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AP Program Update Midwest Regional Forum

AP Program Update Midwest Regional Forum. February 11, 2008 Marcia Wilbur Executive Director, Curriculum & Content Development AP Program. July 29, 1956. July 29, 1956. Today’s Agenda . Introduction: Challenges in secondary school education What Does the Latest Research Indicate About AP?

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AP Program Update Midwest Regional Forum

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  1. AP Program UpdateMidwest Regional Forum February 11, 2008 Marcia Wilbur Executive Director, Curriculum & Content Development AP Program

  2. July 29, 1956 July 29, 1956

  3. Today’s Agenda • Introduction: Challenges in secondary school education • What Does the Latest Research Indicate About AP? • AP and admissions • AP and credit/placement • The AP community’s values, needs, and wants • AP teachers • College faculty • Students • AP Course Audit renewal process • AP Course & Exam Review

  4. U.S. Students Fall Behind in International Comparisonsand Raise Concerns for U.S. Competitiveness In 2006, U.S. ranked 35 out of 57 countries in mathematics Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) • U.S. source for internationally comparative information on math and science literacy of students in the upper grades • Age 15 • Assesses math and scientific literacy in terms of mastery of school curriculum, and important knowledge and skills needed for life • In 2006, more than 400,000 students from 57 countries making up close to 90% of the world economy took part in PISA 2006 Source: OECD, PISA 2006 database

  5. U.S. Students Fall Behind in International Comparisonsand Raise Concerns for U.S. Competitiveness In 2006, U.S. ranked 29 out of 57 countries in science Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) • U.S. source for internationally comparative information on math and science literacy of students in the upper grades • Age 15 • Assesses math and scientific literacy in terms of mastery of school curriculum, and important knowledge and skills needed for life • In 2006, more than 400,000 students from 57 countries making up close to 90% of the world economy took part in PISA 2006 Source: OECD, PISA 2006 database

  6. 2006 PISA Results “Teenagers in a majority of industrialized nations taking part in a leading international exam (PISA) showed greater scientific understanding than students in the United States—and they far surpassed their American peers in mathematics, in results that seem likely to add to recent consternation over U.S. students’ core academic skills.” - Education Week (Published Online: December 4, 2007)

  7. AP Student Performance in Math Source: Gonzalez, E., O’Connor, K., & Miles, J. (2000). How well do Advanced Placement students perform on the TIMSS Advanced Mathematics and Physics Tests? Chestnut Hill, MA: The International Study Center, Lynch School of Education, Boston College.

  8. AP Student Performance in Physics Source: Gonzalez, E., O’Connor, K., & Miles, J. (2000). How well do Advanced Placement students perform on the TIMSS Advanced Mathematics and Physics Tests? Chestnut Hill, MA: The International Study Center, Lynch School of Education, Boston College.

  9. College Eligible, not College Ready Approximately 70% of all students in public high schools graduate, and only 32% of all students leave high school qualified to attend four-year colleges. College readiness by ethnic group: African American 20% American Indian 14% Asian American 38% Hispanic 16% White 37% Source: Public High School Graduation and College Readiness Rates in the United States, 9/03, Funded: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Jay P. Greene, Ph.D.; Greg Forster, Ph.D., Manhattan Institute for Policy Research.

  10. Colleges have High Participation of Students in Remedial Courses Percentage of First- and Second-Year Students Who Have Taken a Remedial Course Since High School Graduation by Type of Institution, 2003-04 Students earning a bachelor's degree within 8 years, 2004 Leading predictor of whether a student will dropout Estimated cost to the taxpayers is $1 billion Note: “Remedial course” is defined as a developmental course intended to improve basic skills in English, mathematics, reading, study skills, or writing. Sources: NPSAS: 2004 Undergraduates; College Board: Trends in College Pricing, 2006; NCES 2004a.

  11. Average Time to Degree Exceeds 5 Years for Both Public and Private Institutions Average years to complete a Bachelor’s degree by institution, 2000 Source: Wayne J. Camara, “College Persistence, Graduation, and Remediation,” College Board Research Notes RN-19, March 2003.

  12. Today’s Agenda • Introduction: Challenges in secondary school education • What Does the Latest Research Indicate About AP? • AP and admissions • AP and credit/placement • The AP community’s values, needs, and wants • AP teachers • College faculty • Students • AP Course Audit renewal process • AP Course & Exam Review

  13. AP and College Admissions In 2007, Crux Research interviewed admissions officers at colleges and universities nationwide, with a focus on institutions (selective and highly selective) whose applicants have higher-than-average numbers of AP courses.

  14. Approximately 85% of Admissions Officers from selective institutions feel that AP experience helps them make decisions AP course experience favorably impacts admissions decisions About 85% of Admissions Officers from Selective Institutions “We look favorably on students who have taken AP courses. The presence of AP courses is a sign that a student has chosen to challenge him/herself.” AP Admissions Officer Online Bulletin Board Admissions – Q340 Base: (n=125)

  15. Admissions Officers use AP to determine college preparedness, student motivation, and placement How does your institution use AP, if at all, to support admissions decisions? “We consider the learning environment for each applicant – how many AP’s are offered and how many has the student taken advantage of and grades earned.” AP Admissions Officer Online Bulletin Board All uses are employed at a higher rate at selective institutions Admissions – Q301 Base: (n=125)

  16. 98% of Admissions Officers anticipate increase or maintaining their current uses of AP in the future Think about the use of AP in admissions decisions at your institution. Five years from now, do you expect that …? Higher among selective institutions (47%) Admissions – Q705 Base: (n=125)

  17. Students scoring 3+ on AP Exams are experiencing much higher college graduation rates than comparable non-AP students College Graduation Rate differences between AP and non-AP students Source: Chrys Dougherty, Lynn Mellor, and Shuling Jian, The Relationship Between Advanced Placement and College Graduation (National Center for Educational Accountability, 2006)

  18. Hargrove, Godin, & Dodd Study(in press) • Followed 5 cohorts of students in Texas colleges from 1988-2002. SAT scores and Reduced Price Lunch status were used as statistical control variables. • Students who had taken one or more AP courses in a Texas high school: • had higher graduation rates • earned a higher subject-area GPA in sequent courses • completed more courses in the discipline • Earned higher first-year and fourth-year college GPAs (The increase was higher still for students who took both the AP Course and the corresponding AP Exam.)

  19. Today’s Agenda • Introduction: Challenges in secondary school education • What Does the Latest Research Indicate About AP? • AP and admissions • AP and credit/placement • The AP community’s values, needs, and wants • AP teachers • College faculty • Students • AP Course Audit renewal process • AP Course & Exam Review

  20. There is a need for high-quality teachers to replace retiring AP teachers, with a need to build commitment, advocacy, and AP loyalty Which three of the following have been most influential to you when deciding whether to take an AP course? ISSUE #3

  21. AP teachers want more AP teaching resources (e.g. mid-year assessments, classroom materials, online score reports) How important are each of the following potential changes the AP Program could make for teachers? % Extremely / Very Important

  22. New supports for AP teachers • Free, new AP Released Exam delivered in secure manner to all authorized AP teachers (spring 2008) • Online score reports (target: summer 2009) • Formative assessments (Web downloads) • New content-focused professional development • Reduction of breadth, increase of depth in AP science

  23. While there remains healthy support for credit-by-examination business among the credit policymakers: higher ed faculty In general, would you say you favor or oppose allowing AP students to receive credit or placement in your department? 76% Strongly Favor or Favor There were no differences based on selectivity Dept. Chairs – Q240 Base: (n=125)

  24. When drilling down to the Top 200 universities, AP credit policies appear to be increasingly restrictive What is the minimum score/most typical score required by your department under its AP policy for advanced credit or placement? Among Admissions Officers, 57% of selective and 78% of Top Third institutions require a 4 or higher Dept. Chairs in Sciences and History tend to require higher scores than those in other subject areas Admissions – Q345 Base: (n=125) Dept. Chairs – Q345 Base: (n=125)

  25. AP Teachers generally rate higher ed policies as more essential to maintaining AP participation than other issues To sustain your school’s current level of participation in AP, how important is it that… % Extremely / Very Important AP Teachers – Q345 Base: (n=3,417)

  26. College faculty are looking for guarantees of AP quality, consistency, and rigor % Very / Extremely Important “For the gold standard to be in play, faculty and administrators need to have a greater sense of what AP actually is all about.” College Faculty Member Online Bulletin Board.

  27. Initiatives needed to increase higher education satisfaction with AP • Greater involvement of college faculty in the exam development and scoring processes • Recognition and appropriate remuneration for expertise rendered • Improved communications to academic departments • Implementation of standard-setting colloquia that enable faculty from AP-receiving institutions to help define standards and expectations for AP student achievement

  28. Exam scores of 1 are proliferating, showing that many students are not receiving the preparation they deserve for AP CAGR: 8% CAGR: 10% CAGR: 17%

  29. Being in the AP course is what really matters to get into college, not my exam score I don’t feel I will get a high enough score to obtain college credit There wasn’t enough test prep material offered I am weak in that subject area The AP Exam fee is too expensive Barriers Drivers To show how well I mastered the college level course To potentially save money in college by earning college credit My teacher expects me to take the AP Exam Taking the exam is just part of the whole AP experience Students cite lack of preparation among the primary barriers to AP Exam taking AP Exam Taking ISSUE #4 Graphic is based upon a regression model.

  30. Initiatives necessary to foster student exam readiness • Toolkit for conducting week-long AP Summer Camps to review skills necessary for success in an AP course • Provision of free AP Course Study Guides (downloaded from collegeboard.com) for students and teachers to use throughout the academic year and in reviewing for exam day • Exam review materials • Continued organizational investment in Pre-AP programs and services such as SpringBoard

  31. Today’s Agenda • Introduction: Challenges in secondary school education • What Does the Latest Research Indicate About AP? • AP and admissions • AP and credit/placement • The AP community’s values, needs, and wants • AP teachers • College faculty • Students • Course Audit renewal process • AP Course & Exam Review

  32. Why conduct an AP Course Audit?

  33. Who participated? The AP community responded in overwhelming numbers to the inaugural, worldwide review of AP courses. Where 105,000 syllabi were anticipated, 141,000 were submitted --- and over 14,000 schools participated.

  34. Who evaluated the syllabi? • Nearly 850 college instructors have served as Reviewers and Senior Reviewers • For all 37 AP subjects, each reviewer teaches the parallel college course • Reviewers undergo training and qualifying experiences before beginning ‘live’ evaluations

  35. Searchable database of over 136,000 courses in more than 14,000 secondary schools worldwide authorized to carry the “AP” label Search database by high school, high school code, city, state, and subject Entire database is available for download into admission office systems The AP Course Ledger collegeboard.com/apcourseledger

  36. What are College Faculty Saying About the Course Audit? “My experience [conducting the audit] was very encouraging; almost without exception, the syllabi reflected serious preparation and a desire to facilitate learning. That is really what is important.”– James Riddlesperger, Senior Faculty Reviewer, U.S. Government, Texas Christian University “Some of these syllabi begin with broad themes, and then combine some texts that one might not naturally put together…these unique approaches make me think about the ingenuity of AP teachers.”       – Bruce Plourde, Senior Faculty Reviewer, English Literature, Temple University

  37. 67% of AP teachers --- and 81% of new AP teachers --- think the audit provided a valuable opportunity to reflect on their course The audit provided a valuable and useful opportunity to reflect on my course 62% of AP teachers in private schools thought that the audit provided a valuable opportunity to reflect on their course 67% agree/strongly agree 81% of first-year AP teachers felt the audit provided a valuable opportunity to reflect on their course Total Responses = 26,023

  38. Almost half of AP Teachers felt that they improved their course as a result of the Audit % strongly agree/agree 66% 49% 33% 18% 14% 14% 14% 13% 11%

  39. Nearly one in five AP teachers felt that the Audit alerted them to changes in the AP course or exam that they hadn’t yet incorporated into their course  The audit alerted me to changes in the AP course or exam that I hadn't yet incorporated into my course *21% of AP English teachers felt the Audit alerted them to changes in the AP course or exam that they had not yet incorporated into their course **14% of AP math teachers felt the Audit alerted them to changes in the AP course or exam that they had not yet incorporated into their course ***24% of AP teachers in schools with greater than 50% f/r lunch felt the audit alerted them to changes 18% strongly agree/agree Total responses = 25,982

  40. AP Course Audit Impact • 67,000 teachers report having improved their course as a result of the audit • 18,200 teachers used the audit to acquire more current textbooks • 22,100 teachers indicated that they had not been aware of major changes to the AP curriculum until they did the audit • 18,000 teachers used the audit to acquire greater lab time or instructional time • 45,500 felt that the audit was just a hoop they had to jump through

  41. Next Steps: Important dates • Jan 31: deadline for submission of NEW courses for 2007-08 • Feb 1 – Mar 3: Website closed for upgrades • Mar 4: Website reopens

  42. Next Steps: Renewing Authorizations • Beginning March 4, principals and AP Coordinators can renew authorizations for courses that: • will be taught by the same teacher • will be taught from the authorized syllabus • Renewal process can be completed online at https://apcourseaudit.epiconline.org

  43. Next Steps: New courses for 2008-09 • On March 4, the Website will begin accepting submissions for 2008-09 • Course Audit forms will be submitted electronically – no faxing • All syllabi will be assigned an ID number • Teachers can share this number among themselves to alert us to submissions of identical syllabi • 2007-08 syllabi will also be assigned an ID number.

  44. AP Course Audit Contact Information • apcourseaudit@epiconline.org • 1-877-APHELP-0 • Tom Matts <<tmatts@collegeboard.org>>

  45. Today’s Agenda • Introduction: Challenges in secondary school education • What Does the Latest Research Indicate About AP? • AP and admissions • AP and credit/placement • The AP community’s values, needs, and wants • AP teachers • College faculty • Students • Course Audit renewal process • AP Course & Exam Review

  46. AP Course & Exam Review Where can improvements be made? A National Research Council Report (2002) identified several opportunities to improve math and science education in the US. These recommendations are equally applicable to all AP course subjects. • Courses should emphasize deep understanding rather than comprehensive coverage. • Programs should reflect current understanding of learning in the discipline. • Programs should reflect current research directions within the disciplines. • Courses should emphasize inquiry and reasoning The National Research Council Learning and Understanding: Improving Advanced Study of Mathematics and Science in U.S. High Schools 2002

  47. AP Science Course & Exam Review Phase I Bio Recommendations • Establish a conceptual framework that will increase depth and reduce breadth • Emphasize inquiry-based teaching and learning and integrate reasoning • Define prior knowledge • Increase Access • Assume a leadership role in professional development • Develop formative assessments

  48. Calls for rethinking what is taught, how it is taught and how learning is assessed

  49. How People Learn • Students come into the classroom with preconceptions about how the world works. If their initial understanding is not engaged, they may fail to grasp new concepts and information that are taught or they may learn them for purposes of a test not revert to their preconceptions outside the classroom • To develop competence in an area of inquiry, students must: a) have a deep foundation of factual knowledge, b) understand facts and ideas in the context of a conceptual framework , and c) organize knowledge in ways that facilitate retrieval and application • A “metacognitive” approach to instruction can help students learn to take control of their own learning by defining learning goals and monitoring their progress in achieving them

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