story by Anna Leach, photos by Jordan Allen

The standardized Advanced Placement choice

In January, the Ivy League school Dartmouth College declared they would no longer be exchanging Advanced Placement (AP) test scores for college credit, rousing discussion about the practical uses of AP courses. Concerns about the amount of learning that could be done in a high school year and the cost of the exam have be re-introduced. However, the number of students taking AP courses continues to rise.

AP courses are designed to “earn college credit and advanced placement, [and] stand out in the admission process,”according to the College Board website. College Board, the non profit organization which creates the test, offers a total of 30 different courses, and subsequently, tests, from “Studio Art: 3D Design” to “Microeconomics.” Ten of these options, Psychology, Spanish Language, Calculus AB & BC, English Literature, Latin Vergil, English Language, Biology, US Government, French Language, and US History , are currently available at STA.

The classes themselves are specifically designed to be more rigorous. The teaching method itself is more streamlined in order to even the playing field for all students taking the test across the country.

“Our teachers don’t have an option,” academic principle Barbara McCormick said. “If they’re go to teach AP, they’re going to teach toward a test. You have to have teachers, to some degree, [who] have a high passion on interest as well as educated level in the field.”

The curriculum is partially set by College Board to ensure test material will be reviewed over the year as teachers must submit their syllabuses annually and attend classes to receive an AP certification.

“You have to have teachers, to some degree, have a high passion on interest as well as educated level in the field,” McCormick said.

According to AP American literature teacher Katie Dolan, the environment in an AP classroom reflects the altered curriculum.

“The benefit is the discussions,” Dolan said. “The type of students and intellects and ideas everyone is exposed to in the classroom. If you’re sitting next to someone who is as smart as you or smarter than you, it challenges you.”

The conflict comes in the actual transferring of the test score to hours toward classes in college. Most schools accept a range of a score of a three to a five on a one to five point scale for credit. However, it’s not a guarantee because all of the credit relies on that test score and some schools, like Dartmouth, don’t even accept the score for hours.

According to a February press release, Dartmouth said their policy was altered  “to require our students to take full advantage of the faculty expertise and unique academic resources that characterize a Dartmouth educational experience.” Dolan would agree the refusal to take AP test scores for credit has nothing to do with the validity of the course or test.

“I think a lot of it is a question of money,” Dolan said. “Most of the students applying for Dartmouth or Yale or Harvard have probably taken 5, 6, [or] 7 AP courses by the time they graduate from high school. That’s a semester worth of college. Yale doesn’t say ‘Yes, you can come to my school and already have a semester done.’ It comes down to a prestigious thing and a money thing. [Not accepting AP credits] doesn’t portray that the AP course is weaker.”

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The dual enrollment option

AP courses are not the only option for high school students who want to receive college credit. One of the most common alternatives is an exchange program or dual enrollment with a nearby university or college. Students in this situation begin a transcript at that college, which can then be reviewed by other colleges. The catch, however, is the student pays more money than the $89 test fee paid toward AP; some courses cost upwards of $200. Becoming dually enrolled is not mandatory, however, unlike in an AP course.

Some schools like Savannah High School still only offer dual credit programs this year as the information relayed is thought to be worth the same as an AP course.

“We’ve had dual enrollment [with St. Joseph] for ten or fifteen years,” Savannah chemistry teacher Janet Wolken said. “I’ve never wondered about having AP courses.”

Deciding which to take

Junior Heather Cigas who is currently taking college pre-calc, college Latin III and AP US history, agrees with Wolken about the effort required in her college dual enrollment classes compared to her AP history course.

“For now, I treat them kind of the same,” Heather said.  Like if I was taking accelerated classes sophomore year.”

Although like AP credit transfers, it’s a possibility the colleges the student is looking for won’t take the Rockhurst University hours. Although in two more college classes than AP courses, all things considered, Cigas said she prefers AP courses because, as a national program, more of the colleges she is personally interested in would take a good score.

“But it’s still a hit or miss because you could do bad on the test,” Cigas said. “But I rather do the AP test because then I’d know [if the credits could be transferred at all].”

In deciding college credit or AP, McCormick said the choice is very student dependent and should be taken on a case by case basis; there’s no golden set of rules to tell a student which to pick.

“You have to know where you’re going,” McCormick said. “I would look at the university I’m choosing and then at the credit and what score I would have to get. As a student, there’s some work to do.”