I signed up for a new course that was supposed to start a few weeks ago, Liberal Arts 1, I am a freshman and I will have 14 credits completed by the end of this year. I have goals into trying to become president, which is huge, but I really love math, and if my life does not go the way I want it to, I will probably become a math professor. I am taking Geometry now, but I completed Algebra Two online. I decided that I wanted to take all of the math classes that I could. I have been waiting to take the course I want for a week, but previous courses I signed up for were the next day, I am also going to take Liberal Arts 2, AP Psychology, and AP US Government and Politics. I really don’t want them to take forever, because I will have to take the AP Exam in May. Any pointers? Anybody else been waiting for courses as well?
I have taken many FLVS classes myself; I am currently in AP US Government and Politics, Spanish IV Honors, and AP Macroeconomics. AP Gov is quick and concise without any of the fluff, busywork, or other nonsense that you see in other FLVS courses, particularly the social studies ones. AP Psych has a pretty strong following, as well, from what I’ve heard.
Also, I have no idea why you would want to take Liberal Arts Math; it is a huge waste of time in your case. In Florida high schools, the Liberal Arts Math courses are essentially remedial math courses for people who did very poorly on state exams or who are otherwise unable to handle a traditional math progression. Liberal Arts Math 2, for example, is a part of the remedial math track at my school for juniors who took Algebra 1 in 9th grade, failed the EOC or earned a D or F in the class, and as a result were placed in Intensive Math (two-period Geometry) sophomore year. Other students who would take the class were apparently placed there by guidance, often at the request of Algebra 2 teachers who felt that the students were not ready for the material at hand. Math for College Readiness is another remedial math class for students who failed the PERT or other college placement exams or who earned very low scores (<450) on the math portion of the SAT. I understand you like math, but a student, such as yourself, who takes several relatively advanced courses (including being two years ahead in math) taking several below-standard math classes does not make any sense, and may even confuse those who review your transcript later in high school. Also, if you’re doing decently in advanced/weighted classes, taking multiple unweighted classes will bottleneck your GPA, which would be totally justified if said unweighted classes were actually useful, such as level 1/2 foreign language or interesting academic electives. What I would suggest to you is taking Pre-Calculus at your brick-and-mortar school sophomore year, and if you earn an A in that, AP/DE Calculus for the rest of high school.
O.K. I see what you are talking about
It makes sense, but the reason that I wanted to take the Liberal Arts courses was so that I could take all of the math courses offered at Online school and Virtual. I feel that I want to know what all of the math courses teach. I even wanted to take “Math for College Readiness” just to get the hang of all of them
If you are still here, Can you give me another piece of advice
And yes, I am going to take Pre-Calculus Honors, AP Calculus AB, and AP Calculus BC in my public school
First off, A.P. Marcoeconomics. What do you think of the course, because I plan on taking it online as well as A.P. Microeconomics. And, how long do you estimate it would take to finish the A.P. U.S. Government and Politics course, if I stayed on top of it. Finally, is there any classes you recommend taking online rather than in school, classes that I should take in school rather than online, and any classes you thought were fun or easy.
- The problem with the math classes I mentioned is that they will teach you literally nothing that you wouldn't learn in other math classes that you have already taken. They don't introduce new material; they reinforce basic algebra concepts that were supposed to have already been learned but weren't mastered when they were initially introduced, which makes sense because they are remedial classes. Frankly, it would just be a waste of time and energy because they have nothing new to offer you except for extra credits (which you don't need anyway and as I said before, could bottleneck your GPA).
- AP Macro and AP Gov should take you 18 weeks to finish if you stay on top of them. AP Macro has about 40 total assignments and AP Gov has about 55, so that's between 2 and 3 assignments a week. I have a particularly bad case of senioritis, so I'm not exactly on pace, but as long as you submit SOMETHING in a given week, they will be extremely lenient with you and let you continue. AP Macroeconomics is my lowest grade right now among 4 other APs, 3 dual enrollment classes and a level 4 honors foreign language class and I regret taking it online.
- Also, when it comes to whether or not you should take a class online or in person, I'm gonna be honest and say that after at least a dozen FLVS classes, there are exceptionally few classes I believe I was better off taking online than in a traditional school setting. The only reason I take/have taken FLVS classes is because I don't have the option of taking them in school in the first place due to scheduling problems or to quickly obtain prerequisites for classes I want to take in the future. Some classes are less irritating than others, but the classes I've taken have been either tedious to work through or hard to self-teach with basically nothing in between. Art History and Criticism 1 Honors is a very easy and quick weighted academic elective; it took me two months to complete the entire two-semester course. A big problem with the class is that it is actually a retooled former AP Art History class and the exams don't coincide with the lessons at all, but this wasn't too unforgivable because you could re-submit quizzes up to three times. I like the online dual enrollment courses that my local state college offers a lot better, but I understand others might not have access to them. I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you have the opportunity to take a course at a physical school, you're better off doing so, at least for me.
“I want to take all the AP classes on FLVS before I graduate”
Do you really think it’s a good idea to take fifteen different AP classes online on top of a regular school schedule, or even at all?
This smacks of excess and is totally unnecessary. As long as you take a challenging courseload, preferably one that shows focus in particular area (such as math), take part in rewarding extracurricular activities, and earn strong grades, you should be a fine candidate for many selective universities.
Also, many of these classes, if not a majority, have non-AP prerequisites that you have to acquire before signing up for them, so you will have to take additional classes to these. I’ve taken three of the APs you listed, and had a strongly unfavorable experience with AP Human Geography and have heard awful things about AP Environmental as well. The other two I’ve taken, Macroeconomics and Government, are okay at best.
Let me rephrase the question "I want to take all of the AP classes that are offered both in school and out of school before I graduate. Some of the classes I want to take in school, like Calculus AB and BC. The reason why I am taking these AP courses online is not just because I feel like it, but because thy wont fit in my school schedule throughout high school. I am in the ALCE Program and this is the first time that it has been offered in my school. Also, I wanted to do them over summer. Which brings another question: Are you ale to take AP classes over the summer? Doesn’t that mean that you would have to try and remember all of the knowledge that you brought in 'till the AP Exam in May? O is there an exception? And I know it sounds odd and stressful on all the things that I am trying to do, but I am doing it because of the college credits involved if I pass the exam. I want to take all of the AP classes listed above, and these classes which are offered in my school: AP Music Theory, AP Chemistry, AP Physics, and AP World History. I also want to do dual enrollment online and the few that that are offered at my school
1.) I see what you are talking about. Maybe I will rethink that choice
2.) O.K. So this answer is really helpful. Does that mean if I do more than 2 or 3 assignments a week I can get it done quicker?
3.) O.K. I have put Art History and Criticism 1 Honors on my to-do list for next school year. It sounds interesting.
4.) Throughout your posts, you keep mentioning DE (Dual Enrollment). I wanted to take DE online as you are doing, but only one at each time, online because I want to keep a regular High School Schedule, with the exception of taking the ones that are offered on my school campus. Do you find it challenging? Easier or harder than FLVS? And are you a Florida Resident? It would help with knowing what online campus you participate in.
Thanks
Yes, you can take AP classes over the summer, and yes, that does mean you’ll have to retain that information for about 9 months until the AP exam.
To answer your question about whether dual enrollment classes are easier than AP, the actual content isn’t easier or harder, but the delivery of the class is what makes dual enrollment classes very high stakes. There are few tests and quizzes, very little homework, and little to no opportunities for extra credit or make-up, even if someone is sick. I, personally, enjoy the online DE classes because they are much more concise than FLVS classes. Since you are probably a FL resident, your district probably has an articulation agreement with a community college or even a university near you.
Also, you say that you are “doing it because of the college credits involved if (you) pass the exam”. I am a senior who will have very close to 60 college credits by the time I graduate high school (possibly even above 60 if I pass some CLEP exams). Currently, I have already taken or am taking 38 credit hours and I am signed up for 15 next semester. I have also taken eight AP classes throughout high school. My point is, I was able to amass this many credits without taking nineteen AP classes AND dual enrollment on top of that. Also, unless you’re a dual enrolled student, colleges accept a maximum of 45 college credits via AP scores from incoming freshmen, which isn’t enough for an AA degree. I am going to send you a PM in a second with some more information.
I am a freshman, and I want to take all of the AP classes on FLVS before I graduate. Here is the list of them. If you took them, or are currently taking them, tell me what you think.
Advanced Placement Art History, Advanced Placement English Language and Composition, Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition, Advanced Placement Calculus AB (I will take this one in school as well as Advanced Placement Calculus BC), Advanced Placement Statistics, Advanced Placement Biology, Advanced Placement Environmental Science, Advanced Placement Human Geography, Advanced Placement Macroeconomics, Advanced Placement Microeconomics, Advanced Placement Psychology, Advanced Placement United States Government and Politics, Advanced Placement United States History, and Advanced Placement Computer Science A.