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The Exam

The Exam. Monique Morton, Consultant. Preparing Your Students for the AP Exams. Read and go over in detail the directions for the test. General directions are available on AP Central.

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The Exam

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  1. The Exam Monique Morton, Consultant

  2. Preparing Your Students for the AP Exams • Read and go over in detail the directions for the test. General directions are available on AP Central. • Give them a practice exam, simulating actual test conditions if possible. A secure practice exam is available to all AP teachers who have successfully completed the AP course audit.

  3. Preparing Your Students for the AP Exams • Remind them how the test is scored. • Give them a selection of free-response questions. • Go over recent scoring standards and show them what they must show and what they need not show. • Go over the various differentiation and integration formulas they need to memorize.

  4. The Exams • The Test Development Committee • The Exam Format and Score

  5. The Test Development Committee • 4 college or university calculus teachers • 3 high school AP Calculus teachers • 3 ex-officio members • Chief Faculty Consultant (Chief Reader) who is in charge the scoring of the exam (the “reading”) • 2 ETS Test Consultants

  6. Responsibilities of the Development Committee • Write the questions for the exams. • Edit and modify the course description. • Consult on general AP policy.

  7. The Exam Format – Section I • Section I, Part A: multiple-choice, no calculator allowed, 28 questions in 55 minutes. 5 choices per question. • Section I, Part B: multiple-choice, calculator required, 17 questions in 50 minutes. Not all of the questions require a calculator. 5 choices per question.

  8. The Exam Format – Section II • Section II, Part A: Free Response. 2 questions, 30 minutes, calculators are allowed. • Section II, Part B: Free Response. 4 questions, 60 minutes, calculators are not allowed. Students may return to Section II Part A during this time, but they may not use their calculators.

  9. Forms of the Exams • US Main Exam – the one given to the majority of test takers in early May. • International Main Exam – also known as the Overseas Exam, this test is given on the same date to students in Europe, Asia, Africa, and parts of Latin America. • US Alternate Exam – also known as the Alternate Exam, this test is given to students who cannot take the Operational Exam on the given date. Permission from ETS is needed.

  10. Exam Scoring • Section I is machine-scored. • Section II is scored by the faculty consultants (Readers) at the AP Calculus reading in early June.

  11. Exam Scores • Section I and Section II each contribute 50% of the total score. • Section I: the score is the number of correct answers to the 45 multiple choice questions. • Section II: the six free-response questions have a maximum score of 9 points each for a total of 54 points. • The maximum total score is 1.2 times the multiple choice score plus the free-response score for a total of 108 points.

  12. Exam Grades • ETS statisticians look at statistical and other data to equate the current exam to previous exams. • The “cut points” are determined immediately after the reading. These are not released every year.

  13. Definition of Exam Grades • 5 – Extremely well qualified • 4 – Well qualified • 3 – Qualified • 2 – Possibly qualified • 1 – No recommendation

  14. Determining the AP Grade • 2008 Calculus AB Cut Scores • 65 to 108 points = 5 • 48 to 64 points = 4 • 34 to 45 points = 3 • 21 to 33 points = 2 • 0 to 20 points = 1 • 2008 Calculus BC Cut Scores • 66 to 108 points = 5 • 55 to 65 points = 4 • 39 to 54 points = 3 • 31 to 38 points = 2 • 0 to 30 points = 1

  15. Scoring the Free Response Questions – Preliminary Steps • Exams are sent from ETS to the scoring site (in 2014, this was Kansas City, MO). • Before the reading begins, preliminary scoring standards and sample student work is sent to the exam leaders (ELs) and the question leaders (QLs) for their review.

  16. Scoring the Free Response Questions – Finalizing the Scoring Standards • Five days before the reading begins, the Chief Reader (CR), ELs, and QLs meet to discuss the scoring standard. They continue to look at student samples and prepare a preliminary “briefing”. • Three days before the reading begins the Table Leaders (TLs) arrive. They are briefed on the draft standards, comment on the proposed scoring, and look at more student samples.

  17. Scoring the Free Response Questions – The Reading • The faculty consultants (Readers) are calculus teachers at both the college (about 60%) and high school level. • The QLs brief the Readers on the now finalized scoring standards. The purpose of the briefing to share the philosophy of how the question will be scored so that all Readers will score the questions consistently. • The TLs extend the briefing by rereading some of the Readers scored exams and discussing any inconsistencies in scores.

  18. Suggestions for After the Exam • Give a final examination for the course. • Teach topics that are not tested on the exam. • Volumes by Shells • Newton’s Method • L’Hospital’s Rule • Assign Projects and/or Research • Suggestions from AP Central: http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/members/homepage/10350.html

  19. After the School Year Ends • Students usually get their scores in July. • Teachers can access their students’ scores and their AP Instruction Reports online in July. • Get ready to do it all over again!

  20. Thank You! • Please remember to complete the evaluations and collect your certificates. • If you have questions after the workshop, feel free to e-mail me at moniquemorton@twc.com(home) or mmorton@kstc.com (work).

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