Some colleges also offer or require their own placement tests regardless of whether they give AP Credit.
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Some schools have those intro courses set to be weed outs so if a student has gotten 5s and knows the material, it makes sense to move on and start at the appropriate level.
And as noted, some schools have placement tests and wonât let you start at a lower level unless you tank the test.
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I can tell you what isnât successful: when a school treats these classes as somewhat interchangeable. For whatever reason, kidâs school has dismal success in physics AP scores for many years, despite great success in most other subjects. I always wondered why: I found that class and test easy (way back when it was just AP physics) and the kind of thing that would lend itself to self-teaching if the teacher is bad.
So when it was my kids turn, I found out the level of dysfunction: She was a physics 1 student. She was assigned to a physics C classroom and was taught the same materials (lectures and classes) but took a slightly different test (without the calc: probably would have been fine for her to take the calc). Tests had some crazy curve so that her scores in the class would be similarly high whether she understood the material or felt somewhat confused. She (and most of the physics C students) all did various shades of poorly on the test. When she got to the test she said the formula sheet wasnât even the one she was given during the year! Now I understood why so many of the bright students at her school just did honors physics and called it a day. Mine skipped honors, but many in the class (who did no better) had a full year of honors before the AP class.
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I have never heard of APphysics1 NOT being the first high school physics class(typically for honors kids), while the second year is APphysicsC . I pulled up course sequences at multiple schools in the area, public and private, and they all seem to do use AP1 , when they offer it, as the first year of physics for advanced/honors students.
I have. Although this is typically in school systems that follow the Physics First pathway. That said, I have also seen examples of Physics First schools offering AP Physics 1 as the 9th grade honors option. So no consistency.
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Iâve lost count of the number of things I have never heard of before on this forum. Itâs an interesting place for learning how different schools handle things.
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A student who knows the material well does not derive benefit from repeating what they already know. Repeating would be a waste of time and tuition that could otherwise be used for a free elective (perhaps later). Would you rather pay to repeat calculus 1 if the student knows the material well (based on the collegeâs old calculus 1 final exams) or learn something new?
Of course, it does vary by subject. AP physics is less likely to be a match in material coverage and depth to introductory college physics courses, compared to AP calculus. But that can be determined by the collegeâs (often non-)acceptance of AP physics credit and/or the collegeâs old physics final exams.
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My kidâs school allows AP Physics C as the first physics course as long as they are taking calculus at the same time (which she did). She goes to a high performing magnet school where kids have to take a minimum of 8 AP classes. Her AP Physics C course was about half juniors and half seniors (had already taken AP Physics 1).
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My daughter took Physics C as a first Physics course as a senior, after having taken Calc BC as a junior. Physics 1 and 2 was not offered at her school. She could have taken regular or honors Physics before the Physics C but decided against it, as the teacher in charge of Physics C was one of the best at the school and the teacher in charge of regular Physics was just not very good (per the high school grapevine that she considered fairly accurate). A lot of Physics concepts, particularly for the Mechanics part of the curriculum, were studied in her math classes over the years. She did well and really enjoyed the class. I think she could have skipped the first Physics course at college (Mechanics) but not Electromagnetism, and decided against it per her academic advisor. Sheâs an engineering major and the Physics series is pretty foundational. She was glad she took it as she learned a lot and had a great lab experience also which she missed in high school due to Covid.
To the OP, a lot of kids in my daughterâs year took the Physics 1 AP exam after taking honors Physics at school (and with a little self studying) so my guess is that it can be taken as a first course.
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Not to hijack the thread but asking a related question since the OP brought it up:
For students who took Physics 1 Semester 1, then Physics 2 Semester 2 (Iâm assuming it was an Honors class because it was a P - college prep - course) during 2019-2020 - and were sent home late Spring to complete classes remotely: could a student still conceivably brush up on their past course work and take the AP test/tests this year (May 2023)? (Didnât have a chance to back then, and may not get another Physics class in high school as they dropped AP Physics this year.)
Also, does Physics 1 (for a semester) correspond to the AP Physics 1 test, and Physics 2 (second semester) correspond the the AP Physics 2 test? Apologies if this question is redundant, but the OPâs original post about their youngestâs experience on the AP Physics 1 exam was illuminating about the type of class needed to prep for the Algebra-based Physics tests.
The purpose of taking the AP Physics 1 & 2 tests this (junior) year would be to have some AP Physics tests on the transcript and demonstrate basic Physics proficiency to satisfy Mechanical Engineering admission requirements. It would not be to place in a higher-level Physics course, as our family, like @CMCMLMâs, regards physics as a foundational STEM class for their degree. And also, as @ucbalumnus points out, AP Physics is less likely to be a match in material coverage and depth to introductory college physics courses (compared to AP Calculus).
(I also think doing a schoolâs old tests in key subject areas of interest is a great way for a student to get an idea of the post-secondary workload before they set foot on campus. Bombing the first mid-term can be a shocking experience for most first-year students.)
AP courses have a standard curriculum. Non AP courses cover material as set by the district/school/teacher. How much alignment there is between them is a big âit depends.â
From a course taken 3 years ago? This will require much more than brushing up. Given that the AP Physics 1 has historically had a 60% fail rate, preparing for an AP test may not be the best use of their time
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Could a student brush up and take the AP test this year? Sure they could.
How well the material aligns with the AP test would depend on what was covered during the school year.
Iâd have the student get a review book out from the library and see if there was enough of an overlap to make it realistic.
The only hurdle that a student may face is finding a seat to take the test because some high schools limit who can sit for AP tests. I would hope that in this case, the school would allow it.
That all said, if the class is on a studentâs transcript, that should be enough for a college. The common app has a place to put covid disruptions and a student could write that the AP wasnât offered that year because of Covid.
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AP physics 1 and 2 scores are useless for advanced placement for an engineering major.
Since the student has had high school physics, that, along with calculus, should be sufficient prerequisite for calculus-based introductory physics for engineering majors.
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Thanks for the insights. We recognize that if the student only has Physics 1 & 2 on the transcript, then no advanced placement would be happening for an engineering major (and weâre understanding of that). Having taken the material in the past (although it may not align with what is tested, so a year of intermittent prep would be needed) the thought is that to be a stronger potential engineering admit the AP Physics 1 & 2 tests shows some course rigor. Itâs possible that these would be the only AP science-based tests on the transcript (ie. no Chem or Bio). Donât know if engineering AOs would be cool with an applicant having zero STEM AP tests. Seems like it would hurt a studentâs app.
Just to clarify: this is a current junior, so the Physics 1&2 2019-20 were in 8th grade? I have concerns the curriculum might not have been designed for the AP phys1(or 2) tests, but maybe you could ask the school science department for some insight and advice .
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The key is math- no point worrying that your HS doesnât offer AP Bio if the foundation in math is weak.
Iâm not sure I follow what thealternative is trying to learn here-- obviously, recent and rigorous beats a few years ago and not so rigorous. But you canât take what your HS doesnât offer, so donât worry about that. Focus on what IS available.
Iâm not so into declaring a kid a wannabee engineer if he hasnât taken any advanced physics or chem as a junior or senior⊠these are the kids who wonât know what hit them freshman year of college! So my advice would be to slow down. Thereâs no point in being a âstronger potential engineering admitâ if the kid hasnât taken enough science to know if engineering is even of interest!
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Oops - It was 9th grade 2020-2021. My distraction. The school Physics teacher retired after that class.
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Appreciate your comments. Kid likes to work with their hands and has been doing advanced math course work over the years. Has preferred physics over bio and chem, as well as a college DE Python programming course. So, given their course exposure and some small past summer experiences, MechEng does speak to their current interests. (Of course, this could change, but itâs not coming from me as I didnât do engineering in school, but my spouse and father both did, so there could be a generational component - just a different branch of engineering from what they studied).
The school does offer AP Bio and AP Environmental Science, but my student may not be able to take them (sport gets in the way). So if they could test AP 1 & 2 Algebra-based (with review and supplemental study) that would help the transcript make sense to AOs.
The OP brought up a good point about courses taken in order to do well on the AP Physics 1 test. Their query as to coursework differences between AP Physics versus honors-level Physics is what inspired me to ask my question. Appreciate that they asked this question.
Start a new thread. Too confusing figuring out which are your questions and which are the OPâs.
My kids HS would not have allowed a sport to interfere with an AP science senior year for a kid who thinks he/she wants engineering. That would not happen. Unless the kid is a potential Olympic gymnast, I cannot see the logic here.
But itâs not my kid. Start your own thread and youâll get some ideas on how to handle the tricky situation here. But if the kid was able to do DE for a programming course, why not DE for advanced chem or physics? That seems a little more rigorous than just âreview and supplemental studyâ for a course taken as a HS freshman, no???
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