What credits can I call these classes?

[ShayChristie]

Nathaniel is taking two classes at the high school tech center this year. They do not give credit, such as a transcript, to hs students. All students do get a certificate of completion and any related certificates they may have earned. In the spring, Nathaniel took the EMT class and since it was 5 college credits(which he got a certificate from the college), I counted it as two high school credits on his transcript(1 in Health and 1 in science as Anatomy and Physiology).

This year, he will be taking Building Construction, which will be a bit over 350 hrs and will be getting 3 college credits. I think I could count that as 2 high school credits, but am not sure if I should just put it under Electives or if you can think of some sort of "academic" credit under math, science, social science, whatever... I'm thinking I should be able to pull a math credit out, but what would I call it? "Practical(or Applicable) Geometry"?

Also, he will be taking Forestry and Wood Harvesting. It will also be about 350 hrs or slightly higher and be worth 7 college credits, as well as possibly earning certifications in CPR and First Aid(which he already has), Tractor Safety, and CLP Apprenticeship. I am definitely counting a science credit in "Forestry/Silvaculture", but can you think of another possible credit besides just listing it under Electives?

Thanks for your help!

[MAC]

You could give one credit under math the the Building Construction--perhaps Applied Geometry. And a credit of elective, but the real question is--how many elective credits does he already have? You don't want it to look like you're padding things. The other thing to think about, is that most colleges are not going to accept that as his necessary 3 math credits. Most states now require 3 years of math, Algebra I and HIGHER.

I wouldn't give credit for CPR and FA if he already has his EMT.

On the Forestry--I'd give a credit in Botany/Forestry. Are you taling semester college credits or quarter credits? 7 credits seem awfully high for semester credits. Remember that labs don't count as much time-wise as classroom, usually. When you say he will be getting 3 college credits, does he actually have a transcript for those? I'm confused. No transcript, he's not actually getting college credit.

[ShayChristie]

He most likely will not be going to college. There is a slight chance, but if so, it would be after a few years of comm college as he would need some remedial work, mostly in maths. We're STILL working our way through Algebra 1, a source of great frustration to him.

So far, he has:
2 English credits(1 yr of mechanics and world literature and 1 yr of composition and American literature
2 Maths( Pre-Algebra and Consumer Math)
2 Science(Biology and Anatomy&Physiology)
2.5 Social Studies(World History, American History, Government)
1 Health
2 Physical Education
2 Fine Arts(Piano and Guitar)
2.5 Electives(Bible and Logic).

The state minimum is:
* Four credits of English
* Two credits of mathematics
* Two credits of science (One unit must come from a laboratory course)
* One credit of social studies
* One credit of U.S. History
* One credit of physical education
* One credit of fine arts
* 0.5 credit of computer skills
* 0.5 credit of health education
* 4.5 credits of electives

So, to meet the minimum, he still needs 2 English, .5 computer skills and 2 more electives. For college prep, he would obviously need more. We're aiming for a middle ground. More than the absolute minimum, but I'm not sure how close to college prep he'll get.

Math is a HUGE stumbling block for him. I'm actually calling next week about a tutor. We've been working on the Key to Algebra series since last September and he's only halfway through. We've tried MUS Algebra as well and only got to the 4th or 5th lesson before he couldn't go any further. sigh.. He did MUS Pre-Algebra, then Stewardship, tried MUS Algebra and we went back to Pre-Algebra with LoF. Now we're in Key to Algebra, which I know is Alg-lite, but if it can give him some basic understanding, I'm okay with that!

For the credits he earned last time, he had to fill out an enrollment form from the college and was given a certificate at the end. I guess I would have to check to see if he has a transcript available from them. I'm not as worried about the college credits as I'm using them as an indicator of the work level. I wasn't sure about giving two credits for the EMT class, but dh is the one who pointed out that ds earned 5 college credits, so surely it would be worth 2 high school credits. I spoke with the Student Services director and she agreed with dh that all of their classes are worth 2 high school credits.

Ds is of the mind he'd really like to go to a trade school, so while college credits would be nice(and I will check into them for more info), they are not the main goal of the classes. High school credit and finding something for him to do well in and that he enjoys is!

Sorry for the book and thanks for helping me figure this out!