MARIETTA - More Cobb students are taking advanced placement exams than ever before.
The number of Cobb students who took an AP exam rose from 5,513 in 2005 to 7,595 in 2006, a 38 percent increase.
Scores on exams range from the best, which is a 5, to the worst, which is a 1.
The number of exams where students scored a 3 or higher increased from 3,779 in 2005 to 4,885 in 2006, an increase of 29 percent. Students who earn a 3 or better are eligible to receive college credit for freshman-level courses at most universities and colleges.
Walton High School Principal Dr. Tom Higgins said when it comes to focusing on higher scores on the AP exam or enrolling more students in AP courses, the choice is simple.
“We’re more interested in the kids taking the class because we know it stretches them, and we know there’s a good bit of evidence out there,” he said. “A good bit of research says the more rigorous a curriculum a student takes in high school, the chances increase that they will finish college and finish in four years.”
Walton had the greatest number of students enroll in advanced placement courses last year with 1,805, an 18-percent increase over the previous school year of 1,527.
Higgins said even if students don’t score well on the exam, it’s still important that they take the course. He cited a number of examples where students who scored a “2″ on the exam went on to major in the subject because they were inspired in high school.
“We think it’s the way to prepare for college,” Higgins said.
McEachern High School Principal Rob Benson agrees.
“We’d rather have students take the test and challenge themselves than worry about the pass-rate percentage. It’s a validation for students,” Benson said. “If you don’t earn a three or better, it doesn’t mean you failed.”
It does mean a student will not earn college credit for the course, though.
Dr. Vicki Skywark, supervisor for the school district’s Advanced Learning Programs, said most universities accept a three or higher for college credit, but not all of them.
Harvard, she said, will not accept any AP courses for college credit, but that doesn’t mean students who want to attend there don’t have to take AP classes.
“You don’t have a ghost’s chance of getting in without AP classes,” Dr. Skywark said.
If a student wants his AP class to count for credit at Emory University, he needs to score at least a 4 or 5, said Emory undergraduate staffer Donna White.
The shift to having more students take AP classes has only occurred in the past few years, Dr. Skywark said.
“There used to be a lot of gatekeepers over the courses. There was a lingering perception among teachers - not every teacher - that AP class was for gifted students.”
Another fear was that teachers would be judged on how well students scored on the test, she said.
Cobb’s policy is now to encourage all students to take AP courses.
For the 2005-06 school year 7,595 Cobb students took an AP course.
The district’s average score is 2.99, higher than the state average of 2.78 and the global average of 2.90.
McEachern had the greatest increase in students who took an AP exam from 118 in 2005, to 254 students in 2006, representing a 115-percent increase.
Benson said the increase is, in part, a result of his push to encourage students who are capable of taking academically rigorous courses to do so.
