<p>I would like to know how students are selected for AP classes at your schools. Is it GPA, performance in a prior class in that subject, is a test required to get in, teacher rec’s, essays by students, etc. Thanks.</p>
<p>in my school… you’re not really, freshman year was the only year in which i thought ap’s we’re selective, because only 20 kids based on previous teacher recommendation and science grades were allowed to take ap physics b… calc bc is also self selective, but other than that it’s a contest of how much you can curry a teacher’s favor and get them to sign a little sheet saying you’re adequate to take a class…</p>
<p>well my daughter who had average grades in middle school- for some reason pulled straight As first semester in high school, even though her writing has a lot to be desired IMO.
However she was recommended to go on to AP Euro History in 10th grade which is the first AP class students can take.
At her school, if you want to take AP you can- but if you do very badly in it you will have to recommit yourself if you want to take another.</p>
<p>I didn’t know anyone could take AP’s before their senior year. I only knew one girl who took an AP before senior year, and that was because she knocked some regular class out of the way during the summer.</p>
<p>then you haven’t checked out the students forums, here it’s frowned on if you only take 5 ap’s!!! this is the pressure we live in nowadays, even my 10 seems to pale in comparison to some of the kids with 15*</p>
<p>In our school system, anyone can take a high school Honors class or an AP class if they want to, but they have to live with the decision and they have to take the AP exam at the end. This year the system is paying for the AP exams. Last year they paid after two, so $50 was the max.</p>
<p>In most CA public schools, APs are first come first served, open to all.</p>
<p>right, i’m sure they are open to all where i went to high school too, but I didn’t know anybody that took them till senior year (for the most part) and even still kids only had like two or three… as far as I know. I know kids took AP Computer Science junior year… and I know one girl that took some AP Statistics her junior year. I honestly don’t think they’re all that. An AP course in high school isn’t the same as a college course. No matter how much they try to say it is. My one roommate took like 5 AP courses at her highschool and re-did them all in college, because she wanted to actually get the college education out of those courses, not the watered down high school approach. The only reason she took them in high school was she wanted something a little bit more challenging than the honors courses.</p>
<p>One of the girls in my high school calculus class transferred out of it into AP Calculus because she had a D in our class (She didn’t like the teacher, and so she changed) She ended up getting all B’s in her AP Calculus class. Was this because of the teacher difference? Sort of - We weren’t allowed to use calculators in my calculus class, and they were allowed to in the AP class. That’s what made up the difference. When it actually required “smarts” she couldn’t do it. My class also covered more than the AP class, and we actually learned how to do everything. When I retook Calculus in college i didn’t use a calculator or anything, and I always finished my tests first. It was cake.</p>
<p>OP:</p>
<p>AP courses at our schools are open to all, but it is highly recommended that a kid receives a strong grade in any pre-req class…such as a B in Alg II to take AP Stats, or a B in history to take any AP histories. Teacher’s approval is required (and is easily obtained), but just to ensure that the kid won’t flounder.</p>
<p>ps – our top kids typically take 2-3 ap’s jr year and 3-4 sr year.</p>
<p>We have students graduating with 10-12 AP classes, starting in 10th grade. They are required to take the AP test at a cost of $70 per test (student pays). </p>
<p>What happens when there are more applicants than spaces in the class? Does your school simply add another class? What if the only teacher qualified to teach it (or who is willing to teach it) is already teaching a full day of AP classes and the classes have 25-30 students each?</p>
<p>we expand and have extra classes… fortunately we have a lot of “qualified” teachers and my classes consist of 15-20 kids… we pay 82 dollars per test… grrr… and we may have 1 frosh… 2 soph… upto 5 junior… upto 7 senior…</p>
<p>$82 this year.</p>
<p>Open enrollment upon successful completion of pre-req (see bluebayou’s examples). No teacher req required. Master schedule is built based upon student registration, so supply meets demand. A typical student might take a couple of honors courses annually during their hs career and 1-4 AP courses total. We have some on the excessive end - all honors and as many as 15 AP’s, as well as some community college courses.</p>
<p>$82 this year.</p>
<p>Open enrollment upon successful completion of pre-req (see bluebayou’s examples). No teacher req required. Master schedule is built based upon student registration, so supply meets demand. A typical student might take a couple of honors courses annually during their hs career and 1-4 AP courses total. We have some on the excessive end - all honors and as many as 15 AP’s, as well as some community college courses.</p>
<p>our particular school has AP as a priority
The PTA has paid for extra teachers- teachers have also taken overloads with the school paying extra for them to enroll students in one class up to 42 ( otherwise max is 32)
Paying extra for 10 students is still cheaper than hiring another teacher apparently - and they wouldn’t hire just for 10 kids</p>
<p>I don’t understand why youre complaining about paying $82 per test. I mean, if you use these classes to get out of college credits, you’re saving a lot more than 82 dollars.</p>
<p>And 42 kids seems REALLY large for a high school class. I’ve never even had a class with 42 kids in college.</p>
<p>I agree it is excessively large
The problem originated when the district assigned more students than was budgeted to the school. In the spring students register for fall classes. In the fall more students showed up than who were planned for in the spring. every effort was made to give students their choices, but no money had been authorized to hire another teacher. Seniors were especially affected by not enough AP classes. Teachers were given the option to cap their classes or to overenroll ( while being paid for extra students) THe 42 students were in a AP calc class and I assume every student wanted that class. For spring semester the hiring and scheduling problems had been fixed for the most part and I assume the same problem won’t happen next year.</p>
<p>AP classes have open enrollment; however, the number of sections available are limited, so the applicants are screened. There aren’t all that many AP courses available, so it’s not that big a problem. Sections are kept to about 25 students maximum. True story is one student who ended up attending Harvard who took only standard (not honors) math all four years. Honors sections are demanding as well, so many kids take those sections instead of AP.</p>
<p>A grade of 80 or better in a pre-requisite. Classes capped at 30. If there are more students, classes are added. Students are encouraged to take the test but not required.</p>
<p>Fendergirl:
- not everyone takes the AP test to graduate from college earlier.
- not every college allows students to graduate early.
- not all APs are recognized by colleges, even if they help in admission.
- for some students coming up with $82 per AP test on top of SAT and SATII, plus college application fees is a consideration.</p>
<p>at my school, the only AP classes you can take before junior year are languages (for native speakers), bio (since bio 1 is freshman year), and some very advanced math students take AP calc (either one).</p>
<p>For other classes, you need a recommendation and a specific grade (the cutoff is different in each department), or you can take a placement test (which is usually a portion of the AP exam) if you dont have those things. If you take the placement test, I think you need to score maybe a 3?</p>