Last year DS24 was enrolled in a high school class “Exploring Computer Science”. This class articulates to a local community college as a course titled “General Computer Literacy” for three units.
DS is interested in taking more computer science and is signed up for “AP Computer Science Principles” coming up this year. This class also articulates to the local community college as “General Computer Literacy” (and with the same CC course number).
In his high school, AP Computer Science Principles counts as an “extra” science class, but “Exploring Computer Science” does not - it is an elective.
I have a couple concerns:
-If he successfully completes AP Computer Science Principles this with an A or a B, will it show up on his CC transcript as a repeated course? And would this be a bad thing when he applies to college after high school?
-Would taking the AP test be helpful - for example, if he applies to a private college that won’t accept cc credit, or am I over-thinking this?
We have Dual Enrollment/College In High School classes that can earn credit at local colleges, but only if you register for it and pay tuition. Same thing?
We haven’t really found value in them, didn’t bother registering/paying, so have no transcript.
Are you forced to earn the CC credit for them?
If so, you’d have to ask the CC how it will appear - every school has their own policies. But I seriously doubt it will cause any problems.
Taking an AP exam is generally a good idea, IMO, unless it’s a financial burden.
Hi RichInPitt. Sometimes I think terms are used slightly differently at different schools. I will share how it is handled at DS’s high school , I think this can be different at home school/charter schools. An articulated class is a class taught in the high school, by high school teachers, where students can earn both high school and college credit from a community college. The high school and college have worked together beforehand to certify the class for college credit. Once the class starts, the high school teacher helps the students submit the paperwork to the college for credit on their college transcript. (I suppose one of DS’s options would be to not submit the ppwk, it is optional).
This is different than Dual Enrollment, because Dual Enrollment is taught at the college, by college instructors, and only earns college credit. I have decided that Dual Enrollment is valuable, because the student earns college credit and, for those colleges that accept transfer credit, the student can earn credit for toward their degree after they are admitted into a degree program at a college.
(to clarify, Dual Enrollment credits at DS’s high school are not applied toward the high school’s graduation requirements. BUT I am starting to get an inkling that this is not 100% correct, and I should check with the DS’s guidance office.)
Note that some colleges do not accept college-in-the-high-school for transfer credit, computer literacy or AP CS principles may not get subject credit at many colleges, and repeated courses or AP credit will only get credit at most once.
here’s what I’d do first:
chose 5 colleges that are on your kid’s radar. Google “college name and credit transfer” - and see if that community college class transfers in as credit at those colleges.
Next, see if the AP credit (earned from a good score on the test) transfers in at those 5 colleges. (google college name and AP Credits transfer). If both both AP and the CC transfer in, then I’d probably not take the AP class. If only AP transfers, then I’d probably have the kid take the AP class, if it’s in the zone of interest for the kid.
every college is different with transfer policies; the more elite, the more stricter the policies.
** editing to add: my D23 is taking that AP class too; and i just checked what AP scores are needed at 3 in state colleges: flagship, state U, and private. Scores of 3, 4 and 4 are needed for credit. (The class grade in an AP class doesnt matter; it’s the AP Test score that matters.)
I guess definitions do vary. I’ve always used DE for both, following:
GLOSSARY OF EDUCATION REFORM is a comprehensive online resource that describes widely used school-improvement terms,
In some cases, high school students take dual-enrollment courses on a college campus, alongside regular college students, while in other cases students take the courses online or from instructors who offer college-level courses at a high school
If there is no HS course enrollment or Credit, how can this be “Dual”? Around here, we just call this taking college classes. My D is looking at MVC/Linear courses at a local community colleges as she has exhausted her HS offerings. Her school is fine with her doing it. But it won’t appear on her HS transcript. No one is referring to this as Dual. That term is reserved for the courses jointly sponsored, earning dual credit.
You have a good point. He submitted the ballot for Fall '21 - selection “wish list” - in the middle of spring. I posed that question to DS last week. He explained his understanding that there are different things taught in this class and he would be disappointed not to have a CS class at school this year. He excelled, helped others, and wants more. The “Exploring” class description uses words like “a foundational knowlege of human computer interaction, web design, problem solving, programming, data analysis, and robotics.” The “AP Principles” class description includes “develop apps or programs, etc. based on their interests… programming, large data sets, the Internet, abstractions, algorithms, cyber-security concerns…addressing real-world problems and solutions…” We’ll discuss this once more before school starts soon.
There are two more classes offered. One is AP Computer Science and the other is Game Development. In spring, this AP principles class seemed like the way to go. He will most likely take the AP CS class next year or the following year, and he would like to take the Game Development class if there is room later.
Yes, he is developing a list. We’ve been using Assist and Transferology to find matches for possible GE classes.
I’m following you. The list of colleges includes all types at the moment since he just finished freshman year… some take AP, some take college classes, some directly transfer, some just offer unit credit. He’ll probably take the AP test to cover both bases.
Yes, I hear you. I’ve learned that a lot of “common” terminology isn’t the same from place to place. If you had asked me before I tried to understand DE in our local context, I would have probably thought your definition of DE was how it would work here too. Your suggestion about looking at advanced courses at the local community colleges is a good one. My son has taken a couple of GE classes through direct enrollment with the local community college, so advanced options may be in his future.
However, the first two (exploring and AP CS principles) seems to be unusually slow; a one year AP CS principles course in high school should be able to cover those concepts (note that a college course of covering these basic concepts for students with no prior CS knowledge would take only a semester: https://cs10.org ).
Thanks for the unput. I wanted to update on the situation. It seems the fates had thier hands in determining how this was going to play out. Long story short, they put S in AP Computer Science (not AP CS Principles). We did not request this in the spring, but for whatever reason, class scheduling conflicts maybe, S is not taking Principles. We think the way it turned out is good. So the community college transcript will have two different beginning CS classes on it (if he gets an A or B). I suppose that might be it for HS CS classes after this, S’s sophomore, year. All that would be left is Computer Game Development; would it be better for S to take this outside HS, maybe over the summer somewhere? Perhaps later in the school year we’ll research and ask you here what suggestions you have for a HS Jr or Sr to do to keep learning CS while in HS.
