Garga Posted March 4, 2018 Share Posted March 4, 2018 I'm about to ask a question that I feel a little stupid asking: My son will be taking pre-calc in 11th grade. I'm assuming that in 12th grade the next step is to take calculus? The reason why I'm asking is that there are a number (but not all) of online math providers that go up to pre-calc and then stop. Why do they stop? Is calculus just so hard they don't want to teach it? Is it that there aren't enough students taking it to make it worth having a class? Is there something else that high schoolers take instead of calculus? So...I just want to confirm that the next step after pre-calc is calculus, though I feel a little silly asking it. Seeing a bunch of providers top out at pre-calc made me wonder if I'm missing something. (I never went beyond Alg 1, Geometry, and Alg 2 when I was in school, so anything after that is foggy to me.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted March 4, 2018 Share Posted March 4, 2018 Calculus is traditionally after precalc. Another good choice is statistics. I assume there are fewer online calculus classes as there is less demand and some take at community college, etc. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowbeltmom Posted March 4, 2018 Share Posted March 4, 2018 A student would have at least 3 options after pre-calc: Statistics, AP Calc AB (the first semester of a college calc class spread out over an entire year) or AP Calc BC (1st and 2nd semester of college calc) As to why more providers don't offer online calculus...my guess is that the demand for the class is not high enough 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted March 4, 2018 Author Share Posted March 4, 2018 (edited) Ah! So the answer is a bit more complex than just taking calculus. Thank you guys! Edited March 4, 2018 by Garga Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted March 4, 2018 Share Posted March 4, 2018 (edited) Calculus 1 for most students. Some take statistics, but I would guess these would mostly be students who either have plenty of time to still get calc in high school or who don't need calc in college. For a student who needs to take calc1 in college and, to stay on sequence, should place into calc 1 his first freshman semester, calculus 1 would be preferable to have prior exposure. You can do this as AP AB or BC, or as non-AP calc. As for why fewer providers: if you are specifically looking at homeschool highschool providers: student numbers are smaller since many kids don't cover calc in high schoo, and many of those who do will take it as DE at college. But there should be tons of college providers. Edited March 4, 2018 by regentrude 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brendafromtenn Posted March 5, 2018 Share Posted March 5, 2018 Garga, What do you think your rising 11th grader will major in in college? I had two STEM guys who headed to college and so they did Calculus their 12th grade year. However, I had another student who was going to major in dietetics and she didn't need Calculus in college. She only needed College Algebra. So she used her 12th grade year to get College Algebra out of the way at our local community college. Just giving you something else to think about. Brenda 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted March 6, 2018 Author Share Posted March 6, 2018 (edited) Garga, What do you think your rising 11th grader will major in in college? I had two STEM guys who headed to college and so they did Calculus their 12th grade year. However, I had another student who was going to major in dietetics and she didn't need Calculus in college. She only needed College Algebra. So she used her 12th grade year to get College Algebra out of the way at our local community college. Just giving you something else to think about. Brenda Good point. And I have thought of that point. At this time, my son has no clue what he'd like to do. All I know is that anything physical or outdoors is a no-go, as he is more on of an in-door person. And he doesn't seem to enjoy the writing process at all, so Famous Author is out. :) Otherwise, I'm just not sure. So...I need to keep all the doors open for him going forward unless some clear direction comes up in the next year. In the summer between 11th and 12th, maybe we'll try to find some sort of...oh, the words are failing me...some sort of career guidance test to see what sorts of jobs interest him or that he is inclined for. There's a word for what I'm talking about, but I can't think of it right now. I know that taking a test like that doesn't lock someone into a career path, but it might give him a few ideas of what he'd like to do and a direction to explore. Until then, I'm just looking ahead and plotting out the possibilities for 12th grade. I have a feeling my guy won't have a clue what he wants to do until he has to declare a major in college, which makes it hard to know what sort of college to look for in the first place. :) If he had a strong inclination to something or other, I'd know better what math and science to pursue in 12th. (Science...that's another one that I'm not sure what people do for 12th. He'll take physics in 11th and then...?) Edited March 6, 2018 by Garga Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted March 6, 2018 Share Posted March 6, 2018 (edited) For a stem major or an undecided with stem possibilities, I would go calculus for sure. Another option (if he's sure that he isn't going for a stem major) would be to take an applied calculus class and/or stats class at a community college. I offer both because some universities do not count lower-division stats classes for general education (which irks me) and also that way if he chose a major in something like business/accounting he would have the math prerequisite satisfied, but I really think everyone should understand statistics, and some majors require statistics. This decision could be made later. Oh, and I just noticed you said science. If non-stem, environmental science is a possibility, as is picking pretty much any 3-credit class from a CC. If you want to DIY, I'd look at the science for non-majors classes at your local cc and pick a textbook for one of those (you can post here at that time and people can help you find books). If stem is seeming more likely, I'd probably get a head start with a two-semester sequence in a science -- even if it ends up not applying, it'll knock out a gen ed. Edited March 6, 2018 by kiana Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mbelle Posted March 6, 2018 Share Posted March 6, 2018 What differences are there in DE Calculus at a decent college (one that sends many transfers to the Tech College) vs AP Calc? What if my son thinks he'd like to be an automobile engineer and get a degree in engineering and german? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanetC Posted March 6, 2018 Share Posted March 6, 2018 What differences are there in DE Calculus at a decent college (one that sends many transfers to the Tech College) vs AP Calc? If the class is good, the main difference is a grade that typically includes homework, midterm, and final, rather than credit depending on the results of a single test. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quark Posted March 6, 2018 Share Posted March 6, 2018 DE is also usually a semester or quarter long vs a full-year AP class (of course, a student could also self study). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted March 6, 2018 Share Posted March 6, 2018 What differences are there in DE Calculus at a decent college (one that sends many transfers to the Tech College) vs AP Calc? The main difference would be that whether or not he receives credit for the AP test depends solely on his performance on one single exam, whereas he will earn credit for the DE course through multiple assignments and tests and receive credit for any passing grade. This is one of the reasons we have decided against AP exams and rather opted for DE courses. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 (edited) So, since I'm looking at Calculus myself, I thought I'd post the different providers I've found (so far) that offer calculus (some don't offer the AP option). This is not an exhaustive list! Derek Owens (not live) PAHS (both AB & BC) Live: Wilson Hill Academy (Christian) The Potter's School (Christian) HSLDA Online (Christian) Kolbe (Catholic) Bright Ideas Press My Fun Science High School Math Live CLRC (edited to add) So, there really are several options, especially if you don't mind sitting through a prayer at the beginning of class. Edited March 7, 2018 by RootAnn 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkT Posted March 7, 2018 Share Posted March 7, 2018 Good point. And I have thought of that point. At this time, my son has no clue what he'd like to do. All I know is that anything physical or outdoors is a no-go, as he is more on of an in-door person. And he doesn't seem to enjoy the writing process at all, so Famous Author is out. :) Otherwise, I'm just not sure. So...I need to keep all the doors open for him going forward unless some clear direction comes up in the next year. In the summer between 11th and 12th, maybe we'll try to find some sort of...oh, the words are failing me...some sort of career guidance test to see what sorts of jobs interest him or that he is inclined for. There's a word for what I'm talking about, but I can't think of it right now. I know that taking a test like that doesn't lock someone into a career path, but it might give him a few ideas of what he'd like to do and a direction to explore. Until then, I'm just looking ahead and plotting out the possibilities for 12th grade. I have a feeling my guy won't have a clue what he wants to do until he has to declare a major in college, which makes it hard to know what sort of college to look for in the first place. :) If he had a strong inclination to something or other, I'd know better what math and science to pursue in 12th. (Science...that's another one that I'm not sure what people do for 12th. He'll take physics in 11th and then...?) slight tangent but maybe you could encourage your son (over the summer) to start making a list of possible majors and/or list of work/jobs he would find interesting we all changed our minds over the years so make sure you tell him it is just a start He must be liking some "stuff" now over other "stuff" putting on Guidance Counselor hat, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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