Hi,
In my school, we have the option to take AB in 10th grade if we get a 95 or higher in Honors Algebra 2. Should I do that or should i do honors pre calc in 10th and BC in 11th? If I do AB in 10th, I would prob do MCLA in 11th and AP stat in 12th or something like that.
It’s usually recommended to take Precalc before Calc. So you could take Precalc in 10th, Calc AB in 11th and Calc BC in 12th. Unless you want to take MCLA in 12th grade. I would not finish with AP stats in senior year.
The students that run out of math classes in high school usually take some advanced math through dual enrollment.
bump
I highly recommend to not take the jump from Algebra to Calculus. One of my friends did it and she said it was the worst mistake she had made. The teacher had a new method of teaching, the material was different, etc.
I would recommend you take Pre-Calc first and then taking the jump to BC. this way you know what you’re getting and if your grade in pre-calc is satisfactory, you take BC and know you’re prepared.
Are you planning on taking a precalc during the summer? I was considering it, and you could totally do it, but if you wanted to take BC for sure sometime, you could take AB in 10, and study BC material in CC.
alright! thanks. I will probably do a little 3-week prep course for Calc over the summer at my school. Would that be enough to do the jump from Algebra to Calc EmZoWe?
I did pre-calc honors to calc BC. Calc AB classes in my school are literally just pre-calc honors repeated. The content is virtually the same.
It depends how your school teaches AB. Ask people who took both that and pre-calc honors. If the courses are nearly identical with the addition of an AP exam, then maybe do the prep course and go straight to AB.
@fishgill how well would that prepare you for the AP exam though?
d16 took calc bc as a junior; she got As but bombed the AP test and will only get credit for the AB portion. As a senior she could have taken calc 3; but that messed up her college credits as she’d have to start back in calc 2 in college. So, no math this year.
s15 took calc AB jr year; and then calc BC senior year. it was a partial repeat. he scored 5s on both AP tests and started in calc 3 in college and earned an A. Had we done what the school suggested – taken AP stats after calc AB, he would not have been so strong in math, and probably would have had a hard time starting in calc 2 after not having it a year.
so, my thoughts, if you will be going into a profession that uses lots of math, make sure you get a solid foundation. Take the AP test after sophomore year if you do AB; and from there figure out a plan and keep taking math so when you get to college you havent had a year off as a senior (if you plan on doing something math-related).
@roshe789 Sorry, I didn’t see the reply!
My friend made the jump and ended with a //smashing 75% final grade, hence why I’m so apprehensive of large course jumps.
I think as long as you have some experience it would be good. Over the summer, really review the concepts and during the course always make sure you go home understanding the lesson.
Different schools structure their calculus sequence differently. I think you really need to talk to the math teachers at your school. Calc BC in some schools covers all of AB, in other schools it assumes AB as a prerequisite. I don’t think it’s a great idea to skip precalculus unless that material is being covered in AB. Ask the AB teacher how students do in the class and on the AP exam. There’s no point in rushing through material and then not learning it well enough to get an A and a 5.
I don’t see the point of taking AP stats after AB. Why not take BC? You can earn credit for 2 semesters of calculus with BC at nearly any college whereas AB gets you only one. But AP stats isn’t really the equivalent of a good college stats class. (My daughter took AP stats and enjoyed it, but I just don’t see the point of substituting it for BC if you are a STEMy student).
BC will be far more intense than AB, by the way–you cover all the AB material in half the time you do in the AB course. However, if you have a good teacher, you’ll be fine.
If you’re a STEM person, wait to take BC junior year so you can take a higher-level math course senior year. Otherwise, you’re essentially stopping your upper-level math sequence sophomore year.
@tonystarkofwinterfell @mathyone The way our school math sequence works, is that after AP Calculus AB you can go to Multivariable Calculus and Linear Algebra, and then the option of Differential Equation/Complex analysis in 12th. Most people who skip precalc and do Calc AB end up taking the BC exam during junior year, when they are taking MCLA. I could take DE/CA senior year instead of AP stats.
In that case, then, @roshe789, Calc AB would probably be fine for you. You don’t need any precalculus concepts in AB, and I assume your MVC teacher will introduce the ones you need to you.