MA transcript question - Nan? & DE credit conversion

[Matryoshka]

So, I have a question that I think is fairly particular to MA.

 

My dd went to public school for 9th/10th.  In MA, for some odd reason, a year's high school class is FIVE credits, instead of one like pretty much everywhere else.  And a semester course is 2.5 credits.

 

Meanwhile, college credits here pretty much are 'normal' - usually 3 credits for a semester course, and sometimes 4 if it has a lab or is honors or something.

 

So... my question is how do I integrate all this into a 4-year high school transcript that includes 2 yrs public school, some DE, some online, and some homemade courses? 

 

Here's the big question: Do I try to convert everything to the MA high school 5 credits/year per course method to make it consistent with the first two years of ps, or do I rewrite the homeschool transcript to convert everything from everywhere to the 1-credit per year high school model???

 

And what do I do with the DE credits (I guess this part is a more general question)?  I know that some courses, like especially foreign languages, convert to 1 semester college = 1 year college, but others really don't.

 

What do you think I should do with these DE courses, for example?

 

Cultural Anthropology - 3 college credits = ? high school credits - year or semester?

Intro to Criminal Justice - 3 college credits = ? high school credits - year or semester?

American Literature II - 3 college credits (I'm thinking this one in particular should only be = 1 semester high school, as it was a 2-semester sequence of which she only took the second, and we did AmLit at home the first semester, so I can easily make that a full-year English credit by combining)

 

Next year:

Physics I and II (Alg2 based) - 4 credits per semester = 8 college credits total = ? high school credits

 

Would that be one year of high school credit?  Two??? (I'm guessing one semester is E/M and the other Mech?)

 

Looks like she might also take a summer course in Nautical Archaeology that's worth 3 college credits, but is only a week long (8-4:30 each day)... I'm thinking I'd count that as only a semester of high school?

 

Still deciding on other DE courses for next year, but one is probably a foreign language so that's a full-year credit per semester (yes?), and maybe another Lit class (semester?), or an honors seminar (year?), or maybe Psychology (year?)

 

 

Gah, this is more confusing than I thought!  I've been reading about this for years and really thought I had a handle on it, till I had to figure out the actual stuff she's taking.

 

And I'm guessing I don't even bother mentioning the CLEP stuff - she got 6 credits (ungraded) for it at the CC, but I'm thinking it might not end up transferring to a 4-year, and she's got plenty of English credits already anyway...?

 

[Julie of KY]

I'm not in MA, but if I were you, I'd change everything to a standard 1 high school class = 1 credit, then I'd note it on the transcript. You'll have to provide transcripts from public high school and any community colleges anyhow if you apply somewhere else.

 

If classes done at home - I'd say 1 year class = 1 credit.

Classes done at college - one 3-4 credit hour college class = 1 high school credit

 

I'd make a notation of testing on the transcript and list any CLEP or AP scores.

[Mom22ns]

I would decide which high school credit system to use based on where your dd is planning to go to college. If she will go in MA where they are very accustomed to the 5 credits = 1 year system, I'd keep it. If she is going elsewhere, I would use 1 credit = 1 year. Although, I really don't think it matters there are other states that use different numbers of credits to = 1 year, it isn't just MA. 

 

That said, for DE credits, just convert them to the system you are using for high school. The best recommendation I have heard for the conversation is that any class that would be taught across a full year in high school should be given a full credit (or 5). Those that would be taught as a semester class, give a half credit (or 2.5). Three hour classes tend to split on this. 4-5 hour classes are always a full credit. While I like that system, you are free to give the number of credits you feel the class was worth. You can give all DE classes a full credit. You can give all 3 hour class .5 credit. Don't make it hard. Just make your choices and be consistent.