<p>Yes HockeyMOm they TRULY practice engaged learning!! They walk the walk. It is amazing in only one semester at school how much interaction with his profs my son has had. Last week he had pizza with the dean of the biz school. When S needed some equipment from the physics lab for a biz competition, his physics prof helped him. S’s psych teacher helped him with a paper for english. I could go on and on.</p>
<p>I so agree with boys3 comments on maturation of a student. S peaked in his senior year of HS, now at Elon he is inspired and working hard and is the A student we knew who could be. Is it too easy? I don’t think so. He has been jammed with papers, projects, and tests, but I think he has found balance at Elon.</p>
<p>If it is the right fit (size, location, values), Elon truly is what is says it is.</p>
<p>Hockey mom: your comment about how “most kinds would thrive in this kind of environment” struck me as interesting…</p>
<p>I do know quite a few HS students right now who do not want this much engagement and are actually uncomfortable with this type of learning experience…they want to be invisible in large lectures; taking multiple choice tests…and many want to be able to pick and choose the classes they attend or blow off…can’t do that at Elon…my daughter would never miss a class unless it was an emergency…so there are 2 sides to everything…</p>
<p>I’ve actually had 3 students just this year that explored Elon and decided not to apply because they weren’t the type of student it attracts…they were not overly involved in high school, etc…</p>
<p>Just wanted to point out…it is not for everyone necessarily…</p>
<p>Yes, rodney, I guess I should have phrased it differently. I agree there are many kids who want to be “invisible” in class, perhaps shy to participate, etc… yet they are hard workers and do very well in school. </p>
<p>I guess what I meant is that there are “many” kids who could do better in school if they “felt” more involved; for many kids “doing” is more exciting, interesting, etc. than merely reading …and listening… While these kids may do what they need to do in order to achieve good grades, they may not truly be enjoying their educational experience. I can think of hs seniors (many friends of my S), who do not enjoy school at all! Of these kids, some are “A” students, some are “B”, and some lower. But I feel that they could really change their negative view about school if they were in an engaging environment - if they believed the teacher cared… etc.</p>
<p>Sorry I think I did not explain myself very well. </p>
<p>And samtalya - Thanks again for reiterating that Elon practices what it preaches. This is what I hoped to hear when I asked the question. As someone else mentioned … it almost seems too good to be true.</p>
<p>HockeyMom - I think everyone has done a great job answering your questions, but I couldn’t help myself from commenting about our experience with Elon. My son is a freshman and it has been wonderful. His experience has been beyond what I could have imagined for him.<br>
He was an “A” student in high school and worked himself to death. I knew he couldn’t continue on at that pace for four more years. Elon has been a welcome break for him. The courses are challenging, but he says they are manageable and he’s not stressing like he did in high school.
However, I do agree with Rodney, its not the right fit for everyone. Some kids don’t want to be that engaged. I commented to my middle son that he should think about going to Elon and he said he doesn’t think it’s for him.</p>
<p>My A daughter wants to a large school where she can be anonymous. the more we fall in love with Elon, the more she wants to stay in nj and go to rutgers.</p>