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Joan in GE

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Everything posted by Joan in GE

  1. I started the thread more for others as I'd not known you could ever get credit for SAT II's... In dd's application, it asks if there are any exams required in schools that are similar - so I chose one that is similar in rank since the US is all over the place with university selection. One of the higher ranked similar ones required more sats (well one more in science) - that dd doesn't /won't have....
  2. H Matryoshka, You can take it over two years or all in one year. (The Federal one - I think the local ones include grades during the year). It's a little complex as you also have to do a 10 pg research kind of paper but not research the way we would think of it....It can be bizarre things, like how you've gone on an expedition up the highest mt around here or made your own wedding dress or held a blood drive or more paper based - research of desertification - what other people have found but with some kind of personal question). Here's the link in German: http://www.sbfi.admin.ch/themen/01366/01379/01626/index.html?lang=de You can ask for copies of old exams - look on the right side and you should see the link with the form (presuming the format of the page is the same as in Fr. as I can't read German). The problem is that they don't give you the answers, nor the questions for the orals....But you can buy answers for some of the subjects in this online site for a local private school - first some samples in French (you can buy answers but they're in French too as the school is the French speaking part of Ch- maybe they also have them in German for their German school? I don't know but here is their school in Berlin - but I can't read well enough to know if they offer samples of the Ch exam in German there or not). No, it's not multiple choice - and you'll see from the instructions in the first link that there are oral exams in the second part of the exam. They are 15 min long - for the languages, math, and a couple other things - like explaining your research paper. But you can do a Bilingual matu so that some of the exams would be in English and you can write the paper (Travail de matu in French, not sure of the name in German) in English as well. The problem is the lack of transparency and lack of preparatory books. So does anyone know if they have preparatory books for the Abitur, like they do for the AP's and SAT's? I know some German families who might be able to benefit from that route if it is transparent enough from afar (like it is simple to study for AP's over here) ETA some of the above info, as there was a party going on and I lost track of where I was :-) Thanks! Joan
  3. Thanks Regentrude! Ok, but is it the same across the state? Here, if you're not taking the Federal exam, it can vary even between high schools in the same "state" (=canton).
  4. Sorry I'm so late to the conversation... I do know one German girl who did the Abitur as a homeschooled student in Germany. I don't know if she went to university or not afterwards. But here, you can go into universities with the Matu done autodidact (by yourself at home) even if normally you couldn't as an autodidact for another type of exam - eg Abitur. I couldn't quite tell from your older thread, if that is the same in Germany? going in if autodidact with the Abitur though you can't with a HS diploma? Some things I'm wondering - have you heard of the correspondance courses developed by the German gov for German children who are living overseas? It's quite contradictory with their inland rules but there you have it - they encourage homeschooling for their citizens who are not at home. So these students, wouldn't they be able to take the Abitur and then go to school in DE? Also, the problem here with doing the Matu autodidact isn't really the 'level' but the lack of transparency for the exams. But I would think, and please correct me if it's not true, since DE is such a large country, wouldn't they have made study books like in the US there are study books for AP's and SAT's etc? Ch is such a small country and has several languages so the number of people who would buy such books is too small to make it profitable, besides the problem of #'s, most of the exams are done in the local high schools and so not even standardized. Is the Abitur standardized for everyone? Is there a national standardized exam or just a 'state' standardized exam or is it even smaller? Here the Matu is standardized only at the federal level which is the exam just given to private school students, autodidacts - perhaps some others but not 'most' students. So it wouldn't even have a single book within a language (if you divide Ch into languages regions and therefore books possible in that language) on a subject. Eg a student told me how in German, his class had to learn a huge number of verbs or something while his friends' German class did not have such a requirement. My only point about all this is that the Abitur might not be as hard as you think. If it is the same level as the Matu, which held a great mystique for me for a long time, some of the topics are the same or lower level than AP's. The "foreign" languages are definitely harder. Another question - here there is a 'school' which is mostly 'correspondance' - the kids study at home, but every week, they go to the school and do classes on Saturdays. Some homeschoolers use this option as well as a bunch of other people who wouldn't call themselves homeschoolers but theoretically are... Would this be enough "class" time? Did they give 'hours' required to count? It's funny to be getting info about Europe from people on the other side of the pond. :-)
  5. just in case anyone reading this thread is interested in AP Chem and wasn't aware, the exam was redesigned in 2013-14 (that's when the redesign went into effect) so there aren't so many completely compatible old exams/practice books to practice with. Dd is doing the course this year and it is the AP she is most concerned about due to the amount of material to be learned. For practice you have: (and after this spring you'll have this year's FRQ's)... http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/exam/exam_information/1998.html She did like AP Chem Crash Course book It sounds like you/your son like challenges though :-) Were you going to design the course?
  6. I can't speak about the DVD's for Teaching the Classics - but I have referred to the book itself over the years. I find it's an interesting addition to lit studies but that I appreciated it more after having years of exposure so that his comments are read in a context that is more developed....For example, his comments about French authors....after we studied some of the French authors in for dd's French courses, we touched on them again in World Lit. And by then she had more exposure in World History so could understand the context better eg the Enlightenment. So I wouldn't just use his book as a stand-alone source for studying world lit - I think a lot of the content would go over the students' heads. Now, if you would pick out certain books - eg for British Lit and use other resources in addition, then it could work as he has useful points that you won't necessarily see elsewhere.
  7. I did a quick search and didn't see this as a topic - so forgive me if it's been explored already. It turns out that Dd will need to show that she "would have" been accepted - at least has all the exams necessary to be accepted in a similar program for one of the schools where she's applying. So I was looking at Georgia Tech and happened upon this - that it appears that they will give credit for a couple of SAT II tests - Chemistry and English...(besides credit for AP exams) Here's the page - GT Catalog : Tests Scores SAT II Perhaps people have found this with other schools? I post this more for others as it might be useful...
  8. The problem I ran into with doing bilingual coursework was 1. book selection, 2. planning, and sometimes the 3. testing and grades. So you can find some of the books that are recommended here on the WTM forums translated into French - e.g. Campbell Biology (the BIG one)...which means you could find some of the solution books in English (as they haven't translated those). And some math books have been translated into French, so it is possible to find the solution books and even test questions (e.g. Swokowski - Algebra and Trig, Calculus). But if the program doesn't have problem selection - then you run into problems...Eg for Precalculus, I wanted a schedule that would take dc through the program doing block scheduling. But I didn't find that for a translated book. We had tried doing Algebra II with an unrealistic problem selection and dd ran into a lot of problems keeping pace....and didn't work as hard. If she knows what she's supposed to do, then she tends to work in a more focused manner. Then I had Economics books recommended for the local school system (in French) but didn't have comprehension questions that had the answers, nor did I have tests (nor of course answers)... In the past I did make tests for Geography in French - that took a lot of work! And then the grading of the tests that I made - I had no clue if my questions were too hard, too easy or just right... There was a time where I didn't want to use all the questions in our grammar tests and so would try to construct questions that were basically the same just with different subjects, etc....I find test-making and grading to be the worst aspect of home education... With Spanish, there are probably more home ed materials, but there is a paucity of good home ed materials for French...(as C Q says)...
  9. Hi, I haven't been on at all in the recent past....Nan did a great job with her son and was very dedicated. About the different programs - we used EAD only at the high school level after doing AP French since we didn't have anywhere else to go and it was more as maintenance and for literature analysis (since they don't do AP French Lit any more - just Language)...as literature analysis is the big things for local exams. EAD is moving to online teacher answers is which really useful! Dd gets her answers very quickly! Only recently it was all by post and they use the SLOW post for people outside Belgium.... I just thought I'd add that if you get a tutor, it should depend on where you want to go with your French i.e. to Canada or to Europe... (well where you want your children to go) and get a maternal language speaker with that accent... More and more over here, a native accent is highly regarded or should I say, they'll break into English as soon as they hear even just two words with the wrong accent. So if you have a tutor with a funny accent (for the place where you want them to end up) and they pick it up then it's not a good thing. But perhaps since your husband is a native speaker it won't matter as much. But children are funny about hanging on to accents - and highly variable. I've known kids with a native speaking parent and grandparents who still have a strong French accent in their teens (speaking English - while overseas) while others seem to pick up the native accent more easily...very psychological...
  10. Sorry I haven't been on at all in many weeks so didn't see this. I am not an expert by any means and haven't read anything that I have enjoyed about it - though I occasionally come across information about how they weren't really neutral because they were catering to the Nazi interests. I also don't know Maybury's views though a quick search on him produced an interesting interview about the recent decision by the Swiss National Bank which I'm listening to at the moment. Could you just give a few highlights of the info you found interesting so I know what you are looking for?
  11. an update :-).... Dd has gotten some acceptance letters (dependent on passing AP's in May) - not for the program she really wants to attend, but for some 'interim' work which might turn into her career choice! :hurray: For people interested in applying here from Canada for example, it is clear on at least one website (for a public university and a program recognized by the school) that you need to prove acceptance so I am very grateful for all the efforts of those who answered which has helped me see an easy path !!! :001_smile: and so that I am prepared should the program where she will apply next year choose to have that view for the US.
  12. We're getting ready for the pre-registration session and another bit of information to bring along is the college/university code where you want your scores sent... Something some people might like to know is that one part of being considered for an AP International Diploma is by having your info sent to an overseas college...(besides the appropriate exams which they are in the process of making more strict) On the form it asks for the school code where you want your AP scores sent: To earn an APID, a student attending a school within the U.S. must indicate on at least one AP Exam answer sheet that the results should be sent to a university outside the U.S. Please see AP International Recognition for a list of universities outside the U.S. that use AP in admissions. I'll also note that we had to chase them down to get ds's a few years ago...
  13. Nan you are so kind! And thank you so much Joan HomeEd! I was going to do the combination of your and Joan HE's ideas... High accept rates combined with HE friendly states to have the least paperwork requirement...And then check in the B T to make sure it's a school accepted by them... I'm being paged by the cook but hope to get on it soon! Many hugs to you too, :-) Joan
  14. Hi Ariana, I'm very curious about your recommendation about having a recommendation letter for a Swiss university as I've not seen that anywhere. Are you from here or have experience applying or your children applying here? I'd like very much to discuss privately if so to see what more you know, esp if they applied as HE and will write a PM...
  15. I started doing my homework yesterday but it doesn't look very systematic....it seems there are some difficulties of one kind or another but I'm also having trouble thinking clearly... At the same time I'm comparing these vastly different systems..European and American...There is so much flexibility in the American system...you can surely find a school somewhere which will fit..usually for a price...Then the European system, esp here where once you have the right CH exam, there is none of the question mark of being accepted...But the exams are fairly lock step, and you have to do them in two years or something I think for Germany...here I think too but have to check. So if you fail then you are stuck..It not like the AP's where you can do them again the next year for just one subject, etc...or just switch subjects...I feel overwhelmed when I'm looking at all these different universities, trying to sort through different deadlines, requirements, etc. And all the different application formats....I am getting a better feeling for what people are facing in the US... Probably the worst problem I see in looking at the apps is the LOR's...Do they have to come from a teacher and can it come from online class teachers? If not, people who know her best here tend to write in French so this will be an effort to find and do...Do all schools require an LOR? No one does here in CH....No essay here either... I started with some schools given with more info from you ladies or that had something esp attractive so I didn't have to search myself...free or low cost app, ease of app, HS friendly, good or rolling deadline The schools where you can preview the app without having an account are very handy..."admit" is looking very tempting... Loyola - free but have to have downpayment in May - rolling adm best by April 6 - online app - LOR seems to have to come from teacher? Looked like a good possibility... Maine - $40 -Feb 15 best, tho can later - may want to interview HS candidates (which kind of worried me), LOR has to be from outside the family (maybe that's common?) Penn State - $50- rolling but priority Jan 31 Rutgers - $75 - rolling - schools match - online app - looked like a good possibility.. Old Dominion - can't find app price - April 1 best...online app U AL - no essay U AZ - $65 - May 1st deadline - not sure about the science requirements..it says test scores only valuable for one...so how do homeschoolers get validated? Texas - "admit" but deadline in Dec... Kenneshaw -$60 - Priority Nov May 8 stared looking at OHSU but then remembered I should look for HE friendly states...(I feel so scatterbrained at the moment) so then HE friendly states: States requiring no notice include Alaska, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, Oklahoma and Texas. States with low regulation (parental notification only) include Alabama, Arizona, California, Delaware, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Washington D.C., Wisconsin and Wyoming I think I need to make a proper grid with all the variables in order with the most priority.... I have to get to bed but I'm really glad for all your help... Joan
  16. I made the comment partly in relation to ideas like MBM mentioned, but also because Laura Corin has mentioned that GCSE's are approx the level of SAT II's and so then if the UK considers a 650 an A, then it is not quite the same as getting the top scores in SAT II's...not sure if I'm explaining clearly and have to run...
  17. I found their analysis of SAT II scores interesting...they consider a 650 equal to an A....
  18. Could I also add searching in the WTM forums for people who have done a certain subject themselves...they will sometimes tell things that a regular teacher might not think of mentioning....or that might not catch your attention on the CB website...Eg Calculator use for the Calculus exam or which FRQ's are calculator active... It does take time to get used to the CB website...but each year that you revisit it, things will get easier...They have tons of useful stuff on there once you're used to it.... I went about the textbook thing in a different order for Calculus...starting first on the WTM...then looking for syllabi using that book but I agree that reading other reviews would be good too...for AP French since it was a new exam, there were almost no books available so we used the only ones that existed...
  19. I was curious about Nan's question too...but I don't think you are from Texas so it must be for any American then? I was just looking at their admissions policy and "admit" does look easy actually.... Now we'll wait for the SAT score... ETD
  20. She did her German AP and this past year did Goethe online which didn't turn out to be so good as she didn't learn that much...I think it is a mismatch between American goals and German goals and order of topics...She's just starting B2 level according to them but was an au pair in Germany for 6 weeks. So what level did you have when you went?
  21. I'm always impressed by everything you do with yours!! I am curious how do you deal with this on the transcript, or maybe it's just that in the US unusual high school transcripts are more accepted or it's the level reached and not the number of years of English, etc (wait, I though US diplomas did have to show eg four years of English, four of math, 3-4 of science, etc)?
  22. JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst Posted Today, 03:57 AM Do you actually need to have an acceptance or do you need to show what is required for acceptance (ie pick a good university, show the list of college prep courses they require, and then pull last year's class profile to show what SAT scores are admitted). It seems like this requirement is designed for most other countries' admissions policies when tend to be based on an entrance exam score that is universally accepted at all national unis. The US admissions system is so different and competition for spots not universally determined that it is hard to compare. Joan: Yeah - that cut and paste worked last post so hopefully this time too... Lawyer Mom - the part that is hidden in that link - if you look under Conditions générales you'll see this (I've made a replacement with abbreviations to try to not be so easy to find on searches) Sur demande de l' U CH, il incombera aux candidats et candidates d'apporter la preuve qu'une place d'études leur est attribuée dans ce pays et,Now it does say "sur demande" meaning maybe they will ask...But since things keep changing, we just ran into the problem for dd first choice school (actually not an official "university" but a "haute ecole") requiring that she have her diploma "in hand" before she can apply, which is the case for her second choice as well, I worry that in the future, things will become even harder...esp since we are not coming from a "typical" background...Ds3 got in with the requirements you linked, but recently they changed a requirement which isn't even listed on the page you link...They can get away with that because it says that universities can have their own requirements... So "Jumped In"...I agree that it would typically be for other countries...it is just the unusualness of our situation (I do not know anyone else in the country that has done what we did for ds3 and hope to do for dd) that makes me nervous. Seeing my dd studying so hard thinking she'll get in, then having the door suddenly closed in her face with the "diploma in hand" requirement made it very clear the power they have with their "yearly" conditions that can change and you don't even know what they are until January of the year you are applying for....So for example, the school ds3 went to, suddenly posts that you have to have two consecutive years of continuous math and physics....The math part, no problem. But dd had wanted to do AP Physics. Since PAH wasn't doing it since the test had changed, dd suddenly had to do AP Chem. We didn't even know that it would 'close' that school door! Just like that. And you don't even find out about it until it is too late to have any hope. Now since she didn't do Physics this year, she would have to do two more years of physics. But then she would have to be doing more math and then more of everything because it is this summary type of program where you have to have a certain percent of everything.... Anyway, have to run! Thank you all for your help!!
  23. reefgazer Posted Today, 06:32 AM Old Dominion University in Virginia. I *think* they have rolling admissions (which aren't that rigorous, so she'd probably be a shoe-in), and so you would get your acceptance letter promptly. Online application process, so you can fill it out tonight, if need be. happypamama Posted Today, 04:29 AM That's exactly what I was going to say. Twenty years ago, they only wanted stats for regular admission, no extracurriculars, and iirc, when I checked not long ago, it didn't appear to have changed. Their honors program is hard to get into, but the general school? I don't think it's too difficult. University Park campus is more selective, but they have so many branch campuses that I don't think it's too hard to get into one of them. They have like 40,000 undergrads; I'd think a student with good SATs and grades and classes would have no problem getting an acceptance. Caroline Posted Today, 02:30 AM Kennesaw State in Georgia mamato4 Posted Today, 12:19 AM Rutgers U in NJ has rolling admissions and an easy application process. You even self report your grades in the application. No need to send in a transcript. The New Brunswick campus is the main one with the most majors while the other campuses have less choices but not as competitive to get into. She'll still be considered accepted at Rutgers no matter which campus she gets accepted into. Joan: Hoping my crude attempt at Multiquote will work this time, just wanted to thank you for the options...esp Rutgers - finding an easier branch!
  24. Hugs and waving to you too, Nan!! Thank you for the flagship info as well as the Seek and find states that are very homeschool friendly! It's a good idea...
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