March 6, 2023 Submitted by Hingham Public Schools
The 2023-2024 Program of Studies has been released after its approval from the School Committee in January. Rick Swanson, HHS Principal, and Derek Smith, HMS Principal, presented the materials and noted the changes and additions. Here are some of the highlights:
Hingham High School:
● New One-Semester Senior English Class: Disability Voices in Life & Literature: Reading & Writing for Justice
The goal of this course is to explore multiple media representations of the lived experiences of individuals with disabilities, as well as understand how disability issues are presented to the public.
● Graphic Design & Photography I will split into two courses so that each class can explore the specific subject matter in greater depth.
○ Graphic Design I will focus on an introduction to graphic design, including learning how to use Adobe Creative Cloud. Projects include logo design, corporate identity system, and event posters.
○ Photography I will introduce students to digital photography. Students will use Canon Digital SLR cameras, learning how to manually expose and shoot photographs.
● An in-school Physical Education course will only be required for ninth-grade students. Like junior and seniors, sophomores will now be able to meet the requirement through an alternate means, such as playing an interscholastic sport. This will allow sophomores greater freedom in choosing their courses.
● New science course – AP Environmental Science. This course is the equivalent of a first-year college course and culminates in the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB) Examination of Advanced Placement in Environmental Science.
The high school is also exploring options for dual enrollment courses. Dual enrollment courses allow students to participate in their high school course but also receive credit through a college or university. For example, students enrolled in Latin IV will have the option to apply for college credit through the University of Massachusetts at Boston. Other opportunities for students are being explored.
In addition, the high school is moving forward with the development of “pathway” programs in both Arts and Technology Education. Modeled after the Global Citizenship Program, the “pathways” will allow students to follow a specific course of study in their discipline, explore deeply an area of passion or interest in that area, and receive special recognition on their transcript.
Hingham Middle School:
● HMS will continue to offer 14 fine and performing arts electives. These are available to all grades. These include band, orchestra, chorus, art, and drama.
● Math 8 and Math 8 with Algebra will be combined into one course.
● Grade 7 and 8 Concert Band may be combined into multi-grade classes, and the same may take place in Art (dependent upon enrollment patterns)
● Students who were enrolled in the grade seven Chinese class as their World Language course this year will have the opportunity to continue in grade eight.