Pacific Lutheran High School offers a wide variety of opportunities for students as they prepare for college. These options include:

• On-site Academic Advisor whose duties include:
  • Meeting with students twice a year to ensure they are on college track
  • Evaluating transcripts
  • Financial aid/college planning workshops for students and families
  • Communicating relevant test dates for SAT and ACT and helping students find resources to prepare for these exams
• Annual participation in the PSAT exam

Pacific Lutheran High School takes seriously its committment that students be given a college-preparatory education. Students who do not succeed in the classroom are directed to the school's Academic Intervention Program (AIP). This three-tiered program is meant to enable students to get the most out of their education at Pacific Lutheran.

Teacher Development / Education

Pacific Lutheran High School is pleased to be able to recommend the College Board website as an excellent source of information for P.L.H.S. students. Students interested in doing well on the S.A.T. are able to take practice tests, answer sample questions, develop test-taking techniques, etc. by going to the College Board's Student Center. Students are also able to see their previous PSAT scores, determine why certain questions wrong, take a free personality test that shows potential careers, etc.

There is additional information for parents regarding the financial aid process, choosing the right college, and identifying entrance requirements for different universities. Please contact Ms. Flett if you have any other questions for your child's continued higher education.

• Instructors at Pacific Lutheran High School are yearly re-certified in CPR/First Aid
• Instructors at Pacific Lutheran attend the annual Lutheran Educator's Conference in Palm Desert, CA during Thanksgiving break to stay abreast of new trends in education, get new ideas from peers, and attend course-specific workshops
• Pacific Lutheran High School has purchased a subscription to Educator's Virtual Mentor for the 2009-2010 school year with a grant provided by the federal No Child Left Behind Act. All teachers are required to log into the system throughout the school year, and spend instruction time watching other professional educators teach lessons in their specific content areas. Lessons include classroom discipline, introduction/closure to lessons, differentiated instruction, higher-level question asking, etc
• Teachers meet consistently throughout the year to discuss student performance, collaborate together, and to ensure cross-curricular learning is occurring school-wide

Pacific Lutheran High School utilizes two different standardized tests to track incoming skills of freshmen, sophmores and juniors students. These tests, taken in August before the school year begins, further help the school administration to systematically track, academic improvement from year to year, teacher effectiveness, opportunities for enrichment, and whether or not students are meeting their full academic potential in the classroom. etc. These tests (PSAT and ITED) are one tool in our acadmemic arsenal to meet our students academic needs. P.L.H.S. devotes multiple school days throughout the year to developing student skills in lower areas, teaching test-taking strategies and tips, and going over answers from previous years' tests to better prepare students for the S.A.T, ACT, necessary college skills, etc.

You can see how P.L.H.S. students compared to other students across the test across the nation on the Iowa Test of Educational Development.

Pacific Lutheran High School utilizes a group response system (TurningPoint Technology) in many of its classes. This technology has many educational benefits which are discussed in this study of Student Response systems. You may see this technology for yourself on the TurningPoint Technology web-site. 
You can read student feedback on the use of TurningPoint Technology on the Student Comments page.

Pacific Lutheran High School is pleased to be able to offer additional courses in partnership with Southern California Regional Occupational Center (SCROC). Students are able to choose from dozens of different courses and potentially have these appear on Pacific Lutheran High School's transcript. SCROC employs California-credentialed teachers in a wide variety of disciplines: Arts/Media, and Entertainment, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Engineering, Finance and Business, Medical Technology, Cosmetology, etc.

There is no cost for students to take these courses if they are presently attending Pacific Lutheran High School. Courses are generally taught from 3:45-6:45 p.m. twice a week. These courses need pre-approval from the school principal before they can be considered for high school credit.

More information about this program can be found on SCROC's website.

Pacific Lutheran High School offers study hall from 3:15-4:15 after school Monday through Thursday. This study hall is supervised by a teacher and provides students with an opportunity to get ahead, or receive assistance where it is needed. Study Hall provides students with individualized, focused attention for those who need or want the extra help.

Pacific Lutheran High School Students can also receive tutoring from 2:00-10:00 p.m. through the Torrance Library System.  All that is required to receive this free, expert tutoring service is a Torrance Library card and a home computer with internet service. Please click on the following link and follow the directions to access Torrance Library's Homework Assistance Program.