Glossary of Terms

Alternating Day Cycle (Two-Day Cycle) - this is a scheduling format used at the high school in which classes meet every other day. Such a schedule provides flexibility in scheduling specialty courses such as music performance, journalism, and Advanced Placement.

Credit - credit is a numerical value assigned to all courses. Credit is only granted for courses that are passed with at least a 60% for a final grade.

Educational Program - all of the educational offerings of a school district, including extracurricular activities.

Elective Courses - courses that students choose to complete their annual program of studies. Electives should be chosen based on student ability, interest, and career aspirations.

Full Schedule - a full schedule consists of 8 classes. Students are encouraged to select 8 courses or their equivalent each year.

Graduation Course Requirements - the basic courses required for graduation that all students must successfully pass (see page 6 for listing). These courses provide the core of the credits required for graduation.

Marking Period - The school year is divided into 4 grading periods of 45 days at the junior high school and 8 grading periods at the high school.

Planned course - All courses taught in the Souderton Area School District are called planned courses. All new and revised courses are written in Understanding by Design format, which include standards, enduring understandings, summative assessments, and essential content.

Prerequisite -strong recommendations for a course that a student must complete, or a level of demonstrated performance a student should meet, in order to have a good chance of being successful in another course. Prerequisites are listed in the charts at the beginning of each subject area's section and in the course descriptions in this Program of Studies guide.

Required Courses - courses that students must schedule based on the curriculum they have chosen for study.

Semester - one half of the school year or approximately 90 school days. There are two semesters in a school year.

Sequential Course - one course in a series of courses. Each course must be taken in its proper sequence. In sequential courses, it is necessary to learn the knowledge and skills of the first course before going on to the next course. A passing grade is required. Sequential courses are found in many areas - mathematics, world language, art, technology education, business, etc.

Six-Day Cycle - this is a scheduling format used at the junior high school in which classes meet on days numbered consecutively from 1-6. Such a schedule provides flexibility in scheduling specialty courses, health, and physical education.

Term - This refers to the school year.

Weight - a numeric value assigned to advanced/honors courses used in the calculations of GPA and class rank. Weight is not the same as credits.