Advanced Placement Exams

Closing Day is four weeks away, but scores of Brentwood students just finished writing exams. Every year, the American College Board administers Advanced Placement (AP) exams, which give high school students the opportunity to show their aptitude in subjects ranging from Physics to Art History to Human Geography. Although it is an American program, international students can also write these exams, which test material and skills at the level of first year university courses. If a student achieves a high enough score, many colleges and universities – both in the USA and other countries – will give that student credit for an entry-level course and allow him or her to enrol in a second year class. Of course, not all students who write the exams achieve the scores necessary to receive exemption, and some who do choose not to skip first year, but taking AP courses is still valuable. The challenge of keeping up with a class that moves faster, covers more content, and has more homework, and the process of preparing for and writing a large exam are all valuable in preparing students for success in university. AP courses also provide unique opportunities for students: the AP Biology and Environmental Science classes visited the Bamfield Marine Science Centre, the AP Chemistry class went to a vineyard to learn about the chemistry of winemaking, the AP Studio Art class visited a gallery in Vancouver, and the AP English Literature and Composition class went to Victoria to watch Shakespeare’s Hamlet.  The exams are typically about three hours long, and are administered throughout the first two complete weeks in May. The evaluation of students’ abilities in some courses, such as Studio Art and language exams, also includes a portfolio, presentation, or speaking component.   Completed exams are sent back to the College Board, and scored by high school teachers and university professors at a convention. This year, for the first time, Brentwood’s Mr Neil Bryant has been invited to be one of the AP markers for Chemistry. Ms Widenmaier, English teacher and Director of Arts, has been doing it for years. Scores are released in early July. Instead of a raw percentage, students receive a number from 1 to 5, with 1 indicating that a student is not prepared for a higher-level university course and 5 indicating that they are well prepared. The AP exams are designed to be very difficult, and the average score on many is about 3, which means that students achieved a raw score of approximately 40-50%. A 5 usually indicates a score of approximately 70%. Taking AP courses and exams is a challenging academic endeavour, so congratulations to all those who attempted them and thank you to all the teachers who did their best to ensure that their students had the best opportunity possible to learn and demonstrate their knowledge! Hannah R, Mackenzie ‘18