<p>I'm thinking about self-studying/distance learning AP Comp Sci next year. Any thoughts? I've heard one one person that it was easy... but I haven't heard from anyone else.</p>
<p>I have the same question.</p>
<p>The “A” exam is a very applied exam. I took the AB exam last year after taking 2 semesters of very rigorous computer science at my school and did well.</p>
<p>The AB exam covered only the very basics of what we covered in class. I would suspect, then, that the A exam is not going to represent an introductory college computer science course well at all.</p>
<p>My experience has shown that teaching yourself Java and then some theory is not hard, as long as you start with a solid taught basis in general object-oriented programming. The internet has a lot of amazing resources (Javadoc, and affiliated tutorials; wikipedia) that makes it pretty easy to figure out more advanced techniques once you have some foundation.</p>
<p>While I absolutely think that teaching yourself Java and some associated theory is a great idea and definitely feasible online, I don’t think that the Computer Science A AP curriculum should be taken at face value as representative of anything worth anything, and you should be prepared to go well beyond that if you plan on being ready for a second-term computer science course going into college.</p>
<p>I don’t want to pursue Computer science in college or as a career. I’m just considering taking this course through some set up online program because I want AP Credit and I want to be able to include it when I apply for science research internships, many of which ask if you have any programming knowledge.</p>
<p>…If that’s your only motivation, don’t bother.</p>
<p>I took AP Comp Sci A last year but my teacher was pretty much incompetent. I honestly didn’t learn anything from him. I self studied out of a Barron’s study guide book (oh my!) as well as the text book we had in class. I scored a 4, and on the final second semester for my class, lets just say my grade was curved to over 130%. Class average B (curved) >_> <em>fail</em>!? The Barron’s book basically boosted my knowledge for the test by a lot. D: It’s definitely a ‘self-study-able’ subject, you just have to put a LOT of work into it. I also had a bit of computer science experience before taking the class.</p>
<p>Don’t really agree with putting a lot of work into it…</p>
<p>I spent a month studying Barrons (no actual textbook) and got a 5 on CompSci AB last year. Although, I did have prior experience with object oriented programming. If you have had any experience with programming (especially OOP), then I think you’ll be fine. Otherwise, it’s still not that hard. In my opinion, the multiple choice part of the AP exam is MUCH harder than the free response. The code you have to write is like 5 lines long for each question, so if you wanna score well, make sure you learn how to answer the MC well. I can answer more specific questions if you have any</p>
<p>Soothsayerr,</p>
<p>I am planning on taking AP Computer Science A in school next year skipping computer programming 1 (pre-requisite) because of scheduling issues. I have no background knowledge at all, do you think it’s still feasible for me to suceed? I plan to start learning the basics now, where do you suggest that I should start? any good websites or textbooks for beginner beginners?</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>If you don’t have any experience programming, I think it is still doable, depending on how well you pick up on the concepts. </p>
<p>[Java</a> Programming](<a href=“http://www.cs.princeton.edu/introcs/10elements/]Java”>Java Programming)</p>
<p>^That’s the website I would recommend to start. If you can make it through the introductory tutorials (1-3), I think you’ll be ready to start learning the AP curriculum. </p>
<p>Getting Java set up on your computer can be a little challenging.
[How</a> to install Java](<a href=“http://www.jibble.org/settingupjava.php]How”>How to install Java)
That link might help for it. You basically write the programs in Notepad, and save them as “.java” files and compile them in the command prompt. </p>
<p>If you find that you can make simple programs, like calculating how much change should be given from a vending machine (ex. 3 quarters, 2 dimes, etc…), then I would buy the Barron’s AP computer science book and work through it. If you have more questions you can PM me.</p>
<p>It’s a pretty tough test. About [40%</a> of the students who took it last year flunked](<a href=“http://www.hscompsci.com/component/content/article/1-programmingcategoryalias/16-is-the-apcs-exam-easy-no.html"]40%”>http://www.hscompsci.com/component/content/article/1-programmingcategoryalias/16-is-the-apcs-exam-easy-no.html) the easiest version of the test (The “A” test).</p>
<p>Darn, I just found out in my school, we have to complete calc ab to take computer sci.
I think it’s a stupid rule because computer sci is not that hard.
I guess I have to self-study for it now (I mean next year)
Which totally ruined my future plans :(</p>
<p>“The necessary prerequisites for entering the AP Computer Science A course
include knowledge of basic algebra and experience in problem solving.” - AP Computer Science A Course Description</p>
<p>So, Calc AB is not needed to take computer science. As long as you know Algebra 2, you’re eligible.</p>
<p>I haven’t even used any Algebra II knowledge in Comp Sci (I’m in AB Calc), and we’re basically done with the curriculum.</p>
<p>maybe he misread “Comp Sci AB” as “Calc AB”</p>
<p>@ jerrry4445, NewAccount: I know, right? I don’t know why my school has this rule at all. Perhaps they think Computer Sci A is hard? I think I will try to “negotiate” w/ my counselor.
I think she will dislikes me even more.
Cause I “negotiate” w/ her a lot of times already.</p>
<p>Hi,</p>
<p>I see many of the other AP exam courses doing this. I thought it might be helpful to have a facebook group to discuss questions and share help.</p>
<p>The AP CS group is here:</p>
<p>[HSCompSCI</a> AP Computer Science Online | Facebook](<a href=“http://www.facebook.com/pages/HSCompSCI-AP-Computer-Science-Online/172521401403]HSCompSCI”>http://www.facebook.com/pages/HSCompSCI-AP-Computer-Science-Online/172521401403)</p>
<p>Things like essay questions, multiple choice, barrons, and of course the gridworld case study can be discussed here.</p>
<p>Jeremy</p>
<p>IMO, you can master CS A, with 2 months of Java. Its painfully boring, especially to someone who already knows the stuff.</p>
<p>My class was done with all the material in one sememster, and thats only because once my teacher forgot CS AB was taken off he wanted to teach everything 5 times.</p>
<p>Rewind, it would seem that way, but 40% of the people who take the APCS A exam (not AB) flunk the test! </p>
<p>That’s been a consistent statistic since 1998 when the exam was in C++.</p>
<p>Yeah, and the fail rate for AB is lower. That indicates something other than the intrinsic difficulty of AP computer science…</p>
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</p>
<p>Well, that also shows you that you’ve technically been preparing for the Calc exam since 1st grade. The problem with Stats or Comp Sci is that they are often single courses with no long sequence preparing you for them. </p>
<p>For example hardly ANY junior high school in North America introduces students to stats or programming languages. This is a major problem. I feel strongly that we need real national graduation requirements for software engineering. Not even the basic Microsoft Office class is required to graduate high school.</p>