Beginning next school year, the Tennessee Department of Education will implement the Tennessee Diploma Project (TDP),
a broad overhaul of standards and curriculum designed to challenge students and better prepare them for college and the workforce.
A critical part of this program is new graduation requirements
for incoming freshmen for the 2009-2010 school year.
The requirements for these students include:
English 4 units
Social Studies 3 units
Mathematics 4 units
Science 3 units
Personal Finance .5 units
Fine Arts 1 unit
Elective Focus 3 units
Health, Physical Fitness/Wellness 1.5 units
Foreign Language (same) 2 units
Students must take English and Mathematics each year in high
school. Therefore, students taking physical science and/or
honors algebra in the eighth grade, must take an additional
four units of mathematics and three units of science in high school.
Students beginning high school in Fall 2009 will begin a new path with increased graduation requirements from 20 credits to 22, a focus on the skills needed for college and the workforce in an ever expanding global economy, and new assessments.
Gateway Exams in high school will be replaced by end-of-course exams that truly test the mastery of expectations leading to college- and work-readiness. The overall assessment system includes the ACT’s College and Readiness Test, Explore (given in the 8th grade) and the PLAN College Readiness Test given in the 10th grade.
For additional information, please contact Becky Baker, 873-8150, ext 239, Counselor for 2009 Freshmen
or visit http://state.tn.us/education/gradreq.shtml