Academics

Program of Studies

This Program of Studies is intended to give students and parents a general overview of the courses offered at Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School. It should be helpful in selecting your program of studies for next year. Diman Regional recognizes that each student is a unique individual who possess specific strengths, needs and learning styles. The courses offered at Diman Regional provide all students the opportunity to develop their capabilities in a variety of content areas and at the appropriate and challenging levels of learning.

Students should discuss the different Academic Pathways with his/her parents and his/her Guidance Counselor. Students in TECH PREP Pathway must declare so in their Sophomore year prior to making Junior course selections and must have the approval of the Tech Prep Guidance Counselor and their own Guidance Counselor.

Diman's instructors are highly qualified in their specific content areas and make practical applications of academic and technical subjects in order to learn the concepts required for success in their skill training or occupation. At Diman, we are always committed to providing individual assistance to promote student success.

Grade Point Average and Class Rank Calculation

Grade point averages (GPA) and class rank are important to students seeking scholarships, financial assistance, and other post secondary endeavors. GPA and class rank are calculated using a system of levels and credits.

Each academic and selective course is assigned the appropriate level based on the rigor of the curriculum and the performance expectations: generally honors courses are rated at the highest level, followed by mainstream courses, and courses with modified curriculum and/or performance expectations are rated at level three. For the purposes of calculating GPA only, each level is assigned a specific weight. It is important to note that levels do not affect the grade published on a student's report card and Honor Roll status. Levels provide a means of accurately calculating class rank for a diverse population. Levels may also be utilized to adjust for an individual with significant modifications to his/her course expectations. GPA and class rank are calculated by multiplying a student's adjusted class averages by the corresponding credit value, and then dividing by the total number of attempted credits.

Honors Courses

Honors Courses are an integral part of the total curriculum here at Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School. These courses have been developed keeping in mind our mission statement ... "to develop the unique potential of each learner". They are designed to accelerate the students' learning in classes that have elevated expectations.

Because of the challenging nature of these courses, they carry higher quality points than the courses for the general student population.

Freshmen

Students, who will be attending Diman in the fall, are administered the Stanford Achievement Test Series 9th edition and also the Diman Mathematics Assessment in the spring of their eighth grade. Students are placed in the Honors sections of Biology, English Language Arts utilizing the Stanford scores, seventh grade ELA MCAS scores and grades from their sending schools. Placement in Honors Algebra is based on the Stanford results, the Diman Mathematics Assessment, as well as Math MCAS scores when available. Since placement is limited in these courses, other factors such as attendance, discipline record, and guidance counselor recommendations are also considered. To insure that placement in the Honors courses reflect the students' ability as well as motivation and work ethic, a review of the students' progress begins after two academic cycles. At this time, or later in the Trimester, teachers may recommend a change in the placement.

Upper classmen

Honors ELA 10, 11 and 12 , Honors United States History II, Honors World History, Honors Biology 10, Honors Geometry, Algebra II/Trig and Math Analysis are the current honors courses offered for upperclassmen.

Students in the sophomore, junior, and senior year are placed into a Honors course based upon their past academic performance. All students must have the recommendation of their current instructor, recommended average of 90% in a non-honors course, and for some courses a writing sample is required. Honors students should be highly motivated and have a work ethic that will ensure that all assignments are passed in on time and meet the expectations of a Honors course. A student, who is not meeting the expectations of the course, may be removed from the class or have a written contract drawn up allowing him/her to remain in the class under certain criteria. The Course Verification Sheet will require parent/guardian and guidance counselors' signatures. Each Honors course will have specific rules and expectations that will be given to the students the first day of class.

Graduation Requirements

In order to receive a diploma from Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School, a student must earn a minimum of 140 credits. A student must have passed three (3) years of Shop Related, four (4) years of English Language Arts, four (4) years of Math and three and one half (3 1/2) years of Shop receiving a passing grade of at least 65 in each subject. All students must pass the MCAS tests in the subjects required by the state of Massachusetts.

The balance of the credits necessary to total 140 credits may be acquired from other subjects in the curriculum. These requirements will differ proportionately for the students who enter at the 10th or 11th grade level.