- Status Current
- Published February 6, 2014 // Science & Enginneering Indicators 2014
- URL http://ncses.digitalinfo.org/analysis/00006/
Indicator
Participation and Performance in the Advanced Placement Program
Highlights
The number of students taking at least one Advanced Placement (AP) exam in mathematics or science has doubled in the past decade from 250,000 students in the class of 2002 to 500,000 students in the class of 2012.
- Calculus AB and biology were the most popular AP exams in mathematics and science, with 212,000 students in the graduating class of 2012 taking calculus AB and 153,000 students taking biology.
- Although more students in the class of 2012 were taking AP exams, the AP program in mathematics and science involved a relatively small proportion of all high school students. Just 17% of all students took an AP mathematics or science exam, with 9% passing.
Although increasing numbers of students are taking AP exams, passing rates (a score of 3 or higher out of 5) have declined or remained steady in most mathematics and science subjects.
- The overall passing rate for any AP mathematics or science exam dropped from 62% in 2002 to 54% in 2012.
- The two most popular exams, calculus AB and biology, showed the largest decreases, with average passing rates dropping by 9 percentage points for calculus AB and 13 percentage points for biology since 2002.
The proportion of male and female students in the class of 2012 taking mathematics and science exams varied by subject. Black and Hispanic students were underrepresented among AP exam takers.
- Male students were more likely than female students to take advanced AP courses, including calculus BC (59% versus 41%), physics B (65% versus 35%), and both physics C courses (about 75% versus 25%).
- Female students were more likely than male students to take AP exams in biology (59% versus 41%) and environmental science (55% versus 45%). Male students were four times more likely than female students to take the computer science A exam (81% versus 19%).
- Black students made up about 15% of the 2012 graduating class, but they represented less than 8% of students taking any AP mathematics or science exam.
- Hispanic students made up about 18% of the class of 2012, but their representation among AP exam takers ranged from a high of 15% for environmental science to a low of 8% for calculus BC and 7% for physics C: electricity/magnetism.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Curabitur auctor lectus mollis dui pulvinar tincidunt. Etiam eget metus at arcu fermentum suscipit id nec tellus. Sed varius justo eget mauris mollis porta. Curabitur gravida id nibh sit amet facilisis. Ut id risus a dui porta rhoncus. Pellentesque porta imperdiet consequat. Suspendisse auctor ligula sed tellus accumsan, non tincidunt tellus suscipit. Aliquam interdum lobortis faucibus.
Nulla tincidunt volutpat rhoncus. Mauris cursus, enim sed lacinia posuere, arcu tortor posuere nisi, eget mattis lacus nisl sed dui. Morbi molestie pharetra odio sit amet lacinia. Morbi luctus tincidunt adipiscing. Sed interdum adipiscing turpis, eget malesuada purus pulvinar a. Donec sollicitudin lorem eu accumsan volutpat. Praesent vel vulputate libero, ac blandit nibh. Sed vehicula mi volutpat nulla malesuada, eu rhoncus ligula posuere. Sed vitae lorem eget dui egestas egestas eu eu risus.
Nunc augue justo, ullamcorper eu leo sit amet, facilisis sagittis magna. Donec at vehicula nisl, eget tristique erat. Maecenas rutrum nunc felis, id mattis quam fermentum in. Vestibulum blandit nibh vestibulum, rutrum augue quis, egestas diam. Sed porta dui ultricies urna vestibulum suscipit ut a nulla. Vestibulum ultrices commodo elit, eget feugiat erat posuere consectetur. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Ut vitae dignissim elit, id ultricies purus. In tempor metus nec nibh posuere ultrices. Maecenas justo mi, malesuada quis odio ac, blandit euismod mauris. Integer ultricies pharetra turpis a pulvinar.
Donec vestibulum elit aliquet velit hendrerit malesuada. In eget mauris feugiat, convallis ligula sit amet, porttitor erat. Nunc vitae tincidunt odio. In commodo iaculis augue ac pharetra. Nunc et aliquet risus, a molestie lorem. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Integer nisl nisl, vehicula varius arcu quis, ultrices eleifend nibh. Etiam fringilla enim lectus. Aenean magna tortor, convallis et vehicula non, interdum varius ipsum. Praesent nec mollis sem, eget aliquam diam. Etiam lacinia magna vitae mi congue sodales quis a sapien. Pellentesque et commodo libero, in tincidunt urna. Mauris vestibulum facilisis lacus, eget facilisis justo commodo quis. Integer a enim non tellus lobortis sollicitudin. Proin lectus nunc, eleifend eu nibh ut, consequat vulputate turpis. Ut ligula nisi, elementum eu consequat at, tincidunt id ipsum.