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How do Unschooled teens get into college?


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Our freshmen son wants to 'unschool'.  How in the world do you prove anything they've done?  I just can't wrap my mind around unschooling.  How can you provide a transcript without using textbooks? I can understand something like '60 hours in Animal Study, from the 4-H', but wouldn't know what to do about the basic academics.  Besides, my son would take full advantage of 'unschooling and avoid things like math.  

 

Our daughter, currently working on her Bachelor's degree, used various textbooks and dual-enrolled. Transcripts and taking ACTs we're not difficult to figure out.  We're in FL if that means anything.

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What does he like to do with his time?

 

The reason I ask is because unschooling isn't an education model to get into college. It's a learning style to prepare for a satisfying life independently and autonomously, if that makes sense. Often college is part of that route, but not necessarily. If college is the goal in and of itself, that will make a difference in how to proceed.

 

Also, you might find some local/state unschoolers to ask because Dodd's page is not only out of date, it's not specific to your region. 

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Well, we are in FL as well and according to the State all you have to do is show proof that your son advanced in his learning. It does not give and specific bench marks, subjects or hours. I think most subjects can be unschooled by a student that has a personal desire to learn about them. My dd13 has quirks she goes through and will learn all about everything involved. She just finished a 3 month stint on anything British. That led to an in depth study of Princess Diana and then into the Monarchy and the history of it. I am not sure how you can unschool some subjects like Math for instance in areas like Algebra and Geometry but I am not one to ask. For transcripts, I would think would be best to keep a notebook of all academic things he does and then figure out how to combine them into certain subjects to give credits for. Make sense?? Not sure if this helps you.

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He loves computers.  He often fixes and updates friends' and family computers. He can hook up and/or fix any devices, even installed a complete video camera system throughout our home.  He hates anything academic.  I just don't know how he can get into college without such classes.

 

I've decided to take him to our local college and take the placement test;  I may even dual enroll him.

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You could unschool high school and then if he wants to go to college, he could enroll in the local CC and then transfer after two years.  You could get a jump on it and have him dual enroll in 11th and 12th grades, though at many CCs, to do that, a student needs to show they are capable of college level work by passing a placement test (like the Accuplacer).

 

 

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He loves computers.  He often fixes and updates friends' and family computers. He can hook up and/or fix any devices, even installed a complete video camera system throughout our home.  He hates anything academic.  I just don't know how he can get into college without such classes.

 

I've decided to take him to our local college and take the placement test;  I may even dual enroll him.

 

 

If he hates anything academic, I'd encourage you to consider holding this off for a while. Eventually he'll find the need to know mathematical concepts (I'm sure he'll pick them up in computer sciences), and classes are a particularly convenient way to learn these things. More importantly, when he decides what he wants to do with his life, he'll probably conclude himself that taking classes at the local community college is the most expedient and convenient way to reach his goal. The role of the parent of the unschooled kid is to facilitate learning opportunities, as opposed to schedule them for him. The idea being, when a person decides their own goals, they meet them with the kind of enthusiasm that can't be matched when they're simply complying to other people's goals. 

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 I am not sure how you can unschool some subjects like Math for instance in areas like Algebra and Geometry but I am not one to ask.

 

It depends on the purpose. I have children who have been "unschooled" for a while now. One studied at the dining room table with the Teaching Texbook open in preparation for classes in the fall. One learned that understanding chemistry requires an understanding of these concepts. One is learning algebra simply because it explains the technology he's interested in. These are just our experiences, but I offer them as examples of how math information can be learned outside the conventional style of lessons on a schedule.

 

:)

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  • 1 year later...

I would also recommend the book College without High School by Blake Boles. It basically answers the question you have asked on how to get into college without a single high school class or grade. We are not unschoolers ourselves, but reading the book helped my daughter understand that because we can be very flexible with our education, the experiences she makes for herself during the high school years will set her apart from her public school friends when competing for college acceptance.

 

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Perhaps another angle of this to consider is that if he hates academics and doesn't want to do those types of classes, maybe a 4 year university is not what he would choose either? It very well might be, but it is something to think about and discuss with him.

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