Many LHS Students take AP Classes, but I’m interested in learning more about them and whether they are beneficial.
There are a total of 40 different AP Classes according to the College Board, ranging from art, science, math, and history to world languages and cultures. Of these 40 classes, LHS offers 15 courses in person and all 40 classes online, depending on open seats through a program called VHS (Virtual High School). The AP Classes students take in school require a $103 test fee, while online classes have the same $103 cost, but items such as lab kits may cause a price increase.
For many students, AP classes are a beneficial path to getting a head start on college. However, not everyone finds the same value in these classes.
Many students know of AP Classes, but what are they, and what are their benefits? The variety of AP Classes can easily cater to all the interests students can have. AP exams typically require a year-long class (some are longer depending on the curriculum). Students will learn the curriculum by units, also with the help of the AP Classroom website, which has videos for each lesson as well as practice tests and quizzes in the same format as the AP exam.
Once the time for the AP exam has arrived in May, students will take an exam of a varying time of 1 hour and 30 minutes to 3 hours and 15 minutes. The exams will then be submitted to the College Board to be graded, and students will be able to access their scores sometime in July.
The “whole point” of taking an AP class for most students is to receive a qualifying score on the exam that can be transferred into college credits at some schools. But, if you do not earn the score you are hoping for, what’s the point?
Mrs. Sands, an AP Biology teacher at LHS, said, “Gaining the experience of a college-level course, while getting exposed to the scope and sequence of advanced college courses, is essential.” She believes that “especially science courses will develop lab skills which will help you in college.”
Ean Makkiya, a junior at LHS not taking any AP classes, thinks the whole point of AP classes is “to challenge yourself harder in classes and work the whole year just to get a score on a test.”
Hayden Del Rosario Rodrgiues, a junior at LHS who took 6 AP courses this year. When asked if she thought AP classes are only to receive a qualifying score, she replied, “I think that even if you don’t get a passing score on the final test, it’s still a good experience in terms of experiencing what a college class would generally be like.”
Another big question with AP courses is, are students missing out on essential education by not enrolling in these courses?
Sands responded, “Students are missing out on being challenged; completing an AP course with a C is way better than being in a safety class and not challenging yourself.”
Del Rosario Rodrigues said she felt that AP classes were essential to her education she replied, “It depends on what field you’re going into and what class it is. Like for history, you’re going to learn the same stuff as the honors and standard classes, just maybe from a different textbook and in a different time frame. But for math, you learn different subjects in AP Precalculus than Algebra 2, which can prepare you more for Calculus if you choose to take it. So if you planned on majoring in Chemistry, for example, you’ll still survive without taking AP Chem, but it’s useful to get the extra information. Again, it depends on what you want to do in the future.”
Makkiya replied, “I didn’t take the class because my grades would not have been as good in it compared to a standard or honors class.”
Another factor contributing to the controversy of AP classes is–the price. I asked for an opinion on whether AP classes were free of cost, would there be a difference in enrollment?
Sands said, “Paying for the course is a barrier for some, fees are due at very hard times for some families, while they do give cost reductions, it is a barrier. Especially with VHS no longer covered by grants that supported the cost, now left completely to the families, it is a very big barrier.”
Del Rosario Rodrigues took a different approach. “The cost is some motivation for doing well, but it wasn’t a factor in whether I took the class or not. It did encourage me to not give up on the coursework throughout the year, too.
Makkiya said, “The cost did not play a factor; I chose not to take the classes so I could focus on all of my classes and get better grades instead of only focusing on the AP classes.”
Whether or not you think AP courses are beneficial, it comes down to your personal choice. Some classes can be seen as necessary for college, while some not so much. Regardless, many students take AP classes each year and feel as if they are beneficial.