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Yeah, it raises a flag, but a 1 or 2 could eliminate you right there
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I think this is speculation. What is the rationale for this if skipping the test is not a hindrance? Frankly, if a high school student at a private high school is headed to an Ivy - they should be able to pass the test. If they cannot then the teacher is not teaching AP.</p>
<p>Regardless - the whole point of AP is to take the test. For a high school student who is taking 3 or even 4 AP's the experience of taking these rigorous tests is good experience. It (sort of) simulates a college final exam week.</p>
<p>It will simulate final exam week only if the kid takes the exam seriously. For now our HS already has final exam week and that final is a hefty part of the semester grade and is a requirement for every class so is consequencial for all but maybe some of the seniors. As I said before for the kid who is taking the test because he is forced to the result is inconsequencial. Probably not the same feel as college finals at all.</p>
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Can a policy such as this one strengthen a HS's AP program?
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Yes. This is how the school can evaluate the quality of preparation. If students who get As in the class can not pass the test, something is very wrong with the class.
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Do you think this policy is a good or a bad thing?
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I don't have a definite opinion on that. I think it is good for the school. I don't think it is really fair to require the students to pay for the test they can not benefit from (either because it is poorly taught, and they can't get a passing grade, or because college they will be attending does not award credit for it)</p>
<p>At our HS the taking the test was not required, but many teachers excused the students who took the test from taking the finals (and gave them an automatic A on the final).</p>
<p>All I know is that counselors at our private prep school that sends many more kids to the top schools like HPY each year for many years have said to leave off any "bad" Ap tests when completing the apps. Maybe it wouldn't make any difference to add them, but I know kids who followed that advice, because a lot of kids we know took early AP exams and did not do well on them but did as they got older and later in high school. So I know of this example. Our kids left off bad AP test scores, and still got into ivies. The same with some kids we knew. Maybe having added to the app would have made no difference but I am going by what experienced counselors with every interest of getting as many of their students into their top choices are saying.</p>
<p>In fact, at this particular school, no one is required to take an AP exam even if he takes the course. Some of the courses are not even designated AP, but after school AP test prep is offered for those who want to take the AP exam. So it means little that a kid has taken an AP course and does not have a test score reported. Certainly no school has ever raised the question, for what I have been told.</p>