<p>^^I’m guessing this isn’t common at all high schools, but at ours the parents have to “sign off” on the kiddo’s schedule for the next year - all the way through senior year. I put the fault clearly in the seat of a parent if they have a kiddo that ends up “disliking” education if they are in a district where the parent signs off. </p>
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<p>No surprise; the same thing happens in college. (Kids change their major 2-3 times…)</p>
<p>Parents cannot be blamed completely. </p>
<p>The school districts do state if someone is doing APs it is lot of work. But only when one does the course, realize the workload is much higher than what the school said. If it ends up being a competitive school or school district, the pursuit to get better scores can be challenging. I also see that more and more colleges seem to have increasing percentile scores year on year be it GPA, weighted GPA, SAT/ACT scores and asking for a ‘standout essay’ while looking for more and more ECs as differentiation. Add to it, perennial increase in costs mean to get any sort of aid, one has to get higher scores from what was ok in the earlier years.</p>
<p>It is easy to say study what you like and there is some college one can get an admission be it their academic performance, EC or financial status. But say, a kid really likes UC Berkeley. Then, like it or not, one has to play and game the system of high scores, high GPA, and ECs that will grab the attention at that college. </p>
<p>Do you mean to say a parent will not sign off on the kid’s schedule if the kid says will try and go for it? But once in, it is a vortex. It ends up as a race to nowhere because most will lose the passion as gaming the system can be tiresome. </p>
<p>“Do you mean to say a parent will not sign off on the kid’s schedule if the kid says will try and go for it?” You don’t believe there are parents like this? I know parents who kept their kids out of a more challenging program. In the case I know best, the kid complained of boredom for several years after.</p>
<p>@mathyone, a parent can have a candid conversation with their kid. The parent also knows the kid’s capability and potential to an extent. From the 2nd kid onwards, the parent could also end up being more practical having learnt from the 1st kid’s experience.</p>
<p>Problem is most parents overestimate their kid’s abilities, cover up for them and also want the kids to pursue what is best. In most circumstances, being pragmatic is an afterthought. I have seen parents asking teachers for accommodating their kid’s ECs while managing APs - it was known what they were getting into. </p>
<p>Oh, I agree, many parents will push their kids too hard. Just not everyone. And it may be difficult for first-time parents to know what the load will be like. There are plenty of threads on this site (usually) by kids asking, “Is x AP’s too much or too hard?” So the kids themselves may not always know what they are getting into. </p>
<p>I think it could be quite helpful for schools to survey the kids (and perhaps the parents as well) in these classes and ask questions like “How many hours per week did you spend on homework for this class?” “Did you feel the homework was valuable or busywork?” "In retrospect, are you glad you took this class, or do you wish you had taken the next easier class? " “What was your final grade in the previous class you took in this subject and what is your overall GPA?” “Was this course appropriate for you or too hard?” “How many other AP classes are you taking and did this number of AP classes interfere with doing the EC’s you wanted, getting enough rest, and having some spare time?” Having guidance share this info with prospective AP students could go a long way toward helping families make informed choices.</p>
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<p>That’s true of every highly selective college. So what? </p>
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<p>If true – which I highly doubt, absent any data to support your theory – then the easy answer is to drop the AP course work the following year and don’t aim for highly selective college. Nothing wrong with targeting UC Merced or Cal State instead.</p>
<p>I guess I’m wondering why a kid who is excessively stressed or burned out by tough academics would be trying to get into the most selective schools anyway. What do they think they are getting themselves into? Four more years.</p>
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<p>They want the perceived status and supposed perks which come from being admitted to and if able to graduate, possessing the elite college credential. </p>
<p>OK, well it’s a little hard to shed tears for them. There are plenty of kids who actually want the academics applying. Status-mongers who try to edge them out of a space don’t get my sympathy.</p>
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<p>They they have to play the game. If they don’t want to play, chase after a “lesser” UC or a Cal State. It’s really simple.</p>