Homeschooling College

Homeschooling through high school is my most frequently asked question --

Q. - How do you home school through high school?

A. - We use the classics! (See my lists of Classes by Classics)

While this is an answer for high school, NO ONE accepts that answer for college anymore.

Why?!?

I guess it's because of all the accreditation issues, laws, and concerns of society now. Everyone believes that a college education is the only way to achieve success, even though there are examples of people taking other paths...Steve Jobs, Rachel Ray, John D. Rockefeller, Ralph Lauren, and many others. (See more at Huffington Post and Business Insider.)

Okay, well, those are the exception to the rule, right?

Maybe...and then again, maybe not.

Does a college degree help a lot of people improve their lives and get better jobs? You bet! For many it has improved their lives dramatically.

Yet, we are seeing a trend of college graduates end up with tons of debt and very little improvement in their quality of life and job advancement possibilities. (See Ivory Tower trailer.)

Concurrent or Dual Enrollment

I previously posted about Concurrent or Dual Enrollment. My children have successfully taken online college level classes at BYU-Idaho. There are many colleges and universities that allow high school students to enroll in classes through them and receive both high school and college credit....for a discount even! BYU-Idaho, for example, only charges $30 a credit compared to their normal tuition of $152 per credit hour for LDS students.

$152 regular tuition - $30 concurrent tuition 

= $82 savings per credit!

So far, I have paid only $360 for 12 credits (would have been $1824) for my daughter and $150 for 5 credits (would have been $760) for my son. A total savings of $2074. Nice, huh!?! Not to mention that they have those credits before graduating high school, saving them time as well.

CLEP Exams - Testing Out of Classes

We are now exploring another way to gain college credits for less money and study at our own pace. CLEP Exams have been around for quite some time, but they are a very well-kept secret in many circles. When I inquired about taking CLEP Exams I was discouraged from doing so, being told it would be a waste of my time and money and that I wouldn't get the same "quality of an education" as I would taking the actual classes in person from their college.

I knew a friend in college that took every available CLEP Exam offered at that time over 20 years ago. He tested out of a full year of college and saved himself over $5,000 at the time. Now, one could test out of roughly 80-100 credit hours of lower level classes, saving anywhere from $3480-$24,000 depending on the tuition cost of the college or university you wish to attend. Details on getting credits for CLEP Exams can be found here. The average test costs $80 and a successful score can earn the student 3-12 credits, depending on the test. 

It is also important to check with the college or university you want to attend in order to see how many credits they will allow you test out of or transfer into their school. Most are required to allow CLEP Exam tests, but some have limits on only allowing 24-40 credits transferred in from exams and other institutions. Still, 40 credits through CLEP can cost around $960 rather than the tuition of 2 years of community college for $3360 or $19,200 for a university here in Arizona.

$19,200 - $960 = $18,240 in savings for a university student!

Amazing isn't it?!?

I think it is SUPER amazing.

An Example - Financial Accounting

My son is extremely interested in business. So am I. We decided this would be our first CLEP Exam experience. I read a few reviews that said it was a harder test, but we want to know this information anyway, so why not give it a shot?

The study guide or Fact Sheet for Financial Accounting also gives some free resources. The Fact Sheet gives the basics of what will be on the test. At the bottom we decided to check out the free resources to see what might help us study for the exam without paying for a pricey guide. 

We decided on PrinciplesOfAccounting.com, which is a free online textbook by Utah State University. It has study materials, workbooks, and lecture videos online to go along with studying the textbook. There are a couple of free practice tests at the official CLEP website and Free Clep Prep. (There are several free resources including an MIT Open Courseware and books that can be checked out at local libraries.)

So far, so good. We have not taken the tests yet, but the preparation materials we are finding for FREE have made this option quite within our price range and hopefully, pay off BIG in terms of lower college costs. Those that have done it, swear by it!

Even if my children do not finish college, I feel that the preparation they are experiencing cannot harm them in any way, quite the opposite. They are finding that they can compete in the "real college world" that everyone always questions us about. All the nay-sayers have nothing to complain about when my children each boast high GPA's in college courses before the age of 18.

SAT Practice Testing

I should begin by saying that I do not believe in tests. Not one bit. They are a convoluted way of pigeon holing people into statistics. It is a poor practice adopted by colleges to make the process of admittance easier on them, not better. Thank goodness it is not the only criteria used by colleges and universities. But, for the home schooled child, it becomes more important than it should be due to the lack of a formally recognized high school diploma. Thus, 'When in Rome do as the Romans do' becomes a bit of a troublesome adage. What is a home educated student to do if they want to a) attend a good university and b) get scholarships to help pay for their education?

Yet, home schoolers go against the "norm" and do not follow the customs of those around them...so why do we suddenly switch when it comes to college?

When in Rome...
Nayna took her practice SAT online the other day and the results are in! She did well in Reading, and middle of the road for Math and Essay. She has had no formal SAT prep before the practice test was taken. This is simply based on her reading classics and following the Leadership Education philosophy. We were expecting to see some need for improvement in the Math and Essay sections of the test since she has not finished Algebra II yet. She has read at a college level since she was 13, so I never felt she needed any extra help there.

According to BYU entrance criteria, to enroll in ENG101 Writing and Reasoning she needs an SAT score of 390+ in Reading. To enroll in MAT108 Math for the Real World she needs an SAT score of 430+ in Math. She scored high enough to enroll in both of these college level classes.

We decided to use the online practice test directly from http://sat.collegeboard.org/. This is the organization who formulates the test, so we figured it would be the best choice for practice. It is very nice to see exactly which questions she missed and the correct answers are explained.

Math Preparation

We are getting the Official SAT Study Guide from our local library for free and Kahn Academy SAT Preparation video explanations for each Math question to further study the math sections. With the book and the videos together she should be able to work out the problems she struggles with. Math was never been her strong suit, but she is an excellent student and studies hard.

Essay Preparation
I have been debating which essay prep course would be best. I am leaning towards the Excellence in Writing products, either High School Essay Intensive or the Elegant Essay. I feel she has good basic ideas and grammatical skills, she just needs prep on formal essay development. If you have used either of these, I would love to hear about your experience.

We plan on having her take the SAT officially on December 1st. This will give her a semester to delve into practicing for the tests.

So, I have answered my own question. We switch because it is one of our only options to send our children to a good university and get scholarships.


Your thoughts?

 

Prepping for SAT's

As Nayna officially enters her "Senior Year" as far as the conveyor-belt is concerned, we need to consider her future path. She is a Self-Directed Scholar who is confidently directing her education to encompass all the aspects of a truly fabulous Liberal Arts Education. She has been taking concurrent enrollment classes at BYU-Idaho, which she loves, and is considering continuing her education there. I checked with admissions and for home educated students they want the following:

1. SAT or ACT scores.
2. A GED (General Education Development) or Compass Test or 15 college credits.

I do not like the idea of having my children take a GED test. To me that is saying that we have not graduated our child. The Compass Test is more for college placement in Reading, Writing and Math placement. My oldest daughter, Sam, took the Compass Test to enter community college. I feel better about my children taking the Compass Test because it determines college class placement so that they start in the right level of classes.

With Nayna's concurrent enrollment status, she could possibly have 15 college credits completed and enter BYU-I as a Sophomore rather than a Freshman. We discussed this with Nayna recently to allow her to consider her options.

SAT or ACT

The next thing to decide is which test to take - SAT or ACT. We've decided to prepare for the SAT. We decided this based upon the subjects covered in each test. BYU-I accepts either. The SAT has an essay portion which we feel Nayna will excel at, while the ACT has some social studies components that we are not sure about remembering dates and such even though she has studied history. I believe that the ACT is more state-standard specific while the SAT shows competency in Reading, Writing, and Math.

Nayna will take the free practice test this week online and we'll determine where to go from there. I believe she will do very well in everything but math. She has not completed Algebra II yet and I understand there are some questions of that level on the test.

The Mentored Scholar at Home

I decided to take a short break from writing posts about our Classes by Classics for transcript purposes and instead take some time to report how Nayna's BYU Idaho concurrent enrollment class is going. The class is going well! We decided to only try one class at a time for now to see how it works out for her. All of the students in her class are adults, she is the youngest student. The next youngest student is age 19. Nayna is 16.

Some interesting things have happened since she began her class. She has become the lead of her study group, organizing the online meetings and contacting all the members of their study group to attend. She even created a secondary study group in order to accommodate one student who could not meet with their group at any other time. So, she basically attends two study groups a week.

She is really loving this class! She is taking Science Foundations. I have peeked over her shoulder while she is studying to see what the class is all about. I am so thrilled that everything is geared towards the Gospel of Jesus Christ, putting secular teachings into the proper perspective. She is thriving in this new endeavor to be a Mentored Scholar. (See the Four Levels of Scholar Phase in "Leadership Education: the Phases of Learning" by Oliver DeMille pages 197-211)

I am so happy this is working out for her. She is doing a great job!

She Got In!

I posted a few weeks ago about Nayna applying to BYU-Idaho for Concurrent Enrollment Classes. This week she got her acceptance letter! They did not ask for any additional information after the transcript that I posted here. She went through the same process to be accepted as other students, requiring the Ecclesiastical and Seminary teacher endorsements as well as agreeing to their morality practices (which are in keeping with our standards already.)

She is very excited to get started on college. I've had several people question having her take college classes at age 16, but I know she is academically ready. I believe taking one class this first semester will give her a taste of college and we'll see if the work load is too much. She has been a Self-Directed Scholar for awhile now and she is definitely ready for Mentoring outside of our home.

Another question I've received is if we have tried some of the Leadership Education Academy or other online classes. The answer is...yes we have! She has also attended a LEMI class at a commonwealth school when we lived in another state. I believe she is past these classes now.

Concurrent Enrollment (Dual Credit)

With my previous post being about the "College Conspiracy", this post may come as a surprise. I really do believe the college bubble will burst and thus lower college expenses and have a balancing effect on secondary education. College is not what it used to be and I do not think everyone needs to have a college degree.

That said, I do believe there may be reasons, when the time is right, to take advantage of the classroom environment. We decided that Nayna should take advantage of concurrent enrollment at BYU Idaho since they are offering classes for $30 a credit, which is a fantastic price. (Concurrent enrollment are classes that count for high school and college credit.) I want my children to have various types of educational experiences so that they can choose the best path based on those experiences. One class in an online college environment will give her a view of what the Professional Conveyor Belt is like without a huge cost or commitment.

My oldest daughter, Sam, has chosen a Professional Conveyor Belt path to become a pharmacist. At least, that is what she wants right now. We have stressed over and over again that she should not go into debt for this education. So far, she has managed to avoid any debt. She has done well, her grades are excellent, and she is getting some education, even if it is not the Liberal Arts Education I would like for her.

Preparing for College Entrance - The Transcript

Many parents sweat over the question, "How will my child get into college?" I have to say, I have thought long and hard about this too, if my children choose college as their path. So far the university has only asked for a simple transcript. The TJED way seemed a bit difficult at first in order to show a transcript that will mesh with the Conveyor Belt world.

We decided on the following transcript format:



In addition to this very simple transcript, I am preparing a list of materials used for each class. Sometimes that is very simple, say for math, where we used a curriculum like Math-U-See Algebra 1. For the literature classes, we are listing the books read. Science and history have been a bit different since we used a menagerie of books, videos, and fieldtrips to accomplish these "classes".

I'll post more as we go through this process. They may yet come back and ask for more details and items.