“It’s twice the pace but also half the time, so doesn’t it even out? Eight high school classes per year = eight college classes per year = four college classes per semester for two semesters.” Yes, that is true. But that’s not what the OP’s high school is saying. If the hs has 8 classes per year, they are expecting her to enroll in 8 college classes in the fall and 8 college classes in the spring. 16 college classes in all, not 8, because they evidently don’t understand the difference between a semester-based system and a yearlong system.
@carolinamom2boys I do think some of this might be at work. We saw a falloff in my daughter’s school performance as her unhappiness with school increased.
On a personal level, I found college to be much, much easier than high school, even though it involved more reading and study, and I expect my daughter will feel the same way. I had high school teachers who actually wanted to grade me on my “notes.” I don’t take notes other than a few jotted words, because I can’t listen and write at the same time. In many college classes the only “assignments” are to take two or three tests and a final, which is easy enough. Many high school teachers will wear your life out with busy work.
Not everyone finds college easier than HS. Your challenges in HS might not match hers (just saying, don’t make assumptions).
I’m curious what exactly is making her so unhappy?
Is the work too hard? Boring? Are the teachers not effective?
Is it social things? Does she have friends? Is she being bullied?
Does she do any ECs?
I guess I’m trying to see if you can minimize what is making her unhappy. We pulled my D out her senior year and she completed HS thru an online charter school. It required a lot of self motivation (and truth be told I really helped keep her on track) but it was the best way to get the diploma while dealing with some personal and health issues.
My kids went to the same grade school as my friend (many many years apart). When he attended, he went home for lunch. His mother was a teacher at the school, his father would pick them up, they’d all go home (about 10 blocks), Granny would have a hot lunch for them all, and they’d go back to school for the afternoon. His son, 13 years older than my kids, didn’t go home for lunch. My kids had about 20 minutes to eat, and 2 grades ate in the cafeteria at once, so families couldn’t all go at the same time. Things change.
That ‘new’ Mississippi seems like the policy Earl posted his school is enforcing. To earn ‘one semester’ of college credit while in high school (15 credits), that could be done with 1-2 classes each semester of junior and senior years. Five classes over two years.
Earl, we just cannot compare our experiences umpteen years ago to what’s expected of kids today- and the increased awareness of challenges that stand in the way for some kids. If she has some hurdles, she needs to be viewed as an individual, in her context, what she “truly” needs and what will help.
I’m not sure you made a case yet for leaving this hs. I’m not sure you owe us that. But take care of her, first. Many kids need professional help to uncover and find the right steps/solutions. Many of us have been through this and see the good.
And know what? Sometimes that counselor helps hone in that it IS the hs, not the kid- and that a change will be better.
I had friends whose daughter hated high school. Their solution was in part to encourage her to do a year abroad program. She spent a total of a year and a half in Ecuador. came home absolutely fluent in Spanish, took summer classes at a local community college - and graduated early. All in all, she only spent a year and a half in the high school she so disliked. If your daughter is so unhappy, and the school isn’t cooperative, maybe at least a semester (if not a full year) abroad is the way to go. Rotary Club programs are inexpensive, and look very, very good on college applications.
Just to follow up, right now we are looking at enrolling my daughter in an online high school. She will actually take most of her classes through dual enrollment, although she may take one online class. If she performs well, she will graduate in May. If not, we have the option of sending her back to the local high school for her senior year. At that point, they WILL let her only take two classes at the school and three through dual enrollment. It’s only juniors that they have the power trip over.
Right now my daughter has exactly a 3.5 weighted g.p.a., and I’m fairly certain she can bring her ACT up to a 32 this fall, and NMSF is a possibility. So if she does well this fall there are a world of opportunities out there for her, so we’ll just have to see what unfolds.
We have let the genie of early graduation out of the bottle, so I suspect there is no need to discuss the matter any further with our local school. I do not think they will allow a student who begins the year as a junior to graduate, even if all graduation requirements are met. On a personal level, I disliked high school but really liked college, and I suspect my daughter may be the same way.
I don’t know if we could take advantage of dual enrollment as homeschoolers or not, but it’s important to my wife for our daughter to have a “diploma” from a high school, even if it’s an online high school. She is not big on the notion of home schooling at all.
My opinion only.
I think it’s important to understand WHY your daughter hates this HS. Otherwise, it is very possible she will hate the next form of schooling…and the next…and college as well.
If it were me…I would want to get to the root of the issue before making any change.
Earl, my D was in a similar situation. Sending you a pm.
“On a personal level, I found college to be much, much easier than high school, even though it involved more reading and study, and I expect my daughter will feel the same way.”
Maybe it was an easy, non-academically demanding college? We know where you went. You’re kind of walking into this one, EVD 
My D hated HS and loves college. I know others who feel the same way. If the HS was a poor fit and the college is a good fit, I don’t think that’s surprising. Also, HS classes often involve lots of pointless busy work and less interesting discussion based classes. Even in my D’s AP classes, she said there were few students who actually participated in discussions. Her experience at college has been different.
My kid just didn’t like the social scene at her HS. She was an under the radar kid. Loved college where she blossomed.
But we don’t KNOW why @EarlVanDorn DD doesn’t like her HS. Maybe it has nothing to do with class discussions or the like. Maybe it has nothing tondo with social.
Until the reason for the dislike is teased out…it is possible that she will hate the next school environment…and the next…and the next.
My kid just didn’t like the social scene at her HS. She was an under the radar kid. Loved college where she blossomed.
But we don’t KNOW why @EarlVanDorn DD doesn’t like her HS. Maybe it has nothing to do with class discussions or the like. Maybe it has nothing tondo with social.
Until the reason for the dislike is teased out…it is possible that she will hate the next school environment…and the next…and the next.
@thumper1 - I agree it’s important to understand the underlying reasons. In my D’s case, it was both social and academic.
@Pizzagirl It wasn’t that college was easy and non-demanding, rather that the demands tended to be well established in advance and not involve a lot of tedious busy work. A syllabus is generally provided at the first of the semester explaining exactly what is expected, and often listing each assignment and test date. On anything that involves reading, I am generally able to simply read the material and correctly answer any test questions. I had fraternity brothers who would study the same material for hours on end and do terribly. Most of being able to do well in college is being a good reader.
I hated h.s. and loved college too . . . would have loved DE and/or graduating early. But I do think it’s good to hone in on what is going on in any particular situation.
Earl, but it’s about your D now, what she can handle or not, what her profs do or don’t. In addition to handling the present situation, you want to prep her for all the challenges she may hit in college. Then, if it does turn out to be easy, super.
@lookingforward Certainly I’m going to prep by daughter for her college classes. My son took three dual enrollment classes as a ninth grader, and did not take any more until this summer (he is a rising senior). It was really helpful for me to be able to advise him, especially as to how sorry his partners were likely to be on a group project. I really think it would be helpful if all children took their first couple of college classes while living at home, so parents could provide a bit of advice and supervision.
Ok, so this school which is horrible for your daughter is fine for your son? As of post 58 we still have no idea why the daughter is so miserable, the school so unsuitable for her, and why you expect this will all be better if she takes college classes. Of course you don’t have to discuss any of this on public forum, but then you won’t get much useful commentary either.