Would this be crazy? Updated in #15

[Ginevra]

DS17 has had much difficulty over the years with writing (both the process and the motor skills) and reading. Officially, he is dxed with ADHD (inattentive type) and slow processing, both receptive and expressive. Tests are often where his weaknesses are the biggest liability, especially if there are essay questions or long, written answers because he needs extended time. I don't know what he will major in in college. (He is a Junior at present.)

 

But! His interest in, and knowledge of history is kind of amazing. He really understands the nuances of why this happened or what lead to XYZ; he is way beyond simply spitting out simple facts. I think he would find a history major to be interesting and something he could pursue. However, there's that little reality check that reading and writing are not his strong areas and he could crash and burn with that major just because of that.

 

He does plan to take AP Government and Politics next year, although even with that, he wavers because he is afraid of tons of reading and writing. Would it be crazy for him to consider History as a major? He is not the one coming up with this idea; I am. I did mention it to him but he's afraid of his weaknesses. But I don't know if I should just drop it and see if it crops up for him as an idea on its own or put it in his head some more, telling him he is good at history and it obviously interest him.

 

ETA: it was his history teacher at high school who recommended he take the AP vlass next year. So, presumably I am not the only one who sees his interest and affinity for history.

Edited January 22, 2017 by Quill

[MerryAtHope]

I don't think it's crazy. A lot can happen with a student's reading and writing skills, even between now and the first or second year in college. If history is really his passion, he can probably make it work. And with his diagnosis, he can get extended time on tests in college. 

[Mom22ns]

I don't think it's crazy, but I wouldn't push it either. Let him take the AP class and see how it goes. If he finds he can keep up with that, you can mention it again, but I'd give it time and let him get there.

 

There really aren't any college majors that avoid writing. I get that history is worse than some, but as Merry pointed out, he can have accommodations. I wouldn't let an aversion to writing or extra time needed on tests stop him from pursuing a field he is really interested in.

[Lori D.]

Just as a side note, you might find these articles interesting as you start some Career Exploration, esp. in areas focusing on his interest in History:

 

Historical Association: "Careers in History"

Business Insider: High Paying Jobs for People Who Love History"

 

Good luck! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.

[Arctic Bunny]

My cousin has always had reading and writing problems (if you find a "Top 20 signs your child is dyslexic" thing, or something, he'd have 18, kwim?). He majored in history and is now doing a masters in library sciences. Go figure!

[Julie of KY]

You're not crazy to think about AP classes. Let him follow his passions and do everything to support him along the way.

 

Since AP history or government is likely to be writing heavy, you might be able to back off in writing in other subjects - do you have the choice or are you outsourcing all the classes? Make sure you have some wiggle room in the schedule so that if he's feeling overloaded something else might be able to give.

 

Is there any way to listen to some of the material rather than read it all? This might help cut down on the reading workload.

[Guest]

You're not crazy to think about AP classes. Let him follow his passions and do everything to support him along the way.

 

Since AP history or government is likely to be writing heavy, you might be able to back off in writing in other subjects - do you have the choice or are you outsourcing all the classes? Make sure you have some wiggle room in the schedule so that if he's feeling overloaded something else might be able to give.

 

Is there any way to listen to some of the material rather than read it all? This might help cut down on the reading workload.

He is at a B&M school. He is sometimes able to listen to reading assignments on audio, which does help him. :)

[bettyandbob]

I think you have to let him figure out his major.

 

One thing to consider is if it's possible for him to take a longer approach to college. Obviously, this is a huge financial consideration. However, my niece went into college planning to take 5 years she did a few 12 credit semesters, summer school (not working) and utilized tutoring at the university. She did very well. She with her dad's help planned it all ahead.

[Storygirl]

I was heading for a double major in history and English in college but ended up dropping the history back to a minor. My history classes required a lot of reading and writing. Most, if not all, of my history classes had exams that were mainly essay questions, as well as several papers. Usually there was a 10-plus page term paper as well. It was a writing-heavy degree at my school.

 

That doesn't mean that your son shouldn't pursue it, but it would likely involve extensive reading, writing, and research. Perhaps he will qualify for accommodations through the college disability office. I do believe that colleges generally require any documentation of learning issues to be recent -- within three years -- so if his testing is older, you may consider whether it should be updated.

[historically accurate]

I have a history degree. All of my classes were very writing intensive. 

 

I found all of my classes followed one of two patterns: either 3 tests (mainly essay questions) and 2 five-page papers and 1 longer paper or 2 essay tests, 3 smaller papers and 1 longer paper. The final intensive Senior year required a 30-60 page paper and a 30 minute (1 hour?) panel presentation and defense of paper.  I attended a tiny liberal arts college, so the history department was only 3-4 professors. I got to know who used what format and planned accordingly; I would take one class with the prof who used 3 tests and another with the other prof who used 4 to space everything out. 

 

All that said, I graduated with some students whose writing skills were less than stellar. We didn't have a writing lab or anything like that back in the stone age; I know schools have come a long way in accommodations and tutoring. 

Edited January 20, 2017 by beckyjo

[Mom22ns]

I think you have to let him figure out his major.

 

One thing to consider is if it's possible for him to take a longer approach to college. Obviously, this is a huge financial consideration. However, my niece went into college planning to take 5 years she did a few 12 credit semesters, summer school (not working) and utilized tutoring at the university. She did very well. She with her dad's help planned it all ahead.

 

This is what ds does. He is taking 12-13 credits/semester and 3 hours each summer. He had some AP, DE, and CLEP credits to pair with that and can still graduate in 4 years with 3 hours to spare lol. He has accommodations approved through disability services, but has chosen not to utilize them. He feels like he has to adjust to a world without accommodations. Without the accommodations, he just can't do more than 12 hours at a time. There are some accommodations that might change that, but he is doing very well on his chosen path and likes feeling he is doing it without help.

[klmama]

Just as a side note, you might find these articles interesting as you start some Career Exploration, esp. in areas focusing on his interest in History:

 

Historical Association: "Careers in History"

Business Insider: High Paying Jobs for People Who Love History"

 

Good luck! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

I read the "high paying jobs" one, and I wanted to caution everyone that the median salary of those specific jobs may be high, but that's because of those working many years in the field.  Also, the number of openings available in those fields is low compared to the number of people majoring in those areas.  I've known very talented people who either couldn't find work in their field at all or they ended up earning minimum wage for their "dream job."  I've known a couple who got a professor position which was one of only a few openings nation-wide that year in their field, and they were chosen over several hundred other applicants who ended up doing who-knows-what.  I've known very bright people with PhDs in the liberal arts who ended up driving cabs and delivering newspapers.  So, please take what the article says with a grain of salt and do a lot more research.  

Edited January 20, 2017 by klmama

[Lori D.]

I read the "high paying jobs" one, and I wanted to caution everyone that the median salary of those specific jobs may be high, but that's because of those working many years in the field.  Also, the number of openings available in those fields is low compared to the number of people majoring in those areas.  I've known very talented people who either couldn't find work in their field at all or they ended up earning minimum wage for their "dream job."  I've known a couple who got a professor position which was one of only a few openings nation-wide that year in their field, and they were chosen over several hundred other applicants who ended up doing who-knows-what.  I've known very bright people with PhDs in the liberal arts who ended up driving cabs and delivering newspapers.  So, please take what the article says with a grain of salt and do a lot more research.  

 

Thanks for that excellent reminder klmama -- I think it's actually a good reminder for *many* career fields these days, with the huge changes the economic downturn has created in many career areas. :)

 

I mostly was linking the articles for ideas that were a little "outside the box" -- to explore possible careers and spark ideas of work that might not require a History major/degree, but would be appealing to someone with a high interest in History. :)

Edited January 20, 2017 by Lori D.

[elegantlion]

I'm a history major, there is a lot of reading and writing. I know my son who hates to writes does well in writing classes because he is logical and concise. My son is not a history major though. At my school the survey level courses have less reading and analysis, then there is a historiography course to learn HOW to research and write. In the upper level courses, it escalates. Our upper level papers average between 10-25 pages with various shorter writings. Depending upon the professor, subject, and week, readings can vary from manageable to intense on a weekly basis. I'm at a lower tier state school. I tend to not recommend history for people who are writing phobic. However, I agree that if someone is interested enough a lot of obstacles can be overcome. We have a history professor who is dyslexic and know about 7 languages.

 

If he likes studying world topics, he might consider geography. I have been surprised at the diversity of geographic studies. I'm not sure of the writing level of geography overall, but I don't think it's as much as history. 

[Guest]

Interestingly, today when I was filling out something with DS for ACT, he brought up the history major thing. He shyly said, "You're not wrong; I do think I would love a History major...but I think I will die over the writing and reading." I tried to think of some other things that are similar, but I think they still have the same drawback. I said maybe Political Science, Public Policy or some other government or law enforcement type of studies. But I'm not all that knowledgeable about this at present, either. Oh! i did just remember there is a Homeland Security major, that might be something I could look at, or Cybersecurity (he likes computers and technology as well). We do live in an optimum part of the country for government and security employment (in Maryland, in D. C. Metro area.

[Guest]

Look at Norwich University's cyber major. And check out GenCyber. FREE NSA cyber camps! https://www.gen-cyber.com/about/

That's pretty amazing! Thank you so much for that!

[Hilltopmom]

It was an amazing week for dd. We didn't realize that they had them all over the US--the only one I knew about was Norwich's. The plane fare was $$ but she ended up with the Presidential Scholarship from it all!

OH, I keep meaning to ask you about how it went. Ds wants to apply this year & we're very close to Norwich, but the description on their website sounded juveline to him, I think. (Scavenger hunts, etc)

[Hilltopmom]

On another note- if he's into history, there's also Museum Studies and living history.

 

Is he interested in historical re enacting (so many time periods to choose from)? Groups are always looking for new members who love history, but it's an expensive hobby. We love it though :)

 

Secondary Education & history?

[Mark]

Maybe he should try out the class. You'll never know if he doesn't at least try, and you certainly don't want regrets. I believe most schools have an option where you can drop an AP class within the first 2 months without any problems, so if he hates it he could always drop.

 

Speaking from personal experience, I took AP US History my junior year and dropped it because the workload was insane. I was staying up until 4am some days to finish reading chapters, and we had reading quizzes every week. I hated it.

I took AP Government my senior year, and I really liked it. There was reading and reading quizzes, but not as much as the AP US history class. Also, there were no essays or writing (because the AP test doesn't have any essays).

 

It really depends on the teacher. It's quite possible that if I had gotten another teacher my junior year, I wouldn't have dropped the course. I recommend he tries it out and sees if he likes it. 

[AFwife Claire]

 

I took AP Government my senior year, and I really liked it. There was reading and reading quizzes, but not as much as the AP US history class. Also, there were no essays or writing (because the AP test doesn't have any essays).

 

 

Just a quick note to say that the AP gov exam definitely has essays now--4 free response questions in 1 hour, 40 minutes, worth 50% of the grade.  Also, the exam is in the process of being redesigned right now.  The new exam will first be given the 2018-2019  school year.

[Jennay]

this came to mind while reading your thread..

http://www.stevenson.edu/academics/undergraduate-programs/public-history/

[elegantlion]

this came to mind while reading your thread..

http://www.stevenson.edu/academics/undergraduate-programs/public-history/

Public History programs are generally housed in the regular history department. A quick look at required classes on your link, shows a large number of regular history courses, so still writing and reading intensive. A public History degree teaches you how to apply that knowledge differently, those designed for the public, but a similar knowledge base is needed.

[MomsintheGarden]

Just a quick note to say that the AP gov exam definitely has essays now--4 free response questions in 1 hour, 40 minutes, worth 50% of the grade.  Also, the exam is in the process of being redesigned right now.  The new exam will first be given the 2018-2019  school year.

 

Thanks for the head's up about the change.  I am thinking about having my four youngest study for the AP Gov exam next year.  I know they need to update, but I dislike having to keep up with the changes when I have materials for the old exam on my shelf.

[Guest]

On another note- if he's into history, there's also Museum Studies and living history.

 

Is he interested in historical re enacting (so many time periods to choose from)? Groups are always looking for new members who love history, but it's an expensive hobby. We love it though :)

 

Secondary Education & history?

I have offered that but he claims to "hate kids." I do think he has tremendous regard for his high school history teacher (B&M school). I can imagine him doing exactly what this favorite teacher does, but I don't think DS sees that as a possibility right now.