Are college classes really this hard (see details)?

Question

Okay, last year, I took regular Geography and it was way too easy. I made grades over 100 every six weeks! So, I thought I'd switch into an advanced class and to my surprise, taking World History as a Sophomore is considered a college class.

Our class schedule goes like this,
HMWK - Read a chapter out of our text book - VERY LONG, but still managable - haha!!!
CLASS - Take an extremely hard multiple choice quiz over the reading. Almost everyone fails the quizzes. I even practice on this website and I still to poorly and I'm an A, B+ student...
http://wps.ablongman.com/long_stearns_wcap_3/0,8222,1005788-,00.html
AFTER THE QUIZ - We get 2 more detailed maps to do and we have to define 50 words in a week and most of the words aren't in th book. We're supposed to write a paragraph for each word and connect it to what's in the book with examples...
CLASS AFTER THE QUIZ - We have a test over the Chapter the quiz was about.

I have a student teacher this semester and next semester, I have the regular teacher. We aren’t taught anything. We have to do it all on our own; is this typical of a college class? When we ask a question, he makes us answer 5 questions. When we’re done with our quiz or test for the day, we get the rest of the 1.5 hr. class period to do homework.

Do you think it'd be better for my GPA if I switched back to regular World History or do colleges look at lower advanced class grades rather than high regular class grades? The GPA only factors it as a 10 pt. difference.

Answer 1

Well, it sounds like your teacher isn't that good. He doesn't really teach you anything, and you have to learn it all yourself.

In college, most classes are lecture-based. So you would have to take notes. And you would have to do a lot of outside reading on your own, or in the case of math and science, homework problems. But in math/science, the teachers might go over the problems people had difficulty with. In smaller colleges or upper-level classes or seminars, the classes might be more discussion-based, where the students discuss the book they were reading or the topic and the professor would lead the discussion.

And college doesn't give many tests. You might get up to four per semester with lab work or a paper.

College may be easier because high school teachers can give out a lot of crap, whereas college professors get to the point. Like the stuff that you said you did after the quiz (the 50 terms) seems pointless. Having a test right after a quiz seems very redundant to me.

This is why I like AP classes. Teachers actually don't give you a lot of crap work, although there's still a little bit that seems pointless. We did get frequent quizzes.

Answer 2

The biggest difference between high school and college classes is how much learning you are expected to do on your own. Typically, a college class is one semester, in which you cover an entire textbook, as opposed to a 2 semester/textbook high school class. Also, college classes usually meet 1-3 hours a week, instead of an hour a day.

The Advanced Placement (AP) classes are based on a test you will have to take to receive college credit. These tests are incredibly difficult and cover a wide range of material. The good news is that most colleges accept a score of 3(out of 5) for credit. The bad news is that preparing for them can be a bit overwhelming.

I would reccommend going out and buying an AP guidebook (there are many available) for your subject. They are often much simpler to understand than textbooks, so you can follow along with your class. Then when test time comes, you have a good study guide.

Long story short: are college classes that hard? Yes. But by the time you get to college, having taken AP classes for 3 years, you will have developed good study habits and be used to the pace. This will give you a big advantage.

Answer 3

It sounds like you don't mean a college class, but a COLLEGE PREP class in high school. Yes, this curriculum is harder and more challenging that the regular course of studies. But it's a requirement if you are serious about continuing your education beyond high school.

However, it doesn't sound as if your teacher is actually teaching you much. That means, unfortunately, that you have the burden of doing all the fact-finding on your own, with no one to help you interpret what you learn. This is not right!

On the other hand, you are presumably learning something. It's too bad you don't have the advantage of a qualified and motivated teacher to guide you!

Not all college prep classes are like this, but they are demanding. After all, you need a solid grounding to be ready for college. And in your junior and senior years you will have te opportunity to take AP (Advanced Placement) courses which - if you do well - will actually earn you college credits. That's a big savings when you consider the cost of higher education!

Answer 4

No, this is not typical of a college class. College classes have more lectures and class discussion about the topic and issues being discussed. The teacher/professor should be an expert in the subject area being taught and the teacher usually talks about their personal and professional experiences. A good class takes on the personality of all of the different people in the class because each person is bringing in different backgrounds,opinions and experiences.

Condolences....the class you have seems dry, boring and lacking in personality and fun. You'll like college!

Answer 5

60 college credits is typically 2 years at 15 credits per semester (A typical Associates). Personally, I find college to be easier than high school because I get more freedom. To me, it's less stressful which helps a lot. My brother wants to go into law enforcement and what he's doing is going to a community college and then transferring to a 4-year to get his law enforcement degree. He's also going to do an internship or two with the CIA or DEA.

Answer 6

All college classes are not like this, although some are a lot harder than others. It also depends on what your major is and what kind of professors you have for your classes. You will quickly learn who to take and who to stay very far away from.

As far as switching classes....I really can't say either way. Both have its advantages and disadvantages. Only you can make that decision.

Answer 7

Wow. But to answer, yes, this sounds like what we did way back when. Maybe was more do-able because we did not have computers / other High tec stuff to distract. Commutes were shorter, study time more respected.
Tough teachers are not new. RE words not in the book: he likely wants you to learn better encoding skills, a tool every History student needs
Good luck, hang in there

Answer 8

At some more enlightened establishments of learning you dont even have to show up for class. You just take the tests.

The idea is you are now mature enough to determine what you have to do to satisfy the course requirements. If that means staying in the library every evening you should do so without a babysitter present.

Welcome to adulthood and self determination. Carpe diem.

Answer 9

i am also in advanced placement classes, last year i took AP European history.....which was really hard. my teachers agreement with her students and our parents was that she would teach 40% of the work and we would have to teach ourselves 60% of it......advanceplacemnt courses are suppose to be hard but not as hard or as independent the learning ur describing is .....good luck

Answer 10

i think ur stressing ur self out on this college class i think u just should go back to regular world history