Course Catalog – AP Capstone

Lane Tech is one of one hundred schools in the entire world to offer the new AP Capstone program through the College Board, beginning the 2014-2015 school year. Students who complete required coursework and earn a 3 or higher on the AP Exams for the AP Capstone program will receive the AP Capstone Diploma* that will be designated on their transcript. Developed in collaboration with the Association of American Colleges and Universities, The Partnership for 21st Century Skills, Common Core State Standards Initiative, and the Council of Writing Program Administrators, the AP Capstone Diploma is highly regarded as a top distinction awarded by College Board, which is extremely beneficial for college admittance and future academic goals.

About AP Capstone

AP Capstone is an innovative, new diploma program offered by the College Board . The diploma program gives students an opportunity to apply critical thinking collaborative problem-solving, and research skills in a cross-curricular context. AP Capstone is built on the foundation of a new, two-year high school course sequence – AP Seminar and AP Research – and is designed to complement and enhance the in-depth, discipline-specific study provided through AP courses.

Taking AP Capstone Courses

All Lane Tech students will have the opportunity to take courses toward the AP Capstone Diploma. In order to be eligible for the AP Capstone diploma, students are required to take an AP Seminar course (Junior year), AP Research course (Senior year), and 4 other AP courses (any time between Freshman and Senior year). Students must receive at least a 3 or higher on each AP exam in order to earn the AP Capstone Diploma.

What is in it for me?

The AP Capstone Diploma is a distinguishing honor that will set you apart from all other students in the nation, as very few schools were chosen to implement this program. The AP Seminar and Research courses are very similar to an AP English and/or History class, as they will strength your reading, writing, analytical, and critical thinking skills (to name a few). These skills will be essential when taking the ACT and applying for colleges. The AP Research class also helps with communication and presentation skills, which are vital for employment interviews and future academic and workforce requirements. Moreover, the AP Seminar and AP Research classes, like all other AP courses are weighted on a 6.0 scale, which may boost your GPA, which will be beneficial for college admissions.

*Please note that starting the 2014-2015 school year, students are required to take PE 3 and PE 4 as juniors and seniors, respectively. However, students enrolled in the AP Capstone Seminar and Research courses will have these classes waived, in order to fulfill the requirements of the AP Capstone program.

**Students who successfully complete the AP Seminar course with a 3 or higher and choose to sign up for the AP Research course will be able to register before all other students for their 2015-2016 classes.

How Do I Sign Up?

All students are encouraged to partake in the AP Capstone program. Please note: In order to obtain the AP Capstone Diploma, students MUST take the AP Seminar course their junior year and AP Research course their senior year. Academic Center students may choose to take the AP Seminar and AP Research course during their sophomore and junior years, respectively. Students are responsible for taking 4 additional AP courses their freshman – senior years. (Double period science and art classes only count as 1 class.)

Seniors (Class of 2015) will be unable to obtain the AP Capstone Diploma, as the AP Research course will not be offered until the 2015-2016 school year. However, seniors are still encouraged to take the AP Seminar class, which will help in general with reading, writing, and analytical skills, but will also be extremely useful when writing college essays and the senior paper.

Courses

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