<p>Junior here
I'm wondering about the effects of dropping Computer Science II, which is offered at my school as a semi-Honors class. The old teacher whom I had last year (and was an amazing teacher) inexplicably left. The new one doesn't teach anything new. I am now considering dropping it, but would it be a bad thing to drop a class covering an area in which you are passionate, even if the class is horrible? Just to be safe, would colleges consider that "wimping out"?</p>
<p>Pros
"Course stability"
Shows you took the opportunity to learn CS</p>
<p>Cons
Weighted 4.5. IB and AP courses are weighted 5.0
WASTED period
Should've taken AP Chemistry</p>
<p>Really depends on what you’d replace it with. Obviously you can’t replace it with AP Chem. If the replacement isn’t an improvement on what you’ve got, just stick it out.</p>
<p>FWIW, not all choices work out. Yes, it’s a waste, but you didn’t know that going in. Colleges will have no way of knowing that it was a waste - they’ll just see a fairly impressive class with hopefully an A on your transcript. You could also just use the time to teach yourself material beyond what the class is covering or just use it as a study hall if you can cover the material easily on your own.</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply. It’s really complicated though, this class thing
Yeah, from its course description the class WOULD sound “impressive” to colleges, but what would that matter if I don’t learn anything from it? I’m just sitting in a class getting a meaningless 100 which will actually bring down my GPA (CS is weighted like honors, which are weighted less than AP/IB), all while learning nothing. The new teacher teaches at a snail’s pace compared to the old one. Problem is, I can’t do study hall there either, because part of maintaining that 100 is working on this game project, and I have to work nonstop because my partner is more concerned with making inappropriate sprites than helping. I could just drop it; I’ve already fulfilled my requirements and all so I’ll just get an off-period, but how would that look if you both wimped off into an easier schedule AND rejected an elective which you’re thinking about majoring in?
Sorry if I sounded rant-y. Additional advice, please?</p>
<p>A class is what you make of it. Don’t worry about your partner, just make the teacher aware of what’s going on, then take it the direction you want to go and go WAAAY beyond what’s expected. Classes are more than just about grades, but take this lemon of a class and make lemonade. You might even get a good essay out of the experience.</p>