Can a public high school force a student to take an AP exam? (paying, grades)
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How can an AP exam be used for a grade in a class when AP exams aren't scored until the summer when the school year is over?
Schools today are trying to get as many students to take AP exams because it helps a schools rankings. Our school does this, but it is not mandatory to take the AP exam. It sounds like your school is really scamming kids and something should be done to stop it. Go to your board meetings and put up a stink.
The grade from the AP exam isn't being used for the class grade. For this subject, submission of a portfolio to college board by 5/11 is part of the coursework. This is no different than a high school class requiring a project at the end of the year. The project is being submitted to CB and it cost money to submit. A student can submit a sub-par project (no different than showing up for AP test not prepared). In this case, OP is trying to paint the picture that a public school is forcing her to pay for an AP submission that she doesn't want to. If a parent don't want to pay for the exam fee, don't agree to taking this specialized AP course that is not part of a regular curriculum for high school.
The only real issue here whether the student understood the course requirement when signing up for the course. For those who wants to make it about a choice of taking the AP exam, this course is different than your typical AP course with an exam. Read up on the purpose course. Students and Instructors have a certain responsibility. http://media.collegeboard.com/digita...escription.pdf
The grade from the AP exam isn't being used for the class grade. For this subject, submission of a portfolio to college board by 5/11 is part of the coursework. This is no different than a high school class requiring a project at the end of the year. The project is being submitted to CB and it cost money to submit. A student can submit a sub-par project (no different than showing up for AP test not prepared). In this case, OP is trying to paint the picture that a public school is forcing her to pay for an AP submission that she doesn't want to. If a parent don't want to pay for the exam fee, don't agree to taking this specialized AP course that is not part of a regular curriculum for high school.
The only real issue here whether the student understood the course requirement when signing up for the course. For those who wants to make it about a choice of taking the AP exam, this course is different than your typical AP course with an exam. Read up on the purpose course. Students and Instructors have a certain responsibility. http://media.collegeboard.com/digita...escription.pdf
I, as a retired teacher and AP Coordinator, have a problem with the wording of the letter from the teacher. You recruit kids by making them want to take the course, whatever it is, not by guilting them into it.
I typically had two sections of AP Psych because I taught the intro General Psych course and made the kids want to take AP.
It's been 13 years since I graduated high school, but at least when I was in school, AP courses (and corresponding exams) were always elective and never mandatory. Since the course was elective, and not a requirement for graduation, I suppose it might be an exception to the "free" education principle and thereby subject to administrative fees. I don't believe any public school can require a student to pay administrative fees for a course that is mandatory in order for the student to receive a diploma.
This is a separate matter, but I believe the benefits of taking AP classes during high school aren't as great as they are made out to be. It actually depends more upon the university to which the credits will eventually be applied. The university I attended required all students, if they wanted to be considered "full-time" to be enrolled in at least 15 credits per semester. Therefore, the AP courses I had taken, and AP exams I had passed, didn't reduce my workload one bit when I was in college.
Yes, I was able to start on my major and complete the core courses earlier, but in the long run, I believe my AP credits during high school didn't benefit my college education in any way.
I almost had a heart attack reading the OP: One of the twins took AP Language/Comp & AP Physics. The other took AP Language/Comp, AP Physics & AP Gov/Politics.
And they took all the tests.
Then they reminded me just now that their school has the Legacy Grant. Thank God; that would have been quite the bill.
I would have thought that I wouldn't have missed that, though. At the beginning of the semester, most teachers require a signature from parents on a page that lists class requirements. Probably to avoid bad surprises at the end of the year like this.
My experience is that it is a very common, almost universal, requirement for Advanced Placement classes that all students take the AP exam. It is just as universally common that students must qualify to even be considered for enrollment in a High School AP Class.
If the students aren't interested in obtaining the AP credit for fewer mandatory college classes, they should take the non-AP alternative.
If the student was bounced into the AP Class due to some weird HS Scheduling quirk, then that would be different and the student should be excluded from this AP Test requirement.
It's been 13 years since I graduated high school, but at least when I was in school, AP courses (and corresponding exams) were always elective and never mandatory. Since the course was elective, and not a requirement for graduation, I suppose it might be an exception to the "free" education principle and thereby subject to administrative fees. I don't believe any public school can require a student to pay administrative fees for a course that is mandatory in order for the student to receive a diploma.
This is a separate matter, but I believe the benefits of taking AP classes during high school aren't as great as they are made out to be. It actually depends more upon the university to which the credits will eventually be applied. The university I attended required all students, if they wanted to be considered "full-time" to be enrolled in at least 15 credits per semester. Therefore, the AP courses I had taken, and AP exams I had passed, didn't reduce my workload one bit when I was in college.
Yes, I was able to start on my major and complete the core courses earlier, but in the long run, I believe my AP credits during high school didn't benefit my college education in any way.
Who told you AP credits would let you be a part time student? They provide credits not exceptions to federal student loan policies.
What if they took a community college level course offered at the high school? Aren't they required to pay the fee?
For the record my local high school requires all AP students to take the test. When they report a 95% pass rate on the school report card, colleges know that students are serious and the class is not watered down. Its a reflection on the school.
Some AP classes require weeks of homework before the class begins in September (American History). Students are required to sign an agreement that this work will be done before the class officially starts.
AP art is a little different. College Board has to pay independent teachers to grade the art portfolios to their specification. I don't think they could get too many volunteers. Who should pay for the graders in the OPs opinion.
Now if you really can't afford it that's another story - is your child eligible for reduced price lunch? That's usually the standard although exceptions can be made.
It's been 13 years since I graduated high school, but at least when I was in school, AP courses (and corresponding exams) were always elective and never mandatory. Since the course was elective, and not a requirement for graduation, I suppose it might be an exception to the "free" education principle and thereby subject to administrative fees. I don't believe any public school can require a student to pay administrative fees for a course that is mandatory in order for the student to receive a diploma.
This is a separate matter, but I believe the benefits of taking AP classes during high school aren't as great as they are made out to be. It actually depends more upon the university to which the credits will eventually be applied. The university I attended required all students, if they wanted to be considered "full-time" to be enrolled in at least 15 credits per semester. Therefore, the AP courses I had taken, and AP exams I had passed, didn't reduce my workload one bit when I was in college.
Yes, I was able to start on my major and complete the core courses earlier, but in the long run, I believe my AP credits during high school didn't benefit my college education in any way.
I was able to graduate a year early from a combination of AP credits and 21 credit semesters. Its definitely cheaper than staying an extra year in college.
Even if they take the exam the scores won’t be back before graduation. In all likelihood this is a requirement set by administrators to up AP exam participation.
In my school, in order to take an AP class you must agree to take the exam. AP classes are expensive to run, you take a spot away from someone else, and the school report card is negatively I packed every time someone takes the class but refuses to take the exam.
The whole "you have to take the test if you take the class" is indirectly tied into Jay Matthews' Challenge Index which Principals in a school system use to measure their penises with and school systems use to tout their "rigor".
When we went to the "all AP students take the test" instead of only those motivated and qualified to do so taking it one of the concerns was that the scores would be part of the new evaluation model being implemented. We were assured it would not be. That turned out to be a lie.
So we had kids barely passing the courses and racking up 1s on the test with the teacher being blamed for the bad scores.
When that happened the Principals started to use the "any cog for the machine" theory of assigning teachers to teach the courses. Scores didn't change.
The most egregious example was our long time AP Calc teacher being replaced. The Principal believed the replacement would do better since he used Power Point to teach. His scores actually were worse. The reality, which no one wanted to hear, was that our students were not adequately prepared for AP Calc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by foodyum
What if they took a community college level course offered at the high school? Aren't they required to pay the fee?
For the record my local high school requires all AP students to take the test. When they report a 95% pass rate on the school report card, colleges know that students are serious and the class is not watered down. Its a reflection on the school.
Some AP classes require weeks of homework before the class begins in September (American History). Students are required to sign an agreement that this work will be done before the class officially starts.
AP art is a little different. College Board has to pay independent teachers to grade the art portfolios to their specification. I don't think they could get too many volunteers. Who should pay for the graders in the OPs opinion.
Now if you really can't afford it that's another story - is your child eligible for reduced price lunch? That's usually the standard although exceptions can be made.
Actually it's high school teachers of each course who grade/score all the exams. My youngest daughter leaves for Salt Lake City in a couple weeks to score the AP World History exam for the second year in a row. Those selected to grade have their travel, meals and lodging paid for as well as receiving a per diem. Most school systems will assign those teachers professional leave for those days so they don't lose money from the school system.
It's been 13 years since I graduated high school, but at least when I was in school, AP courses (and corresponding exams) were always elective and never mandatory. Since the course was elective, and not a requirement for graduation, I suppose it might be an exception to the "free" education principle and thereby subject to administrative fees. I don't believe any public school can require a student to pay administrative fees for a course that is mandatory in order for the student to receive a diploma.
This is a separate matter, but I believe the benefits of taking AP classes during high school aren't as great as they are made out to be. It actually depends more upon the university to which the credits will eventually be applied. The university I attended required all students, if they wanted to be considered "full-time" to be enrolled in at least 15 credits per semester. Therefore, the AP courses I had taken, and AP exams I had passed, didn't reduce my workload one bit when I was in college.
Yes, I was able to start on my major and complete the core courses earlier, but in the long run, I believe my AP credits during high school didn't benefit my college education in any way.
I've already explained to my son - starting HS this fall - that AP classes won't shorten his time in college, they will allow him to skip some of the basic courses and start taking more interesting advanced level classes sooner.
I do know some students who graduate earlier based on AP classes - usually a semester, not a year unless they really push themselves and take summer courses. But since my son has a summer birthday, and will already be on the younger side, I wanted him to internalize the concept that AP classes, even the classes he may end up taking via a community college, are about enhancing his college experience with more interesting classes, not about shortening it.
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