not getting his 2 years of high school language

[DawnM]

Ok, this is really just a vent at this point, since:

 

A: He hasn't gotten his scores back yet

 

and

 

B:  I haven't spoken to the school yet (waiting for scores)

 

Long story short:

 

My 11th grader went to a charter school last year.  They required 22 credits to graduate.  He finished 10th grade with 12 credits as it had a 6 period day.

 

This year he opted for the local PS.  They require 26 credits to graduate as they offer block scheduling, so the possibility of 8 credits per year.

 

Fine, that just means he will have a full load his senior year instead of only a few classes.  We weren't thrilled, but it is what it is.

 

But now comes the sticky part.  He took Spanish 1 last year.  He didn't have a good teacher.  The *real* teacher left after 3 months (she was good) and they had a long term sub in there the rest of the year who gave them worksheets but didn't really speak Spanish at all.  Fine, he did his best, tried to learn on his own, etc....

 

He just stepped into Spanish 2 this 2nd semester.  The teacher ONLY speaks Spanish, he can't understand her at all, and she says she is giving a test today or Mon and if the kids don't pass it, they can't be in her Spanish 2 class.

 

OY!  And honestly, taking Spanish 1 again isn't an option since he needs the credits and cant' get double credits for the same class. And Spanish 1 is offered at the time he has to take something else, so it isn't an option at all.

 

I plan to ask the school if he can do it online (through the district) for credit or what his options are because not taking 2 years of the same language means he does not qualify for any of the state colleges in our state.

 

Surely they can do something for him????

 

This is just one more reason to add to my list of "why don't you go to the community college for dual enrollment" plea.

 

Thanks for listening.  If you have any other suggestions, please bring them on.  

 

Homeschooling is no longer an option.

A tutor would help, but not enough it doesn't seem if the class really is way above his head.

I am told summer classes are ONLY for credit recovery from failing, not just open for anyone to take.

 

 

[Julie of KY]

Uugh. So sorry.

It sounds like you already know your options, but so sorry you are in this bind. I don't really have any new suggestions after I reread your post.

 

 

[Arcadia]

He just stepped into Spanish 2 this 2nd semester. The teacher ONLY speaks Spanish, he can't understand her at all, and she says she is giving a test today or Mon and if the kids don't pass it, they can't be in her Spanish 2 class.

...

I am told summer classes are ONLY for credit recovery from failing, not just open for anyone to take.

If his Spanish 2 teacher really carries out her threat to drop students who failed the test from her class, those students would be eligible for summer credit recovery because the teacher is effectively giving those students a fail grade.

[DawnM]

If his Spanish 2 teacher really carries out her threat to drop students who failed the test from her class, those students would be eligible for summer credit recovery because the teacher is effectively giving those students a fail grade.

 

 

I hope that is the case.  I will def. be fighting for it.

[Guest2]

Is it possible to do concurrent enrollment or dual enrollment CC Spanish 1 &2 classes for senior year? Our public schools have both DE and AP classes, but I suppose you could do twice a week evening or Saturday classes. Sorry that happened!

[Schadenfreude]

Do they offer another foreign language? He would get the credit for both classes and still be able to do 2 years of the new language.

[Garga]

Evening Spanish classes at a college?

 

[Corraleno]

Can he do Spanish at the CC over the summer? Or is there an accredited online HS class he could do over the summer and transfer it to the PS?

 

[DawnM]

He got the test back.  He did not pass.  He said the teacher told all the students she would be emailing them this weekend.  We will be looking at our options.

 

I honestly don't think he could handle a dual enrollment class at the same time/nights on top of a full load of high school.  This HS is quite academically challenging for him and the local CC is 30 min. each way, plus would be at least 2 nights per week, so it would take about 6 hours of driving and class and an additional amount of time studying,  AND you have to have permission first.    If he were really strong academically and able to handle it, I would say maybe, but I honestly don't think he can do that.  This is the kid who needs a full 8 hours to sleep a night, and takes double the time to do his homework.

 

I will see what the Spanish teacher says and go from there.

 

The only other class offered is Mandarin, and he says he thinks Spanish is hard enough.

 

He told me he would rather just take Spanish 1 over again, in a more challenging environment, even if it doesn't "count."  that way he will be fully prepared for Spanish 2 next year and get his 2 years in.

 

Thanks for all the sympathy and suggestions.

[Lanny]

I wish I had a simple solution for this problem, but I don't. If he is weak in Spanish 1, he was not ready for Spanish 2, and I understand about the Spanish 1 teacher leaving and the replacement being weak in Spanish.  Spanish 1 is the  foundation and he is weak there and this will not fly.  Not his fault, because of the teacher change in Spanish 1.  The Charter school only requiring 22 credits, was, IMO, very lax.  My DD needs a minimum of 26 credits to graduate, as your DS does now.  Depending upon what the email from the Spanish 2 teacher says, I think that you should contemplate  discussing this issue with your son's Counselor,  Monday morning.  The school probably has some motivation from the state for your DS to graduate on time.  Possibly they can come up with a possible solution.  There are IMO, a lot of Instructors teaching courses, when they do not understand the subject and/or know how to teach it. The second teacher your son had for Spanish 1 apparently fit into that group.  Horribly common... Are there any other students who are in the same shoes with your DS after having been in that Spanish 1 course?

 

Chinese is, from my understanding, one of the hardest languages in the world to learn.  If your son has an interest in working in Intelligence, etc., that language, like Russian and some others, is in big demand.  There is a much bigger chance that he will  use the Spanish language during his life.  

[Jean in Newcastle]

Did he do any foreign language in his years of homeschooling?  Could he test out of that requirement in a language? 

[Lanny]

@DawnM    I just reread the OP.  The first time I read it, I did not read it correctly. At that time, I thought he had taken Spanish 1 in the Public School he is attending at this time. However, now, I believe he took Spanish 1 in the Charter school. If that's correct,, the bad teacher he had for most of Spanish 1 is not the fault of the school he is in now.  What to do now?  As I suggested earlier, I suggest that  on Monday morning, you try to  talk with his Counselor. If that is not possible, I would try to get an appointment with the Vice Principal, and ask for whatever ideas they might have.  It sounds like he received a "Passing" grade in Spanish 1, but did not actually understand the material. Maybe they graded on a "Curve" and did not use "Rubrics" in grading?  For example, if someone received an 80 in a course, that should indicate they do not understand 20% of the material.  As they go forward, that 20% may be important to them...   My wife suggested looking into Duolingo.

[MarkT]

I'm a little confused about doing Spanish 2 for the second semester.  HS Spanish courses (at least in the states I know) are all full year.  

 

Maybe have him start with 

https://allinonehighschool.com/spanish-1/  

now to prep for Spanish 2 next year.

It's free.

 

Do you have a Spanish speaking friend that would be willing to practice with him on occasion?

[Lanny]

One thing I found, when I was beginning to learn Spanish as an adult, was that it was quite easy to listen to the Audio tapes I'd purchased from the U.S. Government, for military personnel and their families who were going to work/live in Panama.  I learned how to ask questions.  But, when I actually asked questions, in Mexico or Venezuela,  the rapid fire responses showed me that I could not understand anyone speaking that quickly.  In addition to the grammar, being able to write and read Spanish, being able to actually hold a conversation should be the goal.  I have my fingers crossed that DawnM and her DS can work with his brick and mortar public school and come up with a satisfactory solution, so that he can graduate on time and have the necessary courses that the state colleges and universities have listed for High School graduates seeking admission.  It is much easier to learn how to Read Spanish, than it is to actually be able to converse with a native Spanish speaker. After nearly 22 years here, I still speak "Spanglish".  My worst skill is Writing in Spanish, and I avoid that...

[EKS]

It's not necessarily critical that his high school to accept an online course--if the college does, then he's good to go.

 

Another option would be to take Spanish 1 and 2 at a local college.

 

Could he study Spanish 1 online and then do Spanish 2 next year?

[Reefgazer]

Do one year of Spanish at the local community college and submit that to prospective colleges.

Ok, this is really just a vent at this point, since:

 

A: He hasn't gotten his scores back yet

 

and

 

B:  I haven't spoken to the school yet (waiting for scores)

 

Long story short:

 

My 11th grader went to a charter school last year.  They required 22 credits to graduate.  He finished 10th grade with 12 credits as it had a 6 period day.

 

This year he opted for the local PS.  They require 26 credits to graduate as they offer block scheduling, so the possibility of 8 credits per year.

 

Fine, that just means he will have a full load his senior year instead of only a few classes.  We weren't thrilled, but it is what it is.

 

But now comes the sticky part.  He took Spanish 1 last year.  He didn't have a good teacher.  The *real* teacher left after 3 months (she was good) and they had a long term sub in there the rest of the year who gave them worksheets but didn't really speak Spanish at all.  Fine, he did his best, tried to learn on his own, etc....

 

He just stepped into Spanish 2 this 2nd semester.  The teacher ONLY speaks Spanish, he can't understand her at all, and she says she is giving a test today or Mon and if the kids don't pass it, they can't be in her Spanish 2 class.

 

OY!  And honestly, taking Spanish 1 again isn't an option since he needs the credits and cant' get double credits for the same class. And Spanish 1 is offered at the time he has to take something else, so it isn't an option at all.

 

I plan to ask the school if he can do it online (through the district) for credit or what his options are because not taking 2 years of the same language means he does not qualify for any of the state colleges in our state.

 

Surely they can do something for him????

 

This is just one more reason to add to my list of "why don't you go to the community college for dual enrollment" plea.

 

Thanks for listening.  If you have any other suggestions, please bring them on.  

 

Homeschooling is no longer an option.

A tutor would help, but not enough it doesn't seem if the class really is way above his head.

I am told summer classes are ONLY for credit recovery from failing, not just open for anyone to take.

 

[DawnM]

Ok, I guess I was not clear.

 

The charter school had year long courses, 50 min. each, every day, 6 classes per year.

 

His new school has block scheduling, 90 min. each, 4 each semester.  So, the students take 8 classes per year.

 

Each class is considered a full year's worth, but is crammed into one semester, just longer class times.

 

So, yes, he took Spanish 1 the entire year, 50 min per day, but this school you only take one semester in a block that time wise equals one year.

 

 

[DawnM]

Do one year of Spanish at the local community college and submit that to prospective colleges.

 

 

He would need to do it AFTER he graduates, so he would need a full year at the CC, not just a class of Spanish.   The CC is 30 min. each way, 2 classes per week, so roughly 6 hours of time, plus an additional several hours of studying, on top of his job and high school.

 

He is not opposed to staying here his first year of college, rather than going away, but he would like the option of going straight to college.

Edited January 29, 2017 by DawnM

[DawnM]

At this point we are going to try to let him repeat Spanish 1.   He has the time to do it, but it will just mean he will be tight on credits.

 

But it is what he feels the most confident doing.

[DawnM]

I wish I had a simple solution for this problem, but I don't. If he is weak in Spanish 1, he was not ready for Spanish 2, and I understand about the Spanish 1 teacher leaving and the replacement being weak in Spanish.  Spanish 1 is the  foundation and he is weak there and this will not fly.  Not his fault, because of the teacher change in Spanish 1.  The Charter school only requiring 22 credits, was, IMO, very lax.  My DD needs a minimum of 26 credits to graduate, as your DS does now.  Depending upon what the email from the Spanish 2 teacher says, I think that you should contemplate  discussing this issue with your son's Counselor,  Monday morning.  The school probably has some motivation from the state for your DS to graduate on time.  Possibly they can come up with a possible solution.  There are IMO, a lot of Instructors teaching courses, when they do not understand the subject and/or know how to teach it. The second teacher your son had for Spanish 1 apparently fit into that group.  Horribly common... Are there any other students who are in the same shoes with your DS after having been in that Spanish 1 course?

 

Chinese is, from my understanding, one of the hardest languages in the world to learn.  If your son has an interest in working in Intelligence, etc., that language, like Russian and some others, is in big demand.  There is a much bigger chance that he will  use the Spanish language during his life.  

 

 

But their structure was such that you couldn't get 26 credits.  They offered 6 classes per year, so a total of 24 would be the max you could even get.

[MarkT]

But their structure was such that you couldn't get 26 credits.  They offered 6 classes per year, so a total of 24 would be the max you could even get.

AZ State U reqs for example:

Freshman applicants who possess a high school diploma and meet the following requirements will be admitted to ASU.

English - 4 years (composition/literature based)

Math - 4 years (algebra I, geometry, algebra II and one course requiring algebra II as a prerequisite)

Laboratory Science - 3 years total (1 year each from any of the following areas are accepted: biology, chemistry, earth science, integrated sciences and physics)

Social Science - 2 years (including 1 year American history)

Foreign Language - 2 years (same language)

Fine Arts - 1 year

Social Science

2 units/years

One unit of American history; one additional unit from: (European/world history, economics, sociology, geography, government, psychology, anthropology)

minimum total of 22.0 credits

======================

26 is the high side,  usually just means more fluff courses

[MarkT]

At this point we are going to try to let him repeat Spanish 1.   He has the time to do it, but it will just mean he will be tight on credits.

 

But it is what he feels the most confident doing.

Seems a shame to repeat if he just wants to check that box but if he has any interest it is probably worth it

 

my DS had a similar Spanish experience at is B&M charter but he just wanted to check that box (done)

[MarkT]

Ok, I guess I was not clear.

 

The charter school had year long courses, 50 min. each, every day, 6 classes per year.

 

His new school has block scheduling, 90 min. each, 4 each semester.  So, the students take 8 classes per year.

 

Each class is considered a full year's worth, but is crammed into one semester, just longer class times.

 

So, yes, he took Spanish 1 the entire year, 50 min per day, but this school you only take one semester in a block that time wise equals one year.

thanks for clarifying -  I really don't like the block schedule approach for HS - cramming is a good descriptor

[historically accurate]

Can he repeat Spanish 1 (fall semester) & add Spanish 2 (spring semester) next year? Then this current semester, add a different class for the dropped Spanish 2. And then do a cc course over the summer for that repeated Spanish 1 class credit. Kind of depends on what he needs for credits.

 

Do homeschool Spanish this semester (no credit) and see if he can jump into Spanish 2 fall of next year? 

 

That's a hard one. I hope you get it all figured out.

 

 

[katilac]

At this point we are going to try to let him repeat Spanish 1.   He has the time to do it, but it will just mean he will be tight on credits.

 

But it is what he feels the most confident doing.

 

It sounds like probably the best idea. 

[DawnM]

AZ State U reqs for example:

Freshman applicants who possess a high school diploma and meet the following requirements will be admitted to ASU.

English - 4 years (composition/literature based)

Math - 4 years (algebra I, geometry, algebra II and one course requiring algebra II as a prerequisite)

Laboratory Science - 3 years total (1 year each from any of the following areas are accepted: biology, chemistry, earth science, integrated sciences and physics)

Social Science - 2 years (including 1 year American history)

Foreign Language - 2 years (same language)

Fine Arts - 1 year

Social Science

2 units/years

One unit of American history; one additional unit from: (European/world history, economics, sociology, geography, government, psychology, anthropology)

minimum total of 22.0 credits

======================

26 is the high side,  usually just means more fluff courses

 

Yes, this is our NC requirement as well, which is why he is thinking if he repeats Spanish 1, he will still have time for Spanish 2 next year.

 

 

[DawnM]

Can he repeat Spanish 1 (fall semester) & add Spanish 2 (spring semester) next year? Then this current semester, add a different class for the dropped Spanish 2. And then do a cc course over the summer for that repeated Spanish 1 class credit. Kind of depends on what he needs for credits.

 

Do homeschool Spanish this semester (no credit) and see if he can jump into Spanish 2 fall of next year? 

 

That's a hard one. I hope you get it all figured out.

 

 

Summer class would be hard.  We really need to be gone 3 weeks this summer and go see my parents on the West Coast.  My mom is not doing well health wise.  And we want to do some college tours back there, as we are *possibly* considering moving back in 2018.

[swimmermom3]

Dawn, I would suggest contacting Ray Leven

 

Ray can do a Skype assessment of where your son is really at and then make suggestions from there.  He could tutor your son until he is ready to take Spanish 2.  My ds spent 2.5 years with Ray and was really pleased, especially as Ray emphasizes conversation skills.  If I remember right, private tutoring runs about $80 an hour, but was well worth it.  Classes are more cost effective and still fairly small with about 4-5 students in them.