More Than A Diploma -- Part III

More Than A Diploma -- Part III:  Study Resources For Credit By Examination Tests

From those who have taken all the courses I have listed as high school equivalents, I’ve learned that the most difficult tests to pass for many are the CLEP History of the United States I and II.  Despite taking many practice tests, some students have found the actual test requires recall of many dates and names of events, a lot to memorize for the short-term study, and they often have to repeat these two tests before passing them.  So for these two courses, I recommend a longer study time with more study resources, aiming for a higher practice test proficiency score.  

For example, EBSCO Learning Express, available free online from many public library research and study databases, offers four AP U. S. History practice exams, as well as CLEP combined practice tests for Social Sciences and History.   Ask your librarian if your library system subscribes to EBSCO Learning Express and how patrons can access this wonderful free test preparation and study resource.  A student can just type “History” into the Learning Express Library’s search window and go through all the practice tests they offer.  In my opinion, the Learning Express Library is one of the best resources for all test preparation, and it is usually available free online through local libraries or from state libraries.  If students don’t already have a state library card, state residents can research how to get one online.  When accessing Learning Express Library resources, be sure to search under their tabs for High School; College Preparation; and College Students.  Students will find many different tests for all subjects to help gain better proficiency before taking credit by examination exams.  

Some other good resources for the U. S. History CLEP exams would be local historical societies and their libraries, as well as commercial sources like The History Channel and The Teaching Company’s Great Courses.  Most libraries today loan DVDs and often have large sections of DVDs from The History Channel.  If not, you could ask your library to consider buying these educational video resources.  In addition, many students have reported enjoying the videos offered by Hippo Campus ( https://www.hippocampus.org/ ), particularly those under History & Government, as useful study aids for the CLEP U. S. History exams. 

Yet another good source of practice tests for all students is the New York State Regents Exam Archive from the New York State Library:

http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/regentsexams.htm

On this website students will find decades of these exams, some going back to the 1930s, that any student can use as practice exams for any of the credit by examination tests, or for any other testing for that matter.  These should be especially useful to home educators.  From English and foreign language to a vast array of history and social studies subjects, to all different levels of math and science, these archived tests will help prepare any student, pinpointing areas in which the student should focus for further study.   Parents can also use these tests to assess students, qualifying them for specific subject credits on student high school transcripts.  I especially love the subject tests offered for courses like Agriculture, Art, Bookkeeping, Business Law, Homemaking, Music, Physical Geography, Shorthand and Transcription, Shorthand Typewriting and Transcription, and Typewriting. All of these are viable high school level subjects and can enhance a student’s transcript beyond basic academics if the student prepares for these subjects and takes these free exams at home as part of a self-directed curriculum.  

On the other side of the coin, what if your student doesn’t get around to doing any CLEP or DSST before grade 11 or even grade 12?  Not a problem.  Pick any of the courses I’ve listed for any of the high school grades and prepare for CLEP or DSST exams for those subjects.  Try not to focus on just one area of study, however.  For example, take one science exam, one social sciences exam, one language arts exam (English), and one mathematics exam.  Try to earn at least fifteen CLEP or DSST credits, equal to about one semester of college-level credit, since this is usually considered equal to or better than either a high school diploma or the GED.  An example for those fifteen credits with CLEP might be Western Civilization, College Algebra, Introductory Psychology, with each of these earning 3 credits, totaling 9.  Then, to total fifteen credits easily, a student could complete 6 credits of American Literature, or Biology, or a foreign language like Spanish.  

For Biology students, locate plenty of good free study and support resources online from the many sources I’ve already listed above, as well as Khan Academy:  https://www.khanacademy.org/ .   Khan Academy offers great free resources for many other math and science courses, too.  Some have called their offerings “math and science lite,” but I think they are a great starting point and study aid for many students and most will find these useful as part of credit by examination study.

To locate test preparation books students can check availability at the library, buy used books at stores or online, find books at garage sales or library sales, or borrow books from family and friends for these courses. For example, I put the word out in our various social circles that my daughter needed books for two of these exams, and several people volunteered texts that they said were “just collecting dust” on their bookshelves.  In one case a friend delivered brand new, cellophane-wrapped texts that publishers had sent him to review for potential use in his college courses.  Since he decided not to use these particular texts in his classes he donated them to my daughter.   And today students can rent whole textbooks online, or often review all or part of some texts online, at no charge for a limited period of time.  

At one good online resource, Nook App from Barnes & Noble, students can try e-textbooks for one week totally free.  This might be just enough time to brush up on weak areas for a CLEP or DSST exam.  Visit Nook App at:  

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/h/nook/apps

Another good online source to study for these credit by examination options is Google Scholar:  http://scholar.google.com/ .

Google Books also provides millions of books that students can preview or read book segments for free:  http://books.google.com/ . Type in CLEP and see all the options that come up.

And I recently learned about Connexions, “a place to view and share educational material made of small knowledge chunks called modules that can be organized as courses, books, reports, etc.”  Visit their web site here:  http://cnx.org/ . Parts of this site will be available for a long time, but other parts are retiring in 2022. Might be a good idea to check them out now.

Students can find supplemental study materials online, too, from many different sources, including Wikipedia, now considered by many to be as reliable as the Encyclopedia Britannica. 

Best of all, the student pays for these college credits when he or she takes the test, usually on the day of the test, not at the beginning of a term or semester, not months or weeks in advance.  And students can usually schedule their test whenever they are ready to take it. Only the AP and the GRE require pre-registration and prepayment.  Plus the student can find test preparation books and other resources with multiple practice tests for each of these examinations, allowing plenty of time and practice before taking each exam for credit.  Visit your local library for different test preparation resources, usually available for free.  Or look for used copies of test preparation books, frequently available because many people buy these,  pass the tests, then sell them used on sites like eBay, Amazon.com, or other used book sites.  And, of course, students can always buy the latest versions of these test preparation books at local bookstores.  If a student uses the practice tests to hone in on the areas of any subject for which the student might require more preparation, the student can then locate suitable reading and study materials to bolster those specific areas of study. 

My four-year high school college prep plans, as outlined in Part II,  are “lite” curriculum.  If a student wanted to do this in two years instead of four, taking the exams outlined above for four semesters instead of four years, during the equivalent of grades 11 and 12 only, the plan would more closely replicate a regular full-time college curriculum course load.  And if the student completes a similar number of courses each semester, as most colleges would require from full-time students, this would clearly prepare the student for college-level work and could help with college admissions.  Or a student could do this for two years after completing his or her compulsory schooling years, while still living at home, perhaps working and saving money for the last two years of college or towards graduate school.  In some states students can remain excused from compulsory schooling through age 19, providing the opportunity for students to spend that last year completing CLEP or DSST studies.  Then follow this with what is popularly called a “gap year” to complete another year of these self-directed studies.  This can make it easier to qualify for scholarships and other financial aid for some students.

- Norma Curry