<p>I wonder if anyone can comment from experience on schools that offer one course at a time. I know of only two - Colorado College and Cornell College. How difficult, stressful, successful, etc is such a focused immersion program?</p>
<p>One comment (in a guide book, perhaps CTCL) was that a shor illness can be devastating b/c being laid up with the flu for 4 days measns you've missed close to 2 weeks' worth of course work.</p>
<p>Not so good for science courses. Organic Chem is hard enough spread out over a semester. And what about those lab courses (like Analytic Chem) that ordinarily have two labs a week?</p>
<p>Well, I have no experience with these schools but I am going to comment anyway :) I share the concerns about lab sciences and I would be interested to hear from someone who has attended one of these colleges to comment on how well lab sciences work out? I image it's not ideal for the acquisition of foreign languages either - one or two intensive three-week blocks, and then no exposure at all for several months. But I would love to take humanities, social science, and higher-level math and CS classes on a block schedule.</p>
<p>I can't speak for college lab sciences, but CTY seems to manage to squeeze in a year of high school chemistry into three weeks. They do several labs a day, enough so that they have all the ones NYS Regents requires. Way back in high school we did an intensive study week. I've done two week art courses that met 8 hours a day for two weeks and loved them.</p>
<p>I don't know about taking only 1 course at a time, but I took Bio. 2, Org. Chem. 1, and Org. Chem 2 over the course of one summer. It was a bit intense, especially during the later part of the summer when the Bio. 2 class got added in, but it worked out OK. Each class met every day for half a day, if I remember correctly.</p>
<p>Really curious about this also, since S2 latched onto this concept somewhat after reading about Colorado College and thought it sounded "amazing." </p>
<p>My feeling, though, is that if block was so successful, then a lot more colleges would be offering it.</p>
<p>I like "The Hiram Plan" better. </p>
<p>
[quote]
Each semester at Hiram is divided into 12 and 3 week sessions.
Travel abroad, head out for intense field research or stay on campus and study a single subject.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>And if it's a class that you turn out to hate, spending hours every day with the boring, doddering old coot who teaches Greek Lit because he was in elementary school with Euripides could look pretty bleak.</p>
<p>dragonmom, that's exactly what I was thinking. If it's a class you love, then the immersion sounds great. If it's not a class you love, well, kill me now.</p>
<p>We live one block from colorado college and my oldest has taken classes there. the kids don't seem to have any complaints -- they all love the class schedule. They do have some classes/meetings to keep kids going in foreign languages (which is really the one to worry about). You don't want to get behind in your reading, that is certain.</p>
<p>I will say that the kids attending CC are certainly relaxed and having a good time -- most classes start at 9am and end by noon (unless a field trip/lab/etc is planned). The kids usually spend the afternoon in activities/sports/etc, then study in the evening (or party, depending on how tough the class is). Every 3 1/2 weeks they get a 4+ day weekend -- many kids go camping, skiing, etc. It really seems to be a system that works well for many kids -- particulary those that really want to focus on one thing at a time.</p>
<p>I know two kids at CC who are very happy. Science classes meet mornings with labs in the afternoon and there is a lot of capacity to do very focussed work. A class like Organic Chemistry is set up as a 2-block sequence I think....Having a class you don't really like is at least over in 3.5 weeks--doesn't go on for a semester. Illness can be problematic, but the faculty get that and were very supportive when this happened to one kid. They have some accommodation so kids can manage such events. I've also visited Cornell College and was very impressed with their program. I think it really is just a different approach to learning that is actually a very good fit for a certain kind of student who loves that kind of immersion. (And who doesn't mind always having a 9 am class...) I think I'd miss the contrast of studying different subjects--but it does allow for a simple, intense focus and soaking up all you can learn. And since everyone is in the same mode, it works. Faculty definitely love it...</p>
<p>It sounds great to me, the right way to learn and a plus for unorganized kids. My son, however, is totally disinterested. </p>
<p>I did check out Hiram which sounds like a great compromise, until I read that 84% of the students are in-state.</p>
<p>hsmomstef, I've heard the same things from current and past students at Colorado College. </p>
<p>The fact that all (most?) students attend classes in the morning, and do activities in the afternoon means that everyone is roughly on the same schedule, and that their days (and nights) are structured similarly. That combined with a mini-break every few weeks sounds like a dream come true for kids who need some structure followed by frequent chances to get out of the classroom for a few days. </p>
<p>Additionally, classes that involve field work can be fantastic when you can go to a site for 3 weeks! Soph D2 will be looking very closely at this school.</p>
<p>Know of two local students who attend Cornell...both absolutely love it there. One is a science kid and she loves the focus and having labs every day. The other is one who is incredibly smart but had a tendency to do well only in classes she liked...her mom says this school has changed her life!</p>
<p>I remember when the brochure came from Cornell College - it was one of the ones my daughter happened to actually look at - and as she was reading, she perked up - "This sounds so cool! Could I do this?" It wasn't a fit because of her devotion to an unusual major, but the idea was so appealing. We'll have to remember its existence, should my son decide not to go for engineering... <a href="An%20aside%20-%20it%20is%20so%20hard%20when%20they%20think%20they%20might%20want%20engineering!">i</a>*</p>
<p>There are lots of classes where I can imagine this working, but how does it work with humanities courses? I had a lot of classes in college that were essentially a book a week. Class isn't just a repetition of the reading -- you need to do the reading, think about it, discuss it in class, go back to it, and think about it more. And papers need time to percolate and to get revised. </p>
<p>Same with philosophy. I suppose it's possible to sit down and to read the Nichomachaen Ethics or the Critique of Pure Reason in 24 hours, but it's awfully hard to imagine digesting either in a couple of days, even if you weren't doing anything else distracting.</p>
<p>I've done so much better when I've had only one course at a time - either in summer school where it was an intensive short term, or only one course in night school over the length of a regular semester - that I now know the Cornell/Colorado plan would have worked much better for me than the conventional schedule at my undergraduate college. Back then either the programs didn't exist, or I just never learned about them.</p>
<p>I fully agree that these schedules are very good for a particular kind of kid. It is wonderful that they do exist so those kids can have the option of attending a school that will work really well for them. And, since both have been operation with this calendar for 20 years or more, clearly the bugs must have been worked out of the system.</p>
<p>JHS I wonder if book lists for some classes are released months prior to the start of term? I think if I was a student there, I'd read ahead as a change of pace during terms leading up to humanities courses.</p>
<p>Midwestmom....you can do engineering at Cornell! Look at their program that is set up with WashU. We looked at this when D2 was thinking small LAC and engineering!</p>