it's not right [school]

[clio]

you guys know about APs right? It stands for Advanced Placement. They're college courses given in high school for AP credit/college credit.

here's my dilemma.

last year, some awful people at school told me it was best to take as many honors and APs as possible to boost rank etc. so i did. i took spanish 4 honors with a commitment for Spanish AP Literature senior year.

This year, i'm taking 3 APs and 2 honors. it's driving me nuts. Can i handle it? Yes. But at what cost? Ironically it's NOT the APs i'm having the hassle with, it's spanish. I HATE spanish. I am miserable in that class for SEVERAL reasons, which i will not go into since that'll just turn into a LONG article.

why i don't want to take spanish AP lit...

1. i am miserable. obviously my heart's not in it
2. i don't know spanish really. at least not to be qualified as spanish 4 honors. i took a sample SAT II spanish Lit. i got 2 out of 15. great....
3. all my teacher does it yell at our mistakes. it's not my fault our grades are inflated and i get As and Bs and don't know jack. it's not my fault i didn't learn what i needed to learn in the past
4. this causes me much stress and angst
5. i already have 3 APs, i don't need 4.

i think it's just outright wrong to force a student to take something she does not want to take. i'm not a slacker. i'm not trying to drop a graduation requirement course. i'm trying to drop an AP course, which is considered EXTRA. god, most kids don't take this many APs in the first place, and they want to force me to take four.

there's more awful stuff to this including dangling me last week, telling me i could get out and then shooting my course selection sheet back at me this week saying i can't. and right before spring break too. they want to trap me, so i can't do anything about it. fight the clock. i'm sick and tired of this game. i'm fighting them. and i'm going to win. one way or another.

i just think it's SOOO wrong.

[sillyalien]

It depends on where you want to "lay your hat" after it's all over. If you plan to settle in the lower US then stick with the Spanish. If, however, you plan to travel the world, then French is a better 'langue'. (Europe, Canada ...)

If you plan to set up shop in eastern Europe, then Russian may be a good wild-card. In the latter case you are more than welcome to some free pointers from .... yours truly.

In any case, ..... see where life takes you. Everything happens for a reason and for the better.


~Silly

[timechange]

Look, it's like being in the military, boot camp. They want to break you. All they say should 'fly above your head'. Just ignore your teacher yelling, being nasty or whatever else (within limits). Just study study study. It will end when the semester ends And then you can have a 3 day party and yell in spanish all the 4-letter words you can find!

[clio]

I'm not good at linguistics in general.

I plan to do a CS major and a prelaw minor in college. i'm going to do CS to make money for law school. and after my law career i'm doing politics (local) tech related things.

no need for spanish anywhere man. and if i do need it, i certainly won't learn it from there.

but my complaint lies not within the language but with the way the department handles it. the way the school views it.

[sillyalien]

See if you can get any online credits that the school will recognize.


~Silly

[clio]

Originally posted by timechange
Look, it's like being in the military, boot camp. They want to break you. All they say should 'fly above your head'. Just ignore your teacher yelling, being nasty or whatever else (within limits). Just study study study. It will end when the semester ends And then you can have a 3 day party and yell in spanish all the 4-letter words you can find!

It's not that easy man. I go to Boston Latin School, est. 1635. The president came in January. They est. Harvard University in 1636 for BLS boys to further their education. It's a long line of expecatations and traditions.

If you were in a 5 person class with a mean old woman for a teacher, you wouldn't be able to ignore her and study. and it's not like i can just study study do well on the tests and get a grade. it's a discussion based lit class. everytime i open my mouth i get scolded at for messing some accent up. i tell you, i had a perfect spanish accent at 12. i started spanish when i was 8 years old. after 3 years of hell at my school, i've lost much.

It's a 5 person class. you can't just ignore the woman. and you can't hide.

But I'm protesting the system as well. Last week before the sheets were due, the dept. head told me to see my teacher to get out. I did, explained it to her, and she let me leave. This week they won't. And this week, the dept. head says: "That's not procedure." If it isn't procedure, then why send me on a duck hunt for a few days? Why not just say no to my face last week?

Answer: This is the week before spring break. It goes over spring break, I'm screwed. Time is of the essence in these matters.

They did not realize HOW MANY students wanted to drop this course "commitment" until Friday, when the selections were due. So, NOW they hassle me and reword themselves.

Why do they want to leave? Because it's a miserable horrible course for ALL. Most people want to drop it, that's why. THey can't have a course of 3 people.

There are probably less than 30 kids in SPanish 4 honors who are a part of this "commitment". Many will leave for college, how many does that leave for an AP class? Not many.

They lied to me. They told me today: NO ONE GETS OUT OF SPANISH AP LIT. wrong. i know MANY current seniors who got out of it. but there were still 22 kids who took the course, so no problem. well maybe this year ... wrong again. my friend vivian got out. her mother came up and screamed her head off at the school.

You'd think that a student suicide would wake them up. We had 4 student body deaths within 1 year last year. The school is stupid.

[timechange]

Sounds like a lot of pressure and it probably is. I am not familiar with the Boston tactics but I am sure they are more old-fashioned than the good old boys in mid-west

Spanish is essential here in Florida (not that I can speak any) and of course California and southern Texas/New Mexico.

The issue with suicides is very alarming; what does the faculty expect, students to do or die???

[jkeller]

Wow, clio; I empathize. I definitely can identify with the load, though I didn't have such a prestigious school.

I think you hit on the answer when you mentioned your friend Vivian's case. I'd recommend involving your parents. Now. They are the ultimate authority over you, and as the adults responsible for you, the school will have to listen to them.

"Procedure" or no, there are still some very evident concerns -- both on your part and in general. Come in with your mother or father and have a meeting with a decision-maker in the school. It really doesn't matter who: dropping a course is a decision that can be made by administration, if they see fit. But get your parents involved and have them show their support.

The battle here is, like you've said, purely political. If too many students leave the course, the school will be forced the change its plans in some form. They obviously don't want to do that. While it's admirable to want to resolve it yourself, it's clear that it'll take more pressure than what you can offer as "only" a student.

Good luck, and keep us posted.

[DevNull]

It sounds you are stuck with a bad language teacher. You know what they say, those that can, do. Those that can't, teach. Those that can't teach, manage. Wait 'til you get to the work force when you'll get stuck with managers that were not even good enough to teach

Seriously, just pull through, if you can't get out of it, it will be over soon anyway. If life knocks you down, just get up, dust yourself and show them what you are made off by playing their stupid little games to the end. That's what I call constructive stuborness; it got me through my Army years, and it is a skill that once developed comes handy

The truth of the matter is that with a bad teacher there is little chance you will learn any meaningful language skills (not to mention you don't really want to )

[jkeller]

Originally posted by DevNull
Seriously, just pull through, if you can't get out of it, it will be over soon anyway. If life knocks you down, just get up, dust yourself and show them what you are made off by playing their stupid little games to the end. That's what I call constructive stuborness; it got me through my Army years, and it is a skill that once developed comes handy

Normally, I'd agree with you DevNull. I'm currently doing it as our company decides when (not if) our office will be closed. French laws what they are, it's impossible to resign now and still renew my work visa this July. So I have to wallow through the morass.

But in clio's case, she has a potentially major problem: should she be forced to continue this (essentially optional) course, she risks her GPA. And GPA makes a big difference when taken in the context of advanced-level courses. Big-time colleges (which I have the impression she's applying to) look at things like that and don't like "I had to sit it out" as an excuse.

This is one time when I think pulling rank (i.e., parental units) is the best bet.

BTW: a friend here, who of course served the standard French tour of duty, told me a great waiting game philosophy. Essentially, it's "wait to carry out the order until it's receinded by higher authority and you'll never get into trouble."

[tribby]

You should do what I do... just take the two easiest AP classes... Studio Art AP and Computer Science AP

I am a slacker, and I have a 4.25 GPA to show for it. The system works!

[twcinpa]

Sounds like an interesting learning experience. Given your own goals, I can understand the frustration.

There are at least two potential issues. First, the school may have good reason to feel Spanish is important for your education but is not communicating that well.

Second, the school's objectives may be determined by factors not related to you. Your not the first person this has happened to.

Nevertheless, this IS apparently something important to them, and they have influence on your future.

You have an interesting dilemma. Fight the tide or go with the flow. Most of us have to deal with bureaucracy and organizations. Sooner or later we have to learn how to deal with them. This may be an opportunity to experiment.

Although this is a more trivial issue, a good friend of mine relates that in junior high school he was asked to fill in a form of his life's aspirations. It wasn't anything he thought worth taking very seriously, but he listed his preferences in order: baseball pitcher, basketball point guard, football tight end.

My friend, a gifted student, tells how concerned school administrators invited him into the guidance office (or whatever it was called at the time) and expressed their concern. With disappointment they asked, "What about Doctor or Lawyer?"

My friend relates how he realized his answers were having an impact on the school administration. He tells how this was the first time he realized what someone says and how they say it can alter a situation. He mentioned Doctor and lawyer were OK, but that he wanted to continue his involvement with school sports. This seemed to be OK to the school administration, as long as Doctor and lawyer were listed on the form.

The form meant nothing to him but it was clear it was very important to the school administration. Since he had no objection to Doctor and lawyer, and it was becoming clear it would keep some people happy, he said, "That would be nice too." and changed his answers.

The school was happy, he thought the whole thing silly, and with the support of the school continued to go out for all the sports he could.

He got what he wanted, and apparently so did the school administration, it's just that the path wasn't as clear as might have been expected. But, he did learn to appreciate the interaction between people and how understanding the other person's objectives can be important, and that what he did could influence the outcome.

Alas, the physical skills were not there for my friend. Today, he remains a phenomenal sports fan, as well as a nationally known Psychiatrist.

[clio]

Originally posted by jkeller
But in clio's case, she has a potentially major problem: should she be forced to continue this (essentially optional) course, she risks her GPA. And GPA makes a big difference when taken in the context of advanced-level courses. Big-time colleges (which I have the impression she's applying to) look at things like that and don't like "I had to sit it out" as an excuse.

My GPA wouldn't really suffer. Adding a 4th AP would actually bring my GPA up next year. Ever heard of grade inflation at Harvard? Some of our masters are just as bad. I have a 4.4 GPA. Stripped of my current Honors requirement for this year's spanish, I would still be at least a 4.2 or so. I don't need the GPA. I'm well over 4 and that's what I'm concerned with.

And if I did take the spanish AP, i would get at least a B, guaranteed.

btw, I'm taking honors spanish and getting a B. i could have been taking regular spanish and getting an A+. THAT's not right. In the end, I come out with nothing from both courses. Thus, the whole credit system in this dept. is flawed.

Tribby, I'm not a slacker. And I don't take courses to get credit. If I did, I wouldn't be fighting. I'm taking courses that will allow me to make the most of it.

The horrible woman didn't call my father today as directed. And apparently she was in a bad mood and very busy today hidden throughout the day, as the guidance director could not find her to speak with her on my behalf. My parents aren't the only ones involved.

I don't know what I can do. *sigh*
My spring break is going to BITE.

All I have is tomorrow.

[tribby]

But isn't the honors B weighted so it's worth just as much as an A+ in a regular class?

[clio]

B in honors is 3.5
A+ in reg. is 4.3

man, who's been doing YOUR GPA? LOL