Anonymous
Post 11/13/2025 11:19     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:If he can retain the A-, stick with pre-calc. I would take Calc AB next year, then take Calc BC. If humanities major, you will not get dinged for only having completed AB.



That being said, what is your school like? What is the Calc AB participation rate? BC? Is he a junior applying ED next year? If so, first semester grades are not seen so you can throw him into Calc BC and get the gentleman's C. No school rescinds for a C.


what if deferred or rejected ED? lol

And is it true no school rescinds for a C?


This 1000%

My kid was Deferred from their ED1 (a T10 school) and their B- from Calc BC first semester probably did NOT help them for RD (they were eventually rejected). This is from a school that is known to NOT defer many, so a good portion of deferrals do get RD acceptances.

Now my kid went on to get a 5 on the AP test and get As in calc 3 and 4 freshman year at a T40, but BC was hard and their teacher made it rigorous---as a result with over 10 years of stats, 98%+ of their students have gotten 5s and the rest get 4s. So she taught the material well and my kid learned it but it likely prevented them from getting in RD

Anonymous
Post 11/13/2025 11:16     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:What is the purpose of dropping down in rigor? Sacrificing high school education in hope for a better/safer college result?

I don't think it's worth it. As long as you can maintain B and above, I would go ahead and challenge myself.

You may end up at a slightly lower ranked school but you will be much better prepared for college. And college performance is where you should care about the most.

T20 or T50 doesn't make too much difference.


Umm...Calc BC is the first year of COLLEGE calculus for engineering. You are not "sacrificing highs school education" by allowing your kid to take AB first. You are simply allowing them to learn the material well.

Anonymous
Post 11/13/2025 11:15     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't consider it until they are making Cs.


Seriously? If a kid is struggling in advanced math (for me that's anything below A/A- or my kid feeling like it's too much for AP courses), why not simply let them pull back to a slower pace and actually LEARN the material well. Life is not a race, but success in college and future courses that might matter do depend upon knowing the material (like a calc based Stats course in college that many will need).

Anonymous
Post 11/13/2025 11:12     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:DS (10th grade) has his first A- and he is fighting HARD for it. His grade should be lower but the teacher gives some freebies that raise grades if you put in the work. This is AP precalc. Previous plan was BC calc next year and now he is talking about taking AB instead. Obviously both would be AP so same grade bump. Likely humanities major. DH and I disagree on how to advise.


It depends on your HS I think.

At our private, it would be ok to do AB Calc equiv as a junior and then AP Stats equiv as a senior - if a humanities major - and still be competitive. Assuming rigor in humanities.


And as a humanities major, AP stats is much more relevant course for the future. If you want a job, you will take a stats course in college as a humanities major.
Anonymous
Post 11/13/2025 11:11     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:DS (10th grade) has his first A- and he is fighting HARD for it. His grade should be lower but the teacher gives some freebies that raise grades if you put in the work. This is AP precalc. Previous plan was BC calc next year and now he is talking about taking AB instead. Obviously both would be AP so same grade bump. Likely humanities major. DH and I disagree on how to advise.


If he continues to "struggle" in precalc, I would seriously consider Calc AB next year. There is no reason to rush and push too hard. Better to do well and actually learn the material.

we are in a district that the standard is precalc, then AB, then BC. Only a few kids are allowed to jump to BC. My kid had 99%+ in all math classes up thru AB, and BC was hard (engineering major), got a B first semester, A 2nd and easy 5 on the AP course and went directly to Calc 3 in college. But BC is fast paced and challenging. Why do that for anyone if you will struggle, and especially a humanities major.
Anonymous
Post 11/13/2025 11:10     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
At our HS, BC comes after AB. Only the super nerds skip AB.
Anonymous
Post 11/13/2025 11:05     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Dropping down in rigor because of an A-? I swear this forum is bananas.

Thank you. I was beginning to wonder if it was just me...


If you read OP's second post, they said their kid should have a B- (and understands things at a B- level) but has an A- is because of easy/extra points.

This is the problem with grade inflation. The teachers feel pressure to go out of their way to give kids better grades than they earned. So there are all sorts of easy points to boost the grade.

But this kid knows he doesn't actually understand precalc, and he's worried that is going to be an even bigger problem when he gets to calc next year. He's right. He needs to find a better way to learn precalc, whether it's studying differently, going to see the teacher after school, or getting a good tutor.

Again, the A- is a red herring in this case. Grade inflation is masking the real problem, and OP's kid is smart enough to realize that.


OP here. Thank you. You get it. I assume the prior post was yours, too, and it is good advice.


You’re welcome! I’m glad my posts were helpful.

I do understand, in part because my DD was there a few years ago.

She had to work hard for an A- in honors precalc (our school does not have AP pre calc). It was a tough experience because school has always been easy for her - nothing before had been challenging. But ahe kept their head in the game, worked hard, sought help periodically from DH, and overall learned to persevere.

Her teacher recommended BC and DD went for it. Again, she worked hard and this time got As all four quarters and a 5 on the AP exam. But we could not have predicted that outcome after Q1 of precalc.

This is why I encourage you and your DC to take it a week at a time. Our kids still have a lot of growing up and maturing left to do, and they each do it at their own pace. Some are willing to admit they’re struggling and need help, while other would rather avoid the risk. (I was in the latter category and waited until college to take calc …. )

It’s really hard to predict where our kids will be six months from now! Sometimes you just have to let it play out in real time.


OP here. This is a good point, too. I am amazed at how rapidly my kid is changing both physically and in terms of maturity at this point. A lot can change in six months.
Anonymous
Post 11/12/2025 22:40     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Dropping down in rigor because of an A-? I swear this forum is bananas.

Thank you. I was beginning to wonder if it was just me...


If you read OP's second post, they said their kid should have a B- (and understands things at a B- level) but has an A- is because of easy/extra points.

This is the problem with grade inflation. The teachers feel pressure to go out of their way to give kids better grades than they earned. So there are all sorts of easy points to boost the grade.

But this kid knows he doesn't actually understand precalc, and he's worried that is going to be an even bigger problem when he gets to calc next year. He's right. He needs to find a better way to learn precalc, whether it's studying differently, going to see the teacher after school, or getting a good tutor.

Again, the A- is a red herring in this case. Grade inflation is masking the real problem, and OP's kid is smart enough to realize that.


OP here. Thank you. You get it. I assume the prior post was yours, too, and it is good advice.


You’re welcome! I’m glad my posts were helpful.

I do understand, in part because my DD was there a few years ago.

She had to work hard for an A- in honors precalc (our school does not have AP pre calc). It was a tough experience because school has always been easy for her - nothing before had been challenging. But ahe kept their head in the game, worked hard, sought help periodically from DH, and overall learned to persevere.

Her teacher recommended BC and DD went for it. Again, she worked hard and this time got As all four quarters and a 5 on the AP exam. But we could not have predicted that outcome after Q1 of precalc.

This is why I encourage you and your DC to take it a week at a time. Our kids still have a lot of growing up and maturing left to do, and they each do it at their own pace. Some are willing to admit they’re struggling and need help, while other would rather avoid the risk. (I was in the latter category and waited until college to take calc …. )

It’s really hard to predict where our kids will be six months from now! Sometimes you just have to let it play out in real time.
Anonymous
Post 11/11/2025 20:33     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:Poor children. The level of competition and pressure (real or perceived) is insane. An A- is not the end of the world, but it is important they know the material for midterm and later classes. It’s actually good they’re having this experience now so they can learn how to seek help and study if that’s a skill they haven’t mastered. That’s often the case for students who “don’t have to study.” Good luck!


Agreed! Ease off on the pressure. Parents are going to force their kids into burnout, at best.

And suicide at worst. It happens.
Anonymous
Post 11/11/2025 19:52     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:What is the purpose of dropping down in rigor? Sacrificing high school education in hope for a better/safer college result?

I don't think it's worth it. As long as you can maintain B and above, I would go ahead and challenge myself.

You may end up at a slightly lower ranked school but you will be much better prepared for college. And college performance is where you should care about the most.

T20 or T50 doesn't make too much difference.

The purpose is that with math, it benefits kids to have a very strong foundation before moving up a level. Some kids benefit from a slower intro of new concepts and speed of is e even if they end up in same place later.

Our school district found the heavy push in acceleration in middle school had worse outcomes in high school then when they backed off. Too many kids were pushed ahead without clear grasp of algebra basics.



This is not the OP's case. OP is freaking out by an A-. If it's a C that is concerning. Since when A- is a sign for lacking strong foundation?


+1. No wonder kids are so stressed. Cant even get an A- anymore!
Anonymous
Post 11/11/2025 19:51     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:My kid who is applying in for humanities at top schools was told to take AP Calculus on top of other hard classes. They were told not to take regular calculus and to take the one with the most rigor. I don't really understand why but that's what they did.

Because everyone else around them in college will have the capacity to take a calculus course. You also don’t want to limit yourself from being able to take yo a certain major just because you were too lazy in high school to spend a little extra time doing a derivative.
Anonymous
Post 11/11/2025 19:49     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
My kid who is applying in for humanities at top schools was told to take AP Calculus on top of other hard classes. They were told not to take regular calculus and to take the one with the most rigor. I don't really understand why but that's what they did.
Anonymous
Post 11/11/2025 19:44     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Poor children. The level of competition and pressure (real or perceived) is insane. An A- is not the end of the world, but it is important they know the material for midterm and later classes. It’s actually good they’re having this experience now so they can learn how to seek help and study if that’s a skill they haven’t mastered. That’s often the case for students who “don’t have to study.” Good luck!
Anonymous
Post 11/11/2025 19:44     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Anonymous wrote:Precalc is often harder than calculus for many kids. It's a big foundation. Take AB. Go slow.


+1
Anonymous
Post 11/11/2025 18:57     Subject: At what point do you drop down in rigor?
Precalc is often harder than calculus for many kids. It's a big foundation. Take AB. Go slow.