Summer homework. Those two dreaded words transform an imagined nightmare to reality as students sign up for Advanced Placement (AP) English classes. However, once they make strides in their academic skills, the many hours of summer work often pay dividends.
Vietnamese student Hoang Vo, ’10, is taking AP Biology, Calculus and English classes. Vo says she didn’t know about the advantages of taking AP classes last year, but is enjoying a challenging schedule.
“I want to work hard this year,” Vo said. “I am taking AP English because I want to improve my language skills. My grammar isn’t very good, and in that class we have to write a lot of essays. I am also taking AP Biology because I love science. I only know the vocabulary in my language, Vietnamese, so if I didn’t take AP Biology, it would be very hard for me when I go to college.”
Despite a difficult schedule, Vo also works in her uncle’s nail salon, E Nails, and still makes time for studying.
“I don’t have a lot of time to study at work, but if there are no customers in the shop I study then,” Vo said. “And after I am done at work, I study more.”
Because AP classes often result in long nights of studying, junior Bridget Teixeira advises students to consider the time factor before registering for a class.
“I would not suggest taking AP if you don’t have the time to do the work,” Teixeira said. “I am taking it because it will look good on my college record and it is more of a challenge than regular English. It will help me get into a good private college.”
FC currently offers five AP classes: Biology, U.S. History and Calculus, as well as English Literature and Composition and English Language and Composition offered on alternating years.
AP English teacher Molly Sargent says AP classes can benefit many students, but they are not right for everyone.
“While it is desirable to encourage students to do the best they can academically,” Sargent said, “it is also desirable to encourage students to develop in other areas, including the arts, woodworking, athletics and certainly in their spiritual lives.
“Many students lack the ambition, determination, time, desire and academic ability to pursue a strictly academic program. Yet many students want as challenging an academic curriculum as possible. I believe it’s beneficial for an educational institution to provide a program that is flexible enough to meet the needs of as many students as is feasibly possible, which is what FCS strives for.”
AP classes were offered at FC as early as 1986, but the staff aims to add several more rigorous courses over the next three to five years.
According to Sargent, students may have the option of taking chemistry, Physics B, U.S. government and Spanish Language or Literature on the AP level in the next several years. Last year FC students performed well on the AP tests, she said.
Sargent also notes that 60 out of 256 students were enrolled in AP classes during the ’08-’09 school year. Fifty-two upperclassmen took an AP test and the overall pass rate was 71.2%.
“I am very happy about our high pass rate,” Sargent said. “I know enough about AP scores to know that ours are good. There is an environment of achievement here that doesn’t exist at other schools. Kids get individual attention here, and the public schools are realizing they must do that as well for their students to pass the test.”
According to The Fresno Bee and the College Board, the pass rate in Clovis Unified was 66%, which is higher than the Fresno Unified pass rate of 37%.
The California average was 60%, which just beat out the national average of 59%
While FC is home to an above-average pass rate, students acknowledge that AP is not for everyone. Elementary volleyball coach Rachel Fralick, ’10, has taken AP classes in the past but is not enrolled in any this year.
“This year I did not take any AP classes because they didn’t fit into my schedule,” Fralick said. “I am working and trying to get into colleges, so I do not have the time.”
However, some students prefer a more lax experience during high school before the potential rigors of college. Sophomore Rachel Dadian says she will not take any AP classes.
“I don’t want to do all the work,” Dadian said. “I will not read books over the summer. I don’t really need AP classes to get into college. And I think in college, people pay more attention and focus better. Some people don’t try that hard in high school, but college grades actually matter.”
For more information, e-mail Sargent or read the May 8, 2008 article, AP tests determine post high school credit.
