Difference between EPGY gifted program and EPGY Open Enrollment

[mathnerd]

I am looking to enroll my 5 year old son in the EPGY Math program as a supplement to his regular curriculum. He is doing Singapore Early Bird Math at home and finds it easy and loves it too.

My question on EPGY is:

1. Is there a difference in content and course material between EPGY Gifted program and EPGY Open enrollment?

2. Is it easy to accelerate to a higher level in the EPGY Open enrollment program if my son found his level easy? Or is changing the level possible only in the EPGY Gifted program?

The reason I ask is because my budget is restricted. EPGY gifted curriculum costs $500 every 3 months. But the EPGY open enrollment costs much less. I a willing to cut corners in my family's budget if I learn that EPGY Gifted curriculum is way different from the EPGY open enrollment curriculum.

We are a "mathy" family and have no problem helping out our son if he raises questions at his level - meaning absence of online tutors on-call is not an issue (EPGY gifted program has tutors and certificates of completion, I am told).

I have searched a lot and have not found a definite answer.

Thanks for all your help in advance!

[Greenmama2]

We are using open enrollment and like it. The program moves ahead when your child masters the material, it does not stay at one level. You can also choose to raise the level manually a small amount each session.

[mathnerd]

Thanks a lot! I am now thinking that the EPGY open Enrollment would be a better investment as my DH or I can help my son out if he needs explanations or assistance (lack of dedicated Stanford tutors at K level is not a problem for us and we really don't need certificates of completion for elementary levels).

 

After digging through a lot of EPGY web pages, I got the following info from there which proves very helpful. Hope this helps others with the same question!

 

How does the School Open Enrollment program differ from the traditional EPGY individual courses?

Most significantly, in order for students to enroll in traditional EPGY courses, they must undergo an application process. Enrollment in the School Open Enrollment program does not require an application, only registration.

 

Second, in order to enroll in the School Open Enrollment program, a student must attend a participating school or be part of an approved learning group (see FAQ #3 under Eligibiilty and enrollment).

 

The final difference is in the level of support received. Students in the traditional EPGY program receive a comprehensive set of support services from EPGY instructors, as well as an official transcript from Stanford. Students in the School Open Enrollment program work primarily with their parents, who in turn receive support from the School Support Associate.

[MandJsMama]

My son has used EPGY Open Enrollment for the past couple of years. He is finishing up Grade 6 in LA and Grade 5 in math. He'll be moving on to AoPS. He started at Grade 3 in both. You set the grade level and can easily bump them up or down by .5 grade level at a time. You can also work with your Open Enrollment Group Administrator to tweak the program even more - extend the session time, reduce the number of review questions per session, etc.

 

I have never felt any need to have a tutor available at the other end. The times where he has had questions, it had more to do with understanding their wording, rather than needing help with the math or the grammar. I honestly cannot imagine why anyone would spend 5x as much money just to have a tutor available at the other end. Now, there have been times I've wanted some outside help with the Singapore Intensive Practice :tongue_smilie:

 

Also, it provides you with very detailed reports and there is an end of grade exam that you will have for your records.

[melmichigan]

Over the time I have run my group I have not heard of anyone who would rather have used the Individual Program at that level that homeschools their child. It is usually only necessary if you are fighting with a public school where you need verification of credit.

[Crimson Wife]

The OE program doesn't include the higher-level math courses or the writing courses. Also, if a student is looking to build up a transcript for high school and/or college admissions purposes, the individual program supposedly looks better (at least that's what I've heard through the grapevine as my kids aren't at that stage just yet).

 

For a 5 y.o., I think you're better off saving your money.

[Greenmama2]

You can also work with your Open Enrollment Group Administrator to tweak the program even more - extend the session time, reduce the number of review questions per session, etc.

 

 

Also, it provides you with very detailed reports and there is an end of grade exam that you will have for your records.

 

Ooh, I didn't know that. Thanks.

[katemac]

We were on EPGY through private enrollment but plan to switch over to open enrollment to save cost. I wonder whether we need to apply for new Student ID and start all over (loosing the history of our academic record). I wonder anyone can shade some light on this?

[melmichigan]

If you note where you are on the private enrollment note the settings from the instructor and the thread levels. The OE enrollment setup can then be adjusted to match and your child should start in just about the same spot. You will get a new ID and you need to be sure to login from the OE screen, not the individual screen.

[katemac]

Thanks, Melissa. So if I get it right, there's no way she'll have a record to keep track of her progress all in the same place. She'll have two different student ID? And when she gets to upper levels, I think especially high school, an official transcripts would be very handy. So, may be we should switch back to private enrollment when we get to that.

[momof2cm]

The big difference is the cost!

 

Open enrollment can only be used up to 5th grade if I am not mistaken. From then on a student will have to enroll in the individual program. Here students are assigned a 'mentor' whom they can 'harass' (ask questions or explanation via email) as much or as little as they want.

 

There is no difference content wise.

 

Students receive an official transcript (for a fee) after successfully completing a final exam when enrolled in the individual program.

 

The enrollment process for the individual program is not that hard. Students need to pass an aptitude test for math and submit writing material for composition and a copy of standardized test results. The latter is not even required if the student was accepted before attempting an English language course through EPGY.

[MissKNG]

Honestly, I would advance him in Singapore Math and add the Challenging Word Problems and Intensive Practice books.

 

ETA: Oops...just noticed this was an old thread. What did you end up doing?

Edited August 10, 2012 by MissKNG

[mathnerd]

I am doing SM, with the SM IP and CWP already and supplement with DreamBox online.

I have realized that at my DS's age, we do not need the certification, transcripts and tutoring help that EPGY gifted program provides. So, we will go with the cheaper EPGY open enrollment option. We will be able to enroll for it when DS's PS starts up this month as his school district provides access to EPGY open enrollment.

I called the EPGY help line and talked to them. They told me that the content is same for both programs, but for open enrollment, they are not responsible for the support and tutoring help. They also told me to create another online account in order to enroll for the open enrollment if I had an EPGY gifted account online already.

Considering the $$$ saved ($125/year for open enrollment vs $500 each quarter for gifted enrollment), I can buy any other number of other enrichment curriculum or online programs.

[katemac]

Thanks for sharing the info. We probably go with open enrollment for the lower grades too. However, because our family would be traveling out of states mid next year, to Asia, we probably need the transcripts when we're away. It would come in handy when we return to ps the year after next. That was why I was hoping that we could have both open and private enrollment in one account. Looks like it won't work that way.