<p>AP is a standardized class and test, with all the positives and negatives that entails. I will say this: a fancy shmancy labeled, too-good-for-AP course that produces students unable to get 4s and 5s on the AP science tests leaves me unimpressed.</p>
<p>Put another way, a HS science class that purports to teach flexible, creative thinking but fails in standardized problem solving fundamentals is BS’g. So it comes down to the same thing: start with AP test scores for learning evaluation. They are not the final word, but they are a very good first word.</p>