With the official Advanced Placement exam week just four months away, many AP students are trying different tactics to prepare. The idea behind AP classes is that they will not only boost a student’s GPA, but also many colleges and universities award college credit (if they receive a three or above on the exam). The exams are in May, the 6-10 and 13-17. The major steps to preparation is to study and study some more.
Junior Kaitlyn Reed is currently enrolled in two AP classes: AP Psychology and AP Language and Composition. She has already began her preparations for the exams. She has been working on multiple choice practice problems online to help.
“I feel like there is always more practice to be done. I’ll never have everything 100% down and can always continue practicing, ” Reed said.
Senior Dylan Chesnut decided to embark on his first AP class this year, that being AP Environmental Science. Chesnut also takes Ivy Tech English and he says that helps him heavily with the writing side to the course. For preparations he has been taking good notes and reviewing his notes. He has overall averaged well on the tests in the course and like he will be successful in the exam.
“I recommend [to those signing up for ap classes] to not take the hardest ap classes first,” Chesnut said.
AP Environmental Science Teacher Melissa Burger is a proud supporter of AP classes. The major tips she gives to students wanting to prepare is to make sure to be engaged during class with activities. Along with making sure to actively participate in discussions, especially when it comes to the questions that involve case studies on the exam.
Burger believes that working in groups outside of school is also a huge help, to be able to share thoughts and attitudes about a subject helps with review and to reinforce the knowledge. These types of skills are detrimental for those wanting to attend college.
“I think that a lot of kids underestimate how hard college is going to be and AP classes help students prepare for the challenge,” Burger said.
