Pros/Cons/Compare BJUP highschool science & DIVE into science for highschool?

[Sparrows-Song]

Can anyone compare these for me? If you have/are using these, can you tell me the pros/cons for them?

Thanks in advance!

[CindyJ]

I have tried to use BJUP science (7th grade) on my own, and it was very difficult to use. I have not tried it with the DVD's from BJUP, so cannot tell you about that. However, we are at present using the Dive into Science for Physical Science for my daughter, and I am very impressed with it. I don't have to do much of anything, my daughter seems to understand what she is doing, and I am impressed with the level of instruction that she is getting. We are using the BJUP physical science textbook along with it, but it is totally different from using the textbook on our own. He assigns readings from the text, but he has a different order, and the readings provide background for his lectures. He has his own review questions which they do after the lecture, and then they watch him do a lab right on the CD and fill out lab sheets. My only question is that he only gives 4 tests, so I don't know how she will do on her first test; but she is graded on the daily work also. I would say that it's a lot of science instruction for $50.

[Sparrows-Song]

Thanks! This helps.

Any others?

[DesertDweller]

I can't compare the two since we've never used the DIVE program. I wanted to comment on the BJU science that we are using this year. Dd is doing Physical Science with the DVD's. It is expensive, but not so much when I compared it to the price of local co-op classes. I think it's fairly rigorous although my dd is not a science oriented student at all. She will tell you that science is one of her least favorite subjects. However, the material is explained well, there are plenty of quizzes and tests, usually two quizzes per chapter and one test. There are homework assignments (usually only a few questions) most days, and I would guess about one lab, on average, every other week. I've been very pleased with it. I can't comment on any other levels, but based on our experience, we will be continuing with the BJU science on DVD next year.

[Michelle in GA]

We are using Chemistry this year with the DVD's. Mr. Harmon is the teacher, and he is fantastic. I can't imagine using the books alone without the DVD's. We also used Physical Science with the same teacher.

The only cons are: 1. It is expensive. 2. It is time consuming (45 minute lectures+ homework), 3. I have heard that the Physics teacher is not very good at all. However, I have also heard that Mr. Harmon is now teaching the Physics course, so the DVD's may become available soon.

[transientChris]

We used the DIVE CD with BJU Chemistry and now with Biology. We like them a lot and my dd is learning. We have her do some of the labs on video and some we do at home. The format is one that she likes.

[Sparrows-Song]

Thanks for all your thoughts/experiences!! Keep them coming, if there are any more.

[DianeJM]

Last year I bought the BJU Chemistry and the DVDs w/ Mr. Harmon teaching.
I must say that it was the largest amount of money I have ever had the misfortune of wasting on home school curriculum. Very wrong decision for us.

We're not mathy-sciencey over here; maybe that made a difference, BUT, my dd was totally confused by Mr. Harmon. One example -- somewhere in the first few chapters, on some problem or other, she couldn't figure out how to do it following Mr. Harmon's explanation of how to work the problem; she came to me for help, and I couldn't get it right either. I looked it up in the teacher pages that come with the DVDs, and the teacher pages explained the same problem a different way, the formula was a bit different than the way Mr. Harmon explained it. We tried it the way the teacher pages directed, and voila -- it worked. Mr. Harmon steered us wrong. This is absolutely horrible for a kid who isn't confident about the whole thing in the first place. We ditched it right then and there. By the time I returned everything it was too late to get our money back. She is now a senior in ps, and she will take chemistry there 2nd semester; we're hoping it will go better. What an absolute waste of a lot of money, not to mention the agony that goes with realizing I made yet another bad decision; there have been too many of those... (In the words of Yogi Bera -- "We made a lot of wrong mistakes.")

I have Physical World to use when my ds gets to that point, and you can bet I will get the DIVE to go along with it.