<p>"Like many high-performing suburban school districts nationwide, Port Washington had heard complaints about the lack of attention to what is often called the great middle — students sandwiched between the overachievers who break records and win coveted prizes and the underachievers whose performance is monitored closely by federal and state testing mandates.</p>
<p>The district’s unusual focus on these average students in recent years has pleased many but has also drawn criticism that A.P. classes have become less rigorous, students have been coddled, and music groups and sports teams have been saddled with marginal players.</p>
<p>Students in A.P. classes say that some teachers, now required to accept students who did not pass a qualifying exam or get a teacher’s recommendation, have been known to weed out the weak with heavy reading loads, daily pop quizzes, and zeros on biology labs."</p>
<p>what else is new? On LI, they really let any kid into AP’s to look good for college admissions…not a surprise…schools where we live in NJ only allow top kids into AP’s and they are not as successful in admissions…it’s a Catch 22…</p>
<p>FWIW, around here, alot of middle kids (B students) go private b/c they are really left behind in public…no rigor in college prep but not permitted into honors/AP’s with B’s…at least privates give these type of kids the rigor they need to succeed in college…</p>
<p>Most of the students in my school are in the middle, but most of the honor roll students take at least 1 AP a year. There’s no requirement, but you’re recommended having an A or high B in the previous year of that subject.</p>
<p>I would say my school is a definite middle. I was in the 5th spot end of Sophomore year with a UW 4.0 (directly behind the Gov. School kids who have weight), but pretty much…after the top 10…it’s just basic AB honor roll students, which is usually more B’s than A’s. </p>
<p>My school (per grade) is basically about 5-10 A Honor Roll students, who truly deserve the distinction, a WHOLE LOT of AB students who are pretty much just slightly above average, some average students, and a good deal of kids who barely cut it. </p>
<p>The students who get A Honor Roll are really the only ones who actually get singled out, because there are so many ‘average’ AB students.</p>
<p>If a school were to allow average students into AP courses, it would have two effects:</p>
<p>1) the truly qualified students would get about 50/50 As and Bs, vs. 20% A, 50% B 30% C or less of truly qualified students only competing with each other. That is VERY GOOD for college applications</p>
<p>2) The truly qualified students would learn much less during the classroom time because the teacher would have to slow down to reach the middle level of the class… a much lower middle with a mixed qualified/not qualified class. This is VERY BAD for getting the most out of the class.</p>
<p>While it helps the students look better on college apps, it prepares them less well for the rigorous colleges to which they look (artificilly) good.</p>
<p>Our high school requires teach recs to get into Honors Chem, Honors Math Analysis, and all AP classes. Essentially the students in these classes are the top 20% of the school, and an A grade in any of these selective classes represents top 20% of the top 20% (top 4%). A B similarly represents top 50% of the top 20%, or top 10%.</p>
<p>I doubt colleges actually know enough about each school to recognize a B in a highly selective class AP class is equivalent to an A in a less selective AP class.</p>
<p>from my experiences, there should be even more restrictions on who can take an ap class.
I am so sick of medicore students in my classes who really dont have a passion for the subject, motivation to study/do homework, and skill to keep up. All they do is complain about the work we get, and mooch off of the qualified students’ work. They constantly ask if they can cheat off ur homework or if you can do this and that for them. I put my foot down and say no. no one s going to sit back and party, while I do work and then get the same grade as me from cheating. I love working with people, but I hate group projects in school bc I always get stuck doing all the work and organizing everything. many students are only in ap classes bc their parents want them to or bc they want the weighted grade. Their presence is a detriment to others bc they slow the pace of the class down when they dont study, and then the teacher has to take class time to explain certain things to them. I know this sounds extrememly arrogant but it is ture. these students brag about not studying and not doing hw, and then complain when they dont do well. I’d say a third of the students in my ap classes shouldn’t be there. Advanced classes ahould be for those who are willing to put in effort to do well, and for those who want to take the class bc they want to learn more and be challenged, not so they can put it on their transcript. If a student isn’t the smartest in the world, but wants to challege themself, and is willing to work for it, great. But right now I see way too many people in my classes who should not be there.</p>
<p>whew, this has been bothering me all throughout middle school and high school!!</p>