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Replies to: Parents of the HS Class of 2017
The holistic approach helps a bit. Our D1's LAC counts grades, rank and test scores as only 20% of the total admission value; the rest is courses taken in HS, interview, recommendations, essays and ECs. The numeric values clearly must be high enough to indicate future academic success, but are far from being a single most important criterion.
I think the fairest thing might be to not weight anyone's GPA, but also to look at level of rigor and class rank when making a decision.
Early? Late?
I'm sure it's not perfect but I don't see it going anywhere anytime soon! I suppose all we can do is ask our kids to do their best.
My kid goes to bed around 10:00, and gets up around 6:45. I think he could do with a little more sleep, but we never manage to get everything done before then.
Seems though its not too far off... They didn't go to bed till 930 tonight anyway.
I also have a 28 yo son and an 8th grade daughter, the only child of my "second life". She is biracial and you may have seen me on other threads when racism comes up as a topic. Waving hi to CuriousJane!
D goes to a 6-12 school with the goal of getting kids of color into college and STEM careers, if that's what they want. It's a small public school with foundation support, project-based learning, and a college/career/family engagement coordinator to help all the kids make it into college with the funding they need. We love, love, love it there.
There are no AP classes, but access to Running Start, where the kids can take community college classes at no cost, the ability to work at your ability level, whatever that is, and math that starts at algebra in 8th grade. The kids do internships, can go on science trips to Costa Rica and Puget Sound sailing expeditions, and so much more.
Every senior has been accepted to multiple colleges.
So, we don't have to sign up for anything-I don't want to make this too long, but I'll get specific if anyone wants to know more details.
D is very driven-she wants to teach low-income minority kids and began volunteering last summer at a camp for such children.She had some bad experiences in elementary school both with teachers and students and wants to make life better for others who look like her. She will do the same volunteer job this summer-she has continued with the after school program they have. She will also spend a week in Eastern WA at a summer camp for gifted kids. She went last year and loved it so much she's offered to help pay this summer.
As for college, D has a plan. She intends to attend an HBCU, beginning a year early, combining her senior year of HS with her freshman year in college. One of the seniors did that a couple of years ago, so we know her school is ok with that. Most of the colleges on her list allow it, if your scores and grades are high enough. I can't wait to see what she ends up doing! She's my "baby", my surprise kiddo who has been in a hurry since she was born. She makes me feel old and young at the same time.
But it's good to know there are other parents with 8th graders here- Your d sounds like a great kid!
I'm always impressed with how self confident your daughter is, and given that I'm a special educator working in an urban setting, I have to admire her choice of path. Now, you just need to convince her that what she really wants to do is teach low-income minority kids with disabilities, and I'll be perfectly happy!
CuriousKid definitely doesn't have the talks about a lot of different things, but there are some recurrent themes in recent times.
Stage manager/Technical Director/Lighting Designer
FBI agent
Judge
Egyptologist/Archeologist
Younger one says engineer. We've countered orthopedic surgeon and he's not biting.
(Yes we're both doctors and no we won't force the issue! Although I could see s19 as an orthopod. He has the right personality and aptitudes.)
I've always heard the stereotype that doctors try to talk their kids out of following in their footsteps.
My brother loved Dirty Harry. He spent his teenage life rolling around the floor pretend to shoot the imaginary bad guys. Now he is a police lieutenant.
I hope our kids' high school lives will not be spent just to pursue the college acceptance. They should get involved in what they love and from those activities they will find out what colleges are suitable. Not the other way around ...
I have pictures of my 8th grader "teaching" her stuffed animals when she was a toddler-from the moment she started preschool she enjoyed helping the other kids with their work-and now she's running an afterschool classroom for K-1 kids. She loves it and the experiences are coming her way. She'd do it even if she didn't want to teach, not because it will help her resume.
Yes that is a stereotype I have heard as well! I guess we like our jobs well enough that it hasn't held true for us yet. Maybe we'll change our minds in the future- we'll have to see what happens.
I think that's what the advice "be yourself, find your passions" boils down to... and I think that's the message I'm taking to heart from the threads. Why are you going to kill yourself to be miserable? Life is too short...
Now if only there were jobs for people to build lego models all day, my younger son would be completely happy.