The Advanced Placement Program

1
The Advanced Placement Program

• AP NIGHT
• February 4, 2009
• Heritage High School

2
Agenda

• WELCOME TO AP NIGHT at Heritage!
• POWERPOINT PRESENTATION
• Mrs. Cummings
• Director of Guidance
• College Perspective
• Mr. Segerdahl
• Department Chair-Social Science
• High School Perspective
• -Questions and Answers

3
Participating in AP CoursesThe College View at
a Glance

• Enhances college success and beyond
• Edge in college admissions
• Earn college credit
• Valuable insights into the college experience
• Easier transition in college freshmen year

4
Prepare Now to Succeed in College

• A Department of Education study found that
  the strongest predictor of college graduation
  is...

Participating in rigorous, college-level courses
in high school.
Clifford Adelman, Answers in the Tool Box
Academic Intensity, Attendance Patterns, and
Bachelors Degree Attainment (1999), U.S.
Department of Education.
5
AP and College Success
Students who take AP courses and exams are much
more likely than their peers to earn a bachelors
degree in four years or less.
Source Camara, Wayne (2003). College
Persistence, Graduation, and Remediation. College
Board Research Notes (RN-19). New York, NY
College Board.
6
Factors Influencing Admission Decisions

• Work/Extracurricular 6.5
• Community Service 8.2
• Interview 10.8
• Teacher Recommendation 16.3
• Counselor Recommendation 17.4
• Essay/Writing Sample 20.3
• Class Rank 30.5
• Grades in All Subjects 44.8
• Admission Test Scores 51.7
• Grades in College Prep Courses 80.4

7
Overview of AP Exam Grades

• Each AP exam is a weighted combination of the
  students score on the multiple-choice section
  and on the free- response section. The final
  grade is reported on a 5-point scale
• Scale
  College Course Grade
• 5-extremely well qualified A
  or B
• 4-well qualified
  A or B
• 3-qualified
  B or C
• 2-possibly qualified
• 1-no recommendation
• College Board compares performance of AP
  students with the performance of college students
  in parallel courses to arrive at College Course
  Grades.

8
More about scores

• Scores are mailed directly to the students home
  in mid July.
• Students must request official scores for
  colleges through College Board.

9
AP Policy and Colleges

• Most colleges/universities have an AP Policy
• granting incoming students who have earned a
  sufficient number of qualifying AP grades
• -college credit
• -placement
• -college credit and placement
• Students and parents can find AP Policy
  specific to that college in the college catalog
  or web site or by using the AP Credit Policy
  search at
• www.collegeboard.com/ap/creditpolicy

10
Questions to ask colleges.

• What sort of credit or placement is available for
  qualifying AP grades?
• What minimum AP Exam grade qualifies a student
  for credit or placement?
• Must a student fulfill other requirements to
  receive credit or placement (additional placement
  testing, departmental exams, etc)?

11
Heritage College/University Acceptances

• U.S. Naval Academy
• Drexel University
• Cornell University
• Duke
• Purdue University
• College of William and Mary
• University of Virginia
• VA Tech
• JMU
• VMI
• VCU
• Washington and Lee University
• WVU

• Temple University
• Hampton-Sydney College
• University of Mary Washington
• Michigan State
• Ithaca College
• Marymount University
• Stanford University
• Boston University
• Rose - Hulman Institute of
• Technology
• University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Beloit College
• Longwood and many more

12
Participating in AP CoursesThe High School View
At a Glance

• Key differences between Honors and AP Courses at
  the high school level
• Intellectually stimulating classroom environment
• Caliber of instructors
• Nuts and Bolts of the AP Exam

13
Whats the differencebetween AP and Honors?

• Students receive an external evaluationthe AP
  Exam
• Students can earn a .7 bump on their GPA in AP
  courses. They must take the AP exam in May to
  receive the weighted grade.
• AP courses are designed and updated annually
• Colleges recognize the AP label

14
Who is eligible to take an AP Course?

• Loudoun County has an open enrollment policy for
  most AP courses insuring equitable access
• All willing students who want to be challenged
• Prerequisites vary from course to course

15
What one should consider when deciding to take an
AP Course?

• Interest level in a particular course
• Balancing extra curricular activities with an AP
  course load.
• Engage in ongoing consultations with guidance
  counselors, teachers and administrators.
• The number of AP courses that should be taken in
  a given year.

16
AP Teachers

• All AP teachers are required to undergo an
  extensive 5 day training workshop led by the
  College Board
• AP teachers continue to stay current by
  participating in single and multiple day
  workshops each year
• AP teachers are asked to engage in refresher 5
  day training sessions every five years

17
AP Teachers cont.

• Students taking college level courses in a high
  school setting.
• Responsive teachers who develop meaningful
  relationships with students.
• Extra help and one on one contact with teachers
  are more readily available.

18
AP Exams

• Designed by committee members from top colleges
• Comprehensive assessment
• Exams (except for studio art) contain multiple
  choice sections and a free-response section
  (either essay or problem solving).
• Administered in the first 2 weeks in May
• Exams are timed
• Graded and scored by the College Board

19
Considerations

• Qualifying scores earn college credit
• Increase your options
• Save money down the road
• Loudoun County will pay 86 for each exam in May
  2009 . Starting in May 2010, students and
  parents will pay for exams per
• proposed operating budget changes.
• Earn academic scholarships and awards
• Experience a college level test

20
AP Course Selection 2 Considerations for
2009-2010

• 1-Course selection and limited
• option to drop AP classes
• 2-Exam fees
• -Each exam-86 (2008-2009 rate) -
• -Unused exam fee-13

21
Consideration 1

• Although LCPS offers open enrollment to students
  for AP courses, the option of dropping an AP
  course in future years at Heritage will be
  limited. Class sizes will increase significantly
  due to budget and space constraints. Schedule
  changes for only the most critical situations
  will be considered by Mrs. Huckaby. They will
  be extremely limited. No AP courses will be
  dropped after the first 3 weeks of school.
  Please choose wisely.

22
Consideration 2

• 86 Exam Fee per AP Exam -LCPS will not cover the
  costs of exams in 2009-2010 per current proposed
  budget changes. Students and parents will be
  responsible for paying 86 (2008-2009 rate) per
  exam. Exams would be ordered payment is
  received by the school. Proposed deadline for
  payment will be January 15, 2010
• Unused Exam Fee-13 -If a student orders an exam
  and decides not to take it, the student and
  parent will be charge 13 to cover the unused
  exam fee that Heritage will be charged by College
  Board.

23
Loudoun County AP Course Offerings

• Statistics
• AB Calculus
• BC Calculus
• Computer Science
• World History
• United States History
• US. Government
• Psychology
• Economics

• Biology
• Physics
• Chemistry
• English
• French
• German
• Latin
• Spanish
• Studio Art

24
AP Course Information Summary Sheets

• Course Overview
• Course Expectations
• Sample Assignments
• Support