Josiah shilling for College Plus

[MrsYoungie]

www.collegeplus.org/acceleration/2011/1 ... ual-credit

 

Truly cringe worthy interview with our sweet Josiah. He thinks he is going to get a Bachelor's degree some day. Poor sweet Josiah. Not gonna happen baby.

[lilwriter85]

Very cringe worthy and it shows that Josiah is being controlled by Mommy and Daddy. I have always found the Duggars' excuses about traveling as their reason for using CollegePlus! to be fucking lame. The Duggars love keeping their kids sheltered and under control and they aren't really teaching their children real priorities. I'm sorry but traveling around the world should take backseat to education. In life you can't always arrange your schedules around for traveling.

Josiah is a little douche to think that he and other home school students are the only ones earning college credit in high school. Also in the interview, he thinks that the only way to earn college credit during high school is through a community college. Public high school students earn college credit through AP or concurrent arrangements in which community colleges act as sponsors. High school students can earn college credits at their high schools.

I rolled my eyes at this quote

CollegePrep will help me get ahead of the game and ahead of other high school students my age. When I decide to go on to complete my bachelor’s degree, I will get it earlier than most college students. Right now I’m just excited about earning college credit in high school.”

[atheistjd]

Oh my... I did not realize you could ear "dual credit" while still in HS... I took college classes/earned credit for them while in HS, but at an actual college. The closest I came was probably AP courses, but an actual, real college had to accept those credits, and only did so if you if you got an exceptional score. Also, APs are *supposed* to be college classes, not SOTDRT, already sub-par "high-school" courses.

So for those of you who know more about this "program" than I do, it's basically a sham set up to trick colleges into thinking you've taken university coursework when in fact you have not? What are these home-skooling families teaching their kids? To lie and that education is no more valuable than the number of "credits" you have or a piece of paper at the end?? :roll:

I would recommend CollegePrep to other high school students, especially homeschool high school students. It's a great way to earn college credit for what you’re learning in high school, and a great way to stay with your family.

Oh perfect! The three things you really should be getting out of higher education! Academic dishonesty, doing the bare minimum with no attempt to actually LEARN NEW THINGS, and to not broaden your horizons beyond your immediate family. Perfect.

[Kelya]

Tons of students get college credit in high school. You are not interesting or special for doing so. I entered my freshman year of college with 12 credits. Thing is, all mine were accepted because I got them from a real, accredited community college. What's even cooler was that I got financial aid to get these credits, and thus didn't pay out the ass for someone to tell me how to get CLEP credits that a future program may not take.

Oh, it doesn't matter, because the Duggars being enrolled in a for real, regionally accredited bachelor degree granting institution is as likely as me sprouting wings and flying myself to Romania.

[atheistjd]

OK, be honest... what FJ-er commented on the article?

If any Duggar child actually earns a Bachelor degree I will eat my hat.

and

Is this some kind of CollegeMinus-! scam again?

:lol:

[lilwriter85]

OK, be honest... what FJ-er commented on the article?

and

:lol:

I noticed those comments. The CollegeMinus comment has to be from an FJer.

A lot of viewers of the show are pretty aware of CollegePlus!, and posting on different forums/boards have discussed CollegePlus. Here it is referred to as a CollegeMinus, unless twopers are also using that nick name.

[lilwriter85]

Oh my... I did not realize you could ear "dual credit" while still in HS... I took college classes/earned credit for them while in HS, but at an actual college. The closest I came was probably AP courses, but an actual, real college had to accept those credits, and only did so if you if you got an exceptional score. Also, APs are *supposed* to be college classes, not SOTDRT, already sub-par "high-school" courses.

So for those of you who know more about this "program" than I do, it's basically a sham set up to trick colleges into thinking you've taken university coursework when in fact you have not? What are these home-skooling families teaching their kids? To lie and that education is no more valuable than the number of "credits" you have or a piece of paper at the end?? :roll:

Oh perfect! The three things you really should be getting out of higher education! Academic dishonesty, doing the bare minimum with no attempt to actually LEARN NEW THINGS, and to not broaden your horizons beyond your immediate family. Perfect.

From what I've read about CollegePlus! and what others have said here, it is overpriced program in which students are coached and are helped to study for CLEP exams to test out of general education requirements. There are others here who understand CP more and will probably post on this.

But some universities don't always accept certain CLEP credits and there have been some complaints against CP. CP in many ways seems to take advantage of homeschooling families who are desperate to keep their kids around longer. I doubt the Duggars are paying full fees to CP. They are probably getting a reduce rate for pimping out the program.

[emmiedahl]

In my area, we have a program called Running Start. High schoolers can replace their high school courses with (free! at district expense!) ones at at the community college and get dual credit for both hs and college. It is very popular with homeschoolers around here and also among traditional students who have reached the end of the road in hs math, like my 16 yo (he is taking the highest math they offer this year, so he'll be taking Calculus and Physics at the cc next year).

Did I mention it is free? I know kids who graduate from high school with their AA already complete. If College Plus was such a jumpstart, wouldn't at least one of the Duggars have a degree?

[GenerationCedarchip]

The more I hear about CP, the more it seems to just be a scam, but I admittedly know only what I've been able to find online. I can understand homeschooling families looking for a way for their kids to earn college credit since I'm guessing they wouldn't have access to AP or IB classes at a high school. However, I know plenty of homeschoolers who just go to certain classes community college or even (gasp!) a nearby four-year university that lets them use their extension program. Since these credits would be easier to transfer than CLEP (I keep wanting to call it CRAP - subconscious working overtime much?), is there any advantage to CollegePlus?

[slickcat79]

So for those of you who know more about this "program" than I do, it's basically a sham set up to trick colleges into thinking you've taken university coursework when in fact you have not? What are these home-skooling families teaching their kids? To lie and that education is no more valuable than the number of "credits" you have or a piece of paper at the end??

I don't think there's true academic dishonesty going on. If you apply to actual universities, they are aware that your credits are from CLEP tests and may accept or reject those credits according to their policies. I don't think any universities will allow you to get all of your degree credits from outside sources; I know at my uni, all students had to take at least 2 years through that particular school, even if they were transferring from community college or another 4-year school. CollegeMinus does have a partnership with Thomas Edison State College to issue degrees. I'm not sure if TESC has agreed to accept all CollegeMinus students into their program as transfers, or if they actually issue a degree based solely on what you do through CM.

I think the real problem is that CollegeMinus doesn't actually teach you anything, even though you pay something like $2000 a year. It's basically a program that coordinates testing through CLEP, Dantes, etc. and calls you every couple of weeks to make sure you're studying for your tests. You certainly don't need a coach or coordinator to be able to take CLEP tests, and most (if not all) states have a website that will give you tons of information about preparing and paying for college for free (like so: http://www.cfnc.org/index.jsp).

CollegeMinus is kind of like trying to get through college, but all your courses are given by Maxwell daughters through OneTonRamp :roll: They won't actually teach you the information, but they are chock-full of christian encouragement!

[theologygeek]

The more I hear about CP, the more it seems to just be a scam, but I admittedly know only what I've been able to find online. I can understand homeschooling families looking for a way for their kids to earn college credit since I'm guessing they wouldn't have access to AP or IB classes at a high school. However, I know plenty of homeschoolers who just go to certain classes community college or even (gasp!) a nearby four-year university that lets them use their extension program. Since these credits would be easier to transfer than CLEP (I keep wanting to call it CRAP - subconscious working overtime much?), is there any advantage to CollegePlus?

The only thing I read was that it's not really a college, and the courses are taken online at Thomas Edison College. But I just skimmed and could have missed some things.

[Austin]

In my area, we have a program called Running Start. High schoolers can replace their high school courses with (free! at district expense!) ones at at the community college and get dual credit for both hs and college. It is very popular with homeschoolers around here and also among traditional students who have reached the end of the road in hs math, like my 16 yo (he is taking the highest math they offer this year, so he'll be taking Calculus and Physics at the cc next year).

Did I mention it is free? I know kids who graduate from high school with their AA already complete. If College Plus was such a jumpstart, wouldn't at least one of the Duggars have a degree?

We have the same thing here and it's a great program - and absolutely free for high school students. Except for the transportation to/from the community college. Our son drove by the time he did it, so that wasn't really an issue for us.

As far as this CollegeMinus thing, what accredited college actually accepts those credits?

[lilwriter85]

In my area, we have a program called Running Start. High schoolers can replace their high school courses with (free! at district expense!) ones at at the community college and get dual credit for both hs and college. It is very popular with homeschoolers around here and also among traditional students who have reached the end of the road in hs math, like my 16 yo (he is taking the highest math they offer this year, so he'll be taking Calculus and Physics at the cc next year).

Did I mention it is free? I know kids who graduate from high school with their AA already complete. If College Plus was such a jumpstart, wouldn't at least one of the Duggars have a degree?

The Duggars' involvement with College Plus is pretty recent and it is mostly an attempt to shush their critics. I don't think the Duggars are very serious about their kids actually getting college degrees. Even if with Josh saying he wants to be a lawyer, I always get the feeling that Boob and Mullet do whatever they can to keep the kids with them. That is why Josh said he wants to attend an online law school. I don't see Josh becoming a lawyer. But I have some hope for the younger kids but not much.

[ThisOlGirl]

In my area, we have a program called Running Start. High schoolers can replace their high school courses with (free! at district expense!) ones at at the community college and get dual credit for both hs and college. It is very popular with homeschoolers around here and also among traditional students who have reached the end of the road in hs math, like my 16 yo (he is taking the highest math they offer this year, so he'll be taking Calculus and Physics at the cc next year).

Did I mention it is free? I know kids who graduate from high school with their AA already complete. If College Plus was such a jumpstart, wouldn't at least one of the Duggars have a degree?

We have the same type of program here (Dallas, TX area). As for Josiah needing to schedule his education around his travel schedule, he can do that with a real college. The community colleges around here offer so many online classes that you can get your AA (or damn close) without having to set foot on a college campus. Everything from registration to finals can be done online. I'm pretty sure it's that way all over the place.

[Witsec7]

Ebil public school students in Oregon can take CC or Uni courses without charge prior to graduating HS. I'm no longer sure about the requirements, but I knew a number of college bound students who did simply because there was no charge for this. College credits are expensive.

Poor child should put down the kool aid and open a real text book, maybe even an ebil newspaper or two.

[TheJewAmongUs]

OK, be honest... what FJ-er commented on the article?

and

:lol:

Haha, I was sitting here laughing as I navigate over to post these on this thread. I especially like the hat comment. :lol:

[fundamentalistnomore]

They really better hope that whatever they accomplish through College Plus is accepted at an accredited university. Otherwise, all they've done is shell out money to a company that will get laughed at by future employers outside of fundamentalist/christian venues.

It might look good now, but one day they may wake up & realize that they want to do something different. However, 'feeling a calling in my heart' does not a surgeon make.

It should be against the law for these scam schools to operate.

[lilwriter85]

They really better hope that whatever they accomplish through College Plus is accepted at an accredited university. Otherwise, all they've done is shell out money to a company that will get laughed at by future employers outside of fundamentalist/christian venues.

It might look good now, but one day they may wake up & realize that they want to do something different. However, 'feeling a calling in my heart' does not a surgeon make.

It should be against the law for these scam schools to operate.

I think Josiah in my some way will end up working for Boob. I agree if any of the kids break away, the College Plus thing will be laughed at by many. If accredited universities choose not to accept the CLEP credits through CollegePlus, the Duggars will learn their lesson.

[Kelya]

As far as this CollegeMinus thing, what accredited college actually accepts those credits?

Very few accept more than two years (4 semesters) or at most, two and a half years (5 semesters) of credit from other universities or CLEP. Additionally, both states I've lived in had a requirement for length of time spent at college- you could come in with all but three classes done, but would have to spend three semesters there taking classes, because schools DONT WANT TO BE DIPLOMA MILLS FOR PEOPLE, DUGGAR FAMILY. Since most universities want to know the quality of students they're graduating, very few reputable colleges are going to let you bop on in, take a capstone course, and bop on out.

Additionally, CLEP courses might not even be ACCEPTED AS CREDIT at some universities or programs within some universities. My college would look at CLEP credits and let you get out of basic courses- you could CLEP out of Bio 101, for example. But you didn't get any credit for it, you just got the satisfaction of starting off at a higher course level. Which yes, might save money in the long run, but is not the same.

[emmiedahl]

If they really just don't want their kids in the evil classrooms, there are certainly alternatives. Right now I am watching a Biochemistry lecture while doing my Genetics homework while watching my baby dismantle the living room while posting on FJ. Because my nationally recognized state university offers enough classes online to get a degree.

The Duggar girls will need to take some in-person lab classes to become nurses, with or without College Plus. And they will have to learn about our Old, Old, Earth and our evolution-based life forms, with or without College Plus. That is why they will never become nurses.

My College will allow you to CLEP out of X amount of credits (it is low!) and they can only be general ed, not anything that counts toward your major.

[pomology]

I don't have enough time right now to talk about how ridiculous I think this interview is BUT you have to apply to College Minus? What the fuck? Really? Is it like applying to ATI to make sure that you are super-fundie or what?

[gardenvarietycitizen]

The community college in my area allows people to take classes starting from age 16 (anyone younger than that would need a parent accompanying them).

Several of the homeschoolers I know (secular homeschoolers, children of some friends of mine) had enough math by age 16 and wanted some structure, so just started taking regular math and science classes at community college. Mom counted it toward the "high school" degree (which is pretty much just a formality) and when they went off to other colleges later, they were able to get some credit for the community college classes that were at regular college level already, which made the transition to later college life a bit easier since they had fewer "general education" requirements to front load into their first (usually stressful) term.

That wasn't any program, so they had to pay fees, but it wasn't too terrible for them.

I agree with the people above that the main "rip-off" flag I sense from College Plus is that they're not really doing anything other than encouragement coaching. You can CLEP stuff on your own, you can do various online learning classes on your own. If you need help deciding what to do, the public library has people who can help you figure it out, even (they also have most of the books and practice CLEP tests). I suppose if you live in the middle of nowhere and are philosophically opposed to the idea of the public library then College Plus seems like a good thing, but it's pretty pricey even then.

[FuManchu]

Can you actually become a lawyer without ever going to an actual university or law school? Even if you found a friendly lawyer relative or family friend who'd hire you once you were admitted? Certainly no law firm I've ever heard of would look at such an application, except perhaps for a brief moment as they celebrated getting it into the bin first time from across the room.

[MrsYoungie]

Haha, I was sitting here laughing as I navigate over to post these on this thread. I especially like the hat comment. :lol:

Why, thank you. I mean - it wasn't me!!!!

[Witsec7]

Can you actually become a lawyer without ever going to an actual university or law school? Even if you found a friendly lawyer relative or family friend who'd hire you once you were admitted? Certainly no law firm I've ever heard of would look at such an application, except perhaps for a brief moment as they celebrated getting it into the bin first time from across the room.

Different state bars have different rules about reading for the law, that is pairing with a practicing atny, reading and studying and assisting under their tutelage, and later taking a bar exam. I don't know how common it is now a days. I did know a guy in the '70s (who was almost 70 at the time I met him) who had read for the law and passed the CA bar back in the 30's or 40's .