduation Test.

• The new ODE plan will instead require:o End of course exams in 10 subjects: English 9, 10, 11, Algebra 1, Geometry,

Algebra II, Physical Science, Biology, U.S. History, and American Government

o The required taking of some test, probably the PSAT. It is not known how this will be counted toward graduation.

• At this time schools do not know what the end-of-course tests will look like or how they will be graded.

Foreign Language

• Two years of a foreign language are required as part of the College Prep II requirements. (Three years are recommended)

• Students may take Spanish through traditional classes (up to four years).

• Students may also take other foreign language classes through Rosetta Stone online.

Rosetta Stone Platform

Pros• There are over 25 languages to

choose from in the platform.• The course can easily be

completed during a study hall period. (Technically, the student is not in study hall, but a credit flex class period.)

• Parents can see their student’s progress at any time.

Cons• Self-discipline is a must!• Students will be required to take

the first two levels of a language to receive one high school credit for the language. The third level will act as a second high school credit, while levels 4 and 5 (where applicable) will be required for a third credit.

• Students are not guaranteed to meet honors diploma requirements, as not all languages have the required number of levels. Only French, German, Chinese, Russian and Italian have the required number of levels.

PSEO Program

• The Post Secondary Education Option (PSEO or PSO) program is offered by the State of Ohio to all students in grades 9-12.

• I am obliged to make you aware that your student is allowed to participate in the PSEO program.

• However, we strongly discourage freshman participation in college level courses.

• The maturity level needed, both academically and emotionally, is usually lacking.

• We offer no PSEO sequences on campus for freshmen, so the family would be on their own to provide transportation to and from campus.

• The MCS schedule takes priority over other scheduled classes, and freshmen have a full schedule already.

• NC State requires a 3.5 GPA and a qualifying ACT score to participate. The qualifying ACT score would be difficult to attain, both educationally and in a timely fashion.

Credit Flex Plan

• The state of Ohio allows high school classes to be taken through nontraditional means.

“units of high school credit based on a demonstration of subject matter competency, instead of or in combination with completing hours of classroom instruction”

• Public schools are required to offer this option. Chartered non-public schools may offer this option.

• An application for such a course must be made prior to the start of taking such a class.

Testing

• Students take the OAA and EXPLORE test in grade 8. (EXPLORE and PLAN are products of the ACT company.)

• Students take the PLAN test in grade 9. Students may also take the ACT or COMPASS tests in grade 9 to qualify for PSEO classes.

College and Career Planning

• Students and parents are encouraged to take advantage of the online Ohio Career Information System (OCIS)

• Log into website (UN: sparc and PW: ohiocis03). Then create your own account.

• Tons of information on careers and Ohio institutions of higher learning.

Questions?

Have a great night! Thank you for coming!