First of two parts
If it’s June, it must be time to write about Advanced Placement, since I belong to the small group of teachers who direct the reading of a million student essays per year. The task of grading the increasing number of English literature tests has been my most valuable professional activity as an educator.
After 22 years, I would not agree to continue to participate in this grading if I didn’t think AP classes are the best hope for quality courses in high school. The individual school and teachers do, of course, make huge differences in the quality of a child’s education, but even in weak schools with a subpar AP teacher, students have a shot of exposure to educational material that will prepare them for college and the workplace.
A recent study (“The Advanced Placement Performance Advantage: Fact or Fiction?”) by Kristin Klopfenstein, a professor at Texas Christian University, calls current AP courses into question. Using data from 28,000 Texas high school graduates, she studies the effect these courses have on college retention and grade point average. She finds that, with a few exceptions (AP science and AP economics), students do not perform more successfully in college having taken AP courses. “AP experience may serve as a signal of high ability and motivation, but does not by itself indicate superior academic readiness.”
She takes many factors into account as she draws her conclusions, including race, socio-economic background and previous honors courses, among others. Because of the large number of variables, her data is difficult for a layman to interpret.
But even accepting her conclusion that AP experience does not guarantee improved performance in college, a related finding in her report is not based on data. “These results are likely due, at least in part, to the rapid expansion of the AP program since 1990. … In response to pressure, many schools are simply renaming existing courses ‘Advanced Placement.’ ” This claim lacks supporting evidence.
Any AP teacher knows that every course labeled AP has to go through a rigorous vetting process by college professors hired by College Board to examine syllabi and sample assignments. This course audit has been in place for three years, and at its start had many of us scrambling to meet the high standards placed on each discipline. I was one of many teachers in a panic that my course would not be approved in time to be labeled AP in my school’s course listing.
Most of our fears were unfounded, but it was a steep learning curve as teachers realized that inclusion of certain genres, time periods and teaching techniques in our English courses was not “optional” but required by the AP curriculum. That was all to the good.
My next column will examine why the College Board AP course audit is an important safeguard in guaranteeing quality, and why I believe these courses have not suffered a loss in quality as they have become more accessible to students. It’s true that AP participation has increased 40 percent since 1990, but availability of more rigorous courses benefits our children in ways not always measured by statistical tables.
Erica Jacobs, whose column appears Wednesday, teaches at George Mason University. E-mail her at [email protected].
