The Injustices of AP Testing by Sarah Bargfrede
AP Testing; the looming peril to Sophomores, and the arduous reality of Juniors and Seniors. These exams are a requirement for all AP courses and incorporate a culmination of topics learned in the class throughout the year. While there are understandable benefits to the rigor of both the test and the course itself, the forced consistency of the test and the consequential scramble to learn the curriculum presents significant reasons to question its effectiveness for students.
While it may be an exaggeration, Bruce Lee's quote "I fear not the man that has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times" thoroughly summarizes the shortcoming of AP Testing. Due to the attempted standardization of the tests across the country, all preparation must be completed by the time the test is taken in May. The hurried syllabus has lead to a classroom environment with a crumbling foundation. Communication, deep comprehension of content, critical thinking, and other vital skills turn to rubble leaving students only a shallow and hasty understanding on a variety of subjects. AP testing forces teachers to rush through a wide expanse of information and consequently, they only skim the surface, only practice those 10,000 kicks once and never become fully immersed in a topic or skill.
As previously stated, the tests are taken in May regardless of when your specific school year starts. While this may be understandable and beneficial to schools in the west and in various other locations where the year begins much earlier than the one in Sparta, those of us on the East Coast race to cover a great range of topics, oftentimes lacking a full comprehension of the information, and are left with a whole month after the test in which we are left twiddling our thumbs (Okay, arguably the time is used with the intention of productivity but it can no longer be spent in much-needed preparation for the test). In an ideal world, AP testing would allow the greatest possible amount of time for students to prepare and develop knowledge in order to undoubtedly perform their best. Unfortunately, AP testing is NOT ideal and ultimately paves an uneven playing field across the country.
AP testing possesses a variety of flaws, those described above do not even begin to touch upon the consequences the course has on students mental health or its many other flaws. With so much content being taught in such an insufficient amount of time, our education systems have lost sight of their original purpose. Students are no longer going to school to learn and expand their views on both themselves and the world around them, instead, they are going to school for no other reason than to pass a test.
 |
| Cannot wait to start stress-studying! |
You're right! This is very well written. It seems like the whole purpose of AP classes is just to pass the AP test, which makes sense of course it is an important part of earning those credits but when learning and understanding information is not prioritized... something is wrong with the system.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree! Our education system across the nation has many flaws and AP testing is one of them! It's almost like the College Board values numbers and grades over students actually trying to immerse themselves in the content. Instead of genuinely learning the content , its become an event for just earning credit while, essentially, also acting as just another way for the College Board to generate money.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more! As a fellow high schooler (well no duh), I definitely can see the issue of a squashed syllabus taking away from the actual learning experience. Although we haven't taken our AP Exams yet (God be with us this year) there is a similar issue with final exams too. Especially since APs are in May, the struggle for fitting all the cirriculum in is even greater. The sad reality of being rushed towards the end of the school year does truly impair learning.
ReplyDeleteAll of this is so painfully true. I'm merely speculating here, but I feel as though the original intent of AP classes was to give students an opportunity to learn about subjects that they are interested in. Over time, I feel that with the increase of competitiveness to get into well known colleges, AP classes have become more about getting a good AP Exam score so it can go on a college application. All of this has lead to these classes being taught to the test instead of being about the content of the course.
ReplyDeleteI am sad to say that this blog is extremely accurate. On the first day of school, many of our teachers were discussing the final exams and AP testing! I found it interesting (and a bit aggravating) when, just the other day, my biology teacher said that we were going to have a year long project to make sure we can keep a multitude of information in our heads for the AP exam. Not to learn. Not even to develop the skills required to perform an experiment and analyze the data. To do well on a test. What is the point of these classes if the goal is getting a good score on a test that does not allow sufficient opportunities to learn? What is the point of taking this test when it cannot truly measure a student's abilities due to the "uneven playing field?"
ReplyDeleteYou make some excellent points and I wonder if there will be any changes made to this system in the future.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with your points. I would love to see you bring up these points and try to make a change with testing. Things need to change. Amazing piece.
ReplyDelete