Most of the brightest students in West Virginia high schools are eager for challenges. They respond particularly well to those they see as giving them head-starts on higher education and careers. Advanced placement classes do just that. They cover material more demanding than that in most regular high school classes. And, for those who take AP classes and score well on follow-up tests, college credit is available. Most educators in this area have recognized the importance of AP courses for many years. High schools in the Northern Panhandle offer a large number of AP classes. But many Mountain State schools have lagged in offering AP courses. Forced to cope with a variety of other demands in education, they simply did not devote the resources to AP programs. That will change this fall. State officials are requiring that, beginning with the 2008-09 school year, every high school in the state must offer at least four AP courses. State Superintendent of Schools Steve Paine is absolutely correct in his contention that requiring the AP courses will add, in his word, “rigor” to offerings at West Virginia high schools. “I think that’s the proper thing to do,” he told a reporter this week. Indeed it is. Challenging students of all skill levels is important. But providing more demanding courses for those who will go on to college or other post-secondary education is doubly important.