November 11, 2003
A: FROM MENTOR DIANA DIONISIO IN CA
College is all about reading the book to do problems. Professors expect you to read the book before you go to lecture, because they will lecture on the material they planned and won't slow down for anyone. It's pretty rough, but you just have to be diligent. I suggest reading the text, taking notes while your reading and doing the in text problems as well as the review ones for the chapter after you're done. It might seem like a lot of work and will take longer than just reading it, but you will understand the material better and won't study more. Take the reading a little bit at a time so you don't get bored.
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A: FROM MENTOR WANDA RITCHIE IN MA
Francisca, it sounds as if there is still some uncertainty about the
situation. When I find myself worrying about a difficult situation, I try
first not to jump to conclusions or to make assumptions. In this case, it
sounds as if your teacher has not accepted a new position yet. One
possible outcome is that your teacher may not leave after all. Another
outcome might be that the substitute teachers really are knowledgable and
excellent teachers. I've found that being open-minded about people has
always served me better than judging them in advance.

Finally, as you have already suggested, you may want to prepare yourself
with a program of "self-study" which will benefit you no matter what the
outcome with your teachers.

Here are a few thoughts:
Form a study group - if you study with other students, it may help keep
you on track and disciplined. You could each research topics and share
learnings with each other.
Find a mentor or tutor - there may be more advanced students in your
school or college students or professional tutors that could supplement
your self-study program.
Attend an enrichment program - local colleges often have special
programs for high school students which could again supplement your
study program
Use other self-study programs - research self-study, interactive
software. These programs are often more fun than reading a book and
provide you with postive reinforcement as you learn new material.
Set short term goals and reward yourself - this will help you stay
motivated as you progress through your studies

Best of luck, Francisca

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A: FROM MENTOR KAREN SIZEMORE IN KY
Francisca:
My advice would be to look at perhaps a local community college and check if
you could audit the beginning chemistry class. If you audit, you will not be
required to take test or do assignments. Should you feel that you might be
able to handle the course load, you might consider actually taking the
course for credit? Another idea is to check and see if California has a
virtual high school, many states have access to high school level course
through your state department of education over the internet. I looked and
the following website came up www.cavhs.org, check out this website or talk
with a guidance counselor about possible options. Don't give up, continue to
find an avenue for you to learn chemistry.
Good luck
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A: FROM MENTOR KRISTIN TAGHON IN IL
Francisca,

This is awful for you to be having to deal with. Chemistry is such a difficult
class anyway. I think you should talk to your parents and ask them to talk to
the school board about hiring someone who is competent. There are PLENTY of
people looking for jobs out there that would be very good. It's important that
you learn this subject well if you are to continue on in college. Make sure
that your parents know that this is important - being prepared to enter college
classes with enough knowledge from high school classes to do well.

Good luck!
Kristin
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A: FROM MENTOR CAROL TOMAN IN IL
You have a tough situation on your hands. You might consider forming
a study team of 4 or 5 classmates that are also interested in really
learning chemistry. It sounds like you've talked about the problem in
class, and you may already know who the "right" people are to
include. (Look for people who will live up to their committments even
if they're not the brightest people and even if they're not your
friends.) I'd recommend you commit to a regular time to meet that is
convenient for everyone and then stick to the schedule and insist that
everyone attends. You also must decide what the team will
accomplish. At the very least, members should bring their questions
to the group for answers and only if the group can't answer, bring the
question to the teacher. You might divide the textbook into sections
and make each member responsible for preparing study notes for a
section or even for orally presenting the section to the other
members. If your substitute teachers are unable or unwilling to
organize demonstrations or lab work, you could volunteer to help or
even to organize. And of course, you can quiz each other in
preparation for tests. Two things are important: the group must
agree on the role the group will play, and the members must get enough
help from the group that it's worth their investment of effort.
Good luck.