5s on both world history and calc AB.
With, I will note and even set in bold, no summer assignments.
The idea that kids somehow need summer work to do well on high-stakes tests is the same cult of the early riser that leads people to think that it is morally superior to get up at 5 in the morning to write two really bad poems than it is to sleep til noon and write one really good one.
D25 has to read a nonfiction book about overcoming adversity for AP Lang and Caleb’s Crossing for APUSH. She might have summer work for AP Spanish and AP Calc BC but if so, not a lot. It seems like she has been super busy this summer.
My rising junior has been scheduled to take AP Calculus BC in this coming year. He self-studied and took AP Calculus BC test in May. He got a 5. Should he just skip AP Calculus BC class and take AP Stats in 11th grade instead? If he does, he has no more math class to take in 12th grade. I heard that it’s critical to have AP Calculus BC on HS transcript for STEM majors. He is taking Linear Algebra this summer at CCC. Can someone provide some guidances on this matter?
If there is a Calculus course on the transcript (AB?), that should be sufficient. He can always note in the comments section of the Common App that he self studied for AP BC Calculus and got a 5 on the exam. Perhaps he can take multivariate calculus at a local college or community college in 12th grade if he is interested?
I think repeating a course in which he has demonstrated proficiency through examination is meaningless.
This assumes that AP exam scores reflect proficiency in a subject.
I would suggest that they can do so, but that they are not sufficient evidence of themselves, no matter how they’re used in actual practice.
(Also, my engineer-major kid will happily tell you that probably the best thing that ever happened to her academically was, due to paperwork-level issues, having to take Calc I as a DE college class despite having already done it AP—it solidified the absolutely basic foundation that she’s needed for higher-level mathematics. We’re taking the same route with C25.)
I am also a proponent of this. Most kids are better off not skipping the class in college unless necessary to do so for reasons related to the major. Worse case it’s a somewhat easy A and a bit of a welcome breather while settling in.
Based on what I saw with my daughter, I think that kids that ace all their AP exams probably are not the ones who require/benefit from summer assignments.
I would not generalize any conclusions from the fact that high achieving students will do well regardless whether they’ve explicitly been assigned anything during the summer.
My S23 only took 2 AP classes and did not take any exams. This was by recommendation of his teachers. I wasn’t going to pay for him to take the AP exam and have him have to take required classes anyway (for his major). Most of S23’s “higher rigor” courses were in tech college courses or honors type classes. And he was 2 years ahead of sequence in math. (He is off to Syracuse in fall for music-vocal performance).
D25 will take AP psych I think but likely thats it. She is sitting at a 3.1 gpa. And she is a horrible horrible test taker so will need to apply test optional.
Depending on how D25 does on AP lang this coming year will determine if she takes the AP exam for AP Lit. If she does well on lang there is no real point to her taking the lit exam since all of the schools she’s looking at only give credit for one or the other. She’ll still take the class though most likely. She is also planning on taking AP psych senior year if she can fit it into her schedule. She thinks it will be a fun class.
Fair.
And I would also hesitate to generalize any conclusions from the fact that other high achieving students do well after having been explicitly assigned anything during the summer.
So generally, one shouldn’t generalize?
Well S25 made it 3 years without getting Covid. His luck ran out and he contracted it the second to last day of MCOLS JROTC leadership camp), where he received an award for 3rd on academics out of 220 cadets from 19 schools.
His COVID caused him to miss his Naval Academy Tennis camp. However, he is going to do their squash camp instead next week. Besides never having played squash, it should be better because it is residential and the tennis camp was not. My husband had rented an air b and b and grandpa was going to go for a boys trip. Luckily the air b and b gave a full refund. But grandpa canceled his flight and gets no refund. Kind of threw a wrench in all of our plans over the past two weeks!!!
I registered him for the August SAT. He has yet to prep.
Husband and I still have not had Covid (unless asymptomatic- have tested many times) despite being exposed to both kids when they had it.
I’m sorry he had to miss his camp. Such a great honor he received!
Congrats on his award!
Summer work with spaced due-weeks (negotiable if family vacations) is the norm for the toughest classes, namely AP Chem. Others it is just due-by -the end of summer, or “optional” but strongly encouraged. It is common place in private schools and public magnets/gov schools. It isn’t more than 3-4 hours per assignment, max 3-4 assignments per summer. It helps the schools achieve the 90% AP 4s&5s in these tougher stem classes.
There, fixed it.
Summer reading/work is standard at our school for all English classes regular, honors, and AP. My D hasn’t had any other class work for the summer, but I think she will have some for AP chem next summer.
Our school doesn’t require summer work, and it is a pretty competitive school. For fun, I looked up the pass rates for the below STEM AP courses:
AP Chemistry 64% (4/5)
Calc AB 69% (4/5) - 49% were 5s
Calc BC 89% (4/5) - 72% were 5s
I know Physics has a bad pass rate at our school because of a teacher that gives everyone an A, so everyone takes the test, and then this is the pass rate:
AP Physics 1 32% (4/5) - 35% are 2s
I’m sure some of the above is self-selecting to take the test, but I think you can have overall success without summer work.
Just dropped D25 off at the airport for her Italy trip. It’s going to be a long 10 days for us.
Yes, 1/3rd to 2/3rds of the top students at a competitive school who qualify for AP Chemistry, Calc AB and Calc BC and then choose to take the test would be expected to pass without summer work. That’s beside the point.
It’s the average students at regular high schools (or even the bottom 1/3rd to 2/3rds at your school who opted against testing, or finished with 2’s) who might benefit from staying engaged the long summer months.