Accelerated Placement Act
PRSD offers Honors/Accelerated Academic Programs at Kellar Middle School for all students in grades 6th-8th grades. Students who meet certain assessment, grade-point average, outcomes on local Benchmark and State assessments and behavior criteria are selected to participate in the program. Students are not admitted to the program merely based on parent or teacher request. They must meet the established criteria. The honors/accelerated academic program is intended to:
• Challenge students to excel in reading, writing, math, and science
• Assess student achievement based on national and international benchmarks
• Incorporate a global vision of learning
• Encourage critical thinking and the development of more complex problem-solving skills
• Provide access to high school courses in mathematics and science in grades 7 and 8
• Prepare students for honors and accelerated placement courses in high school
PRSD recognizes that educating accelerated students requires that teachers are equipped to go above and beyond the regular curriculum. To meet this requirement, teachers who teach in the Honors/Accelerated Academic Program have received specialized training. Additionally, these teachers will:
• Provide an engaging, accelerated, academic experience that will motivate students to work at the highest level of standards in math, science, reading, and writing.
• Encourage students to inquire and explore as they develop essential competencies.
• Teach students to analyze and solve problems, leading them to a deeper knowledge and understanding of local, national, and global issues.
• Expose students to a flexible curriculum framework that is compatible with the evolving Common Core standards.
• Provide students with opportunities to develop skills and understanding in the core content areas that lead to the exploration of the arts and humanities.
• Emphasize student initiative, creativity, and analytical thinking.
• Use their professional expertise and creativity to personalize educational experiences for students.
Students selected to participate in the Honors/Accelerated Academic Programs will be expected to regularly:
• Solve complex problems
• Read and analyze a variety of texts
• Write for a variety of purposes
• Present projects
• Demonstrate solutions
• Evaluate their learning as well as their classmates’ learning
• Create hypotheses and pose questions
Participation in the Honors/Accelerated Academic Programs in one year does not guarantee participation in the program in subsequent years. Students who are identified to participate in the program parents/guardians are notified by the school. Additionally, students who do not maintain the high level of standards set for the program may be dropped during the school year at the review and discretion of the Building and District Administration. Students who are dropped will return to the regular course of study.
In cases of possible early entrance to kindergarten, a licensed teacher, pediatrician and/or psychologist may be consulted in the decision making. The process for referral for early entrance is acceptable from a child’s parents/guardians, a licensed education professionals. The district will administer a basic academic and social-emotional screening process in which data will be collected and shared among a team of professionals in determining the students opportunity for success if allowed to enter kindergarten early.