At Arrowhead High School, there are two semesters and two terms within each semester—four quarters in total. Term three ends on Friday, March 23. Term three grades show up on your transcript although they are not your permanent end of semester grade.

Arrowhead offers a variety of solutions to get students grades up such as, satellite study hall, NHS student tutor, S.A.S.S. math tutors, R.T.I., and library extended hours. Each student is assigned a specific counselor to help them with any issues that occur throughout the year. If students are distressed Arrowhead also has a psychologist as well as counselors.

According to College Confidential, an informational website regarding questions about college, counselor Sally Rubenstone says, “Most high schools put all grades on the transcript that goes to colleges; some high schools, however, will put only the final grade for each course. (For half-year classes or Block System classes, this is usually the semester grade. At schools with four quarters per class or three trimesters, it will be the cumulative grade for that class, as determined by the teacher at the end of the year.)”

Rubenstone also says, “Assuming that all grades, not just the final ones, are indeed on the transcript, then college admission officials will look at them but they won’t really “use” them except sometimes as potential puzzle pieces … i.e., to help them to discern patterns or problems. For instance, if an A student ends the year with several B’s, the admission committee may notice that he or she had one disastrous quarter (C’s, D’s, maybe even an F) and A’s in all the others. If concerned, an admission officer might call the school to get more information about why that student slipped so much in that single term (Illness? Family crisis? etc.)”

Arrowhead junior Cari Nelson says, “My grades aren’t where I want them to be at all right now but I’ve been doing everything I can to get them up it’s just hard catching up after absences. But I know I still have another quarter and in the end the final semester grades are going to reflect my knowledge more, and comparing my term three and term four grades will show improvement.”

According to PrepScholar, an online website of helpful blogs for students in preparation from college, Dr. Anna Wulick says, “This means that 9th and 10th grades are the setup years: this is when you take the prerequisite classes you need to take high level classes later, and also when you join the activities that you will hopefully rise to a leadership position in. On top of that, freshman year can be a really hard adjustment year. You suddenly have high school-level demands, much more academic and social pressure, not to mention the wild ride of adolescent development and the surge of hormones that comes with it. Actually, 9th grade is so hard that research shows that it is the make it or break it year – the year that determines whether kids stay to finish high school or drop out altogether.”

Wulick says,“12th grade is also not the best time to start slouching. Even though the GPA colleges will see is made up mostly of grades from the first three full years of high school, first-semester senior year grades are sometimes sent in with your transcript. This means that 12th grade also needs to be stacked with impressive classes that build on what you accomplished junior year. What’s more, if you really slack off senior year, your acceptance could even be rescinded.”

Wulick says, “The main reason that junior is the most important year for your college applications is because it’s the last full year of high school that colleges see. It also represents you at your most mature – since teens grow a lot year by year, junior year is the best way for colleges to extrapolate what you’ll be like as an adult.”

Arrowhead junior Danielle Fuhs says, “Ending third quarter isn’t such a big deal but I do try to make my grades the best they can be since it goes on our transcript, but if they aren’t where I want them to be I know I still have another term to raise them.”