Seattle Schools Community Forum

News from OSPI: More Washington students are taking and passing Advanced Placement exams, according to a national report released today.  The College Board’s ninth annual “AP Report to the Nation” shows that 20,581 Washington students (or 32.8 percent) in the class of 2012 took at least one AP exam. That number represents an increase of 1,276 (6.6 percent) from 2011 and 12,068 (62.5 percent) from 2002.  Not only did participation increase again this year, so did scores. In 2012, 20.0 percent of Washington’s 12th graders scored a three or greater – a score that generally qualifies for college credit – on an AP test. In 2011, 18.4 percent of students scored a three or greater; in 2002, 9.6 percent. The 10.4 percentage-point increase in the past 10 years ranks Washington eighth among all states. The national average for the same period was 7.9 percent.  “We’re seeing great results all over the state,” said Randy Dorn, state superintendent. “More stud...

(I'm having trouble posting tonight so I'm going to break this into a couple of threads.) Several interesting national stories (one with a familiar focus). First up, the folks at the College Board, who create and run the Advanced Placement courses , have finally followed through on some long needed reforms of their tests. This article was in the NY Times. (Thanks to Ann for this tip.) Thirty years ago, Advanced Placement Biology was 36 chapters, 870 pages. Today it is a staggering 56 chapters and 1400 pages. Here's what one teacher in Massachusetts had to say: “Some of the students look at the book and say, ‘My gosh, it’s just like an encyclopedia,’ ” Mrs. Carlson says. And when new A.P. teachers encounter it, “they almost want to start sobbing.” But many of the courses, particularly in the sciences and history, have also been criticized for overwhelming students with facts to memorize and then rushing through important topics. Students and educators alike...

A roundup of news tidbits, big and small. Mayor McGinn didn't get his levy ballot in on-time (some kind of mix-up or put in the wrong box). So his vote never registered. Big whoops on his part. Peter Maier has his monthly community meeting tomorrow, the 13th, from 10:30-noon at the Bethany Community Church at 1156 N. 80th. Lawton has a new principal (yet another mid-year principal change). From the Magnolia Voice blog: "Beverly Raines has taken a family leave of absence for the remainder of the school year. Kathy Bledsoe started this week as interim principal and will remain at the school for the rest of the year. Bledsoe is no stranger to Magnolia, having been the principal at Blaine for seven years. She retired from the Seattle School District two years ago. This was Raines first year at Lawton and prior to coming to the school she filed a lawsuit against Seattle Public Schools, accusing the district of discrimination based on age and sex." The distric...

Eye-opening video from NY Times on AP and its pressure on students. Isn't AP supposed to get kids working hard and ready for college? Or is it a rush through too much content that no student can really master? It saves you money if you make a 4 or 5 on the test and you can skip some college classes. Or is it a rush to have the perfect college application? Is it a money machine? Have we been duped? This video is a little short and a little short-sighted. You could make a video of the opposite side as well. AP has real faults but yes, it does pace out at a college rate. There are colleges that don't want an SAT or ACT score but I've never heard of one that doesn't give a higher ranking if you took AP. I don't believe any high school here expects any "signed contract" as in the video. Some say you have to take the test but don't enforce it. (It does cost $83 and the free/reduced reduction isn't that much lower so it's not possible to make a...