Greater number of DPS students taking AP courses, examinations

September 10, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:  Chris Bennett, Assistant Superintendent
Secondary Curriculum and Instruction, 560-2597

DURHAM—Durham Public Schools reports a slight increase in the number of students taking Advanced Placement courses and examinations.

The number of students in DPS who took AP courses rose from 1,304 to 1,323 during the 2008-09 school year.  In addition, there was a 5.4 percent jump in the number of tests taken during that year, compared to the previous year. There were 2,748 AP tests administered, up from 2,606 in the 2007-08 school year.

The total number of exams taken in 2008-09 represents a 119 percent increase over the number taken in 1997 (1,252), when the district first began measuring AP course and exam participation.

The number of AP exams being taken also earned four schools national recognition. Newsweek magazine named these schools to its Top 1,000 academically rigorous high schools list: Jordan, Durham School of the Arts, Riverside and Northern. These calculations are based on AP exams taken and graduation rates.

There were 57.3 percent of AP exams with a passing score of 3 or higher, which also is up from last year’s 55.2 percent.

While there was a slight decrease in the number of tests taken by African-American students (537 to 501), there was a percentage-point gain in proficiency among this group (24 percent in 2007-08 to 25 percent in 2008-09).  The number of tests taken by white students increased from 1,691 to 1,740, with a gain in proficiency of sixth-tenths of a percentage point (65 to 65.6 percent).

The AP Examinations are administered each year in May and represent the culmination of college-level work in a given discipline in high school. Committees of college and AP high school faculty develop 34 exams in 19 subject areas that test students’ ability to perform at a college level.  

Subject areas include Calculus, Computer Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Foreign Languages. Students can earn credit for certain courses in college if they pass the related AP exam, thereby increasing flexibility in their college course schedules.

“The increase in the overall participation rate – along with the increase in proficiency among our students – is clear evidence that we are headed in the right direction with our middle and high school reform efforts,” said Superintendent Carl E. Harris. “Academic rigor and its availability to our students are keys to ensuring that our students are reaching their full potential.”