Curriculum Guide
Introduction
This guide is designed to aid you and your parents in planning an appropriate and rewarding high school program. The information contained in the guide will provide an overview of the courses offered at Morrisonville High School and an explanation of the academic policies and requirements governing your four years of high school. Courses are aligned to the Common Core standards at www.isbe.net/commoncore/default.htm .
PTA (www.pta.org) and Common Core Parent Guides are also available at this site.
In addition to describing the courses offered at Morrisonville High School, the guide contains important information regarding college and university entrance requirements, testing programs and financial aid. Keep this guide in a place where you and your parents can refer to it often. Each course is a building block to your future.
Planning your high school course of study is one of the most important responsibilities you have as a student. The school administration and faculty stand to assist you in designing a program which will help you to achieve your personal and career goals.
This guide is designed to aid you and your parents in planning an appropriate and rewarding high school program. The information contained in the guide will provide an overview of the courses offered at Morrisonville High School and an explanation of the academic policies and requirements governing your four years of high school. Courses are aligned to the Common Core standards at www.isbe.net/commoncore/default.htm .
PTA (www.pta.org) and Common Core Parent Guides are also available at this site.
In addition to describing the courses offered at Morrisonville High School, the guide contains important information regarding college and university entrance requirements, testing programs and financial aid. Keep this guide in a place where you and your parents can refer to it often. Each course is a building block to your future.
Planning your high school course of study is one of the most important responsibilities you have as a student. The school administration and faculty stand to assist you in designing a program which will help you to achieve your personal and career goals.
|
REQUIRED GRADUATION CREDITS
(MHS Student Handbook page 5). All high school students shall earn a total of 24 credits for a high school diploma.
*Choose your elective courses wisely, with these purposes in mind:
1) to meet requirements for graduation, 2) to achieve competence in those basic knowledge and life skills 3) to reach your career goals and meet requirements 4) to pursue a current interest or develop a special talent. |
MHS GRADING SCALE
WEIGHTED COURSES
College Prep English, Algebra 2, Pre-Calculus, Trigonometry/Analytic Geometry, Biology 2, Chemistry 1 & 2, Physics, World History, Spanish 3 & 4, Accounting 2 HEAT & PACT COURSES www.llcc.edu/erec Students can earn both high school and college credit with no tuition costs. College credit may be applied to LLCC or other institutions. HEAT and PACT classes are listed each semester in the LLCC FORWARD publication. |
TRANSITION PLANNING
Minimum HS Courses Recommended for College (specific requirements may vary)
English - Four years
Social Science - Three years
Math - Three years
Foreign Language - Two Years
Science - Three years
Your ACT score, GPA, and Rank are used to determine admissions to college. Knowing the admissions requirements of the college you are considering will guide you in planning the coursework you need in high school. It is important to maintain good grades throughout high school. Your GPA is cumulative over eight semesters.
An orientation/walk through for incoming 7th graders and parents is held in the spring.
Transition Plan & Goals start in 7th grade. Parent meetings are held the end of 8th & 10th. Stanford and MAP achievement results are charted for growth as part of their career file.
Students initiate career portfolios using www.careercruising.com in 7th grade.
Other internet-based career sites are ISAC’s www.mappingyourfuture.org, and the Illinois Career Info System www.ilcis.intocareersorg for exploring, planning careers and investigating education programs.
For high school, the ACT College and Career Readiness System www.act.org/readiness is used. It provides Explore (9)Plan(10) and ACT(11) English, Math, Reading, Science benchmark results, indentifies improvement areas, and suggestions to raise scores to be college ready. MHS uses ACTropolis, a web-delivered ACT Test prep application https://actonlineprep.act.org. ISAT (7-8) and PSAE (11) test prep is available at www.isbe.net. The ACT Test is Day 1. The ISBE Science Test and WorkKeys Applied
Math and Reading for Information are Day 2. ILS are used to prepare for all tests.
Community colleges like LLCC www.llcc.edu have open-door admissions and offer a wide variety of programs and a new WorkForce Center to prepare for employment. LLCC offers low cost transfer programs to transition to a university. The usual steps to enroll in any college are:
1 apply for admission 2 attend orientation 3 take placement tests 4 complete advisement
5 register & pay fees 6 get textbooks 7 attend classes. Stay organized in this process.
All students LLCC must take placement tests, unless they have earned a 22 or higher on the ACT in English, Reading, or Math. Contact LLCC Placement www.llcc.edu/testing.
Campus visits give you the chance to “test drive” the college. You wouldn’t buy a car without making sure it fits your needs. A tour of the dorms, the cafeteria, and the student union is a must. Ask questions. Does the school offer the program I need? What type of school is it? What is the cost of attendance? Are there scholarships, work study for me? Does the size of the school suit me? Does the school place graduates into a job?
Keep you options open. While you’re weighing the possibilities and making up you mind, don’t forget who’s best qualified for that job – it’s you. Listen to your parents, seek advice, but make your own final decisions.
FINANCIAL PLANNING
Families have the primary responsibility to pay for higher education. To help close the gap if family resources fall short, financial aid is available. There is gift aid of scholarships and grants that do not have to be repaid. Scholarships are awarded for good grades, athletic ability, and artistic talent, to name a few. There is also self-help aid. Students can work on-campus and apply for low interest student loans.
There are four major sources of financial aid: www.FederalStudentAid.ed.gov
FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID PROGRAMS - Pell Grants, Federal Work Study
FEDERAL LOAN PROGRAMS – Perkins Loan, Stafford Loan, and PLUS Loan
STATE GRANTS, SCHOLARSHIPS and LOANS collegezone@isac.org
COLLEGE AID (called institutional) Check with your college Financial Aid Office. Merit scholarships are based on your ACT score and MHS GPA/RANK
PRIVATE, COMMUNITY, LOCAL, LLCC FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIPS Local American Legion, Kiwanis, DAR, Masons, Marsch, Farm Bureau, C.E.F.S, etc.
Nearly everyone going to college should apply for financial aid. Never assume you are too poor to attend college or too rich to receive financial aid. Don’t look at the cost of college attendance alone. Find out how much financial aid you may be able to receive.
Filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) online is your first step.
Get your PIN# to file www.pin.ed.gov Then file the FAFSA www.fafsa.gov, after January 1. Your financial need and eligibility is calculated from the FAFSA data.
Your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is constant and determined from the FAFSA.
From the FAFSA, the financial aid offices of your colleges of interest, calculate your Cost of Attendance (COA). The COA is different at every college/university.
The formula for determining financial aid is: COA - EFC = Financial Need
With this in mind, do not limit your college choice. The Student Aid Report or SAR offered to you may result in the expenses at a higher cost college to be comparable to the cost of a less expensive college. For each college you apply, compare the SARs.
MILITARY TECHNICAL TRAINING
Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marines, Navy
The military provides top-notch technical training that can be used in both military and civilian careers. MHS is visited by military recruiters during lunch period. They provide complete information about career requirements. The ASVAB test determines admission and eligibility for the 150+ military technical trainings. MHS schedules the ASVAB test in the Fall. The higher the score, the more opportunities available. The Army’s March to Success online test prep for the ASVAB is available at www.march2success.com.
In addition to fulltime military service, opportunities exist in reserve units, National Guard units, ROTC programs, and military academies. A variety of educational benefits programs can help finance college. Tuition Assistance for active duty, the Illinois Veterans Grant, and the Montgomery G.I. Bill are three. Go to www.todaysmilitary.
A variety of enlistment opportunities exist with 3-4 year enlistments the most common. Selection depends on the person’s general and technical aptitudes, personal preferences, and the needs of the service. Women are eligible for over 95% of all military specialties.
MHS students can also participate in delayed entry programs, enlisting up to a year before reporting for duty.
VOCATIONAL EDUCATION technical & proprietary schools
Vocational education helps develop skills, attitudes, abilities, and work habits. The knowledge leads to gainful and productive employment. A prime objective of a vocational educational program is the development of a curriculum best fitting the needs of the students and the industrial labor market. This objective is refined to include the following specific areas of growth:
1. Development of a student’s skills to gainful employment level.
2. Development of related theories of the vocational area the student is engaged.
3. Developing abilities, attitudes and knowledge to transition to work world.
4. Developing student knowledge in the complexity, skills and mobility of industry.
5. Developing work habits, such as accuracy, cooperation, dependability and initiative, which are necessary to the advancement in employment.
When selecting a vocational school, keep the following in mind:
1. The school and its agents must be approved by the Illinois Office of Education.
2. The school must have proper accrediting credentials.
3. Study the school catalog for information relating to curriculum and course study.
4. Visit the school to tour the buildings, facilities, and activities; observe classes.
5. Employers within the community can make suggestions and recommendations.
6. If you are considering more than one school, compare programs and costs.
7. When enrolling or signing a contract, be sure you fully understand the terms.
A list of all Illinois proprietary schools is found at collegezone@isac.org.
TECH PREP (www.llcc.edu/techprep)
Approved, articulated, tech prep sequence courses allow students to earn tuition free proficiency credit at LLCC. Students pursuing the Associate in Applied Science degree can save time and money. Enrollment forms are available through MHS or the LLCC Partnerships for College & Career Success (PCCS) office at 217.786.2583.
SUMMER SCHOOL
Students may be recommended for 1/2 credit of summer school, limited to English and math. MHS uses Keystone Credit Recovery www.keystonecreditrecovery.com
The counselor/principal must approve/sign the enrollment form for credit to be awarded. Upon satisfactory completion, high school credit is posted to the students’ transcripts.
1. During a student’s high school career, a maximum of 2 credits may be earned through other educational institutions or summer school.
2. Students will not be allowed to take a course for Morrisonville High School credit at another educational institution until they have first taken the same
course at Morrisonville High School or received prior counselor/principal approval.
3. Courses not offered at Morrisonville High School may be taken at other educational institutions with approval of the principal/counselor.
CAREER TESTING & EDUCATION
The career education program at Morrisonville High School is designed to:
1. Provide all students with information about careers.
2. Provide students the opportunity to develop skills in making decisions regarding which careers match their physical and mental capacities.
3. Help students determine which careers they have interest and aptitude.
To accomplish the above goals, competencies are taught in the coursework and infused into the course content of required core courses.
One of the goals for each course in our curriculum is to provide information, so that each student will be able to identify careers which have either a direct or indirect relationship to the general content and specific knowledge and skills taught in the course.
MHS participates in the ACT College/Career Readiness System
EXPLORE, PLAN, and ACT are curriculum-based educational and career planning programs that measure English, math, reading, and science achievement. The ACT assesses mastery of state and college readiness standards. . www.act.org/standard
The ASVAB measures vocational aptitude. www.asvabprogram.com
MHS Career Testing Program:
Freshmen – EXPLORE
Sophomores – PLAN
Juniors – ACT (part of PSAE)
Juniors/Seniors – ASVAB
The official MHS school ID code is 143005.
Minimum HS Courses Recommended for College (specific requirements may vary)
English - Four years
Social Science - Three years
Math - Three years
Foreign Language - Two Years
Science - Three years
Your ACT score, GPA, and Rank are used to determine admissions to college. Knowing the admissions requirements of the college you are considering will guide you in planning the coursework you need in high school. It is important to maintain good grades throughout high school. Your GPA is cumulative over eight semesters.
An orientation/walk through for incoming 7th graders and parents is held in the spring.
Transition Plan & Goals start in 7th grade. Parent meetings are held the end of 8th & 10th. Stanford and MAP achievement results are charted for growth as part of their career file.
Students initiate career portfolios using www.careercruising.com in 7th grade.
Other internet-based career sites are ISAC’s www.mappingyourfuture.org, and the Illinois Career Info System www.ilcis.intocareersorg for exploring, planning careers and investigating education programs.
For high school, the ACT College and Career Readiness System www.act.org/readiness is used. It provides Explore (9)Plan(10) and ACT(11) English, Math, Reading, Science benchmark results, indentifies improvement areas, and suggestions to raise scores to be college ready. MHS uses ACTropolis, a web-delivered ACT Test prep application https://actonlineprep.act.org. ISAT (7-8) and PSAE (11) test prep is available at www.isbe.net. The ACT Test is Day 1. The ISBE Science Test and WorkKeys Applied
Math and Reading for Information are Day 2. ILS are used to prepare for all tests.
Community colleges like LLCC www.llcc.edu have open-door admissions and offer a wide variety of programs and a new WorkForce Center to prepare for employment. LLCC offers low cost transfer programs to transition to a university. The usual steps to enroll in any college are:
1 apply for admission 2 attend orientation 3 take placement tests 4 complete advisement
5 register & pay fees 6 get textbooks 7 attend classes. Stay organized in this process.
All students LLCC must take placement tests, unless they have earned a 22 or higher on the ACT in English, Reading, or Math. Contact LLCC Placement www.llcc.edu/testing.
Campus visits give you the chance to “test drive” the college. You wouldn’t buy a car without making sure it fits your needs. A tour of the dorms, the cafeteria, and the student union is a must. Ask questions. Does the school offer the program I need? What type of school is it? What is the cost of attendance? Are there scholarships, work study for me? Does the size of the school suit me? Does the school place graduates into a job?
Keep you options open. While you’re weighing the possibilities and making up you mind, don’t forget who’s best qualified for that job – it’s you. Listen to your parents, seek advice, but make your own final decisions.
FINANCIAL PLANNING
Families have the primary responsibility to pay for higher education. To help close the gap if family resources fall short, financial aid is available. There is gift aid of scholarships and grants that do not have to be repaid. Scholarships are awarded for good grades, athletic ability, and artistic talent, to name a few. There is also self-help aid. Students can work on-campus and apply for low interest student loans.
There are four major sources of financial aid: www.FederalStudentAid.ed.gov
FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID PROGRAMS - Pell Grants, Federal Work Study
FEDERAL LOAN PROGRAMS – Perkins Loan, Stafford Loan, and PLUS Loan
STATE GRANTS, SCHOLARSHIPS and LOANS collegezone@isac.org
- Monetary Award Grant
- Illinois Incentive for Access Grant
- Illinois National Guard & Veterans Grant
- Dependents of Police/Fire/Correctional Officers Grant
- Robert Byrd Honors Scholarship
- Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver
- Illinois Future Teacher Corps Scholarship
- Merit Recognition Scholarship
COLLEGE AID (called institutional) Check with your college Financial Aid Office. Merit scholarships are based on your ACT score and MHS GPA/RANK
PRIVATE, COMMUNITY, LOCAL, LLCC FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIPS Local American Legion, Kiwanis, DAR, Masons, Marsch, Farm Bureau, C.E.F.S, etc.
Nearly everyone going to college should apply for financial aid. Never assume you are too poor to attend college or too rich to receive financial aid. Don’t look at the cost of college attendance alone. Find out how much financial aid you may be able to receive.
Filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) online is your first step.
Get your PIN# to file www.pin.ed.gov Then file the FAFSA www.fafsa.gov, after January 1. Your financial need and eligibility is calculated from the FAFSA data.
Your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is constant and determined from the FAFSA.
From the FAFSA, the financial aid offices of your colleges of interest, calculate your Cost of Attendance (COA). The COA is different at every college/university.
The formula for determining financial aid is: COA - EFC = Financial Need
With this in mind, do not limit your college choice. The Student Aid Report or SAR offered to you may result in the expenses at a higher cost college to be comparable to the cost of a less expensive college. For each college you apply, compare the SARs.
MILITARY TECHNICAL TRAINING
Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marines, Navy
The military provides top-notch technical training that can be used in both military and civilian careers. MHS is visited by military recruiters during lunch period. They provide complete information about career requirements. The ASVAB test determines admission and eligibility for the 150+ military technical trainings. MHS schedules the ASVAB test in the Fall. The higher the score, the more opportunities available. The Army’s March to Success online test prep for the ASVAB is available at www.march2success.com.
In addition to fulltime military service, opportunities exist in reserve units, National Guard units, ROTC programs, and military academies. A variety of educational benefits programs can help finance college. Tuition Assistance for active duty, the Illinois Veterans Grant, and the Montgomery G.I. Bill are three. Go to www.todaysmilitary.
A variety of enlistment opportunities exist with 3-4 year enlistments the most common. Selection depends on the person’s general and technical aptitudes, personal preferences, and the needs of the service. Women are eligible for over 95% of all military specialties.
MHS students can also participate in delayed entry programs, enlisting up to a year before reporting for duty.
VOCATIONAL EDUCATION technical & proprietary schools
Vocational education helps develop skills, attitudes, abilities, and work habits. The knowledge leads to gainful and productive employment. A prime objective of a vocational educational program is the development of a curriculum best fitting the needs of the students and the industrial labor market. This objective is refined to include the following specific areas of growth:
1. Development of a student’s skills to gainful employment level.
2. Development of related theories of the vocational area the student is engaged.
3. Developing abilities, attitudes and knowledge to transition to work world.
4. Developing student knowledge in the complexity, skills and mobility of industry.
5. Developing work habits, such as accuracy, cooperation, dependability and initiative, which are necessary to the advancement in employment.
When selecting a vocational school, keep the following in mind:
1. The school and its agents must be approved by the Illinois Office of Education.
2. The school must have proper accrediting credentials.
3. Study the school catalog for information relating to curriculum and course study.
4. Visit the school to tour the buildings, facilities, and activities; observe classes.
5. Employers within the community can make suggestions and recommendations.
6. If you are considering more than one school, compare programs and costs.
7. When enrolling or signing a contract, be sure you fully understand the terms.
A list of all Illinois proprietary schools is found at collegezone@isac.org.
TECH PREP (www.llcc.edu/techprep)
Approved, articulated, tech prep sequence courses allow students to earn tuition free proficiency credit at LLCC. Students pursuing the Associate in Applied Science degree can save time and money. Enrollment forms are available through MHS or the LLCC Partnerships for College & Career Success (PCCS) office at 217.786.2583.
SUMMER SCHOOL
Students may be recommended for 1/2 credit of summer school, limited to English and math. MHS uses Keystone Credit Recovery www.keystonecreditrecovery.com
The counselor/principal must approve/sign the enrollment form for credit to be awarded. Upon satisfactory completion, high school credit is posted to the students’ transcripts.
1. During a student’s high school career, a maximum of 2 credits may be earned through other educational institutions or summer school.
2. Students will not be allowed to take a course for Morrisonville High School credit at another educational institution until they have first taken the same
course at Morrisonville High School or received prior counselor/principal approval.
3. Courses not offered at Morrisonville High School may be taken at other educational institutions with approval of the principal/counselor.
CAREER TESTING & EDUCATION
The career education program at Morrisonville High School is designed to:
1. Provide all students with information about careers.
2. Provide students the opportunity to develop skills in making decisions regarding which careers match their physical and mental capacities.
3. Help students determine which careers they have interest and aptitude.
To accomplish the above goals, competencies are taught in the coursework and infused into the course content of required core courses.
One of the goals for each course in our curriculum is to provide information, so that each student will be able to identify careers which have either a direct or indirect relationship to the general content and specific knowledge and skills taught in the course.
MHS participates in the ACT College/Career Readiness System
EXPLORE, PLAN, and ACT are curriculum-based educational and career planning programs that measure English, math, reading, and science achievement. The ACT assesses mastery of state and college readiness standards. . www.act.org/standard
The ASVAB measures vocational aptitude. www.asvabprogram.com
MHS Career Testing Program:
Freshmen – EXPLORE
Sophomores – PLAN
Juniors – ACT (part of PSAE)
Juniors/Seniors – ASVAB
The official MHS school ID code is 143005.