Here at Chapman, there are a variety of classes within the same field that varies in the amount of credit the student receives, the expectations and the topics that are focused on in the class.

During freshman and sophomore year, most students stay along the same path, taking fairly similar classes but with the choice of moving up to honors.

However, junior year is where everyone branches off because of the broadened choice of classes. Some go the College Preparatory (CP) route, others choose to take an honors class and some students have the choice between Advanced Placement (AP) or dual credit classes for college credit.

The difference between AP and dual credit classes often gets confusing for students and it’s difficult to decipher which would be better to take.

“AP class is all year and meets every day; dual credit is a one-semester class that meets twice a week,” AP English teacher Holly Holifield said. “In AP, you get a lot of practice and instruction with in-class writing, ACT grammar and reading and literary analysis. Students who need more explicit instruction in writing or who plan to major in English or a writing-related course of study will want to take AP.”

“Dual credit is an English 101 class that you would get if you were on a college campus,” English teacher Julie Settle said. “I teach the class the same way I would if we were in a college classroom. Both classes are very valuable and have their own strengths, it depends on what the student wants to get out of the class and plans after high school.”

In deciding which class to take, both Holifield and Settle agree that it’s more important to look at your future plans and decide off of that.

“It depends on what college you’re planning on attending because some colleges won’t take English 101 as an English credit,” Settle said. “If you don’t know where you want to go yet, Dual Credit may be a better option because it’ll at least be transferred as an elective.”

The college credit that a student receives differs based on how a student performs in the class.

“In AP you take a test in May to qualify for college credit that is nationally recognized as English 101 or 102,” Hollifield said. “If you pass Dual Credit you receive college credit, but it may only count as an elective depending on which college you attend.”

However, no matter which one you take, the skills that are taught can be taken beyond high school and into life.

“The expectations are very high like they will be in college and in the workforce,” Settle said. “When you’re in a job, you don’t get a bunch of retries. This class will prepare you for that mindset with college professors and future bosses.”

It is vital for Chapman to continue offering these classes because of the challenge they meet students with and the skills they teach every student willing to receive.

“Offering classes that meet different students’ needs is important,” Hollifield said. “Having choices for students is important also. The life and college skills are important to learn how to be able to use later.”

AP/Dual Credit English classes are not the only classes offered here, there are also AP Calculus and Dual Credit math classes, along with AP Chemistry, AP Government and AP Human Geography.