My dd took an AP test with stupids

[TravelingChris]

SO my dd was very worried about the AP test but I told her to do it and we can cancel it if she felt she did badly. SInce the girl next to her didn't do have the test and put her head down to sleep, that was one of her first clues that maybe she didn't do so badly. Then other behaviors was a guy who loudly insisted he was going to write the essay on zombies and another guy who was flashing gang symbols.

[Barb_]

SO my dd was very worried about the AP test but I told her to do it and we can cancel it if she felt she did badly. SInce the girl next to her didn't do have the test and put her head down to sleep, that was one of her first clues that maybe she didn't do so badly. Then other behaviors was a guy who loudly insisted he was going to write the essay on zombies and another guy who was flashing gang symbols.

 

Our tax dollars hard at work, by gum. :glare:

[Hunter's Moon]

SO my dd was very worried about the AP test but I told her to do it and we can cancel it if she felt she did badly. SInce the girl next to her didn't do have the test and put her head down to sleep, that was one of her first clues that maybe she didn't do so badly. Then other behaviors was a guy who loudly insisted he was going to write the essay on zombies and another guy who was flashing gang symbols.

 

 

I'm sure she did great!! I know what you mean. Why do you think I'm leaving public school halfway through high school? Lol

[Heather in VA]

SO my dd was very worried about the AP test but I told her to do it and we can cancel it if she felt she did badly. SInce the girl next to her didn't do have the test and put her head down to sleep, that was one of her first clues that maybe she didn't do so badly. Then other behaviors was a guy who loudly insisted he was going to write the essay on zombies and another guy who was flashing gang symbols.

 

As a fellow NoVa resident... do I even want to know at which school she took the test?

 

UGH.

 

Heather

[MomsintheGarden]

Two years ago ds took the Calculus AB exam at our local high school (there's only one hs in our rural county). Two of the ps students eventually went to VA Tech, where he is now as well. They just needed a 3 to get credit (+ pass a placement exam at VT). Neither passed, and neither is still in engineering, either. Yet I constantly hear how great that high school is, yada, yada, yada. I'm not buyin' it.

 

And yes, he did notice at least one student resting his/her head on their desk. That was the last year our county taxes paid for the ps students to take APs. There was a big stink about it, but the numbers were pretty sobering. Fewer than 15% of the ps students who took APs got a passing score. Now they have a fundraiser (whoopie).

 

GardenMom

Edited May 7, 2010 by MomsintheGarden
Typos

[TravelingChris]

Yes, I was telling Dd that although the school district here proudly proclaims how many students take AP classes, what the hidden secret is how few pass the test. I saw the stats last year since they were in the Washington Post and I was astonished.

[forty-two]

SInce the girl next to her didn't do have the test and put her head down to sleep, that was one of her first clues that maybe she didn't do so badly.

 

And yes, he did notice at least one student resting his/her head on their desk.

 

FWIW, I took a nap during my AP Macro exam. Not b/c I gave up but b/c I had finished the m/c section and still had 40min left. Sure, I could have doodled to pass the time, but I was tired, so I took a power nap instead :tongue_smilie:. I got a 5, so I don't think it hurt me ;).

[NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too]

Yes, I was telling Dd that although the school district here proudly proclaims how many students take AP classes, what the hidden secret is how few pass the test. I saw the stats last year since they were in the Washington Post and I was astonished.

 

Chris,

 

I'd love to have read that article. I hear the same thing. Many take the test, few get higher than a 2.

[TravelingChris]

Oh no, the students who my daughter saw sleeping at the tests did not do the tests or only did a tiny portion of the test. She never thought that people resting after they finished a portion was strange and she often finishes first anyway.

[asta]

When DS went to take the SAT subject exam, he was in with a bunch of kids with cell phones, iPods, HUGE bag purses, food - you name it. I was like.... whaaaa?

 

No small wonder they lost his test.

 

 

a

[JennW in SoCal]

A friend of mine is a grader of AP exams. She's told me tales of the blank tests she finds in her stacks to grade, of the silly things kids write instead of taking the test. A grader will sometimes will read them aloud to entertain the rest of graders, to help break the drudgery of reading through stacks of tests.

 

It is so wrong, for so many reasons, for school districts to pay the testing fee for kids who don't care, then to boast of the high percentage of students taking the test. Here in California, kids from poorer school districts don't even have access to AP classes or have to fork over their own money to take the test.

[ZooRho]

It is so wrong, for so many reasons, for school districts to pay the testing fee for kids who don't care, then to boast of the high percentage of students taking the test.

.

I know they just said they will pay for the AP test still in a local district. Saying many kids couldn't afford it. Okay I can understand that. BUT I do think they should be charged if they don't pass it or they should have to get an acceptable score on it. It is ridiculous for us to pay for a test like that, and the kids not care.

[Kim in SouthGa]

After reading this thread, I went and googled AP scores public schools in GA. There were articles talking about how wonderful it was that we had about 28,000 kids take the AP test. Only 17% scored 3 or above. And they were proud of that number. :confused:

[4wildberrys]

SO my dd was very worried about the AP test but I told her to do it and we can cancel it if she felt she did badly. SInce the girl next to her didn't do have the test and put her head down to sleep, that was one of her first clues that maybe she didn't do so badly. Then other behaviors was a guy who loudly insisted he was going to write the essay on zombies and another guy who was flashing gang symbols.

 

 

Um...gross. :glare: But doesn't surprise me because I don't have much faith in the American public education experiment.

[Janice H]

When DS went to take the SAT subject exam, he was in with a bunch of kids with cell phones, iPods, HUGE bag purses, food - you name it. I was like.... whaaaa?

 

No small wonder they lost his test.

 

 

a

 

I remember this debacle, bio. right?

 

 

In contrast, here is one positive experience from two weeks ago.

 

Of course your mileage may vary, but dd took the SAT at a local Catholic school and the test givers & most students had proper deportment. Two kids were thrown out for talking--and not for talking during the test but between sections. I don't know if the school is an AP testing site for those who are not enrolled there.

[Hunter's Moon]

It is so wrong, for so many reasons, for school districts to pay the testing fee for kids who don't care, then to boast of the high percentage of students taking the test.

 

I completely agree. I know here, they take AP exams during the school day, so people who don't even care and who didn't even take the classes can sign up and if they get free or reduced lunch, the AP exam price is either waived or reduced. They just take the test for a 'get out of class free' pass.I think they should do it on Saturdays like the SAT's. See how many kids take advantage of it then.

[Ailaena]

I had been telling dd stories like this for a while and she never believed me. Then, this year, she took the PSAT at the local HS instead of the little homeschool group (we moved :glare:). They took it in the auditorium and there were at least 10 or so kids that curled up on the floor to take a nap after the assistant principal left and before the test even started. The procters were volunteer parents who did nothing about it. Then there were the kids texting each other from across the room, and the ones who had kept their smart phones.

 

But did I learn? Of course not! I sent her back there in Feb for the AMC test, thinking that those kids would be serious. Sure, except the teacher let them use calculators and handed out scratch paper to everyone except dd. When she asked for some, the teacher said it wasnt allowed. Seriously.:001_huh: And we never received any results for the test, either!

 

 

In contrast, here is one positive experience from two weeks ago.

 

Of course your mileage may vary, but dd took the SAT at a local Catholic school and the test givers & most students had proper deportment. Two kids were thrown out for talking--and not for talking during the test but between sections. I don't know if the school is an AP testing site for those who are not enrolled there.

 

 

In Phoenix, she took the ACT test on Sundays at this cute little boarding school in Scottsdale. Totally serious yet relaxed atmosphere and they were open to AP testing, which was nice to know for the future. We found what we thought would be a similar atmosphere here at a small private school. We were wrong. The procter listened to music during the tests. No, not with headphones, with a radio in the classroom. Instead of 35 minutes for reading, the procter gave them 25. He even wrote down the start and finish times on the board! The few kids that were there were pointing it out to him and he told them it was correct. Of course, when I complained to ACT, they told me the school denied all of it. Even though I was there at the end, hearing the music from the room.

 

Anyways, sorry I totally OT'd there:D At least we can prepare our kids for this stuff!

[TravelingChris]

Oh I now realize how come DD's APril reading test score fell from 34 to 28. In the April testing session, the proctor got the time wrong and called a five minute warning 15 minutes into the test. DD got nervous and started marking answers. THen when the five minutes had passed, she went back to change things. I think the whole messup is a big reason her reading score fell so much. All her other scores rose or stayed the same since there weren't any time problems with those.

[Halftime Hope]

but if you have access to it, taking the ACT or SAT at a local community college or university seems to be much better.

 

My experience with the SAT at the local state university and the ACT at the cc is that those tests are administered much more professionally. I know some may not have that option, but for those who do, it might work for you. :)

 

We've also had a good experience with the PSAT at one private school and a lousy experience with it at another, so I'm not as convinced there.

 

The best private school testing experiences (APs) we've have have been at the higher end, more competitive prep schools. Even with that, one of them completely hosed my ds on his PSAT when it counted, his 11th grade year. He had accommodations to have someone bubble in his answer sheet due to his dyslexia and dysgraphia. They sent in his answer sheet completely blank except for the free answer math problems, since they forgot to go back and transfer his answers from the test booklet. I never could get the CB to drop or correct his score, even when the totally mortified admin from the school called and wrote to the CB. The only consolation we had was that it was an honest mistake.

 

He took his SATs at the state univ, and that went off without a hitch.

Edited May 10, 2010 by Valerie(TX)

[MBM]

This can vary greatly by high school. Ours does well when it comes to Advanced Placement. In spring 2009, about 800 students took 1,890 AP exams at our local high school. (The school offers 23 AP courses.) 95% of the scores were 3 or better, and almost half received a 5:

 

5 -- 48%

4 -- 31%

3 -- 16%

 

Typically, sophomores are not allowed to take AP courses, so almost all of our school's participants are juniors and/or seniors. Each grade has about 1,000 students.

 

The public library has been SRO and will continue to be all through May until after high school finals are over. :tongue_smilie:

[Guest Karmaismine]

My daughter took an AP test yesterday. The high school called today and said they could not find her free-response answer booklet. "Does she have it?" 17 kids in the room with 2 proctors. You have got to be kidding. Oh well, "She can take it again next year and we won't charge you!"