ADVANCED PLACEMENT, INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE & HONORS COURSES (5.21)

Students in grades 7-12 who take advanced placement (AP) courses; International Baccalaureate (IB) courses; honors or concurrent credit college courses; or other courses approved for weighted credit by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) or the Division of Career and Technical Education (DCTE) shall be graded according to the following schedule:

A =100 – 90

B = 89 – 80

C = 79 – 70

D = 69 - 60

F = 59 and below

For the purpose of determining grade point averages, the numeric value of each letter grade shall be:

A = 5 points

B = 4 points

C = 3 points

D = 2 points

F = 0 points

For a student to be eligible to receive weighted credit for an AP, or IB course:

• The course must be taught by an Arkansas licensed teacher who has received the appropriate training required by Arkansas statute and DESE Rule or, for an AP teacher, is in the process of completing an Additional Training Plan; and
• The student takes the applicable AP or IB examination after completing the entire course. Credit shall be given for each grading period during the course of the year, but shall be retroactively removed from a student’s grade for any course in which the student fails to take the applicable exam. Students who do not take the applicable exam shall receive the same numeric value for the grade he/she receives in the course as if it were a non-AP or IB course.

"Honors Courses" are those courses that have been approved by DESE as honors courses. Honors courses must stress higher order learning and be offered in addition to curriculum offerings required by the Standards for Accreditation.

For career and technical education courses taken after July 1, 2023, career and technical courses that are eligible for weighted credit are those career and technical education courses that are approved by DCTE to exceed the curriculum standards for a non-weighted class and lead to an approved industry-recognized certification. A student shall receive weighted credit for each approved career and technical education course upon the student:

• Completing the relevant career and technical pathway; and
• Earning the high-value industry credential aligned with the career and technical pathway.

Students who transfer into the district will be given weighted credit for the AP courses; IB courses; or concurrent credit college courses; and other courses approved by the DESE and DCTE for weighted that were taken for weighted credit at his/her previous school(s) according to the preceding scale.