Planning Your High School Program

Allen High School has a wide array of programs that prepare students for post-high school pursuits. It is recommended that students and parents think in terms of a six-year plan that carries students through their first two years beyond high school.

Practical suggestions for students and parents planning on academic pursuits include:

• Take the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT) the sophomore and junior years. Taking the PSAT the sophomore year exposes students to the format used and allows the school and parents to identify areas of strength and weakness. National Merit Scholarship recipients are taken from PSAT candidates that take the test during the junior year.

• Take the SAT/ACT examinations multiple times. Students’ skills are varied and some do better on the ACT than the SAT. It is recommended that students take both tests at least once. A sample schedule might include: PSAT – sophomore and junior fall semesters; SAT – January to March of junior year; ACT – spring to summer junior year; and SAT again fall of senior year. Most colleges accept applications in the fall of a student’s senior year; therefore it is important to have multiple results documented before the end of a senior’s fall semester.

• Plan on a senior year filled with rigorous coursework and activities. A student’s senior year should propel the student smoothly toward the next challenge. “Senior-itus” alludes to the “need” to relax and enjoy oneself prior to leaving high school. This mindset and culture greatly impairs a student’s ability to succeed in an ever-changing, competitive society. A student’s senior year should be focused on future academic pursuits.

• Take mathematics and science as seniors. Too often students finish the state requirements for math and science by the end of the junior year and “take a year off” from these disciplines the senior year. This practice clearly hurts student chances of being scholastically prepared for post-secondary education.

• Take English IV as seniors. To graduate on the Recommended High School Program, students must take English IV. Some students opt for other courses that can be substituted for English IV. Again, it is critical that students become better communicators and assimilators of language prior to entering post-secondary pursuits.

• Take three years of language other than English. Taking other languages greatly expands a student’s ability to think and process information. It also gives students a better understanding of cultural differences.

• Integrate technology into the student’s studies and life. An understanding and competence in the use of computer hardware, software, programs, and the Internet is essential There is no field of study or career choice in the 21st Century that will not require a high level of knowledge and skill in the use of technology.

• Participate in school related activities and community service. Being involved in school programs and community service contributes to developing a well-rounded, sensitive, compassionate citizen. Institutes of higher learning are hypersensitive to a student’s involvement in activities other than academics.

• Keep a resumé and portfolio of the student’s accomplishments updated. Whatever choices each student may make, it is important to have a visible record of accomplishments and activities that point toward the student’s commitment to succeed. Students should have a resume on file no later than the sophomore year and it should be updated at least twice a year.