<p>Do you find them helpful? stressful? do you feel prepared going into the AP exam? Do you feel Improvments have to be made to the AP curriculum?</p>
<p>I find them helpful for getting into colleges lol.</p>
<p>Thanx 4 ur answer 1 :)</p>
<p>Yes, definitely yes, yes, and yes, depending on the exam.</p>
<p>@ puggly. was there a specific exm you felt unprepared for?</p>
<p>Yes to all of them. They certainly motivate me to work harder in the class not only b/c of the grade, but also b/c I know there’s a huge AP exam coming up in May.</p>
<p>@ gold thanx!</p>
<p>the AP teachers at my school are pretty good, so I have no complaints</p>
<p>I think the math/science APs should be harder though, or should at least not try to omit crucial parts of the curriculum :/</p>
<p>@ thrill thanx!</p>
<p>Are they helpful? Yes for colleges. Are they stressful? Depending on the teacher and what class. Does the class prepare you? Not much, but some. That is why you should study on your own, too.</p>
<p>@ R0k Thank you</p>
<p>I think that they are significant.</p>
<p>AP classes are alright. They helped prepare me to the point where I can receive a 3 on the AP exam without any study preparation for it. The most stressful class was AP USH, but overall, ap classes are manageable and they have not put me to the point of a mental breakdown.</p>
<p>AP Chemistry - some of the topics should not be omitted, such as MO theory.</p>
<p>AP Calculus BC - need to make the breakdown 50% or 60% BC and the latter portion AB. BC should also expand more on integration techniques and series tests and have more polar/parametric questions. The current BC exam is setting up some, if not most, students who received 4’s or 5’s for failure in MVC.</p>
<p>I think AB and BC should be completely separate, that means no more AB topics on the BC test. That would give way for more breadth (and depth) for the BC test to cover most if not all of Calc II topics.</p>
<p>^Agreed.</p>
<p>“@ puggly. was there a specific exm you felt unprepared for?”</p>
<p>I didn’t feel as prepared for Human Geo as I did for Environmental Science or US History, but even so I pulled a 5. It was a self-study btw.</p>
<p>AP classes can definitely be helpful. AP English Lang has made me a confident writer. APWH sparked my interest in history. I’ve gotten used to assigned readings through APUSH (about 30 pgs/week) and Psych (I don’t remember how many pgs). And I have discovered a love for physics, even considering it my most likely major, thanks to AP Physics B</p>
<p>I think that each indiv AP class is not stressful, it is only when they coincide that things get hectic (like when I had to read Huck Finn, USH texbook, and Psych textbook all on the same day)</p>
<p>Preparedness varies. I felt really prepared for all my AP tests except USH. USH was essentially a self-study, since it was my teacher’s first year and she failed to ever show any mastery over the material itself (for example, she thought Stonewall Jackson and Andrew Jackson were the same person)</p>
<p>Improvements can definitely be made, particularly the breaking down of the more intense AP subjects (such as Bio, Chem and USH) into smaller exams (like they did w/ Physics C)</p>
<p>I think the problem with a lot of AP classes is that they cram a bunch of information into your head just so you can regurgitate it all in one day. I got a 5 on World History my sophomore year, but even the Fall of my junior year I don’t think I could have even gotten a 4.</p>
<p>I’m pretty confident that situation is true for a lot of people who take AP’s. I know even in college its not realistic to retain everything you learned from every class, but I’d like for AP classes to be taught in a way that emphasizes practical material that would actually be remembered later on.</p>
<p>On the other hand, classes like Literature actually teach you a skill, rather than massive memorization. I got a 5, and I’d bet my nuts that I could get a 5 again in 2011, 2012, and so on. I don’t think memorization classes should be eradicated or anything, cause I’m sure some of the kids out there taking the classes enjoy them… just… giving my two cents on the value of AP’s…</p>
<p>I agree with the poster above.</p>
<p>All of the memorization-based classes that I’ve taken so far (Psych, APWH, Bio, APHG) go over my head right after the exam. I guarantee you that I would be barely able to make even a 3 on any of those exams right now, even though I got 5’s on all of them previously and even though I took two of them just a semester ago.</p>
<p>However, I could probably make a 5 on Calc BC or Physics C (mech) again any day of the week, simply because those two courses weren’t all about the memorization of facts/names/dates.</p>
<p>The classes can be helpful or useless depending on the books, the material taught, and the teacher.</p>
<p>THANK YOU TO ALLL. i reall appreciate all of your help thank you for all the answers ! :)</p>