Frequently Asked Questions: This page contains answers to common questions
of students and parents.
- When is the 2012 APES exam?
- Is APES a 'hard class' ?
- Where can I find out more about APES and the AP Exam?
- How were the 2008 scores?
- How were the scores for 2007?
- How have SPHS-APES students done on the APES exam in the past?
- How do you explain these scores to someone who might be curious about them?
When is the 2012 APES exam?
Monday, May 7, 2011. It will be the exam given in the morning.
AP Psych will be that afternoon.
Is APES a 'hard class' ?
Many times this question is really "Can I be successful in APES?"
Any AP course is more demanding than Honors level or general
level courses. They use college text books and require students
to do much more reading on their own. Teachers of AP courses
expect their students to be self-disciplined and self-motivated.
The course will be "hard" for any student not willing to
manage their study time appropriately and put in the effort
required to master college level material.
Where can I find out more about APES and the AP Exam?
Visit the College Board website. There is information on AP
Exams, the exam schedule, course content outlines, samples of
questions from previous AP Exams, etc. I recommend that any
student interested in any AP course visit this website and read
up on the courses.
http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/sub_envsci.html?
envsci
How were the 2008 scores?
There were 6 sections of APES this year and 111 students took the
exam on May 13. The overall average score was 2.631. A breakdown
of the grades shows:
Scores Number of Students
5 7 55% of SPHS students that
took the APES
4 23 exan scored a 3 or higher.
3 31 4 sophomores & 2 seniors
earned a 5
2 22 16 sophomores, 4 juniors & 3
seniors earned a 4
1 28
By grade level, Sopomores again had the highest overall average
of 3.12,
Juniors average was 2.14 and Seniors average was 2.33.
How were the scores for 2007?
On May 15,2007 close to 150 SPHS students took the exam. There
were 9 sections of APES and two teachers. Overall, most students
reported informally that they felt pretty good about the test,
their level of preparedness and their performance.Scores for the
2007 APES Exam averaged to 2.78 for all students. One factor that
was different in 2007 was that students who took the APES exam
were exempt from the end of the semester final. In my opinion, it
would appear that our scores dropped this year, but remember the
average includes students' grades who opted to take the APES
exam rather than the semester final. Another interesting bit of
data is that 65 students scored a 4 or a 5.
How have SPHS-APES students done on the APES exam in the past?
The total average scores for 2006 are as follows:
96 students took the exam, overall average of 3.073 with scoring:
Grade 5 10 (6 Seniors, 4 sophomores)
Grade 4 28 (14 Seniors, 5 juniors, 9 sophomores)
Grade 3 28 (15 Seniors, 7 juniors, 6 sophomores)
Senior Average: 3.08 Junior Average: 2.79 Sophomore
average: 3.26
A few statistics from the 2005 exam:
10 out of 13 Juniors scored a 3 or 4 for an average grade
of 3.23
14 out of 21 Seniors scored a 3 or better for an average of
3.19
3 Seniors scored a 5
The class average for the May 05 Exam was 3.2
How do you explain these scores to someone who might be curious about them?
Each year I try to go over the grades and think about why they
turned out like they did. I will once again state what I believe
to be the case in almost every situation: Generally, students who
were serious about the class from the beginning of 1st marking
period did well on the exam. Students that had difficulty keeping
up with the reading and actually doing the homework as assigned
did not do as well. But to be honest, I am always surprised at a
few scores. There were students who did excellent work all year,
wrote well and did well on tests in class and got a 1 or a 2
where I would have predicted a higher score. On the other hand,
there were a few scores that were higher than I would have
predicted! A grade in class is based on homework, labs, projects
and tests. Some students simply do not perform well on tests as
rigorous as AP Exams are designed to be.Please keep in mind that AP
Exams were given in a very intense two week period and many
students took several exams. Sometimes two exams are taken on the
same day with only a brief break in between! Remember, too, that
an AP exam is a "snapshot" of how well you performed on that
certain test on that specific day. AP Exams are just one measure
of performance that can be influenced by many factors. I am
always pleased that so many students take the exam. Studies show
that students that take AP courses and take the AP exams do
better in college. You know what it takes to do well and can now
head off to college and have a clearer understanding of what you
have to do to reach your academic goals.