Tomball ISD and House Bill 5

House Bill 5 and High School Graduation Requirements for Students Entering High School in 2014-2015 Foundation Program Required Courses Endorsements Distinguished Performance Acknowledgments These are the items we will touch on today.

Freshmen 2014-2015 English I Math Science Social Studies Physical Education Foreign Language or Fine Art Elective for Endorsement All entering freshmen need these courses on their schedule.

Endorsements STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Business and Industry Public Services Arts and Humanities Multidisciplinary There are five endorsements that students can choose from. After their fourth year of math and science, they will choose electives that are in line for their chosen endorsement.

Family Choices to Make Choose your endorsement Some endorsements require specific courses for the freshmen year (Such as JROTC in Public Services, Computer Science in STEM, etc.) Review your course selections Submit your changes to your counselor by April 21, 2014 After the information today, you will need to make these choices for your family. Note the April 21st deadline is two weeks away, but there aren’t many changes you will need to make.

Required Courses - English 4 credits English I, II, and III and English IV, English IV DC, AP English IV Debate III or Advanced Journalism III: Newspaper or Advanced Journalism III: Yearbook or Advanced Integrated Reading and Writing In high school, students need four credits of English. The difference is that English IV is no longer required, but a choice. Students have more options for their fourth credit of English. This choice doesn’t have to be made until their senior year so we don’t need to worry about it now.

Required Courses - Mathematics 3 credits Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II or Algebraic Reasoning (To be developed) or Statistics (To be developed) All students will take Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II, but many will take a fourth credit as we will discuss under endorsements. The state is working to develop new courses, but they aren’t ready yet. For right now, all of our students fit into either Alg. I, Geometry, or Algebra II.

Required Courses - Science 3 credits Biology and IPC, Chemistry or Physics and AP Biology, Chemistry, AP Chemistry, Physics, AP Physics, Aquatic Science, Environmental Systems, AP Environmental Science, Anatomy and Physiology, Forensic Science or Advanced Animal Science Three credits of Science are required. Biology is required and then the other two science courses can be chosen by the students based on endorsement, interest, etc. Next year, most of our students will take Biology.

Required Courses – Social Studies 3 credits World History or World Geography United States History and United States Government (1/2 credit) and Economics (1/2 credit) Three credits of Social Studies are required. The big change is that students have a choice in taking World History or World Geography. Currently, all are signed up to take World Geography next year. If you wish to change that to World History, you must submit a change to the counselor by the 21st. We recommend students to take World Geography. However, students must look long range to make their selection.

Required Courses – Languages Other Than English 2 credits Two levels of the same language or Two credits in computer programming languages selected from Computer Science I, II, and III* or Courses designated as replacements after the first year of foreign languages. *Must be earned before September 1, 2016 Students are required to take two years of a foreign language.

Required Courses – Others Physical Education – 1 credit Fine Arts – 1 credit Art I, II, III, or IV Dance I, II, III, or IV Music I, II, III, or IV Theatre I, II, III, or IV or Principles and Elements of Floral Design Health – ½ credit (local) Speech – ½ credit (local) Outside of the core that we have talked about, students are required to have the following courses to graduate.

Required Courses – 26 Credits English – 4 Credit Mathematics – 3 Credits Science – 3 Credits Social Studies – 3 Credits Foreign Languages – 2 Credits Fine Arts – 1 Credit Physical Education – 1 Credit Health and Speech – 1 Credit Electives – 4 credits Endorsement courses – 4 credits In summary, students are required to take 26 credits in order to graduate as listed here.

Endorsements – 4 Included Credits Mathematics – 1 additional credit Science – 1 additional credit Electives – 2 additional credits Within the 26 credits, students will choose an endorsement. Four of the required 26 credits that students choose till be in order to fulfill their endorsement choice.

Endorsement Requirements A fourth credit in Mathematics from Algebra II* Precalculus Independent Study College Algebra College Prep Math AP Statistics AP Calculus AP Computer Science *Required for STEM endorsement All endorsements require a fourth credit of math

Endorsement Requirements An additional credit in Science from Chemistry or Physics or Aquatic Science or Environmental Systems or AP Biology, AP Chemistry, or AP Physics 1, 2, or C AP Environmental Science or Advanced Animal Science or Anatomy and Physiology or Forensic Science or An Arts and Humanities substitute course All endorsements require a fourth year of science

Endorsements STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Business and Industry Public Services Arts and Humanities Multidisciplinary Again here are the five endorsements that students can choose from. Here is a little information about each one.

Endorsements – STEM Algebra II, Chemistry, and Physics and Computer Science or Mathematics or Science or Combination A coherent sequence of 3 credits from 2 of the above STEM requires Alg, II, Chemistry, and Physics and then a series of elective choices from computer science, math, or science. It is important to look at college plans and career interests and then choose the sequence of courses based on that interest. For instance, under STEM, if I was interested in engineering, I might choose courses from math and computer science.

Business & Industry Career and Technical Education Clusters A coherent sequence of courses for four or more credits that consists of at least two courses in the same career cluster, including at least one advanced CTE course and the final course from one of the following clusters. Clusters Agriculture, Food, Natural Resources Architecture and Construction Business Management and Administration Finance Manufacturing Marketing or Business and Industry endoresement focuses on various career and technical education clusters.

Business & Industry (continued) English Four English elective credits including three levels in one of the following areas: Debate or Advanced Journalism: Newspaper or Advanced Journalism: Yearbook or Combination A coherent sequence of four credits from the above programs

Public Services Career and Technical Education A coherent sequence of courses for four or more credits that consists of at least two courses in the same career cluster, including at least one advanced CTE course and the final course from one of the following clusters. Clusters Education and Training/Human Services Health Science or Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps Four courses in JROTC Public Services endorsement includes education, health science, or JROTC

Arts and Humanities Social Studies Foreign Languages Fine Arts Five Social Studies credits or Foreign Languages Four Levels of the same language other than English or Two levels of the same language other than English and two levels of a different language other than English or Fine Arts Four credits from one or two disciplines of fine arts The Arts and Humanities endorsement consists of social studies, foreign language or fine arts.

Multidisciplinary Studies Four advanced courses that prepare a student to enter the workforce successfully or postsecondary education or Four credits in each of the four foundation subject areas to include English IV and chemistry and/or physics or Four credits in Advanced Placement or dual credit selected from English, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Economics, Other Languages, or Fine Arts Multidisciplinary Studies is a focus on courses across the core in ELA, SS, Math, and Science.

Distinguished Level of Achievement* Successful Completion of Required Courses Successful Completion of at least one endorsement Four credits in mathematics (including Algebra II) Four credits in science *Required to be eligible for TOP 10% and automatic state college admissions Students have the opportunity to earn a distinguished level of achievement. A distinguished level of achievement is required in order to be in the Top 10% and to qualify for automatic state college admissions.

Performance Acknowledgments For 12 hours of dual credit with a 3.0 grade equivalent Outstanding performance in bilingualism A score of 3 or more on an AP Exam Outstanding performance on PSAT, SAT, or ACT-PLAN, ACT Nationally recognized industry certification score or license An associate degree while in high school Also, students can earn performance acknowledgements by satisfying one of the following standards.

Freshmen 2014-2015 English I Math Science Social Studies Physical Education Foreign Language or Fine Art Elective for Endorsement Although we have focused on a ton of information that is overwhelming and difficult to decipher at this time, I want us to be clear on what is required for the freshman year. All students will choose an endorsement prior to the end of this year. They will make sure they are signed up for the seven classes above. During the freshman year, all students and parents will have a freshman conference with the high school counselor where the endorsements and four year plans will be reviewed.

Family Choices to Make Choose your endorsement Some endorsements require specific courses for the freshmen year (Such as JROTC in Public Services, Computer Science in STEM, etc.) Review your course selections Submit your changes to your counselor by April 21, 2014 So, after this meeting, students need to choose one of the five endorsements, review your course selections and submit changes to counselor by April 21. At this time, the only changes that possibly will be made are to your elective for your endorsement or in your social studies although all students are recommended to take World Geography.