Growing number of AP classes are friendly to late bloomers
The Islands' Sounder, December 11, 2002
By Diane Cooper
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| Ted Grossman Photo |
| Barry Jones stays after school to work in the science laboratory for his AP chemistry class, taught by Dennis McKinney. |
When Dennis McKinney began teaching science at Orcas High School in 1986, there were no Advanced Placement classes, and many of the school’s best students seemed bored and unchallenged.
Rather than live with the problem, McKinney eventually decided to do something about it. After completing his Master’s degree in chemistry five years ago, McKinney, at the urging of Orcas High School principal Barbara Kline, crafted an AP Chemistry program for bright and ambitious students.
Today, the OHS science department boasts two of the school’s most popular Advanced Placement classes—physics and chemistry—and the department has two additional AP science courses under consideration for next year. “The ante has been raised,” quips science teacher Dennis McKinney.
The prominence of Advanced Placement classes—college-level courses taught by trained high school teachers—has increased nationally in the past 15 years. Not only do AP classes present students with the opportunity to skip and receive credit for first-year college courses by scoring well on end-of-year exams; they also offer students the chance to demonstrate their willingness to embrace demanding work.
These days, AP classes, rather than SAT scores or high GPAs, are considered by admissions officers to be the best predictors of success in college. “The colleges are creating the push for AP classes,” explains Barbara Kline. “Given the differences in standards from high school to high school, AP tests allow colleges to assess a student’s performance on a ‘national stage.’”
Since 1997, when newly-hired OHS guidance counselor Nancy Wrightsman brought the first teacher-led AP class to Orcas Island, the local high school has added one new Advanced Placement course each year. The AP offerings at OHS now number seven, and they span the curriculum from English and math, to science, history and foreign language. At Orcas High School, students can begin taking AP classes as early as the sophomore year.
“I really enjoy it,” proclaims OHS junior Indy Zoeller of his AP Chemistry class with McKinney. “It’s fast paced and very interesting.” In addition to AP Chemistry, Zoeller is currently enrolled in AP United States History. Each of his Advanced Placement classes requires seven to eight hours of homework per week. “I’m hoping all this work will pay off when it’s time to apply to colleges next year!” laughs Zoeller.
The new Advanced Placement curriculum at OHS did not come into existence without thoughtful design and preparation. “Research has shown that a high school does not see much success in AP classes unless students have a firm academic foundation in earlier grades,” explains Kline. She and Wrightsman, the architects of the current academic plan, have worked to guarantee the success of their programs by building a strong base of core classes for students from seventh grade and up.