I took a lot of AP classes in highschool - biology, calculus,
statistics, physics, etc.
I also switched from AP chemistry to a chemistry course at Indiana
University halfway through the year - but that was only possible because
my highschool was experimenting with a semester rather than full-year
system, and because I had a lot of help from my parents (who are
academics) in getting me registered at IU and arguing with the
highschool to arrange a study period for me at the correct time. I
don't think most students would be able to make that work.
Overall, the AP classes were of equivalent quality to intro university
classes. The University of Michigan accepted the credits, which allowed
me to move more into the more interesting and rigorous upper level
classes. That was really important - if I had to repeat all those
courses, I might well have gotten frustrated enough to switch to
history! As it is, I took most of the ecology classes offered, as well
as two genetics courses and 4 years of math, and eventually pursued a
Ph.D. in ecology. And all those math and science courses enabled me to
incorporate mathematical modeling and population genetics into my thesis
research in ways I never would have predicted when I was a college student.
As with any intro course, the benefit students get depends on how
diligent they are in pursuing a subject and continuing to learn outside
of class. Most of the AP students I know are quite self-motivated.
However, some universities or departments may be concerned that students
cpuld, for example, take their AP credit and never think about biology
again.
One way to avoid this would be to accept the AP credit ON THE CONDITION
that students take at least one upper level course in the discipline.
Emily Moran
On 11/22/2011 1:24 PM, Melanie Hedgespeth wrote:
It has been interesting to read the responses to this topic.
Speaking from my own personal experience and having taken AP Bio in high
school, I did feel that yes, the ecology portion was a bit rushed because
it was towards the end of the curriculum. We had to study a bit of material
on our own because we didn't have time to cover it all in class before the
exam. However, we were also told by our teacher that we needed to make sure
to cover our bases in all areas when studying on our own. She also
suggested that the AP exam covers a lot of plant-related material and to
focus on that while studying since that is where previous students hadn't
done so well in the past. I felt the class in general was fine, and was
successful on the AP Exam (testing out of both semesters of college intro
bio). I was happy to not have to pay the tuition fees for 2 extra courses
and did fine in upper-level bio courses that I went on to take. I later
tutored students taking the same college intro bio course I had tested out
of, so I was able to see what the course entailed. Honestly, I believe that
the AP course I had taken in high school was just as intensive as what was
being taught at college level. However, if I would have been required to
take one semester of the intro course, I would definitely have preferred
the ecology/evolution/genetics portion since that wasn't covered as much as
the other areas in my circumstance. All in all, it seems very dependent on
the school (in terms of high school or even college) as to what level of
material the students are exposed to.
Cheers,
Melanie H.
On Tue, Nov 22, 2011 at 6:14 PM, joseph gathman<[email protected]> wrote:
Personal anecdote:
While conducting part of a workshop for HS teachers, I gave them 20
minutes of my freshman Intro Bio lecture on basic chemistry concepts
(what's an atom, what are the types of molecular bonds, the really simple
stuff that I shouldn't have to cover in college).
After the 20 minutes, there was silence. The teachers were astonished -
not that I would lecture on such elementary ideas (as I had expected), but
that it went so fast. One of them said, "What you just covered in 20
minutes is a third of my semester", and the others nodded. My turn to be
astonished. I can't even imagine how you could stretch that stuff out for
more than a week.
The point: if a student takes AP Bio, they MIGHT just be getting what you
and I consider a proper HS bio class. Certainly not college-level biology.
Joe
Subject: Re: Treatment of Ecology in AP classes
I can't speak directly to the question of whether the
classes provide adequate
coverage of any given topic. Consulting the AP web
site confirms your suspicion that ecology coverage comes
last in the course. And of course, whether any given
topic is covered adequately is strictly dependent on the
school and the teacher, not the topical listing on the web
site. I can say, from having served as a grader for
the AP Biology exam, that ecology is well covered on the
exam.
That said, I also suspect that ecology may be a subject
that gets less than full
coverage in some of the classes because of
sequencing. Also, it is typically
covered in most intro biology courses late in the second
semester if a two
semester course. So, if you are wanting to assign
credit according to coverage
(seems to make sense), the proposal to give credit for the
ecology portion of
your course may be out of sync with the sequencing in the
AP course.
FWIW, I have long had a problem with AP coursework.
Many schools likely do a
good job with it -- but, and I know, I am an old school
curmudgeon -- if these
kids are ready for college, just send them to
college. If they are not ready,
don't let a high school offer them college level
courses. But of course, that
is a fight long ago lost.
mcneely
