Anonymous
Post 07/12/2025 08:23     Subject: Re:How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:Not having AP class designations did not affect DD or any of her classmates. Colleges know the school. AP classes are all about breadth and no depth anyway. DD still took AP exams and reviewed a few things on her own and earned 5s on several exams.


This.

When I was in high school, we did not have the AP infrastructure of today. The School might have offered one or two courses, but they were not built on the test to the degree today’s classes are, and I had as much self study to do for those classes as the classes that had no AP designation.

At the end of the day, it does not change the overall college acceptance workload that much but will be a highlight / beneficial advantage for your child in the eyes of the reviewers. “No formal AP class, still got a five on the test” shows determination and resilience.
Anonymous
Post 07/12/2025 08:16     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Our private offers AP and I am of mixed opinion about them. Prior to taking an AP history course she took a regular course at the same school and honestly found the non AP course more challenging and intellectually stimulating than the AP course which really focused on maximizing the AP score. A lot more factual content was covered in AP, but the essays were more challenging in the regular class because writing style and good research was emphasized more in the non-AP class.

But on the other hand I”m still glad our school offers them because they are rigorous enough as college preparatory classes and we don’t have to worry that college admissions will wonder at the lack of APs. DC may be applying to UK schools and 5s on certain AP scores are required. So it”s nice to have the curriculum covered in class so that DC doesn’t have to spend time outside of class self studying for them and can have more time for extracurriculars/free time.


Exactly. Research and writing are the backbone of college-level history. The AP classes will give students a good factual base and minimal analytical skills, but nothing like a good college course with a strong lecturer. The only whole book AP kids will read is the AP textbook.

College history is, of course, absolutely nothing like that.


Our kid's AP history courses required a lot of research and writing, so I guess it depends on how the teacher approaches the subject. I actually felt they under-emphasized maximizing the test results and would have appreciated a bit more focus on that.

Also, of course AP isn't the same a college history class. It isn't meant to be. It's meant to get you out of the intro survey courses with 500 freshman.


Did they research beyond a few primary documents and the AP textbook? Did they read any full histories from well-known historians and write about the differences in historical interpretation between them? Did they study validity of historical evidence? Did they write beyond short answers and DBQs? Great for them if the course offered any of that.

I'm glad they enjoyed the AP history classes, but what they are now (most of the time in most schools) is nothing like the intro history courses I took at an Ivy long ago.


I did this in my AP history classes long ago, which allowed me to place out of my intro history classes at my Ivy long ago. All this was so long ago that none of it is relevant.

At the end of the day, APs basically help schools compare you to other applicants. If they know your private school, and how you rank against other seniors in your school (which they will know even if your school doesn’t rank) APs might not be necessary.
Anonymous
Post 07/12/2025 08:12     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:Sucks.

We are getting killed by publics on college admissions. Might as well give up on T20.


+1 million

#bringtheapexamsback
Anonymous
Post 07/12/2025 08:11     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:AP classes are the equivalent of an online course from University of Phoenix.


The anti-AP crowd is the weirdest group of people I’ve seen on DCUM since the virulent anti-redshirters.



Not at all. People are just pointing out that AP is a high school level class, focused on test prep, that is sold by a for profit company that controls the public high school curriculum.


Too bad the research refutes your point.

See this for example:

https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED561021.pdf
Anonymous
Post 07/12/2025 08:06     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Sucks.

We are getting killed by publics on college admissions. Might as well give up on T20.
Anonymous
Post 07/12/2025 03:50     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:AP classes are the equivalent of an online course from University of Phoenix.


The anti-AP crowd is the weirdest group of people I’ve seen on DCUM since the virulent anti-redshirters.



Not at all. People are just pointing out that AP is a high school level class, focused on test prep, that is sold by a for profit company that controls the public high school curriculum.
Anonymous
Post 07/10/2025 17:30     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Our private offers AP and I am of mixed opinion about them. Prior to taking an AP history course she took a regular course at the same school and honestly found the non AP course more challenging and intellectually stimulating than the AP course which really focused on maximizing the AP score. A lot more factual content was covered in AP, but the essays were more challenging in the regular class because writing style and good research was emphasized more in the non-AP class.

But on the other hand I”m still glad our school offers them because they are rigorous enough as college preparatory classes and we don’t have to worry that college admissions will wonder at the lack of APs. DC may be applying to UK schools and 5s on certain AP scores are required. So it”s nice to have the curriculum covered in class so that DC doesn’t have to spend time outside of class self studying for them and can have more time for extracurriculars/free time.


Exactly. Research and writing are the backbone of college-level history. The AP classes will give students a good factual base and minimal analytical skills, but nothing like a good college course with a strong lecturer. The only whole book AP kids will read is the AP textbook.

College history is, of course, absolutely nothing like that.


Our kid's AP history courses required a lot of research and writing, so I guess it depends on how the teacher approaches the subject. I actually felt they under-emphasized maximizing the test results and would have appreciated a bit more focus on that.

Also, of course AP isn't the same a college history class. It isn't meant to be. It's meant to get you out of the intro survey courses with 500 freshman.


Did they research beyond a few primary documents and the AP textbook? Did they read any full histories from well-known historians and write about the differences in historical interpretation between them? Did they study validity of historical evidence? Did they write beyond short answers and DBQs? Great for them if the course offered any of that.

I'm glad they enjoyed the AP history classes, but what they are now (most of the time in most schools) is nothing like the intro history courses I took at an Ivy long ago.


The intro history courses at Ivies are nothing like the intro history courses you took long ago either.


Quite true now that I looked it up. The History courses are far more sophisticated and complex; there are no intro courses per se.

The most my alma mater gives for an AP score is "notation on the transcript" that you had a good AP score, noted as an unassigned History course (NOT a credit towards graduation). So they have dropped any pretense that the AP classes remotely resemble what they want even freshmen to tackle in the History Dept.
Anonymous
Post 07/08/2025 18:38     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:AP classes are the equivalent of an online course from University of Phoenix.


The anti-AP crowd is the weirdest group of people I’ve seen on DCUM since the virulent anti-redshirters.
Anonymous
Post 07/08/2025 18:36     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Our private offers AP and I am of mixed opinion about them. Prior to taking an AP history course she took a regular course at the same school and honestly found the non AP course more challenging and intellectually stimulating than the AP course which really focused on maximizing the AP score. A lot more factual content was covered in AP, but the essays were more challenging in the regular class because writing style and good research was emphasized more in the non-AP class.

But on the other hand I”m still glad our school offers them because they are rigorous enough as college preparatory classes and we don’t have to worry that college admissions will wonder at the lack of APs. DC may be applying to UK schools and 5s on certain AP scores are required. So it”s nice to have the curriculum covered in class so that DC doesn’t have to spend time outside of class self studying for them and can have more time for extracurriculars/free time.


Exactly. Research and writing are the backbone of college-level history. The AP classes will give students a good factual base and minimal analytical skills, but nothing like a good college course with a strong lecturer. The only whole book AP kids will read is the AP textbook.

College history is, of course, absolutely nothing like that.


Our kid's AP history courses required a lot of research and writing, so I guess it depends on how the teacher approaches the subject. I actually felt they under-emphasized maximizing the test results and would have appreciated a bit more focus on that.

Also, of course AP isn't the same a college history class. It isn't meant to be. It's meant to get you out of the intro survey courses with 500 freshman.


Did they research beyond a few primary documents and the AP textbook? Did they read any full histories from well-known historians and write about the differences in historical interpretation between them? Did they study validity of historical evidence? Did they write beyond short answers and DBQs? Great for them if the course offered any of that.

I'm glad they enjoyed the AP history classes, but what they are now (most of the time in most schools) is nothing like the intro history courses I took at an Ivy long ago.


The intro history courses at Ivies are nothing like the intro history courses you took long ago either.
Anonymous
Post 07/08/2025 17:09     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
AP classes are the equivalent of an online course from University of Phoenix.
Anonymous
Post 07/08/2025 16:28     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Our private offers AP and I am of mixed opinion about them. Prior to taking an AP history course she took a regular course at the same school and honestly found the non AP course more challenging and intellectually stimulating than the AP course which really focused on maximizing the AP score. A lot more factual content was covered in AP, but the essays were more challenging in the regular class because writing style and good research was emphasized more in the non-AP class.

But on the other hand I”m still glad our school offers them because they are rigorous enough as college preparatory classes and we don’t have to worry that college admissions will wonder at the lack of APs. DC may be applying to UK schools and 5s on certain AP scores are required. So it”s nice to have the curriculum covered in class so that DC doesn’t have to spend time outside of class self studying for them and can have more time for extracurriculars/free time.


Exactly. Research and writing are the backbone of college-level history. The AP classes will give students a good factual base and minimal analytical skills, but nothing like a good college course with a strong lecturer. The only whole book AP kids will read is the AP textbook.

College history is, of course, absolutely nothing like that.


Our kid's AP history courses required a lot of research and writing, so I guess it depends on how the teacher approaches the subject. I actually felt they under-emphasized maximizing the test results and would have appreciated a bit more focus on that.

Also, of course AP isn't the same a college history class. It isn't meant to be. It's meant to get you out of the intro survey courses with 500 freshman.


Did they research beyond a few primary documents and the AP textbook? Did they read any full histories from well-known historians and write about the differences in historical interpretation between them? Did they study validity of historical evidence? Did they write beyond short answers and DBQs? Great for them if the course offered any of that.

I'm glad they enjoyed the AP history classes, but what they are now (most of the time in most schools) is nothing like the intro history courses I took at an Ivy long ago.
Anonymous
Post 07/08/2025 10:40     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Our private offers AP and I am of mixed opinion about them. Prior to taking an AP history course she took a regular course at the same school and honestly found the non AP course more challenging and intellectually stimulating than the AP course which really focused on maximizing the AP score. A lot more factual content was covered in AP, but the essays were more challenging in the regular class because writing style and good research was emphasized more in the non-AP class.

But on the other hand I”m still glad our school offers them because they are rigorous enough as college preparatory classes and we don’t have to worry that college admissions will wonder at the lack of APs. DC may be applying to UK schools and 5s on certain AP scores are required. So it”s nice to have the curriculum covered in class so that DC doesn’t have to spend time outside of class self studying for them and can have more time for extracurriculars/free time.


Exactly. Research and writing are the backbone of college-level history. The AP classes will give students a good factual base and minimal analytical skills, but nothing like a good college course with a strong lecturer. The only whole book AP kids will read is the AP textbook.

College history is, of course, absolutely nothing like that.


Our kid's AP history courses required a lot of research and writing, so I guess it depends on how the teacher approaches the subject. I actually felt they under-emphasized maximizing the test results and would have appreciated a bit more focus on that.

Also, of course AP isn't the same a college history class. It isn't meant to be. It's meant to get you out of the intro survey courses with 500 freshman.
Anonymous
Post 07/08/2025 08:37     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Anonymous wrote:Our private offers AP and I am of mixed opinion about them. Prior to taking an AP history course she took a regular course at the same school and honestly found the non AP course more challenging and intellectually stimulating than the AP course which really focused on maximizing the AP score. A lot more factual content was covered in AP, but the essays were more challenging in the regular class because writing style and good research was emphasized more in the non-AP class.

But on the other hand I”m still glad our school offers them because they are rigorous enough as college preparatory classes and we don’t have to worry that college admissions will wonder at the lack of APs. DC may be applying to UK schools and 5s on certain AP scores are required. So it”s nice to have the curriculum covered in class so that DC doesn’t have to spend time outside of class self studying for them and can have more time for extracurriculars/free time.


Exactly. Research and writing are the backbone of college-level history. The AP classes will give students a good factual base and minimal analytical skills, but nothing like a good college course with a strong lecturer. The only whole book AP kids will read is the AP textbook.

College history is, of course, absolutely nothing like that.
Anonymous
Post 07/07/2025 11:15     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Agree with the above. My "Big3" kid took the exams and ended up with 28 credit hours and now has a lot of flexibility in terms of choosing courses. college board be damned, it's a game worth playing.
Anonymous
Post 07/07/2025 11:04     Subject: How is the elimination of APs going for your DC
Circling back to this as we received AP scores today. Student is at one of the DMV privates not offering APs and got 4s/5s with little extra study.

At the very least, I suggest everyone take the English Lang and English Lit, Calc AB/BC and world language APs spring of their senior year to potentially earn credits for college, place out of intro classes or get better course sign-up times.

Will also add English Lit tip--your student doesn't have to read all the books suggested. As long as they've read a few classics from which they can pull from for an essay they'll be fine. My oldest kid didn't take this test thinking they would have needed to have read more of the suggested books, but the DMV privates will have read plenty of books to pull from read in the normal course of classes.