As the end of the semester approaches, many OHS students are tasked with deciding their classes for the following year. Upon deciding, it ultimately comes down to choosing which classes to take to help with college applications, GPA, and academic ability.
When it comes to picking English classes, there is quite a variety offered. They share many similarities, but a key difference is the mental capacity required for some of the higher classes—those being AP. The two English options offered to sophomores are ELA 3-4, Gen Ed or honors, and AP Seminar, while seniors have the equivalents for their grade level: AP Literature and Composition, AP Research, and ELA 7-8.
“It’s [AP Research] different from [ELA] 7-8 in that things are done at a more college level, and are in preparation for what they need to do for their [possible] future college courses,” said Kelly Simon, AP Lit. and Comp., ELA 5-6, and AP Research teacher.
AP Research helps students with their future career path. Students interested in jobs that require accurate research may be better off taking AP Research in their senior year, and AP Seminar in their sophomore year, with its similar agenda.
“In AP Seminar, I do a lot of research, and lots of thinking questions—just lots of reflections,” said Ashlee Simonich, sophomore.
The two classes, AP Research and AP Seminar, have a somewhat similar course–the key difference, of course, being the level of difficulty reflected in the grade gap. Taking AP Seminar sophomore year sets students up for AP Research in their senior year, which only continues to benefit them throughout college.
“The class for AP Research is a college-level academic research class. Students are choosing a topic and then conducting an actual research project that could actually be published if they want it published,” Simon said.
Ultimately, both classes share the same scheme: research.
“AP Seminar is a research-based class. Everything that we do, all year long, is research,” said Ronda Cunningham, AP Seminar and AP Lang teacher.
In contrast to AP Seminar and AP Research’s focus on researching, ELA 3-4 and AP Literature and Composition’s focus is on literature.
“We [ELA 3-4H] read a lot more poetry, and there’s a lot of independent reading outside of school—they’re expected to read novels on their own,” said Ben Boisclair, ELA 3-4 and AP Lit teacher.
Similar to Seminar and Research leading into each other, ELA (honors) 3-4 for sophomore year can set students up for AP Lit their senior year, AP Lit providing a more college-type course.
“AP Literature and Composition is a college-level literature class. Meaning we study, read, and discuss oral literature. And then we write about it, as well,” Simon said.
Students who are predominantly strong in understanding and comprehending literature would be more suited for ELA 3-4 and AP Lit, as opposed to the research that comes with AP Seminar and AP Research.
“I took AP Lit because I’ve always been pretty good at English literature. I also took AP Lang and did well, so AP Lit was just the next step,” said TJ Hoke, senior. “I also took it, as opposed to [ELA] 7-8, because I would get so bored in an on-level class. I need more challenging work to stay focused and attentive.”
AP Lit is for those who would prefer more challenging work, but still want clear instructions and interpretations from novels or poetry. Despite being keen to research, AP Seminar does focus a little bit on novel studies.
“We [AP Seminar] do some novel reading, but not as much as they do in [ELA] 3-4 Honors,” Cunningham said. “Our whole basis is on research. We teach them how to research, how to take notes, and how to find credible sources. And then they work on that all year.”
As with AP Research, AP Seminar is a good way for students to start working on their career path early. Sophomores who want to do something that involves lots of research and fact-checking would be a good fit for AP Seminar.
“I chose to do AP Seminar–and I recommend it–because I really think it does a good job of setting me up for my future career,” Simonich said. “It’s a good place for kids who are analytically-minded, like me, can go and work in peace. It’s a lot of independent work.”
Although a great class, it is not meant for everyone, and it is not something to be taken lightly. Being in an AP class, the workload can be a lot for many students, and it is best not to take the class if not mentally equipped enough to do so.
“[The workload for ELA 3-4 honors] is not a lot, but it’s not as complex as AP would be. I would say it’s a lot harder than normal [Gen Ed ELA] 3-4, but not too hard to where it’s like AP level,” said Sophia Liu, sophomore.
Paying a closer look at the type of work and the amount of work from these two different classes may help with the decision-making. AP Seminar tends to do a lot of written work, and ELA 3-4 (honors) leans more towards an emphasis on reading.
“We do two research papers that are part of their AP test… We also work on two big presentations that they have to do, which is part of their test as well. And then there’s a test at the end of the year–it’s very complicated,” Cunningham said.
All in all, the decisions dwindle down to the mental capability of the student: can the work be handled? Will the exams go well? Will it result in burnout? Choosing between classes does not only rely on the academically proficient factor, but also on the maturity.
“The big difference [between ELA 3-4 Honors and AP Seminar] is not only in content, but also maturity,” Boisclair said.
