Looking for a little reassurance: science, specifically BJU Chemistry on DVDs

[74Heaven]

I was reading a recent high school "science sequence" thread and a poster said (paraphrase) that "chemistry was more abstract then Biology and thus more difficult for many younger, or less science-oriented students."

 

We did Apologia Physical Sci and Biology and one dtr loved both and got As and the other dtr did okay and earned Bs in both. Physical Sci was largely done side-by-side with me and Biology was done halfway with me and then mostly independently for the second half. I oversaw and we did virtually all the labs in both courses. We were extremely thorough in terms of vocab and testing and outlining - and in general we just really made sure we were mastering the subject. Before that we did A Beka in grade 6 and Rainbow Science in grades 7-8. Esp in Rainbow, we really worked hard, outlined virtuallly every lesson on the board, did all the vocab and quizzes and experiments, etc.

 

Now, in chemistry, we are using the DVDs and the dtrs are mostly working independently (still doing the vocab memorization religiously) and yet the science-oriented 9th grader is getting a low "B" and the 11th grader a mid-"C" grade with 2 chapters flunked and repeated. Everything about the course seems to be challenging for them, from the equations to the course content.

 

I am just wondering why we are floundering? Is BJU Chemistry that much more difficult then Biology or Phys Sci - or Apologia? Is BJU Chem that much of a "different animal" then the past sciences we have "mastered"? Is the DVD format a problem? The teacher (everyone raves about the BJU Mr Harmon)?

 

Is the fact that I am not as involved the main problem? I oversee but I don't learn alongside the girls?

 

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

THanks for any ideas.

Lisa

[Ria]

I was reading a recent high school "science sequence" thread and a poster said (paraphrase) that "chemistry was more abstract then Biology and thus more difficult for many younger, or less science-oriented students."

 

We did Apologia Physical Sci and Biology and one dtr loved both and got As and the other dtr did okay and earned Bs in both. Physical Sci was largely done side-by-side with me and Biology was done halfway with me and then mostly independently for the second half. I oversaw and we did virtually all the labs in both courses. We were extremely thorough in terms of vocab and testing and outlining - and in general we just really made sure we were mastering the subject. Before that we did A Beka in grade 6 and Rainbow Science in grades 7-8. Esp in Rainbow, we really worked hard, outlined virtuallly every lesson on the board, did all the vocab and quizzes and experiments, etc.

 

Now, in chemistry, we are using the DVDs and the dtrs are mostly working independently (still doing the vocab memorization religiously) and yet the science-oriented 9th grader is getting a low "B" and the 11th grader a mid-"C" grade with 2 chapters flunked and repeated. Everything about the course seems to be challenging for them, from the equations to the course content.

 

I am just wondering why we are floundering? Is BJU Chemistry that much more difficult then Biology or Phys Sci - or Apologia? Is BJU Chem that much of a "different animal" then the past sciences we have "mastered"? Is the DVD format a problem? The teacher (everyone raves about the BJU Mr Harmon)?

 

Is the fact that I am not as involved the main problem? I oversee but I don't learn alongside the girls?

 

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

THanks for any ideas.

Lisa

 

Lisa,

 

IMO, there's a huge difference between Apologia and BJU. No comparison, really. BJU is what I'd consider to be the standard high school course. Apologia is, at best, science-lite. Others may differ, and do, lol. I was a science major, and I have reviewed Apolgia, BJU, and ABeka for a private Christian school. My top choice for a solid high school program was BJU. My vote for "least academic" was Apologia. Rainbow wasn't even on the radar.

 

Your kids sound like they are doing well in the transitional phase. BJU is great. Stick with it...your kids will be better for it.

 

Ria

[Michelle in MO]

BJU is a great program, Lisa, so if your kids are doing well with it, I would recommend that you stick with it. However, some kids can do very well with Apologia. We used Apologia primarily because its explanations were fairly clear and written to the student, which is something that I honestly needed. Now all three of my girls are in a private high school, and my oldest is in 11th grade doing the very difficult Campbell's Biology: Concepts and Connections (at least, I think that's the name of the text; it's definitely the Advanced Placement Biology course from Campbell's). Her test scores in the class have so far been A+; there's only one other A student in the class, and the rest of the class is really, really struggling with this text. So, I'm not necessarily suggesting that you use Apologia, but I would say that my oldest has transitioned quite well into this Advanced Placement Biology class and this challenging text with the preparation that she had from the science we did at home.

 

Also, I believe Ms. Riding Hood's son was accepted into MIT with a background in Apologia; I believe they did all or almost all of the Apologia texts (Biology, Advanced Biology, Chemistry, Advanced Chemistry, Physics, Advanced Physics, etc.) plus probably some other preparation as well. She had a post on the topic a while back; the thread was entitled HE GOT IN!; here's the page on which she describes how she prepared him.

 

So, yes, BJU is an excellent program---no doubt about it, but there are people who have used Apologia successfully.

 

Good luck in your choice of program!

[Denise in PA]

Lisa:

 

I whole heartedly agree with the previous posts. Having home schooled my teens with Apologia and Bob Jones curriculums I saw differences. With that said I realize each child responds differently to various texts. A few years ago I switched from Apologia to BJU when my children entered the high school stage and saw their test grades fall precipitously in the first few chapters. Yes, it was alarming and disconcerting, but my teens learned how to study more effectively. Studying for BJU tests required note taking, self-quizzing, reviewing daily lessons, and so forth. All in all, they really enjoyed the straight-forward text and colorful pictures in the BJU Biology text (sorry, I have no experience with the BJU CHemistry). After the initial shock of the learning curve trial my kids studied more earnestly and grew to be stronger independent students.

 

I would encourage you to stick with the Chemistry course and DVD lectures while coaching your chidren how to analyze and study more effectively. Remember at the beginning of each school year one hurdle to pass over was to figure how the professor teaches, what does he/she expect to earn the top grade, what do tests entail in terms of degree of difficulty and study time? Switching currculums, at least in my experience, is a similiar process.

 

Best wishes,

Denise

[74Heaven]

we are in chapter 13 (of 19).

 

I'd love to hear from someone who has used Harmon's class on DVD from BJU with a nonscience student. Anyone???

 

If we are progressing in a difficult (or at least a challenging course) then I feel find that we work our tails off (granted, we are not science-saavy). But I'd hate to hear we are missing some key approach or tactic?

 

Thanks again for the encouragement and advice. I don't mind getting Cs and Bs if we are truly being challenged. But I don't want Bs and Cs in science if we are just not approaching it correctly or tenaciously enough!

 

Lisaj