Disparity between AP score and class grade

[Anonymous]

Op, was this FCPS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op, was this FCPS?

No, this was in MD

[Anonymous]

My child was the opposite. A in the class but 3 on the test. Make me think of MCPS grade inflation.

[Anonymous]

I pulled solid 4-5's in 10 different AP exams when I was in high school. Even landed 1480 on the SAT. I graduated with a 2.8 because I sucked at getting homework done and was terrible at projects (as in didn't bother doing them). I also worked 30 plus hours a week doing retail during my junior and senior year, so I didn't have enough time to both learn the concepts and complete the busy work.

Took the credit and oddly college (went to a state college that wasn't difficult to get into) was an absolute breeze, went to a top law school where grades are entirely based on a single test and also did well. I actually remember taking two full days and skipping school to cram for the AP exams using outside materials (which was oddly a thing that happens in college and law school -- study days).

In hindsight, if I had educated, resourced parents I probably would have identified some sort of executive functioning issue and possibly had an IEP. But I didn't. Everything worked out okay in the end

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't know if it's common, but it's definitely possible.

The AP score reflects the knowledge and skill demonstrated during the 3 hours of the exam. The class grade reflects the knowledge, skills, behavior, participation, timeliness, etc, on the work done for the class during 9 months.

This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, thanks for the replies. I know there were packets he didn't turn in to class so I'm sure that affected his grade. He worked with a tutor to prepare for the AP test. Is my thinking correct that he should retake the class in college to show that he can do the classwork and to make sure he has a good foundation?

It depends on the class. If the kid is a poly sci major I would have them retake physics to show they have a foundation. If its Calc and they're an engineering major? A retake is more appropriate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here, thanks for the replies. I know there were packets he didn't turn in to class so I'm sure that affected his grade. He worked with a tutor to prepare for the AP test. Is my thinking correct that he should retake the class in college to show that he can do the classwork and to make sure he has a good foundation?

It depends on the class. If the kid is a poly sci major I would have them retake physics to show they have a foundation. If its Calc and they're an engineering major? A retake is more appropriate.

*wouldn't

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child was the opposite. A in the class but 3 on the test. Make me think of MCPS grade inflation.

Or maybe your kid just had an off day. Or maybe your kid tries incredibly hard, turns in all work, but doesn't have a knack for standardized test taking like other kids do. I teach AP Lang and grades for the class are based on a lot of different assignments - not just multiple choice tests and timed essays.

[Anonymous]

Glad I'm not the only one with a DS whose scores do not match the grades. He got a 5 on the Calculus AP, as a junior, but a B+ in the class due to a slow start in the fall. The only difficult thing about it is that the grade makes it difficult to apply for engineering programs, despite nearly perfect SAT math scores as well.

[Anonymous]

Your kid is plenty smart enough but he didn't do his work or if he did it, he didn't do it well.

Nothing that surprising here.

To the mom whose kid got the B+ in calculus: I wish I could show your post to my kid who wants to be an engineer but just isn't doing what he needs to do.

[Anonymous]

Why would you have him retake the course in college? A 4 gets credit usually. Clearly he does know the coursework to get a 4, he was just lazy AF and didn't turn in classroom assignments. There was zero point to him taking AP if you were going to just spend the money on the college course anyway.

[Anonymous]

My DD got an A in AP World History but a 3 on the exam. Whatever. Not everyone is a good test taker.

[Anonymous]

My kid got a five after self study for the US Government exam. He did not take the class. I think some tests are way harder than others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid got a five after self study for the US Government exam. He did not take the class. I think some tests are way harder than others.

I didn't know you could just take the test. Can you do this with any of the tests? Did he just buy a study guide? How long did he study for it?

[Anonymous]

Yes, you can take the test without taking the class. I tutored several students for AP exams only with no class. I would put together a resource list (including study guides) and parents would choose what resources they wanted to buy (from amazon or bn or wherever) if any. Some wanted me to train to the test and work from only a study guide. Other families wanted me to teach the material in a selective or advanced pace from other texts.

It was fun and my students did very well on the test.