xel99 Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Which would/do you prefer for science highschool....in preparation for college. Abeka? Apologia? And if you have time, could you please write your reasons? Thanks!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I have used Apologia, I never even looked at the ABeka. The reason? It was recommended in WTM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onceuponatime Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I have used Apologia, I never even looked at the ABeka. The reason? It was recommended in WTM I only have the first edition of WTM that recommends the Self Teaching Guides. So, the latest edition recommends Apologia, or is that just one of the options? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I only have the first edition of WTM that recommends the Self Teaching Guides. So, the latest edition recommends Apologia, or is that just one of the options? just one of the options. I actually bought the self teach guides, but never used them. They have the answer right under the questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXBeth Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I used Abeka in HS until I switched to CC classes. I did not feel it was good preparation for college-level science classes, particularly when it came to evolutionary theory. They set up straw man arguments to tear down. When I entered college classes, I had the idea that you'd have to be a complete idiot to believe in evolution because it just doesn't make any sense. In reality, there are a lot of brilliant people who believe it, and the theory is a lot more complex than Abeka would have you believe. I still don't believe it, but I understand it a bit better now. But aside from the evolution issue, I just didn't feel I got a lot out of Abeka's science courses. Maybe it was just me. YMMV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 bumping... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassoonaroo Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 We're Apologia fans. When our first hit seventh grade we started with General Science and now she is in Physics. Our other teens are using Apologia too and it's working for us. I've not looked at Abeka upper level science so can't really comment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tntgoodwin Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I did A Beka in high school...I thought I learned science well enough, but I learned quickly how wrong I was. It did teach me to set up straw men and tear them down, particularly with evolution. I will never use a Bela for science for my kids. I can't speak to Apologia though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tntgoodwin Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I used Abeka in HS until I switched to CC classes. I did not feel it was good preparation for college-level science classes, particularly when it came to evolutionary theory. They set up straw man arguments to tear down. When I entered college classes, I had the idea that you'd have to be a complete idiot to believe in evolution because it just doesn't make any sense. In reality, there are a lot of brilliant people who believe it, and the theory is a lot more complex than Abeka would have you believe. I still don't believe it, but I understand it a bit better now. But aside from the evolution issue, I just didn't feel I got a lot out of Abeka's science courses. Maybe it was just me. YMMV. Haha wow, this is my story nearly exactly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvasMom Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I used Abeka in HS until I switched to CC classes. I did not feel it was good preparation for college-level science classes, particularly when it came to evolutionary theory. They set up straw man arguments to tear down. When I entered college classes, I had the idea that you'd have to be a complete idiot to believe in evolution because it just doesn't make any sense. In reality, there are a lot of brilliant people who believe it, and the theory is a lot more complex than Abeka would have you believe. I still don't believe it, but I understand it a bit better now. But aside from the evolution issue, I just didn't feel I got a lot out of Abeka's science courses. Maybe it was just me. YMMV. :iagree: If you are going to teach your kids to not believe in evolution then you need to try harder to come up with reasons not to that aren't based in science because you're setting them up to look silly in college classes. My problem with Apologia (and the reason we just pulled dd out of a co-op that used it) is that they consistently undermine established science, not just evolution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down_the_Rabbit_Hole Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Two different types of books. Abeka is textbook, written like a typical textbook. I found Abeka to be dry and not very informative light on experiments. Apologia reads like a book almost. Breaks concepts down into everyday type language. The Apologia book we are using is full of easy to do experiments that actually get a WOW!, COOL! and You have to see this! type of reaction from my ds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 :iagree: If you are going to teach your kids to not believe in evolution then you need to try harder to come up with reasons not to that aren't based in science because you're setting them up to look silly in college classes. My problem with Apologia (and the reason we just pulled dd out of a co-op that used it) is that they consistently undermine established science, not just evolution. Examples please. I've thought of using it because it's so popular but we must have actual science. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrissySC Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) I have used both. While I really like Apologia because of the style and language over Abeka, I must say that I was not pleased with the way either of them taught science for the high school classes. I did not feel that enough depth was covered. If you used Apologia Biology with Advanced Biology, which I have not seen, I would think that you could come close to the topic coverage but not the reasoning or mental manipulation of the subject matter. If I was facing this problem now, I would be hard pressed to choose between the two. I would more than likely choose Apologia but enrich with Prentice Hall, a school text. The Biology by Miller and Levine is well known to be extensive. I would think that the two together would provide a nice balance on the subject matter. It would provide a great chance to compare the basic foundation of both too. So, perhaps you need to edit and manipulate the material a little to be comprehensive - regardless of the age or grade. Edit: I love the elementary/middle school texts from Apologia, such as the astronomy. I find them a great jumping-off point for studying. Again, they are not the only text to provide a foundation for study. Edited October 25, 2011 by ChrissySC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvasMom Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Examples please. I've thought of using it because it's so popular but we must have actual science. The last straw for me was when they were talking about the ban on CFCs. Page 71-72 is where the discussion is found. They talk several times throughout the book about cost/benefit analysis. For CFCs they claim that one of the "costs" associated with banning them is that "...CFCs are the most efficient refrigerants, surgical sterilizers, and firefighting agents in the world. The CFC ban has caused these processes to become less efficient. As a result, people will probably die. (emphasis is in the text) Fires will most likely last longer before they are put out, resulting in loss of property and death. Surgical procedures will be less sterile, probably causing more infection, which will cause sickness and death. Finally, refrigerators will be less efficient, resulting in food poisoning and perhaps even starvation." Ok, really? Really? :001_huh: They used the same "cost/benefit analysis" to explain why air pollution shouldn't be a concern, claiming air is cleaner then it was 30 years ago. My daughter only got up to module 3 before I realized that the book was probably going to cause me to have an aneurysm so I only have examples up to that point. I skimmed a little and saw things like how the salt content of the ocean is evidence for a young earth and I think that's goofy but not alarming like the ridiculous logic of the CFC argument. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southcarolinamom Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I've looked through Abeka's science books, but used Bob Jones science until 8th grade, then switched to Apologia, and never looked back. My children and I are exceedingly pleased with Apologia's approach to science. My son is now a freshman nursing major in college, taking Chem and Biology this semester. He told me recently he was sooooo glad we used Apologia in high school because it kept his "love of learning" going! His mid term grades came back yesterday. Two high A's in science. Sweet!!! For high school he used Apologia's Physical Science, Biology, Chemistry, and Human Anatomy and Physiology. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedmom4 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I love how everyone has a different experience with the same curriculum. We do not like Apologia at my house. We just dumped it for my 14 year old dd. We are using Monarch from Alpha Omega. I don't love it either but I needed something quick. My oldest dd is finishing Physics but I wish we had found something better much earlier. We felt that the Chemistry book was the worst of the worst. My husband has a background in Chemistry and was really disappointed with the way Apologia presented many concepts. I don't have a solution yet. I definitely would not choose Abeka for Science. I don't like their approach to anything except phonics. Blessings, Elise in NC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anneofalamo Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I love Apologia for the independence! My oldest son is on his 2nd year, Physical Science last year and Biology this year (high school). Then my 7th grader is in General Science now, and loving the history and modules. They work with a lesson plan and I correct study guide and they test from their notebooks. So far so good! Those that hated it? Wanna sell them? tee hee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunflowerlady Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 We will be at high school level next year, so I have not actually used either of the choices you mentioned just yet. However, since some concerns about Abeka were mentioned, I thought I would add something that I thought was interesting. I have an Abeka high school biology text that I picked up at a used book sale. Since I am teaching dd about basic human reproduction and the anatomy of male/female etc, I thought this might be a good text to use for a reference. I figured it would be tasteful and give enough info since it was a high school text, but not "too much" if you know what I mean. Well, I found the human anatomy units, and there was basically no information on the human reproductive systems. There was a page or so on fetal development. And although they skipped over the reproductive systems, they went into some detail about abortion and the various methods of it. :001_huh: So this is a high school text that ignores human systems but goes into detail about abortion methods. I know they are pro-life , but it seemed odd that they would skip over one thing and put so much emphasis on the other. Note- I am not anti-Abeka and I may still use some of their curriculum. I just thought that was very interesting to note and that the OP and others might think it was interesting, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 The last straw for me was when they were talking about the ban on CFCs. Page 71-72 is where the discussion is found. They talk several times throughout the book about cost/benefit analysis. For CFCs they claim that one of the "costs" associated with banning them is that "...CFCs are the most efficient refrigerants, surgical sterilizers, and firefighting agents in the world. The CFC ban has caused these processes to become less efficient. As a result, people will probably die. (emphasis is in the text) Fires will most likely last longer before they are put out, resulting in loss of property and death. Surgical procedures will be less sterile, probably causing more infection, which will cause sickness and death. Finally, refrigerators will be less efficient, resulting in food poisoning and perhaps even starvation." Ok, really? Really? :001_huh: They used the same "cost/benefit analysis" to explain why air pollution shouldn't be a concern, claiming air is cleaner then it was 30 years ago. My daughter only got up to module 3 before I realized that the book was probably going to cause me to have an aneurysm so I only have examples up to that point. I skimmed a little and saw things like how the salt content of the ocean is evidence for a young earth and I think that's goofy but not alarming like the ridiculous logic of the CFC argument. Thank you. I'd need blood pressure pills probably. Hmmm, now what. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvasMom Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Thank you. I'd need blood pressure pills probably. Hmmm, now what. We switched to this http://www.awakeningwonder.com It's regular, secular physical science. I'm not sure what you would use if you are YEC and still want scientific accuracy on other issues. :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.