Academics
Garden City High School operates on an 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. schedule, which includes eight periods and a staggered lunch schedule. Additionally, an opportunity period (referred to as "O.P.") is offered which allows students to work on homework. Class scheduling is organized into a block schedule. There are eight available periods.
There are four academies at the high school; Academy of Trade and Health Science, Academy of Arts and Communications, Academy of Public Service and the Ninth Grade Academy. Each career academy has teachers from different subjects, who combine their efforts as a means of integrating academic and technical curriculum. Students are able to participate in different academies each year, with the ultimate purpose of better preparing them for college and careers than traditional educational systems.
Despite rapidly rising numbers of English as a Second Language students, Garden City High School has raised student achievement in reading, mathematics and science. Even with a more rigorous curriculum and higher graduation requirements, the dropout rate fell from 15 percent in 1993–1994 to 3.4 percent in 2003–2004 and the attendance rate rose from 89 percent to 96 percent. In 2009, 18 students earned top rankings in the Spanish National Exams sponsored by the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese.
In contrast to many high schools, GCHS requires all seniors to complete a semester-long senior project prior to graduation. This senior project is known as the "Buff Project" and is intended to challenge students and prepare them for their future. Seniors can choose to complete their Buff Project during the first or second semester of their senior year. Currently, Garden City requires students to complete 26½ credits in order to graduate. Many students also attend classes at Garden City Community College.
Read more about this topic: Garden City High School (Kansas)
Famous quotes containing the word academics:
“Almost all scholarly research carries practical and political implications. Better that we should spell these out ourselves than leave that task to people with a vested interest in stressing only some of the implications and falsifying others. The idea that academics should remain “above the fray” only gives ideologues license to misuse our work.”
—Stephanie Coontz (b. 1944)
“Our first line of defense in raising children with values is modeling good behavior ourselves. This is critical. How will our kids learn tolerance for others if our hearts are filled with hate? Learn compassion if we are indifferent? Perceive academics as important if soccer practice is a higher priority than homework?”
—Fred G. Gosman (20th century)