My D27 is currently choosing classes for 11th grade. She really doesn’t enjoy math (currently in Algebra II) and does not plan to go into any STEM fields. However, we’re thinking she should continue through pre-calc if she wants to have any mid-tier UC options (we are in CA).
Next year she will have a full schedule of other APs (English, APUSH, Environmental) and she has heard (from her two older siblings and others) that AP Stats is a lot easier than precalc for “non-math people.” So she is pondering taking that in 11th while her schedule is heavyiest (and while it counts for UC GPA) and then pushing precalc to 12th grade. People familiar with admissions - will this progression look odd?
This seems unlikely, as right now she is thinking about comparative religions or art history, but I like your optimistic attitude that one day she may like STEM!
I teach APCSA. My math colleagues won’t agree with this opinion. Depends on the school and teacher and the grading policies, some students may earn higher grades in AP stats class than they would in precal class; however, I believe pre-calculas should be taken before AP stats.
There’s a lot of overlap between algebra 2 and precalc, and you’ll lose that bit of more recent familiarity if you put stats in between the two classes. I’d be inclined to do precalc first, and then stats.