Outlines the advantages of implementing an advanced placement program in a high school and the steps that are involved in doing so. (IRT)

Many plant biologists claim that there is a tremendous bias towards the study of animals in science curricula, however, there is even less attention given to topics on fungi. On average, Biology laboratory manuals will have only one fungi exercise, and most of the time, it is mainly descriptive. As we developed this exercise we realized how much…

An activity is presented in which the thermodynamics of simultaneous, consecutive equilibria are explored. The activity is appropriate for second-year high school or AP chemistry. Students discover that a reactant-favored (entropy-diminishing or endergonic) reaction can be caused to happen if it is coupled with a product-favored reaction of…

Discusses the challenges facing teachers with the introduction of the Advanced Placement (AP) human geography course and offers solutions for each of the challenges. Highlights issues such as: offering this course when it does not fit the prescribed curriculum, how to encourage students to enroll, and finding textbooks. (CMK)

Describes the origins and development of the Advanced Placement (AP) program in the United States, from its beginnings in 1951 to its success today. Suggests that for the future, AP should consolidate its gains, preserve and augment its value, and increase the opportunities for students, teachers, and schools worldwide to reap its benefits.…

Provides historical information on the Document-Based Question (DBQ) that has been a part of the Advanced Placement (AP) U.S. history examination since 1973. Focuses on the effects that DBQ had on course content and teaching methods. Addresses the new changes made with the redesign of the DBQ in 1982. (CMK)

Provides background information on the Document Based Question (DBQ) that is part of both the Advanced Placement (AP) U.S. and European history examinations. Includes an example of the process involved in analyzing documents during the AP examination. Discusses teaching techniques that can be used for the DBQ with the purpose of improving student…

Argues that poor student performance on the Advanced Placement (AP) U.S. history examination is due to poor preparation for the exam and the misuse of the AP examination to measure teacher effectiveness and school quality. States that teaching methods must change to enable students to see the relationships among facts in history. (CMK)

Students in Deanna L. Nelson's high school classroom study vocabulary gradually over a period of time. Students begin by collecting words from readings and listing them on a designated whiteboard. They prepare practice quizzes to exchange with peers and engage in frequent vocabulary discussions that emphasize recognition of context clues and other…

American science teachers in elementary and middle school face a dilemma as they prepare students for high school physics and advanced placement classes. The dilemma lies in ensuring that these students are equipped with the high-level science content they need to thrive in such classes. Aside from life sciences and chemistry sciences, how are our…

Students engaged in literary response on weblogs they wrote and maintained for an 11th-grade English class. Three focal students, all members of a "regular" American Literature class in a school that is highly invested in The College Board's Advanced Placement program, forge hybrid social languages from the discourse of formal literary analysis…

With an annual yearly growth rate of 9.3 percent over the last two decades, Advanced Placement courses have become a juggernaut in American high school education. AP courses are routinely perceived as an indicator of educational rigor, and many schools push to enroll low-income or minority students in these courses in the hope of preparing them…

This research brief provides highlights from the full report (published separately) that describes the ninth annual High School Exit Survey in AISD. The survey was administered online to seniors in every AISD high school during Spring 2011. In total, 3,793 seniors completed the survey, for an adjusted response rate of 87.3 percent.

Mr. Hartman is an honors-level and Advanced Placement science teacher in a diverse, urban high school where he has been teaching for the last 20 years. In recent years, Mr. Hartman has become increasingly more concerned with the lack of ethnic/cultural diversity in his advanced science classes. On the other hand, Mrs. Rodriguez is a principal in a…

The growth of the Advanced Placement Program (AP) in participating high schools and entire districts has been supplemented by state-wide plans to use AP as part of general educational improvement. AP summer institutes to provide opportunities for motivated teachers is described. (MLW)