Our school recommends that students take AP Bio or Chem immediately after the HS level class. My kids took Honors Bio, Honors Chem, AP Chem, AP Physics. Others have taken AP Bio/Honors Chem soph year. The school requires Precalc as a corequisite for AP physics but not for AP Chem.
Well sure, there is “some” [limited] value, but it is definitely not necessary, and CollegeBoard makes that clear.
Ok, I’ll bite. What does #1) that have to do with Chem?
For some, yes, but for others, Physics is “hard,” particularly AP Physics which is not Calc-based. Perhaps your HS is different, and includes much more advanced material, but the standard curriculum for AP Physics is Algebra-based. And that is bcos the vast majority of kids in HS do not take Calc, and if they do, its in Senior year.
btw: as a math person, I would hope that you would immediately recognize that your D’s experience, and anecdote of 1, is not data.
But…it…does…not.
http://media.collegeboard.com/digitalServices/pdf/ap/ap-physics-1-2-course-and-exam-description.pdfs
It definitely seems to vary from school to school from what I’m reading here. My D17 is now taking AP Chem as a junior after having taken honors chem as a sophomore (and loving it so much she’s considering a major involving chemistry now). There is no physics in her AP Chem course, nor was there any suggestion that a background in physics would be helpful.
Kids at her HS take either AP Chem or AP Physics 1 junior year, and the other one senior year, but there’s no recommended order so long as they’ve had the required level of algebra (we have a pretty podunk school that only offers AB Calc as the highest level math course, so algebra is all that’s needed for either AP Chem or AP Physics 1) So my D will take AP Physics 1 and AP Calc AB next year.
Perhaps the AP Chem teacher at your school does some stuff that’s not in the standard AP Chem curriculum where previous exposure to physics would be helpful? But it’s not “standard”.
AFAIK, our HS now has a top track that goes directly from Honors Foundations of Science freshman year to AP Bio, AP Chem, and AP Physics. (Don’t know the order.) The accompanying math track is HS algebra 1 in 8th grade, then Honors Geometry freshman year through the usual sequence to AP Calc senior year.
At least that was what they were moving to when S was there. They were transitioning at that time, so that his class took Honors Chem sophomore year, then AP Bio junior year, then AP Physics and Chem senior year. They were the first class to go directly to an AP from the Foundations course, and although some were skeptical it turned out fine. Before that the school usually didn’t offer AP Chem because there weren’t enough kids whose schedules enabled them to take it, since they had to take Honors Bio and Honors Chem before the APs. (Physics was always AP only.)
The Honors Foundation of Science course was notoriously rigorous.
You don’t need physics for AP Chem. That doesn’t make any sense at all. My daughter took AP Chem last year, physics this year. No problem.
For “normal” smart kids, I would say no. But for crazy smart kids…maybe?
Thank you all for the input. so helpful
FYI - our HS also does an 9th grade Honors Science, which I believe covers physical science mostly – semester of physics and a semester of chem (although it is not listed that way). Then students take Bio in 10th (can choose AP or Honors), Chem in 11th (can choose AP or Honors) and Physics in 12th (can choose AP or Honors). For Chem and Bio the AP classes are a double period. The 12th grade AP physics courses are Physics C and Physics E+M (each a single period) and I believe non-Calculus based physics is offered at regular and honors level as well. Works out fine for most students. My student found AP Chem very difficult (got a B vs. an A in AP bio) but that could be due to his personal interest in the subject/quality of teacher vs. nature of the course per se. Our HS advanced math sequence tops out at AP Calc BC / IB Math HL. As is apparent from responses on this thread, there is not really a single “standard” of the way that high schools handle science sequences.
Physics first is an educational program/movement that believes physics should be taught before other sciences. It began around 1990. The theory behind it is if you understand physics first you will understand chemistry better. In the program biology should be taken after chemistry
The disadvantage, from a high school standpoint, of teaching physics as the first science is that most 9th grade students are less advanced in math, which can limit the effectiveness of physics instruction in 9th grade.
It is likely that the traditional order of high school science courses is based on the level of math that students are desired to have, since biology is the least math-intensive, while physics (even at the non-calculus high school level) is the most math-intensive.
@Bluebayou my point is that physics and calculus cover some overlapping material most notably kinematics and therefore there is some pedagogical justification for teaching them together. As I noted this is also the opinion of family members who were not able to schedule coursework this way. It has to do with the Op question because I am assuming that if the kid does not take AP chemistry he will take physics as has been stated is customary at his school and many others. Is that the only way to do this? No, but I think it is the best way and so do the teachers at op’ school. Maybe the op has some reason why the son wants to take ap chemistry first but since that question is not being answered there isn’t much more to say.
AP has four different physics tests - AP Physics1 and AP Physics 2 have replaced the old AP Physics B and they are algebra based. AP Physics C Mechanics and AP Physics C Electricity and Magnetism which are calculus based, but at a level that calculus can be taken concurrently.
I concur that taking Calc and AP Physics 1 together can be a plus, even tho Calc is not necessary for Physics 1. But the OP’s question is about AP Chem.
The OP did not inquire about the alliterative option of Physics, and personally, I do not assume anything not provided, (since my assumptions are usually incorrect.)
Sounds like your district, like ours and others, generally has kids take physics before AP chem. just because it works for kids in other high schools doesn’t mean it is the best choice for your kid in his HS. I would suggest paying more attention to the teachers at your school than random folks on CC. Folks here give great advice, but the sequence of courses, expectations and assumed prior knowledge really vary by HS.
In our district, the GT kids have bio in 8th grade, followed by chem 1 as freshmen and physics 1 as sophomores. They then take ap chem, ap bio and\or ap physics jr. And sr. Years.
What is the reason for taking AP chem instead of physics next year?
@mom2and the reason is: to compete USNCO in sophomore