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INFORMATION NIGHT. Stone Bridge High School. What is AP?.
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INFORMATION NIGHT Stone Bridge High School
What is AP? • The Advanced Placement (AP) is a program created by the College Board offering college-level curriculum and examinations to high school students. American colleges often grant placement and course credit to students who obtain high scores above a certain number on the examinations.
Why take AP courses? • Confidence: develop better study habits, improve your writing skills and sharpen your problem solving abilities. • Credit: Entering college with AP credits gives you time to move into upper-level courses in your field of interest, pursue a double major, or study/travel abroad • College Success: Research consistently shows that students who are successful in AP typically experience greater academic success in college than similar students who do not participate in AP.
First experience with AP • Balance • Considerations • Reality check • Benefits
Considerations • Work Ethic • Maturity • Organizational Skills • “Passion” for Subject • Rigorous Pace • Taking Initiative—seeking assistance • Independent Work • Cooperative Learning
More Considerations • Realistic Time Commitments • Balance • Grading • Learning Curve • AP Exam
Questions for students?for example… • How many AP’s should I take? • How much time will I need to study for each AP course? • What’s the hardest AP class? • Is AP English Lit harder than AP English Language?
Breakout Sessions Auditorium Stage
AP Weighting • 1.0 added to quality points • C+ 2.3 + 1.0= 3.3 • Exam should be taken • $83 exam fee
High School Plan of Studies Personal Finance & Economics
Social Sciences Advanced Placement Program Goals • Inclusion • Communication/Awareness of the Community • Academic Rigor: Complex, Ambiguous, Provocative, Emotional • Preparation of Students
World History Examination Three Hours and Five minutes long • Section I: 70 Multiple Choice Question: 55 minutes • Section II: Three Essays in this 130 minute free response section—compare/contrast, change over time, document based question (DBQ). Graded on a 1-9 Rubric. National average for essays usually around 3.0!
Historical Thinking Skills The AP World History curriculum emphasizes specific historical thinking skills. • Crafting Historical Arguments from Historical Evidence • Chronological Reasoning • Comparison and Contextualization • Historical Interpretation and Synthesis
Course Themes: AP World History highlights FIVE overarching themes 1. Interaction between Humans and Environment 2. Development and Interaction of Cultures 3. State Building, Expansion, and Conflict 4. Creation, Expansion, and Interaction of Economic Systems 5. Development and Transformation of Social Structures
Stone Bridge + AP World History For the seven years the exam has been given in Loudoun County, over 70 % of SBHS students have passed the exam with a score of 3, 4, or 5. National average pass rate hovers approximately around 50-55 % with a low of 48%.
Sample Essays *Compare and contrast Han China and Imperial Rome in terms of the political control that they exercised over their respective populations. *Analyze the cultural and political changes and continuities in ONE of the following civilizations during the last centuries of the classical era. Chinese, 100 CE to 600 CE Roman, 100 CE to 600 CE Indian, 300 CE to 600 CE
Geometry • Students MUST have a strong grasp of Algebra I concepts! • Students MUST realize “Geometry is like a language!”… Students must recall and apply vocabulary! • Math may not be the passion for the students who enroll in this course.
Functions, Algebra, and Data Analysis • This course is a bridge between Algebra I and Algebra II. • Students looking to strengthen Algebra I skills should enroll.
Algebra II • Students MUST have a strong grasp of Algebra I concepts! • Math may not be the passion for the students who enroll in this course.
Algebra II/Trigonometry • Students MUST have a passion for mathematics and be self-motivated! • Students MUST have a strong grasp of Algebra I concepts! Did students earn “A”s on their midterm and final exams to demonstrate long term retention/comprehension? • If a student is enrolled in this course, he/she should be enrolled in higher science courses as well. This course has a common county-wide assessment.
Advanced Functions and Modeling • This course is a bridge between Algebra II and Advanced Algebra/Precalculus. • Students looking to strengthen Algebra II skills should enroll. • Students will be exposed to real world mathematics by completing labs.
Advanced Algebra/Precalculus • Students should have a passion for mathematics, a STRONG grasp of Algebra II concepts, and intentions to enroll in Calculus at some point! • Students MUST have a strong grasp of Algebra II concepts! Did students earn “A”s on their midterm and final exams to demonstrate long term retention/comprehension?
Prob Stats/Discrete Math • These courses span all disciplines. • Students will enhance creative problem solving ability through verbal and written communication. • Students will learn to think differently. • Discrete Math Topics include: • Code breaking • Voting Methods • Fair Division • The Mathematics of Apportionment • Methods of Best Path (Traveling Salesman Problem) • Graph Theory • Fractal Geometry
Mathematical Analysis • Students MUST have a passion for mathematics and be self-motivated! • Students MUST have a strong grasp of Algebra II and Trigonometry concepts! • If a student is enrolled in this course, he/she should be enrolled in higher science courses as well. This course has a common county-wide assessment.
Advanced Placement Calculus AB • Students MUST have a passion for mathematics and be self-motivated! • Students MUST have a strong grasp of Algebra and Precalculus concepts! • Students MUST be able to justify their solutions by applying mathematical language. • If a student is enrolled in this course, he/she should be enrolled in higher science courses as well.
Advanced Placement Calculus BC • Students MUST have a passion for mathematics and be self-motivated! • Students MUST have a strong grasp of Algebra and Precalculus concepts! • Students MUST be able to justify their solutions by applying mathematical language. • If a student is enrolled in this course, he/she should be enrolled in higher science courses as well.
Multivariable Calculus • Students MUST have a passion for mathematics and be self-motivated! • Stone Bridge may offer this course in 2012-2013.
Advanced Placement Statistics • This course incorporates a lot of reading and writing as well as lab applications. • Students MUST be self-motivated, enjoy real-world applications, and be able to reason word problems. • Colleges report most majors require a stats class. Taking the AP can give students credit or a head start.
Computer Mathematics &Advanced Placement Computer Science A • These courses span all disciplines. • Students will enhance creative problem solving ability. • Students will learn to think differently. • These courses are beneficial for students pursuing Math, Engineering, and Science degrees or careers.
AP English Lit. vs. Lang. AP Language AP Literature READING: Non-Fiction Focus 3 longer texts Various essays, speeches and letters Focus on Rhetoric – the art of persuasion - technique WRITING: In class time essays Writing in the various modes (Exposition, narrative, persuasive etc.) Emphasis on Argumentation READING: Novels – 6 in totalPlays – 1-2 (Shakespeare)Poetry Selection Skills in reading to consider effect of literarytechniques on meaning WRITING: In class time essays Creative writing Focus on how language contributed to meaning – Multiple Choice Skills (reading critically) Analysis – of form and content Essays – formal, timed, writings Focusing on analysis
Honors English Students Should: • be able to comprehend grade-level texts • engage in reading outside of class • command a wide range of writing strategies • possess a spirit of inquiry, be curious • make connections between text and real life • apply analysis skills to new texts
Honors English Students Should: • be capable of fresh interpretations of old texts • be able to develop and articulate questions • be able to adapt an assumption when confronted with new information • demonstrate originality of thinking • show diligence • be independent searchers of information
Honors English Students Should: • have the ability to build on what happens in class outside of class • be thinking at a higher analytical level • have curiosity in the English discipline • engage in the ongoing reading of novels, blogs, nonfiction • demonstrate a willingness to write • engage in deep revision
AP Science AP Biology Co-requisite: Chemistry Janet.cascio@lcps.org Swapna.karandikar@lcps.org AP Chemistry Robert.mandes@lcps.org Aaron.dobbs@lcps.org AP Physics Co-requisite: Calculus Timothy.gresh@lcps.org