Okay, so not too long ago the National Institute of Health issued new guidelines that suggest introducing babies to peanuts early on can prevent them from having peanut allergies later in life. In other words, early exposure to something potentially harmful can actually have positive long-term effects. Well, I think this same principle can apply to course selection in high school.
When I discuss course selection with families, I often hear something along the lines of “Well that class sounds hard and I don’t want to hurt my GPA. Besides, I don’t know anything about it.” I understand that argument and can see some merit in it, but I think it undercuts the big picture of what a child’s education is supposed to do and doesn’t benefit a student long term. High school is exactly the time when a student should be challenging themselves and trying out new courses and subject matters.
At my school, I see this most often as many rising seniors choose either calculus or statistics. These students would have already had pre-calculus but would have had little to no in-depth statistics throughout their entire academic career. Nevertheless, a great number, I’d say a majority, of college majors will require at least one statistics course. Thus, in this example, I think exposure to statistics in high school is highly beneficial to my college-bound students even if it’s a challenging course and one for which they have no prior knowledge.
In struggling through a new area, I believe students will be more prepared when they take a course in college. I also believe that, if I must choose, success in college is more important than success in high school. This can be a difficult concept for a student and family to accept. It’s taking on some potentially short term consequences (a tough school year, grades that might not be what one is used to) for long term benefits (an easier trip through college and a better more, well-rounded education). It is also human nature to gravitate towards what is familiar and known rather than what is new and different. However, that aspect of ourselves really runs entirely counter to the pursuit of knowledge.
So, give your babies some peanuts. Force a big spoonful of physics in their mouths. Give them a computer science cookie, or even just a little cup full of creative writing to munch on. Let whatever courses your student doesn’t know anything about be what guides your course selection, especially if it is one that could have anything at all to do with potential college majors. Sometimes we have to choose between what we like and what we need, and that’s exactly what needs to be done here. Go for the early exposure.
