What is a reasonable number of hours to expect a focused student to do in a week?

[lewelma]

Maybe you already explaind this and I missed it somewhere, but why would he take both Precalc and Calc I at the same time? Can't you just skip the precalc altogether?

 

Well, no.  Precalc is with AoPS is both challenging and with other kids.  Calc1 is a somewhat basic, algorithmic, highschool version that he will self study in 12 weeks (so no human interaction). The material he needs to study only represents half of the NZ 12th grade integrated math class (which includes stats/probability/trig/discrete math). 

 

At our local uni, we've been told by the head of department that the 100 level classes are basically to get kids up to real mathematical thinking and proof writing (because high schools here do none of this).  The Head sat down with the AoPS precalc book and one of the university course syllabi, and decided that AoPS precalc will place him out of one of the 100-level learn-ho- to-write-proofs classes. He thought the AoPS community would be a stronger set of kids, so did not recommend that ds take the class at the uni.

 

The calc 2 class is the only 100 level class that he needs to take, and the prof was also fine with him self-studying the material and just moving into multivariate if he wanted.  They would not even require any testing; they were apparently that impressed with ds's proof portfolio from 8th grade.

 

So we are back to what I told Kathy upstream:

 

 

 

He will be running a double math class, AoPS precalc and basic Calc 1, concurrently in prep for Calc 2 at university in July.  If he does not do it this way he is either:

 

1)doing AoPS calc concurrently with the WOOT over the NZ summer (which he really does not want to do because he will lose his entire summer)

2) self studies calc 1 and 2, and waits until July 2016 for multivatiate.  Then he is learning by himself for an entire year (which he does not really like; he is very gregarious) and his first university class is at the 200 level and he has lost the chance to trial uni at a lower expectation of performance.

 

ETA: thought of two more things:

1) Calc 2 is only offered in July term, not Jan term.

2) Given the Head of Dept said that some kids that he has seen like my ds handle the timed assessments well, others struggle with the transition.  I have access to all the timed assessments for high school calc 1 from the Ministry of Education. This is an external exam, so all kids in the country take the same exam.  So all kids entering Calc 2 have the same background.  In contrast,  I have no access to any assessments for Calc 2.  So if he goes into multivariate, he will still be taking his first timed assessment in his life in any subject as a 200 level class.  Probably not the best idea for a boy who loves to luxuriate in his math and spend as long as he likes.

 

 

Point is, we have kicked this around and back, and feel kind of boxed into a corner. I just have to see how much I can reduce the scope of his other classes and still have them be real classes.