- Frenemy Forces
- Our frenemy is the College Board, or C-B (Charlie-Bravo). C-B’s disposition is to put your ability to think creatively, recall information, and perform under pressure to the test. C-B’s strengths are its alliances with American high schools and universities and its ability to bait high school students into doing battle with each other for the sake of integral recognition (ranging from zero to five), which can affect perceptions, inflate or deflate egos, and tip the balance of scales, every so slightly, in favor of those who will ultimately reap the rewards of rigged systems designed to perpetuate class warfare for the sake of corporations, local governments, nation states, and their so-called leaders, shareholders, and dependents.
- C-B attacks, very predictably, with multiple choice and free response questions, which must be comprehended and answered correctly under pressure of time to gain points. C-B can only stage one battle per subject per year, and the date of each battle is set and announced far in advance. C-B cannot force students to fight for coveted fours and fives. (Ones and zeros are seldom sought and are easily obtained.) Those who sign up to compete do so voluntarily. However, pressures are often placed on students by parents, peers, teachers, and often students themselves who fear, perhaps with good reason, the consequences of not conforming, i.e. not participating in the race to separate oneself from the rest of a growing and increasingly global pack.
- C-B’s most likely course of action is to attack with questions that are similar to questions that have been used in the past, especially with questions that resemble ones used in recent competitions. On the AP Computer Science A exam students may be required, for example, to step through a program as if they were a computer to determine what output would be produced or how values would change if the code were actually executed by a machine. Such questions require focus, attention to detail, programming language fluency, and speed. For many students, free response questions are even more dangerous than somewhat tricky multiple choice questions, which are susceptible to guessing. Free response questions entail composing fairly accurate, but not necessarily perfect, original source code (usually missing pieces of a program) using only paper, pen or pencil, and a standard, singled-sided cheat sheet that students are provided with and are allowed to use during the exam. Free response questions are far fewer in number compared to multiple choice questions, but they are worth just as much (50%). Free response questions generally require more reading and deeper understanding than multiple choice questions. Students who have not practiced composing programs on their own invariably perform poorly, especially on the free response section of the exam, compared to their peers who have.
- Friendly Forces
- Higher's Mission & Intent
As a Catholic, college preparatory high school, deeply rooted in the educational tradition of the liberal arts, it almost goes without saying that we offer a challenging curriculum designed and taught by teachers who sincerely love their subjects. Our teachers are passionate about what they teach and they offer the kind of academic training that will help students see the great value in education itself … the rich, imaginative, impassioned and intellectual world of a well-educated person. Students experience the joy of learning which is designed to last them their entire lifetime.
What is of special note, though, is that we work to keep class sizes small, and not just in the upper division classes like AP Physics II or French V. Most core classes average around 17 students. By doing this we create opportunities for supportive learning environments, foster community and build strong relationships between teachers and students. [...]
Another unique aspect of student life on our campus is our connection to the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon. They are visible, present and supportive of all that we do. They attend games, concerts and plays. They are, without question, our students’ biggest fans. Their charism guides the mission of the school and is the foundation for our spiritual development.
Source: https://www.valleycatholic.org/schools/high-school/principal/ (accessed on 8-Feb-2019).
The Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon (SSMO) Ministries Corporation, inspired by the charism and mission of the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon, is committed to promoting the dignity, respect, and value of each individual through all stages of life as it seeks to:
- integrate the SSMO heritage into the lives of those who minister in as well as those who benefit from the ministries which seek to fulfill the Sisters’ mission
- facilitate respectful collaboration among all these ministries
- provide oversight of these ministries through proper governance and due diligence
- plan strategically to ensure the continuity and vitality of all these ministries into the future
Source: https://www.ssmoministries.org/about-us/ (accessed on 8-Feb-2019).
See also: THE CHURCH'S ORIGIN, FOUNDATION AND MISSION
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p123a9p1.htm#II - Adjacent Units: https://www.valleycatholic.org/schools/high-school/directory/
- North: The Art of Computer Programming by Donald E. Knuth
- Same Echelon: https://apstudent.collegeboard.org/apcourse/ap-computer-science-a
- Supporting: Effective Java by Joshua Bloch
- Higher's Mission & Intent
- Attachments/Detachment: See the list of current teams at https://vchscs.blogspot.com/p/apcsa.html.
- Civil/Terrain considerations: Room 209.