<p>Since my S graduated early, I should note that his high school did everything to make his schooling flexible, including allowing him to take math in college in 9th grade. What else could it have done for him in 12th grade besides letting him take more college courses--possibly a full load of college courses at that? So he graduated early with everybody's blessings: his teachers, his GC, the dean and the principal.
From a social point of view, though, the situation was less than ideal. My S was too much in a hurry to go to the college for classes to hang out with school friends, and he was too much in a hurry to go back to the high school for his high school classes to talk to his college profs, take part in study groups and, in one case, even attend the section for one course because it was scheduled when the high school was still in session. Now that he is in college, he can spend time with his suitemates and other friends and be truly a part of the college community in a way that he was never really a part of the high school. He'd had the same problem in 8th grade when he spent part of the time in the high school. But he would never ever have considered slowing down. In fact, it was his idea to attend CTY and take classes that would enable him to go straight into AP courses: he was afraid that honors Physics and Honors Chemistry would be too slow for his liking.
You are right about the current costs of boredom being too high.
When he was in 5/6 grade I saw the immediate defects of boredom: he was being disruptive in class and disrespectful of his teachers whose math knowledge did not equal his own. I was concerned that he would turn into a sullen underachiever who would get into trouble through sheer boredom.
Whatever long-term benefits there might be in staying longer in high school--and I really don't know what they are--, the cost of boredom was indeed too high, immediate, and possibly long-term.</p>
<p>It sounds to me as if the reason you are considering early college is that you go to a not so great high school. I'm normally not a huge fan of boarding schools, but in your case, I think it might be worth considering. It might not even cost extra because you might get a lot of AP credits and shorten the time you need to graduate from college. Even if the "total time expended" is the same, someone your age should be hanging out with other kids your age, not college kids.</p>
<p>Your son sounds like a paradigmatic example of a very strong case for early graduation. Everybody involved could see that it was a great, indeed apparently obvious and necessary, idea!</p>
<p>I guess this thread is developing into a sort of file of cases representing each path. Hopefully, people like OP can more easily see for themselves which case or cases seem to best fit or shed light on their own situation.</p>
<p>Beprepn
My s applied to and was admitted to Harvard (EA) and Stanford (RD). Marmat's S graduated early and was admitted ED to Princeton.
It depends on the record a student has accumulated while in high school. Both Marmat's S and mine were very accelerated in math and science. Marmat's S also distinguished himself in national and international competitions.</p>
<p>ADad:
I agree. The OP needs to think carefully whether graduating early is a good option. When my S was a sophomore, I was, in fact, told by an admission officer that it would be better for my S to apply RD as he would have more of a high school record to submit. But he applied EA anyway. The MIT dean of admissions, however, said that he had so many college courses already, that applying RD would not make any difference, so he might as well apply EA (he did not, preferring a more liberal arts college).
I also think that racing through a curriculum or shortening the period of personal growth is not a good idea in general. But for my S, the pace he maintained was right for him. Any slower and he would have been unhappy. I just offer his experience against those who think it's okay to be bored. I have observed that disruptive kids are as likely to be smart but bored kids as they are to be struggling kids who are giving up on learning.</p>
<p>Can you arrange an independent study of calc BC next year? That is what my D. is doing because her school has the same math weakness that you describe.</p>
<p>I'm in general agreement that you will benefit from the extra year in high school, and being creative about how you find opportunities to go beyond your high school's limitations will paint you as a student with drive and intellectual inititiative and a love of learning for its own sake, all of which will make you very attractive to colleges.</p>
<p>Here's another option - graduate early and take a Gap year before entering college. My S has met a number of students at Princeton that have done this. Their high schools couldn't accommodate thier needs for four years, so they took a year to do something of interest to them and gave themselves an opportunity to mature socially and emotionally. In fact my S is the only one in his suite that went to college directly from high school. I think this also says something about how admissions values a gap year or two.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your help. I am now seriously considering the option of transfering to the high school nearby which has much better academics, band, and tennis.</p>