More than 2,400 incoming freshmen received course credit from Advanced Placement classes this fall, according to registration and records. However, many institutions are modifying their policies considering AP classes.
Dartmouth College recently announced it will no longer accept AP credits towards graduation, effective 2018.
Hakan Tell is a classics professor and chairman of Darthmouth College’s Committee on Instruction.
“The concern that we have is that increasingly, AP has been seen as equivalent to a college-level course, and it really isn’t, in our [the college’s] opinion,” Tell said in an interview with NPR.
Jim Martin, professor of chemistry and a representative for the Wake County Board of Education, agrees.
Martin explained that colleges are straying away from providing AP credit because AP courses are becoming centered around test preparation more than the actual learning process.
“I see that a significant amount of AP is teaching people to pass the AP test,” Martin said.
Kristin Stroud, a sophomore majoring in fashion and textile brand management, affirms this notion.
“I do not feel like I gained the same quality of education [in AP classes] because we simply aim towards passing a test rather than learning true fundamentals and material,” Stroud said.
Preparing for standardized exams encourages students to focus solely on recognition based learning, Martin said, adding that this is problematic because it is not practical in real-life situations.
“The way I teach reflects the way my life is as a chemist. When I’m working, I don’t get answers to choose between,” Martin said.
Martin said he finds students in his higher level chemistry courses who have received credit for a prerequisite through AP credits perform at a much lower rate compared to those who took the prerequisite courses at the University.
“People who have been trained with the standardized form of learning get a culture shock,” Martin said.
Martin said high schools should require more intensive and challenging classes that teach fundamental skills such as critical thinking, independent learning and problem solving rather than merely passing a test.
Stroud said she feels like she gets more of an education from her courses now.
“I think AP classes had more ‘busy-work’ and were far more time-consuming than my classes now. I feel like my classes now provide me an ample amount of time to study and actually learn the material rather than simply memorize it for a test,” Stroud said.
According to Martin, AP classes can be helpful for students.
“However, there’s a difference between a class being helpful and being substituted for college credit,” Martin said.
Another problem with AP classes is that they discourage students from taking other enriching classes.
“I see this as a member of the Board of Education; there are a lot of students who take AP courses because of the impact they have on a weighted GPA,” Martin said.
Martin asserts this discourages students from taking other courses that broaden their experience.
“I always encourage students to take as many drama classes as they can; you might not need to perform a drama in career, but you need the communication and presentation skills that a drama class might teach you,” Martin said.
Martin said he does not think the University will stop taking credit altogether, but he expects it will take more care as to whether or not the credit will stand in place of a prerequisite.
“At this time, we have no plans to change our policies regarding thresholds for exemption from English 101 or eligibility for portfolio submission based on scores on the AP Language and Composition test or our thresholds for other exams,” Bridget Kozlow, associate director of undergraduate student support in the First-Year Writing Program, said.
