School subjects

[Indie]

Hi all~

I'm not a hundred percent sure what the English and American etc. systems are for picking optional school subjects, but anyway.

What optional subjects did you take up in your school? Did you take up a language, a science etc.
Or did you have a choice in the matter?

For myself, I'll be keeping up Spanish and German, and taking Art and Music for second year. I'm not sure whether to drop Physics or not in later years, but I do prefer Biology.

 

[Stark]

English education system here

During secondary school, I didn't get -so- many choices. In the first year I chose Spanish over French, but I was forced to take French the next year on top of that because I was in the best class for Spanish.

Then in the fourth year, year 10, I chose the Triple Science option, Bio/Chem/Phys, and I also chose History over Geography and Spanish over French. That filled up my timetable, along with the obligatory maths/english and the other compulsory junk.

Finally, for A levels I chose Maths, Further Maths, Chemistry and Physics - dropping Physics for the second year.

 

[Linkachu]

Most Canadian schools do offer various course choices in Intermediate and Senior High School, but since my Jr/Sr. High was quite small my options were limited.

For grades 10-12, the grades I had the most choices, I took basically every academic course that I could (all the maths, Chem, Bio, Physics, etc.). I also took grade 11 Law instead of History, because History classes always bored me to tears. In either grade 11 or 12 I signed up for Geography, but the student interest was so small that they didn't run the class... We were a public school with 6 grades and only about 450 students, so I guess I couldn't expect much better. :X

University is where I really had my choices. My Major was Nursing, but I had many free hours to fill with electives. I ended up choosing a lot of Philosophy courses and a couple of Astronomy courses. All of those classes were really enjoyable, much moreso than my core courses were. XP

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

Hurrr. XD I assume we're talking about high school etc rather than actual University stuff. Let me just dig out the memories. XD

Back when I was in high school, we didn't really get that much choice re: what classes we could take at first until 11th grade - where (after being treated to introduction courses in all of them a year before) we had to pick a path of either Biology/Chemistry, Biology/Physics, Biology/Literature or Biotechnology/Biochemistry. I picked the latter and it was extremely awesome (because it did cover the stuff that the Biology people talked about and moar and was on a much wider scale. We were a pretty small group, and I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who got there because he was actually interested xD)

That said, we had an optional wider-scale comp-sci type class which I started on but retired after the half of it that would have been obligatory simply because I realized I do NOT want to see any more programming for the rest of my school life. XD

As far as University goes, so far I didn't have too much of a choice regarding which courses I'm taking - that actually happens next year, which is pretty much all choice courses. XD I'm not really sure which ones I'm going for - I'm pondering ones related to virology in particular (as I love viruses). Plus, there is one Astrobiology course that may or may not happen and if it's going to happen, I'm all over it like the fist of an angry god. >>;

 

[Secad MS]

Well, my first year of high school, I took regular high school freshman classes (I'm American by the way, just to make things a bit easier to understand). This was because I failed one section of a college readiness test to allow me to take post secondary options courses, or essentially taking college courses for high school and college credit. The math section was the one I failed. Tell a first semester freshman to do trig? Bleh. That failed. I blazed through the rest of the year with all As, except in math. I got a B, but I managed to get it to an A with some extra credit work I did over the summer.

In sophmore year, with algebra I under my belt, I passed the section, albeit barely. I chose three courses, increasing by one every semester until now. Since my parents wouldn't let me take hard science, I was stuck with the dinky social science, freshman natural science, and literature classes, along with a few others. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed the greater challenge they offered me compared to my laughable high school. Soon, I had only one class at school in the next few years--math.

Now, this year, I am a senior in high school and a junior (maybe senior) in college credits. However, I decided not to take a degree. I plan on becoming an entering freshman using my past credits to get some gen-ed courses out of the way, allowing me to get a degree in my desired field with fewer courses a semester to save my sanity.

 

[Rayn_Shyu]

American, Idaho (which has a low budget for schooling.)
Welp, the one I've been taking my entire post 5th grade school career is Band. I've had some fun times in there. Finally got into Jazz Band for my Senior year, and I regret not trying out earlier years. It's a blast.

As far as languages went... 7th grade where I live has a requirement of a semester of Spanish, that didn't stick. My Freshman year I did ASL and I was going to do it for my Sophomore year, but it fell through then... only to be picked up again the next year. But this year I did German, which is easier than ASL was. Probably because you talk and this teacher actually teaches the grammar...

Sciences... I only took normal Earth Science and Bio and then AP Bio. And then Microbio, which taught me a lot less than AP Bio did. Probably shoulda taken a Chemistry class cuz I plan on getting a Clinical Lab (a Lab Rat for a CSI place) degree. Mowell.

I've also taken some Graphic Art classes, which taught me vectors and paths and junk. And Fashion Classes, where I did some fashion lines. ...I live in a very populated part of my state, so I had me some options .

Also taking AP English/Lit/what ever, for APness. Junior year I took a Combined History and English class, American Character. It had a lot of funstuffs in it, like field trips and Tie-dying tee-shirts. Kinda wish they had honors of it though...

 

[Magpie]

English education system here~

After year nine of school, we were given the choice of GCSE subjects. We could had to select two Creative Arts, a Language, a Technology and either RE, History or Geography. And then of course the usual Math and English etc classes. I chose Art and Ceramics as my art subjects, Spanish, Graphic Design and History. The only decision I regret out of those is Spanish. I suck at Spanish. I did German for two years, and Spanish for four, but I remember far more German. Go figure :V

I don't remember having a choice with Science. I just did all three~

And I did a BTEC National Diploma at College (roughly equivalent to 3 A levels) in Graphic Design, which I then went on to do my Degree in.

I have a massive urge to go and study Archaeology at the moment as well, so we'll see XD

 

[Blisk]

American here. I take German right now. I can't next year, my final year, because of not having room in my schedule. I'm in German 4 right now, so I've gone pretty far.

I also take programming classes. I also plan on continuing that field in college, so I am getting as many as possible.

Other than those, it's pretty much standard. I did take Geology instead of Physics this year because I am more interested in it, but I'm taking Physics next year so I have a good background in it.

 

[Carmen Lopez]

American as well~

Regarding purely optional classes, I took an AP Psychology class, an organic chemistry/forensics class, and Spanish as my language of choice. I also took a Vietnam War class which was probably my favorite class that I took in high school. Most of the time, we simply had a choice out a few classes to satisfy one area. For example we had to pick between chemistry and physics; I picked chemistry but it was a lose-lose situation because I hate both subjects. In addition, I also took AP US History and AP British Literature. I inexplicably took a Pre-calculus class my senior year which was a HUGE mistake because I didn't even need to take it. I hate all math that isn't geometry and to this day I don't know why I put myself through that torture lol.

 

[The iFlare]

Well, I'm surprised by how some of the American Schools work... It works a bit differently in certain parts of Florida... But I still count as the American School System...

In South Florida, depending on whether your school has a magnet or program for it, you may be able to choose electives as early as the 3rd grade... Just like I did... From the 3rd to 5th Grades, I'd choosen two electives, one was 3-Dimenional Art, which Dealt with sculpting and Stage-Craft, and Stringed Instrument class, where I learned how to play the Violin. As far as middle school goes, we had Electives in my old middle school, but we couldn't really choose them, you could have yourself moved to a different elective, but we couldnt choose from the start. In the 6th grade, I was placed in General Arts, and Technology class. In the 7th grade, I was put in Spanish, and instead of recieving a second Elective, I got physical Education, which I had missed out on the year before. In the beggining of the 8th grade, I had given up both electives for the Gifted Program, and another year of P.E, however, when I changed schools for the rest of my 8th grade year, things changed... Now instead of two Electives, I have one Elective Slot, and its not just one elective, its a system called the "Elective Wheel" in-which we get 4 electives in the course of the schoolyear, one per each term. My schedule is as follows: Technology 1st Quarter, Social Health 2nd Quarter, Financial Awareness 3rd Quarter, and Next Term I take Physical Education again. As for High School, I'm not sure, yet, I guess I'll find out next year when I'm a freshman.

 

[Secad MS]

Wow, all those electives for those so young...I like it. It lets kids do something other than the basics, to enhance their future. I wish it was like that up north. Either that, or my school system sucks. XD

 

[Amzaar_Gyarou]

Scottish School System here! ;//D

Well, for Second Year it was a pretty tricky decision because we were encouraged to take academic subjects and to be brutally honest, I am about as far from 'academic' as you can possibly get :x
I had, obviously, core English, Maths, RE, PSE and PE. I chose Art and Design (big mistake), French, History, Chemistry, Modern Studies and Product Design.
Some of these I regretted taking almost immediately and took this into consideration over the two years I had to endure these subjects. This year (for going into my 5th year at high school) I chose English, Product Design, Graphic Communication, Chemistry and French.

I'm really glad I'm dropping History and Art :x
Like, srsly, I hate them both it's a miracle I passed Art with 98.5% and History with a B ^^;
(and tbh I'm rubbish at both as well > u >'')

Kasumi xxx

 

[SineCosineTangent]

American here ^^

I actually went to a private school in Florida, so for the most part we ran by our own rules.

Most of the classes that I took were the mandatory ones- language (I took Latin for the sole reason that there would be no oral portions of exams), english, a math course, a science course, etc. The AP classes were always electives, except for Macroeconomics (I failed that AP test miserably. Probably due to the fact that for one of the free response questions concerning a made up country's economy, I wrote a story about the plight of the people in the country, and finished with "and you think these people care about their economy?"...yeah, bad move |D) and European History (which I baaarely passed). I opted out of the AP English classes, because I liked the honors 11th grade teacher better than the AP one |D My favorite course was probably AP Psychology. It was just so easy for me |3

We also had the usual art electives, but I was always too shy to take any of them. Also I was the weird one who started out in normal Calculus, and by the end of the first semester I had like... 116 in the class. No joke. And so I moved up to AP Calc in the middle of the year |D I was the talk of the math department for a while.

 

[Doubled]

American here too :3

I go to a private school in Mississippi, and I'm not exactly sure of too many differences between it and other schools, as I've gone there my whole life. For the most part we take all the same courses as the regular schools in the north, but we don't have quite as many electives as many schools.

As far as my previous classes, I've had to take two Spanish courses, since we can't get another language (Though the only Spanish sentence I remember is "No entiendo espaniol."), a Music appreciation class, and several sciences, maths, and literature classes.

What I'm taking now is Sociology/Psychology. Kinda boring since the teacher can't do much except type notes, though now he have to carry sugar sack babies for a week. Also Chemistry; kinda boring but I know most of the Elements by just thinking now; another Lit. course; American History, though the teacher also has no idea about what she's teaching, really, she was supposed to teach a science class; Business Law, which is sorta interesting, and Adv. Algebra, which is surprisingly rather simple.

Next year, we can take 5 classes, and Physics is rather exciting. They get to build all sorts of models, and I'm good with my hands. We also have a chance to take Art Appreciation, which should have been available for years, but until then was only open to elementary, granted after we left -_-, but I'm also going to take Review of Math. Its elementary math Oh well, I need that class, as I still have problems with multiplication, subtraction, and division.

But up until 11th grade, I hade always had D's and C's. Now this year I have A's and B's, and I'm taking some pretty hard classes, compared to the others anyway.