AP Calculus AB?

<p>Hello everyone! My name is Lillianna and I'm from California. I am new to these forums and just wanted a question answered. So the first semester of my junior year recently came to a close and I recieved very good grades with the exception of one class. AP CALCULUS AB!!! I got a D+, 69%, in the class. I know that UC's and CSU's require C's or better. I still have another semester left in the class. What should I do so I can fix that D+ for when I apply to colleges in November/October of this year? </p>

<p>I don't know how much that D+ will affect my chances when I appy to colleges. Should I retake it next year, as a senior? Community College? </p>

<p>Any advice???</p>

<p>Ouch! Did you anticipate this grade? It looks as if the class was just too much for you. Did you work with any tutor in advance of the final? Did you speak with your teacher? A D+ will probably be something you’ll need to explain, especially if the rest of your transcript shows a strong aptitude in math. Even if you didn’t do well, be sure to take the AP exam. If you can ace it or at least come away with a 3-5, you’ve redeemed yourself. In terms of what to do next, I suggest you speak with your GC and/or a teacher. It depends on what choices you have and where your weakness is. Should you go back to regular Calculus? (my choice) Take Cal BC (not my suggestion!) Repeat? See what they say!</p>

<p>I would have taken regular Calculus but my school doesn’t offer it, so after pre-calculus I had to take AP calculus AB. I will definately take the AP, even if I do horribly in the class. Do you think I should take a calculus class over the summer at a community college to redeem myself before college apps in the fall?</p>

<p>I have the same problem. Calc AB is probably the hardest class at our school because you go straight into it after Precalc honors, which I feel doesn’t prepare you at all. But definetly take the exam because my teacher told us about the HUGE curve. A 50% will get you a 4, possibly even a 5.</p>

<p>I got a C- first semester. I’m working hard core this semester and have a pretty high B so far.</p>

<p>awww! best of luck emily! I totally agree, precal does not really prepare you for calculus! I will aim for a high grade on the ap but as for the dealing with the D+ on my transcript any ideas?</p>

<p>Thanks! :]</p>

<p>I would just make sure that your second semester grade is as high as you can make it. My teacher loves me. Shes the junior class adviser (I’m secretary) and I went in everyday for help. I’m asking her for a reccomendation letter because I think that having her explain that I didn’t get a C because I slacked, it was just really hard for me and I’m otherwise a strong student.</p>

<p>I got a B,my teacher didn’t teach at all.</p>

<p>“Calc AB is probably the hardest class at our school because you go straight into it after Precalc honors, which I feel doesn’t prepare you at all.”</p>

<p>What other classes could you possibly take AFTER pre-calc before AP Calc in order to prepare? In our HS, that’s the normal transition for kids going to AP Calc AB. Even AP Calc BC kids come DIRECTLY from Pre-Calc Honors.</p>

<p>Sillylilly, your D+ is so close to a C-. Did you talk to your teacher to give you extra work to bring up your grade? This happened to me too in Calc AB. I asked the teacher for extra work, not to simply raise my grade for nothing, and it worked. Don’t beg, but ask for extra help and show that you want to stay in the class. Did you already talk to your teacher? A reasonable teacher would understand how an otherwise good student could get in over their head, and how a D is the kiss of death on a student’s transcript, and help the student out. Unless you’ve been lazy all semester (which I don’t think you have), try talking to your teacher. Acting like you want to learn, not just get a better grade, will soften him/her up. No guarantees though.</p>

<p>@jerzgrlmom:</p>

<p>There isn’t a class you can take after precalc honors. But the problem is, which I’ve discussed with a few teachers and all my classmates, is that precalc, at our school at least, doesn’t prepare you for ap calc ab. We know the basic concepts, but for the most part we didn’t have a good enough foundation to do well. At my school, after Algebra II Trig Honors students can either go into precalc honors, or math analysis, which combines precalc and the first semester of calc ab. Those students traditionally go on to Calc BC. However, even the few that took math analysis and then dropped to calc AB struggled with the material at first.</p>

<p>I went from PreCalc Honors to AB and I feel like I was prepared pretty well. The concepts in AB aren’t really that abstract and topics are covered extremely slowly. How did your Pre Calc class not prepare you for AB unless you didn’t learn any trig? There’s really not much to prepare you for Calc before you physically take the class.</p>

<p>It must just be an individual school thing then. I wish I had taken a course at the community college or something this past summer.</p>

<p>Yeah I agree CALC AB is way different from Pre cal honors and it doesnt really prepare you. I had a 94 in Pre Cal Honors and I got a 85 in Calc AB. </p>

<p>well if you do well in that class this semester,. it will look like you tried to make up for it and it will show that you tried really hard. You should have convinced your teacher to raise to a 70. It works sometimes.I had a 89 in English Lit AP and my teacher raised it to a 90!</p>

<p>except at my school, a 69 is an F</p>