Diploma program focuses on college-level research, collaboration, and presentation skills crucial for college and career success.
Edison High School is one of approximately 2,000 schools worldwide to implement the AP Capstone Diploma™ program to promote college and career success through critical thinking, research, collaboration, and communication skills. The program consists of two yearlong courses taken in sequence: AP Seminar and AP Research. Edison will be the district’s second high school to offer the Capstone Diploma program; Patiño School of Entrepreneurship has had the Capstone Diploma program since the campus opened in 2016.
Students can earn the AP Capstone Diploma by scoring a 3 or higher in AP Seminar and AP Research and on four additional AP exams of their choosing. This signifies outstanding academic achievement and attainment of college-level academic and research skills. Students who score a 3 or higher in both AP Seminar and AP Research (and not on four additional AP Exams) earn the AP Seminar and Research Certificate™.
Edison will launch the AP Seminar class in the fall. In AP Seminar, typically taken in 10th or 11th grade, students choose real-world topics and evaluate them from multiple perspectives. Students identify credibility and bias in sources and develop arguments in support of a recommendation. In the AP Research course, students design and execute a college-level research project on a topic of personal interest.
“Bringing the Capstone Diploma program to Edison supports our strategic plan student goal to expand student-centered and real-world learning experiences,” said Superintendent Bob Nelson. “It aligns with our belief that we need to prepare students for college and careers by promoting intellectual curiosity, critical thinking, and problem solving.”
From Rushi Sheth, executive director of the AP Capstone Diploma program: “The AP Capstone courses enable students to explore real-world issues in great depth through research and collaboration. This provides terrific opportunities for students to write and present their work effectively, both individually and in teams — the very skills professors and employers are demanding.”