I am afraid to ask but, High school freshman - Honors Class

[tatum123]

Re: I am afraid to ask but, High school freshman - Honors Class

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Post by tatum123 » Sat Sep 13, 2008 1:51 am

Ok, thanks everyone.
Just making sure.

Now to find a good course!
I know she wants to work in biology, so I had better get her up to speed and quick!!!!
Rhonda ~

[MichaelXY]

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Post by MichaelXY » Sun Sep 14, 2008 6:15 am

Chap 16 and 17 of the Campbell Biology book should cover the material in question. My book is ed. 7, ed 8 might be different.

[jonmoulton]

Re: I am afraid to ask but, High school freshman - Honors Class

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Post by jonmoulton » Mon Sep 15, 2008 11:53 pm

If the teachers are not trained in the subjects they are teaching, you are not getting a good return on your education investment. The questions on the test look fine, they likely come from a test bank supplied by the textbook publisher. However, you are paying for competent instruction. A good instructor should not only be able to pull questions out of test banks, but should be able to respond to student's questions with informed and thoughtful answers, should be able to guide a discussion with questions crafted to lead students to a deeper understanding of the subject. Certainly for a natural sciences class, most instructors will need a sound academic background in the subject to be able to provide those services to students. An honors class should provide the highest level of instruction available, demanding that the students understand the basics of a subject well enough to address topics at a much higher level of cognition than "copy the base sequence written on the wall onto the answer sheet".

Perhaps you could schedule your international travel to conform to breaks in the academic schedule and move her to a more rigorous school. From what you have told me of your daughter, this school is not demanding enough from her.

[tatum123]

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Post by tatum123 » Tue Sep 23, 2008 3:56 am

Just a quick update.
With the help of the Campbell textbook (first 300 pages) she successfully completed the honors paper.

Now we will just have to wait to see what her grade is.

I will say however, that in retrospect I am glad that she was given the packet.
We would never have purchased the book by Campbell.
She probably learned more in that one week then she would in a complete (ok maybe not complete) freshman biology class at pretty much any high school.
Now if I can just get her to read the rest of it

Thanks for all of the advice and help.
I will check into the audit class - I think this could be really good for her.
Give her the feel of what the University courses might be like.
Thanks again
RT

[jonmoulton]

Re: I am afraid to ask but, High school freshman - Honors Class

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Post by jonmoulton » Thu Sep 24, 2009 5:35 pm

So far, so good -- teaching oneself is an important skill.

However, a biology class should be taught by a teacher with biology background, someone able to bring the ideas into context for the students and inspire some enthusiasm for the subject. It sounds like the school is not providing that. Consider other options, like that community college. There you are likely to find a dedicated biology-teaching professional.

[arjel06]

Re:

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Post by arjel06 » Fri Jun 25, 2010 7:08 am

That was a great information tatum. I wish for the success of your daughter. I know that she will understand things in this world soon. Just continue to read books and search some informative documents for her.

Last edited by canalon on Fri Jun 25, 2010 2:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: edited for brevity