Classen School of Advanced Studies - Curriculum

Curriculum

Classen SAS is accredited by the North Central Association of Schools and adheres to a college preparatory curriculum. Students joining the school must choose a major; students wishing to earn an IB (International Baccalaureate) Diploma become IB majors, while students studying fine arts must choose a specific field of study for their major. The latter are usually simply referred to as VPA (visual and performing arts) majors. Students may choose to switch their majors at a later date, although this is not always encouraged due to the IB Program's stringent course requirements. Students may choose classes regardless of their major; for example, an IB major student may attend an introductory music class (or a higher-level music class if the teacher deems the student qualified), or a VPA major might attend an advanced math class, such as honors, AP, or even one from within the IB Program. However, certain classes are required for each major. In order to graduate, students must all meet the standard curriculum set down by the Oklahoma City Public School board, and satisfy the requirements for their particular major. In addition, even though a VPA major has the option to take IB courses, they cannot test for the IB Diploma in high school since they are not officially enrolled with the Program.

As the IB Program only covers grades 11-12, IB majors in grades 6-10 are considered "pre-IB" and attend honors and AP classes to prepare them for the IB Program. Each of Classen's VPA Programs have won several awards each year, such as the Theatre Department, which has won the Oklahoma State One-Act Play Contest for five years in a row. The Classen SAS Concert and Jazz band have both won OSSAA superior honors as well. The Debate program (a part of the drama department) has won many state and regional tournaments, sweeping 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in most of them.