[nabs-l] The Next Few Years of My Life

Sun Dec 4 22:03:25 UTC 2016

Hi Ahbee,
As you read my response, keep in mind that I graduated from high
school 13 years ago. So, some things may be different now than they
were then. But in case they aren't, I wanted to address your AP vs.
dual enrollment quandary. I had the same choice during the last two
years of high school, and I chose the AP route. In hindsight I
slightly wish I had done dual enrollment instead of AP. The main
reason is that AP courses aren't as rigorous as their college
equivalents, and if you are taking AP courses in your major/field of
study, you may find that the AP credits aren't accepted by your major
to fulfill requirements. In my case, I planned to major in biology and
I took AP biology during my senior year of high school. During
freshman orientation for college, I was told that an AP biology course
wouldn't count toward the basic biology requirement for biology majors
because it didn't have a rigorous enough lab component. Luckily I got
this news before I took the AP exam, so I opted out of taking the AP
exam and took biology again in college so it would count. But I was
annoyed that nobody told me this (as were my parents who had already
paid for me to take the AP test and never got their money back). The
other thing about AP courses is that they're basically set up to help
you pass a test. Sometimes that means the actual quality of the course
is subpar, and it may not line up well with the second-year college
courses you would take afterward. Basically what I would suggest is to
only take AP courses in subjects you don't care much about (such as
English if you're not planning to be an English major), and use dual
enrollment for courses you do care about and that might be part of
your college major. Those dual enrollment courses will transfer more
easily into your major once you are a full-time college student.
HTH, Arielle

On 12/4/16, Kaiti Shelton via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> I also think it's important to consider the skills you want to work
> on, the skills you currently have or could improve upon using local
> resources while attending school, and if taking 6-9 months at a center
> is justified as being a pressing thing now.  For me, I have no desire
> to do shop and often take shortcuts while cooking not because I'm less
> independent, but because sighted people don't universally know these
> things or cook from scratch, too.  e.G, my mom and sister are sighted
> and capable people, yet my dad has the carpentry and other handy
> skills to fix things so they call him.  We also all use frozen
> veggies, pre-chopped produce, etc sometimes not because we're unable
> to independently chop or work with fresh produce, but because it just
> saves time.  I'm certainly not saying my skills can't stand to be
> improved or that I wouldn't like to learn more, but I'm at a place now
> where I have learned what I need to know in order to be an independent
> student, traveler, cook, and housekeeper.  I'm not taking either Blind
> Inc. or Colorado off the table, but they're not pressing things
> compared to starting my career for me right now.  I could do things
> like shop at the centers, and then never touch a circular saw or a 2X4
> again in my life, so it's a matter of really avaluating what would
> best serve you now.  Of course, though I don't think the centers are
> for everyone at a given time in life, I do support them and the
> fantastic work they do, as well as people who do feel like the
> training would be helpful to them.
>
> On 12/4/16, Ahbee Orton via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> Hi All,
>> Thank you for giving me your input and your thoughts. I am really leaning
>> towards going to training for 6 to 9 months, but I'm still considering
>> whether to finish high school at my public school with AP courses,
>> participating in dual enrollment and the like, or go the route of Hadley
>> courses and possibly a little of homeschooling.
>>
>>
>> Sent from Ahbee's iPhone
>>
>>> On Dec 4, 2016, at 1:45 PM, Vejas Vasiliauskas via NABS-L
>>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>>
>>> Hi Ahbee,
>>> It sounds like you are aware of the programs available to you, which is
>>> great.
>>> Personally, I would recommend taking a whole year  off for training,
>>> although I completely respect these who have not. Not only will you be
>>> able to gain skills without having to worry about academics, you will
>>> also
>>> grow socially. Which will be able to help you as well.
>>> If you do decide to go down this route, however, I would recommend
>>> applying  for colleges the year before you go to training. That way, all
>>> you will need to worry about is your training and any scholarships you
>>> choose to apply for.
>>> Vejas
>>>
>>>> On Dec 3, 2016, at 19:09, Ahbee Orton via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Dear All,
>>>>
>>>> I am really thinking a lot about my next few years for high school and
>>>> college. I have considered several options. I could take my school's AP
>>>> courses for the next two years to graduate. I could take a hybrid
>>>> between
>>>> Hadley courses and my high school's courses. I could participate in
>>>> dual
>>>> enrollment, or this special program that my school offers with a
>>>> college,
>>>> to get my Freshman year done. The last option is to take all Hadley
>>>> next
>>>> year, and graduate from high school early. I'd be able to work if I
>>>> wanted to and prepare for the ACT or SAT. I also want to go to a
>>>> training
>>>> center the year I'd be in 12th grade, but I could finish early and do
>>>> the
>>>> training center. What do you think is the best way to go? Thank you!
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Sent from Ahbee's iPhone
>>>>
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>
>
> --
> Kaiti Shelton
>
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