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I'm interested in knowing more about the PA Homeschoolers Statistics class. (I've read Lisa's descriptions about her son now applying statitics to everything). I want to know more about how the class is run. Are there any lectures? Is it work at your own pace? Are there daily or weekly assignments. The math is no problem - but how much writing is involved? Actually this class might be really good because of the writing for my son. It sounds like it prepares kids well for the AP test - is this so?

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My son is a math guy and most definitely not an English guy.  He did well in the class(A in the class and 5 on the AP) but it was definitely a struggle for him.  I've never taken stats but assumed it was math, turns out there is a significant portion of writing and it's very exacting in how things are written.  My DS found this very frustrating as he just wanted to do math.  But I always welcome classes that force DS to to write because he most certainly needs the practice.  We have found every PAHS class DS has taken to be a good preparation for the AP.

 

There are no live lectures.  The teacher posts notes, links to other sites, discussion questions on the board etc every day and the kids work on it when they have time.  It's not self paced as there are definitely dates/times when things are due but it's not as rigid as a class you have to sign in at a particular time each day/week.

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We'll be new to PAHS next year, but the format varies somewhat with the teacher.  Be sure to read the descriptions carefully that way for each class.

 

We're going with them in 2015-2016 because asynchronous (no live class) works best for us because of other live classes we'll have, and because they have a proven track record.

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Can you work ahead in the class if needed? How much time did this class take?

 

Yes, you can work ahead and while there are definite deadlines, the class is probably one of ds's most flexible ones. It also takes the least amount of his time, but probably still about an hour a day at least. I will double-check with him when he gets home, but he commented a few weeks ago that the instructor was practical and seemed to honor the students' time.

 

One thing that ds appreciates , but is frustrated that he doesn't have more time to do, is that there are numerous resources on the class site that the student can explore to deepen their understanding.

 

Kareni recommended this class to us and we are pleased with the quality of instruction and the practicality of the subject.

 

DS and I recently went to lunch and the topic of healthcare spending came up. I mentioned that for the amount the US spent, we were 27th in infant mortality. "Define 'infant mortality,' Mom." Where did you get the number from?" We had our smart phones out all during lunch and our research left us with even more to talk about. 

 

I worry that many of the AP classes will be "brain dumps."  I have no such concern with this class.

 

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I worry that many of the AP classes will be "brain dumps."  I have no such concern with this class.

 

 

Ok, I'm not quite sure what you mean by "brain dump", but AP Statistics sounds like a good class. I own the book and I could slog through it myself with my son, but it doesn't excite me to do so and I'm afraid we'd just let it slide. The hard part of the class will be him learning how to write free response answers.

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Ok, I'm not quite sure what you mean by "brain dump", but AP Statistics sounds like a good class. I own the book and I could slog through it myself with my son, but it doesn't excite me to do so and I'm afraid we'd just let it slide. The hard part of the class will be him learning how to write free response answers.

 

In some classes, there is simply so much content covered in so little time, that I worry it will all be "dumped" after the test.  But then part of that is due to how interested the student is in the topic. Ds likes this topic and the class pacing seems reasonable.

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I'm a senior and actually taking this class right now. I love it. The material is useful, and there's no inane busywork. There are no specific meeting times, but the class board is pretty active, and if you have questions they're usually answered within a few hours. The textbook used is very clear and easy to understand. Also, Mrs. Matheny is great, and super helpful. Theoretically, assignments are daily, but we don't have to turn in homework, so I tend to work for longer periods of time a couple times a week. Usually there are deadlines about once a week for tests or other things. There is a decent amount of writing, and answers have to be phrased exactly, but it's not too bad once you get used to it.

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I'm a senior and actually taking this class right now. I love it. The material is useful, and there's no inane busywork. There are no specific meeting times, but the class board is pretty active, and if you have questions they're usually answered within a few hours. The textbook used is very clear and easy to understand. Also, Mrs. Matheny is great, and super helpful. Theoretically, assignments are daily, but we don't have to turn in homework, so I tend to work for longer periods of time a couple times a week. Usually there are deadlines about once a week for tests or other things. There is a decent amount of writing, and answers have to be phrased exactly, but it's not too bad once you get used to it.

 

Yes! The lack of busywork is what prompted my son to say that Mrs. Matheny honors the students' time.

 

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My son is a math guy and most definitely not an English guy.  He did well in the class(A in the class and 5 on the AP) but it was definitely a struggle for him.  I've never taken stats but assumed it was math, turns out there is a significant portion of writing and it's very exacting in how things are written.  My DS found this very frustrating as he just wanted to do math.  But I always welcome classes that force DS to to write because he most certainly needs the practice.  

 

I laughed when I read this because my math guy son asked me last year when he was in this same AP Stats class, "Mom, why did you sign me up for TWO English classes?" Ha! I loved how the stats class taught him how to *explain* the math and his problem-solving in a concise and clear way. Very useful skill to learn! 

 

And that doesn't even touch on the usefulness of learning statistics. I highly recommend this course. Carole is a very accessible, flexible, and understanding teacher. The workload was just right..about an hour a day as an average. The preparation for the exam was extremely thorough...actually almost too much for my son...he only did about half of what Carole suggested and still made a 5. He was already prepared because of the course itself. 

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Ok, I'm not quite sure what you mean by "brain dump", but AP Statistics sounds like a good class. I own the book and I could slog through it myself with my son, but it doesn't excite me to do so and I'm afraid we'd just let it slide. The hard part of the class will be him learning how to write free response answers.

 

That is the hard part for most of the students. It was a major issue for mine, but I saw students posting before each test, "I'm doing great on the MC, but struggling with the FRQs". Mrs. Matheny gives plenty of optional FRQ practice for those who struggle to have the opportunity to master the language of FRQs.

 

For ds who is not a math guy the class averaged 2-3 hours/day. I know mathy kids get it done much faster, but Mrs. Matheny warned me before he started that humanities kids often gave her 2-3 hours/day as time estimates. I like to warn other families because Statistics is a great choice for kids who are not math lovers. It applies to many areas of study and is interesting, but non-math kids do spend more time on the class.

 

The class is flexible on work. The only deadlines are tests. They have to be done within a few days. The syllabus gives 2 days for each test, but she usually posts them early, so they often have a 4-5 day window to do the test at their convenience when they are ready. She is always willing to work with someone's schedule if there are travel or other complications.

 

Ds had two complaints about the class. The first was the lack of deadlines made it too easy to blow off. For him a more rigid schedule would have been preferred, but I know that isn't everyone's preference. The class also has far less student interaction (at least in the class ds was in) than his other PA Homeschoolers class. It didn't draw him in or make him want to get involved because there was so little class participation. 

 

The teaching is almost all through reading, a combination of the textbook which is good and Mrs. Matheny's explanations which are helpful. She also links to some videos and outside supplements which were also helpful. 

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Ds had two complaints about the class. The first was the lack of deadlines made it too easy to blow off. For him a more rigid schedule would have been preferred, but I know that isn't everyone's preference. The class also has far less student interaction (at least in the class ds was in) than his other PA Homeschoolers class. It didn't draw him in or make him want to get involved because there was so little class participation. 

 

The teaching is almost all through reading, a combination of the textbook which is good and Mrs. Matheny's explanations which are helpful. She also links to some videos and outside supplements which were also helpful. 

 

Now see, my ds loves getting into some long-winded debates in the interactions for Lit and Macroecon., but he loves that Carole's class doesn't have any, because it can be a real time-sucker. One very valuable skill ds has learned this year is to weigh out what various components are worth to him in learning the material. Sometimes with really bad time crunches, discussions or game play points take a hit.

 

 

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Julie, I did AP Stats two different ways with two different kids.

 

My daughter took the PA Homeschooler class online and LOVED it. While she is highly capable in math, she's also good in the humanities. She craves interaction and loves to discuss and write. I think that AP Stats is the most English-y of all the math & science APs. As others have already said, doing well on the exam requires being able to write good explanations. No getting away with just writing an equation & solving it. You have to discuss why you chose whatever stats test you're using, how you implemented it, and what the results imply about the situation being tested.

 

Now my son was not the same kind of kid in high school. He was all math & science, and while he could write well, it was akin to torture...I had him self study this course at home using the same text (The Practice of Statistics). There are teacher materials available from the publisher, but he found the answers in the back of the book to be sufficient. He actually enjoyed the class. No extra activities, just reading & problem-solving. As the AP test drew near, I had him try some of the FRQs on the CB website. Then I showed him their examples of student responses earning various grades. He was able to use those examples to model what his writing should look like on the real AP test.

 

Both kids did well (5's) on the actual test, but they had totally different class experiences.

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My daughter took AP Statistics through PA Homeschoolers, and it was an excellent class. She learned a lot, scored a five on the exam, and later stated that it was one of her two most valuable high school classes. (She's now finished with college.) She felt well prepared for the exam.

 

Regards,

Kareni

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My dd also took this class and found it to be excellent.  She actually added it in at the last minute as her 4th PAH AP class her senior year against my advice, and it turned out to be the best decision ever.  Carole's class prepared her exceptionally well to go directly into an honors 400-level economic statistics class followed by a 500-level honors econometrics class with a mentored research component her freshman year of college.  Her professor told her that she has more econometrics knowledge/experience than most economics grad students. 1st semester her sophomore year, she missed stats so much that she switched around her schedule last minute to enroll in a 500-level honors psych course that was basically a stat's course applied to psychology topics.  Next year she is planning to take a 2 course sequence in the stat's department and see where it goes.  I can't say enough good things about PAH AP stats.  It has so much applicability to various fields from the social sciences to biology to business/economics.

 

My daughter is strong in writing and fairly good in math (got through Calc BC with a 5, but definitely is not as talented in math as her engineering classmates---all that 3-dimensional rotating is like greek to her) and spent maybe 2-3 hours per week on the course....plus extra time to take the chapter exams.  She was shocked to read a review by a student that had taken PAH AP Calc and spent 2 hours + a day on the stats course.  The range of time commitment on this class varies significantly depending on the student---but it is worth the investment!

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Slightly off topic...

 

Does anyone know when registration will open up for next year?

 

Registration is open now for the PA HS'er classes.

 

Thank you all for your kind words about my class. It's been very rewarding to read this thread.

 

Carole

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