Academics

Academic Philosophy

Byron Center High School offers a wide range of options for students in the area of academics.  Our philosophy is to be able to offer challenging and rigorous courses to students who are up for the challenge, building relevance into every course, and offer support for those who need it.  In addition, we want to find student interests and help them to foster their curiosity and desires to learn.  Our courses are mixed between traditional courses, project-based learning courses for a hands-on approach, and blended learning for those where online is a better option.  Every course has its own unique way of bringing in real-world application and relevance.

Differentiation

One of the hardest parts of education is to differentiate to help ALL students learn and grow to EVERY student's full potential.  Byron Center High School attacks this in many ways. To start, we use standardized test scores and pre-tests in each course to make sure that each student is placed in the right class to meet his/her challenge level. In addition, teachers and counselors consistently watch for students in inappropriate placements. We have multiple levels of learning for our students based on course selection.

Within each course, teachers work with students as a group, and then utilize time in class, before school, or after school to help students who need extra time and help. They also consistently challenge students with difficult work beyond their grasp. Sometimes students need an advanced course to challenge them where they are. This is where the Honors, Advanced Placement, & Dual Enrollment courses come into play. However, there are also times when students struggle. When students work hard, give their all, and it's still not enough, we look at other strategies. Sometimes students lack the skills to study, take notes, and even read for comprehension. We have developed courses to help in this area as well. 

State Standards

Standard courses, just like honors courses, are aligned with the Michigan State Standards and the national ACT.  We have fully adopted the new National Common Core Standards.  These courses stress the most important aspects of the standards and ACT to better prepare our students for standardized testing and college success without surpassing the average student's ability. Embedded in the course are relevance, critical thinking, problem-solving, writing skills, collaborative work, creation, and more.

Graduation Requirements

For course requirements, course guides, and all details regarding scheduling, please refer to the guidance page of the website.  

For all Academic Data, please see the Testing Data Page.