<p>I can’t say I can tell much about the student from your posts, but you seem pretty stressed out yourself. I’m thinking of taking up chanting myself. or drinking.</p>
</i>
<p>Garland, you made a great point. I should have included the fact that a drop down to a lower class was possible. I apologize for leaving that out in my original post as that was an important piece of information in the situation.</p>
<p>Mini, the class curriculum is definitely worth learning. The way that the instruction is delivered may not be optimal, but sometimes that’s life. And you are right, I would not ask the question other than about HYP and the like, which is why I asked the question! There’s no doubt in my mind that many great schools will be viable options (I believe I said that earlier) it’s just that it’s early to rule out HY or P as a junior. Frankly, I think it’s early to rule anything out. For all I know, we may visit the school and that may be the end of it … an application may not even be in the cards. </p>
<p>I have been reading these boards regularly for a long while and so has my child (though only from time to time as there is not time!) We are both well aware of the lottery effect (call it what you will) being a reality. We’ve discussed it often. I’ve read about many well-qualified young people not getting in. I also believe that things have a way of working out for the best … which is truly evidenced by a post that TheDad started a while back after ED decisions came out and many applicants were devastated.</p>
<p>Does my child really believe that there’s not much of a shot at HYP? Probably not. Do most of the very qualified young people who apply? Probably not. I am more realistic. Then again, I am not seventeen with dreams. My child was worried that this could shatter the dream, right now, for good. And yes, you are perceptive in that, right or wrong, that information was the information received by the child, which is why I asked the question!</p>
<p>I don’t think that “Do you want fries with that?” is in the cards. (Well… maybe for a part-time job someday, who knows.) One of the purposes of this board is to gather information. I am pleased that so many well-respected posters have responded. Thank you.</p>
<p>Berurah: It was very clear from your post that neither you or your son blamed the teacher for his grade. English is about as subjective as it gets … he did so well and that .1 difference can be so frustrating for a student. Your son is to be commended for staying the course.</p>
<p>I’m glad that I was clear in my post…it’s hard to determine how you come across in writing sometimes! </p>
<p>Ironically, I think that even the teacher herself thought we would blame her! I say this because when I saw her at Open House the next year, the first words she said to me were, “I’m surprised I didn’t hear from you after the B+!” I told her that I knew there was nothing to say about it except for the fact that S would be trying that much harder this year!</p>
<p>I totally relate to what you said here:</p>
<p>“Does my child really believe that there’s not much of a shot at HYP? Probably not. Do most of the very qualified young people who apply? Probably not. I am more realistic. Then again, I am not seventeen with dreams.”</p>
<p>I could have written the same thing about my son and me. Nevertheless, I supported him in his desire to “dream big” (hey, SOMEONE’S got to win the lottery, right!?), and I commend you for doing the same for your child.</p>
<p>Berurah, and Twinmom - perhaps that B+ teacher may be the source of the most forceful, meaningful recommendation, your child gets. Just a thought ;).</p>
<p>Why are we still arguing about this? Isnt it obvious, like every single person has pointed out in this thread, that a B will not prohibit you from college? My advice is, if you know your gonna get a B in some class, just sleep through it a few times and slack off on the homework. B+ = 3.0 = B-.</p>
<p>ASAP, Yep. She is awaiting an ED2 decision next week. She had a solid B/B+ going into the final so I suspect that she tanked on the AP test because she had not spent long enough on that material.</p>
<p>I was just disappointed that an AP teacher expects the AP material to be self taught at home, but still uses the AP test as his final. My recollection of my HS was that they really prepared us for the test and did not just go off in their own direction in class.</p>
<p>There is no grade inflation at my D’s school. She has a sprinkle of C’s and Bs and is still about top 15%. (She did have an A in her other AP and a B in accelerated math… unweighted this is a 3 and weighted it is a 3.65.)</p>
<p>SB - A good teacher makes all the difference. Good luck to your daughter. Will the school even see this grade? If the decision is due next week, the grade in this class hopefully won’t matter.</p>
<p>Well, my son gave a great deal of thought to asking her for a rec., but in the end decided that she was a bit off the wall, and it would be chancy. She once came out into the hall to spray my son and his gf with water from a spray bottle when they kissed in the hall before class <em>lol</em>. She’s an exceedingly interesting woman (and my son really likes her as a person), but a bit eccentric and unpredictable. ~berurah</p>
<p>twinmom, I think I know exactly how your child feels. I am a junior and up until now I have received all A’s and A+'s and one A-. This fall I received my first B+ (in AP Bio.). We work on the semester system so that grade is final. I do know that I don’t have to be perfect, and I also know that one B will not make a diffference in where I ultimately end up for college, but it was upsetting for me, and I’m sure it was upsetting for your child as well.</p>
<p>I’m probably fairly bright, but I’m not a genius and I have to work (hard!) for my grades. I worked very hard in Bio and I had an A- going in to the final, but the test was 1 section of mc and 3 essays and I totallly got one of the essays wrong. Oh well, everyone makes mistakes and I certainly won’t make that particular mistake again, but it is upsetting to have this really excellent record and then have one grade that is not quite as good as the others.</p>
<p>My parents told me not to worry, that it’s fine and that they are so proud of how hard I work. I know that they absolutely mean what they say, but I’m not sure that parents really sense how much subtle pressure there is for us to be “perfect.”</p>
or drinking.</p>
</p>