Son get F in all math courses in Spring semester. I refuse to pay for his fall semester. Is my decision right?

Question

My son said he wanted to do double major in computer science and math. He get F in calculus, F in statistics too. And he get F in introduction to programming (CS class) too. This was in Spring 2008 semester

But he finished high school with 3.5 GPA. He said calculus was very tough course and programming was very tough too.

So i will NOT pay anything for the fall 2008 semester. Is that good decision?

University is not for everyone. Some people just cannot do it. Unfortunately son is among them. What to do?

Answer 1

I think it's a great decision!

I am a College student(pay my own way though) and every coarse is passable! If he was struggling then he should of looked into getting a tutor! If he really isnt reall trying to pass then its not meant for him to be successful. If he truly wants to be successful then he will try everything to pass with GOOD grades. Maybe him having to pay himself will push him that much more. That way if he fails its out of his pocket not yours!!!

Answer 2

Getting 3 F's in one semester is consistent with one who barely attended any of the classes.  I'm sure the material was extremely difficult when you don't even open the textbook.

He may be university material academic wise, but needs to learn to grow up.  Having him pay his own way is a good approach.

Answer 3

Its pretty hard to get a straight out F...you have to basically miss a few exams and only do half the homework or less. Theres usually free tutoring and mentoring available in every University, theres really not an excuse for failing, unless he just didnt care.

Make him pay for school himself, he'll take his work much more seriously. At least make him pay for it himself first, and if he passes all his classes that semester, give him the amount of tuition, if he fails, hes out the cash.  

Answer 4

Why did he fail his classes. I think that if he wasn't trying and was out partying, then no, you shouldn't pay for it. But on the other hand, if he was really trying, I think that it should still be payed for. If he was trying and he failed, it will just make things worse if now he has to come up with the money too. By the way, has he checked out the 'grade forgiveness' program at his school, so that it wont bring his gpa down too much.

Answer 5

I'm in math and computer science too. Calculus/statistics/programming in university is hard for many students who come from high school and don't know what to expect. While it may be that you son partied all semester and didn't study, math/CS isn't something that most people can instantly pick up by reading a book. Is this his first term at university? If so then he may just be overwhelmed by the university experience. I'd say give him a good talk and tell him that while everybody makes mistakes, he really needs to learn from his experience and work harder and try to get help from tutors/profs. You have the right to not pay for his tuition, but perhaps make a deal with him that if he doesn't improve in the next term you will not send any more money.  

Answer 6

I finished high school with a 3.75 GPA and my parents never paid a dime for my college education.  I mowed yards and paid for it every year myself.  I graduated without any loans.  You shouldn't pay for it anyway!

Answer 7

Freshmen year is usually hard on people. There is a lot of adjusting going on that gets in the ways of studying. The problem with your son was he jumped into doing his major work right away and had a tough load. Doing two math classes at once isn't something the average student can do, plus he was doing an intro to programming class. That is a tough schedule filled with a lot of work. It's not that he isn't studying enough(though don't rule it out), it's because the workload is too much. Science/math classes take up the most time, so his workload was probably overwhelming.

I believe he should rethink what he wants to do. And should ask himself if he knows other math material well enough. I knew someone that only had knowledge in high school algebra that took calculus and did horrible in it. Someone taking calculus should have knowledge ranging from geometry and algebra to concepts introduced in pre-calculus. I believe it is recommended to have taken calculus beforehand before taking it in college.

Not paying for his college would break his spirit. He should try to find something else he is good at, or go to community college.

Answer 8

he needs to get his act together. if he is failing then he needs to study more the courses are designed so you pass not fail

Answer 9

I think you are being overly harsh.

It sounds like your son isn't cut out for a career in computer science or math, but that doesn't mean he isn't cut out for college.  It sounds like he may have just taken on too much.

I would say that he should look into another major and require he get a GPA above a 2.5 next semester.  If he doesn't, then talk about pulling funding.

Answer 10

Well I believe education is for everyone but it has to be in all the right situations; financially, mentally. There are many reasons why your son is failing, it doesn't have to be cause college is not for him. How about maybe he has choosen the wrong courses? Human beings learn best when they find passion in a certain interest. I am not saying you decision to not pay for his fee is a bad idea, but the better way is to let him figure out what he wants to do with his life.  

Answer 11

Maybe you should compromise.  If these he considers these classes to be hard, there is no way that he can graduate college majoring in these subjects.  They only get harder, and math and computer science are subjects that rely on a firm grasp of the basics before you are able to move forward.  If you can't understand introduction to programming, you won't be able to understand further programming classes, and the same goes for calculus.  Unless he can somehow get over what his hangup is in these subjects, he needs to reevaluate his plans and find something that he is good at.  What are his other grades like?  I know that University is not for everyone, but math and computer science are not for everyone either.  Perhaps your son is the type of person who would benefit from University, just not in those fields.

Answer 12

Yes it is a good decision! He is likely enjoying his new found freedom as a college student a little too much and needs to figure out his priorities.  

Answer 13

I remember when I did calculus the very first time, I got F for the semester. The professor said, "you are just not ready for being a math major".  Same thing happened with computer science. When i took C++ course the first time, I found it very overwhelming too.  

But when I repeated those courses, i studied very hard and took lots of help from tutors and professionals who held Phd in math and Phd in CS. I then started doing very well and succeeded.

However, now I have bachelor degree in mathematics and bachelor degree in computer science too.  My father was very upset at me when i failed the first freshman semester.

The problem with me was that I was too new. First time is always the worst one.  After gaining little bit experience and knowledge, it works out.

But I went to community college first. So very little money got wasted, compared to university (if first semester is failure).

My advice would be that a student should not give up after 1 shot only. First shot ended in F, but that's not the final result.

The student should give a second shot (like i did) or even a third shot.

If in 3 shots, he still gets F then he is beyond any hope and I believe its all over.