Simply clarification/opinion needed about Chemistry and AP Chemistry

[debbiec]

? High School Chemistry and making it AP ~

 

Part I:

 

I've been researching on the web and found a couple of different views:

 

1. One AP Chem class won't accept students for AP Chem without having had regular high school Chem first due to the level of work and difficulty of an AP Chem class (or his anyway).

 

2. One AP Chem class teaches regular high school Chem and bumps it up to AP Chem (no prior chem prerequiste) and his course is approved by the College Board.

 

Opinions on sequencing?

 

Part II:

 

Do you have to have your course "preapproved" by the College Board in order to take the AP? I've read different things and am a little confused. In, other words, can you register to take the AP exam without the course approval? I've been looking at the Dive Science supplement which he markets as AP Chemistry (if you use both Apologia Chem and Adv Chem together). So, if we do this at home, do we need to get prior approval?

 

And yes, I've searched a lot of threads on here and read ~ but am just wanting some clarification of what I deducted.

 

TIA ~ Debbie

Edited May 19, 2009 by debbiec

[Corraleno]

Part I: I think the two teachers are taking 2 different and equally valid approaches. The first would be starting the course at a more advanced level, assuming prior knowledge, and the second would be starting at the beginning and just going farther/deeper on each topic. I think it depends on the child which approach would work best. For a sciencey kid with good math skills option 2 would probably be fine; for a student who needs a lot of time to process information and cement basic concepts, 2 years would probably work better.

 

Part II: A course or textbook that wants to use the AP label must be pre-approved by the College Board. Students taking the AP exam can prepare any way they want, including self-directed study. There's no requirement that they take an AP-approved class first.

 

Jackie

[debbiec]

Thanks, Jackie ~ So we can apply to take AP Chem regardless. Another Question ~

 

In taking an AP Course (especially as a sophomore) ~ yes, he MAY recieve college hours for that, but it is possible (and maybe preferred) for him to retake chem over if required for his major? Or will they possibly just move him to a higher level college level chem?

 

I always have trouble with getting too advanced and the implications downt he road. It's a long time to sit out chem (3 years) and jump back into college requirements and classes in the same subject. But, maybe it comes back to you, assuming your learned it well. I'm more interested in him learning well, than padding his transcript for $$ and admissions. Not that anyone admits to that (me included). But, the kid is perfectly capable of AP classes but is it really wise to do it. Just kind of thinking aloud here and welcome any thoughts on it.

Edited May 19, 2009 by debbiec

[FloridaLisa]

In taking an AP Course (especially as a sophomore) ~ yes, he MAY recieve college hours for that, but it is possible (and maybe preferred) for him to retake chem over if required for his major? Or will they possibly just move him to a higher level college level chem?

 

 

This is an excellent question. I'll chime in with what I've learned so far, though I'll be tuning in to other's responses.

 

The colleges we've looked at use AP courses for two purposes -- admissions and credit. You may be able to use the AP course grade to strenghthen the application or obtain a higher weighted GPA for admissions purposes, but not use the exam score for credit. Also, it looks as though ds' biology will *count* for the college biology credits he needs and he'll not need to take a higher-level course. Unfortunately, however, that A he earned in AP biology doesn't transfer to his college GPA. I can see a circumstance in which the student might not want the AP credit but would rather re-take biology for an A. Just a thought. I cannot predict whether ds would do that, but at least he has a choice at this point.

 

HTH,

Lisa

[Carol in Cal.]

In taking an AP Course (especially as a sophomore) ~ yes, he MAY recieve college hours for that, but it is possible (and maybe preferred) for him to retake chem over if required for his major? Or will they possibly just move him to a higher level college level chem?

 

 

 

When I went to college and majored in Chemical Engineering, we were still on the quarter system. First year chemistry was 3 quarters, and then during the beginning of your sophomore year you had to take a heavy lab class in Quantitative Analysis. Alternatively, you could take honors freshman chemistry, which covered that 4 course sequence in 3 courses, but had labs two days a week instead of one day a week.

 

My advisor told me that with my 4 on the AP exam, I could either skip the first quarter of freshman chemistry, or go into honors chemistry. I chose homors. I figured that either way I would have to take 3 quarters of chemistry, and at least I would not be bored to death with an entire quarter of just quantitative analysis, but that it would be integrated into the other classes over a year's time. It turned out to be a great decision. The honors class only had about 100 students, and the regular one had something like 900, so we got a lot of professor exposure and most of our classmates were in chemical majors of one kind or another.

 

I thought that the AP stuff I learned was markedly more difficult than the high school chemistry that I took my junior year. Some of it I didn't run across again until my junior year in college. Still, it was in no way truly the equivalent of a year of college chemistry at the major level, so I was glad that I got the advice that I did.

[Corraleno]

In taking an AP Course (especially as a sophomore) ~ yes, he MAY recieve college hours for that, but it is possible (and maybe preferred) for him to retake chem over if required for his major? Or will they possibly just move him to a higher level college level chem?

 

I don't know of any colleges that give actual college credit for just taking an AP-level course (there may be some, I've just never heard of it). If you're looking to get college credit for taking a course while still in high school, the local CC may be your best best.

 

Most colleges that give AP credit require a certain minimum score on the exam itself. I think it varies whether the college will give you actual credits, or just let you start with a higher level course. The Admissions section of most college catalogs/websites should tell you whether or not that particular college grants credit and, if so, what the minimum score is. Some colleges also give credit for CLEP exams.

 

FWIW, I have heard from several people on 2 different boards that listing AP courses on your transcript but NOT taking the exams is viewed with suspicion by some admissions people. Some parents even recommend that if a child takes an AP course but then doesn't do the exam, that it is better to list the course as "Honors," rather than AP, on the homeschool transcript.

 

Jackie