BDHS is offering a variety of new classes this year.

In the history department, Dual Enrollment (DE) classes are being offered through Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) for US and VA History (USVA) and Government (Gov.). DE USVA is taught by Mr. Peter Wonders and is replacing the AICE course that has been taught in past years. By teaching a college class, it guarantees credit to all VA colleges, hopefully more in other states. “With AICE, it’s a credit waiver,” said Mr. Wonders. “By taking DE, the class is always out of the way.” Mr. Brian Taylor, the DE Gov. teacher, also prefers teaching DE over AP, as he has done before. “AP tries to mimic college, whereas DE is college,” commented Mr. Taylor. For AP and AICE, getting the credit relies on passing an end of year exam. For DE, if a student does well in the class they get the credit. This class is best suited for students who understand the weight of a college class but attracts a wide base because these classes are required for most majors in VA. IGCSE Global Perspectives, taught by Mrs. Carolyn Weddel, was also added. This class is very similar to AICE Global Perspectives in format. It consists of case studies and analysis of ethical, economical, and political aspects of the world. There are two main differences between IGCSE and AICE Global: IGCSE addresses less intense issues, objectively speaking, and does not have a Cambridge exam at the end of the year. Mrs. Weddel recommends that sophomores or juniors who want to take AICE in the future take IGCSE, as well as seniors who want the experience of the class without the exam.

Science is offering two new classes this year: Advanced Earth Science (Adv. ES) and Forensic Science (FS). Adv. ES, taught by Ms. Jacqueline Gerhard, is very similar to regular Earth Science (ES). The largest difference is a faster pace and additional content. While ES covers all the necessary material for the class, Adv. ES incorporates research projects and web quests. “All this is to show student the connections between ES and current events- not just the obvious, like Hurricane Florence, but social, political, and environmental issues as well,” explained Ms. Gerhard. Therefore, this class is best for students who are willing to put in a lot of time and effort into their work.

Another new elective offered at BDHS this year is word processing, taught by Ms. Stephanie Hughes. This instructional course on how to use components of Office 365. Ms. Hughes recommends this class for everyone because of the increase of technology in the workplace.

Theater is a highly requested class that is being taught Ms. Ashley Abraham this year. It breaks down all of the different roles that go into a theatrical production: acting, stage crew, etc. There is also the opportunity to see live performances of shows put on by professional groups. This year, they have already seen Hairspray This is best suited for anyone who wants to be4 involved in theater in the future or love it now.

All of these classes bring something new for the BDHS students to experience.