PASS Science curriculum Or Apologia

[Gretchen in NO. CA]

Hi,
My son is having a hard time with Apologia Biology. He has taken the test to Module 2 three times ( 2 times the regular test and 1 time with the alternate test). He reads the text, answers the questions, takes notes, etc. I realize that he has difficulty reading and comprehending, also struggles with having a hard time memorizing things.

So my question in this. Should I switch him to something like PASS Biology or should I keep working with him on the Apologia? I really don't care if he learns the science or not, I am concerned with the fact that he can not comprehend well enough from a textbook to pass a test. I know some of the blame is mine, that I haven't spent enough time in earlier years getting him ready for this. I have 6 kids and don't have enough time to do each subject with him. In his earlier years, we used Sonlight with me reading alot to him but probably not enough discussion to see if he was really getting it.

He is very gifted when it comes to computers or engines. But he has taken computer classes at the community college and only gotten C's. He has done well on all of the labs, and activities, but scored low on tests from the textbook.

Any words of wisdom out there? By the way, he is 17 and wants to go to college to get a degree in something computer, but I don't know if he can handle the textbooks.

Thanks so much!
Gretchen

[MerryAtHope]

Apologia text books are all available in audio. I don't know if he can find college texts that way, but if he learns well from audio, that might be worth considering. (I'd almost bet that a lot of college texts might be available on audio, with the need to accommodate students with learning disabilities...worth looking into if he's a strong auditory learner).

I think I would try to pinpoint what the issue is--is he having trouble with reading/focusing so hard on reading that he doesn't have good comprehension (possible vision processing issue or dyslexia)? Does he skip over new words/vocabulary rather than try to learn them, and therefore is struggling with comprehension? Does he know what to do with a textbook and how to study from one--have you shown him the kinds of things to underline or highlight in his text?

Perhaps if you can find out what the main issue is, it might help you get closer to a solution for him.

Merry :-)