Preparing a young teen for college classes

[maize]

Dd13 announced this past week that she wants to start college at 15. She's content with staying home and taking classes at the local state university, she just kinda wants to get on with her life. I'm thinking dual enrollment for a few classes will satisfy her for now, we might even try out a class next year if they will take her (usually they don't accept dual enrolled students under 16 but I've heard of some homeschoolers pulling it off). She'd need a good ACT score to convince them she is ready and maybe qualify for their dual enrollment scholarship, so I'm planning to work on that this year.

 

What would you do to help a child prepare for college classes?

[G5052]

As a professor, I can tell you that early dual enrollment can go either way. I'd start in a class or two in an area of strength and keep an open mind. Some really thrive and some need a little more time at home.  If she thrives in dual enrollment, then certainly you can ramp it up. By no means is it just about the academics.

 

Remember that college "counts," so it's also OK to bail if it's not time to do that. I know of too many parents who keep their younger ones in a class where they're tanking, and then the poor grade is on their record and their confidence is blown.

 

The most important skills are taking notes and being able to manage deadlines. She also needs to be able to troubleshoot group project issues. My oldest has had group project drama with every class he's taken with that sort of assignment. He just started physics with a lab and had very clear priorities for picking a lab partner the first day. Some classes have a lot of reading, so she needs to be prepared to read and learn from textbooks and be able to scan effectively.

 

Also keep in mind that it is very much an adult environment. The assignments and what is done in class are geared toward the 18+ y.o. set. Some classes will be fine, and some will be like the local psychology class where the professor likes to show films that VERY disturbing. Mine take economics for their social science for that reason. 

 

Students are also free to come-and-go as they please, even the youngest. Numerous times I'd be walking in and see the a parent drop off a teen, and then I wouldn't see them in class that day. Then when I was walking out after shutting everything down, I'd see them getting back in the car with a parent. Several times parents called me at home furious about that sort of thing.

 

That said, certainly it can be done thoughtfully. There's a local vet that practices with her mother (the dad is the office manager), and she graduated from the community college at 18 and went all the way through vet school and practiced elsewhere for several years. Now she's back in the family business.

[regentrude]

I did not do anything special to prepare my kids for college classes - other than teach them in the preceding years.

My DD took her first physics course at 13, without being formally enrolled because the college would not cooperate. She started regular courses for credit at age 14.

I would recommend starting slowly, with one course that is in an area the student is really interested in.

 

The student needs to be literate, able to understand and follow directions, manage her time - which should not be an issue if she starts with one or two classes - and have completed the necessary prerequisites. She should not expect any special treatment of bonus for being younger, but be prepared to do the same work as the regular students.

 

We did not encounter any issues. DD took 32 credits in French, physics and English before she was 17.

[Kassia]

My daughter started DE at 13 with Spanish.  She already taught herself so much Spanish that the first two classes were all review.  She is taking her third Spanish class now and wants to take English Comp as well (online class).  She's a very dedicated and focused student, so I know she won't blow off the class, but I think she should wait at least another year before taking English Comp.  I don't see the need to rush her even though I'd love to outsource English.  

Edited September 5, 2016 by Erica H

[quark]

Dd13 announced this past week that she wants to start college at 15. She's content with staying home and taking classes at the local state university, she just kinda wants to get on with her life. I'm thinking dual enrollment for a few classes will satisfy her for now, we might even try out a class next year if they will take her (usually they don't accept dual enrolled students under 16 but I've heard of some homeschoolers pulling it off). She'd need a good ACT score to convince them she is ready and maybe qualify for their dual enrollment scholarship, so I'm planning to work on that this year.

 

What would you do to help a child prepare for college classes?

 

It helps a lot if the student is driven to start. DS took 4 courses his first semester of DE but two were easy electives and that helped my nervousness. He wasn't fazed one bit but I think that's because he is very mature, has good study habits and a great attitude towards learning. Those are probably the key things I would focus on.

 

Other factors:

1. Writing -- college classes require a lot of writing. DS managed to avoid that a bit (he was not a good writer when he started) by taking mostly STEM and music classes. Then his music prof started demanding frequent writing assignments which ended up being a very good thing for DS's writing skills. DS likes the prof very much and was willing to work very hard for him.
2. Environment -- like someone else said, it is an adult environment. That said, I don't think DS has ever had issues asking for help. College admin and profs are very helpful. Just make sure it is your DD recognizing and asking for the help, not you (but that also depends on the college...they might be willing to recognize that she is younger and still needs your help but she won't learn if the parent does it).
3. Choosing classes -- use Rate My Professor and other similar tools to find best profs and research those profs if possible. A quarter/ semester will feel like a long time to put up with a less caring/ inefficient prof. It can affect the student's drive/ motivation.
4. Grades will follow her around! Good EF skills help to keep up with requirements but these can be scaffolded at home. However, I suggest letting her come up with systems to help herself.
5. Other every day skills -- e.g. some of DS's classes don't have many breaks in between classes or parts of classes. E.g. for a lab class, he had to be on campus 3x a week and on lab days, the class stretched 4 hours with only a 10 minute break in between. He often used 5+ minutes of that break to ask the prof questions with only 5 minutes left to have a quick bite. Our younger kids are growing quickly and need their sustenance. DS has some health issues that need him to eat more often too. It's good to think about such things. Also, if she is not yet familiar with using a cell phone or public transportation, now is a good time to practice.

Good luck!

[Bootsie]

Some issues that I have seen with homeschoolers doing dual enrollment:

 

Colleges classes move at a faster pace compared to what some are used to.  A class may only meet twice a week with a large amount of reading (or writing) taking place in between those class meetings.  This can feel overwhelming to some younger students.

 

Grades may depend on fewer graded components--a few exams with relatively heavy weights. 

 

The pace of the class does not change if the student struggles with a particular part of the material, is out sick one day, etc.  

 

The student will need to be the one to take the initiative to approach the professor with questions and any issues that occur.

 

If there is any group/team work in the class, the student will be teamed with 18+ year olds.  Even if it is a course where the material is going to be age appropriate, the student will be exposed to the conversation and behavior of adult college students who are not censoring their conversation for the under 18 year old.  The other students may not be happy to have a dual enrollment student in their group.  Is the environment one in which the dual enrollment student feels left out because she did not attend the weekend football game, isn't in the sorority, etc.?

 

Some issues that I have seen parents who are used to homeschooling have a difficult time dealing with:

 

The flexibility of the family schedule will be limited by the university class schedule.

 

Logistics of how the student gets to and from class.  Parents must be prepared for student to be on campus alone if a class is cancelled because the professor is ill, etc.

 

Student may need to meet with a team partner outside of class.  Are the parents OK with their teen meeting a group of college students outside of the classroom (perhaps in evening hours)?

 

Student will need to have access to internet to check class postings and do homework.  Student may need to use electronic device (computer, cell phone, etc.) in classroom.  Students will probably even need to go online to check their university account, pay their bill, etc. 

 

Another thing to consider is how many dual enrollment students the college typically enrolls and whether there are particular classes for de student to take.  The degree to which the de student blends in with the other student will be impacted by this.

 

[SparklyUnicorn]

I really didn't do anything in particular.  I checked in with him to make sure he was keeping up with stuff.  It was only one class so far (he starts a second class tomorrow).  I think he did a very good job.  I was nervous as hell about the whole thing because I had no idea how it would go.

 

 

 

 

[Pawz4me]

DS started a (public) early college high school program at 14 after being homeschooled from second grade through eighth grade. I can't say that we did anything special to prepare him, other than just doing the best job we could with homeschooling. We did spend quite a bit of time during the summer before he started talking over what he should expect, gave him some coaching on being pro-active about seeking help if needed (especially important for him since he's on the spectrum) and things like that.

[SparklyUnicorn]

I think the newest "skill" for him was note taking.  He hadn't really done that prior, but he did fine with it.  I think he tended to write too much down, but that's the sort of thing that is hard to teach and is individual. 

 

Oh and we started off with his strongest subject.  I would definitely do that. 

[Bear23]

I did nothing but worry if I was screwing up my first born now that she is 16.  Nope, haven't done nothing special and she is currently getting a B in her first online college course as an online dual enrollment student.  My game plan is to have her do all the history/LA with some elective online and then her science and math at one of the local colleges.

[KarenNC]

Having had experience with online classes has been a plus for my daughter, who is doing her first on-campus DE classes this year. She was happy that she was already familiar with Blackboard, for instance, so that cut down a little on new things to have to juggle, and she was already familiar with having to text or email teachers with questions and meet outside deadlines. Our state allows juniors and seniors to take a limited slate of DE classes at the community college for no tuition (we pay books and fees).

 

 

[SkateLeft]

My oldest started full-time dual enrollment at 14, and I graduated her from high school at 16, with 60 semester units of college coursework and a 4.0 GPA. I didn't make an issue out of her age when she applied, and they didn't care.

 

Our state dual enrollment program specifies "11th and 12th grade" but a lot of colleges will add "16 and 11th grade" as a requirement. We picked one that didn't list an age alongside the grade and just went through the application process. The folks I know who've had problems with getting a younger student into dual enrollment make an issue about the age beforehand. They ask if their student can apply because they're young, and of course the admissions person usually says no. My daughter was an 11th grader, so I just didn't ask. She met all the requirements and had a pretty standard looking transcript, despite being a homeschooler.

 

I didn't prep her at all. I would not have enrolled her if I didn't think she was ready. Sometimes I think it's the parents who need prep, more than the kids. :) It's really important to realize that if there's an issue with a class, the parent can't march down to the professor and intervene. Once the child is a college student, they need to deal with it themselves. If your child can do that, or you think they can do that with a little nudging from you at home, then they'll be okay.

 

i was pretty much out of the loop. I provided support and advice, but my daughter did it all herself. If she needed help, she went to office hours. If her lab partner didn't show up, she did the work herself. If she didn't understand a grade she received on a paper, she talked to the professor. It was all her.

[lmrich]

I would teach a high school level class at home in one semester so she can get used to the pace. Semester classes move fast. She needs to understand that most college level classes do not take many grades. I would want my child to be used to mid-terms and final exams as well.  I agree with learning how to handle group project work - that will be hard as the youngest kid in a group. Not sure how you can help with that skill at home...