(FRANKFORT, Ky.) -- More Kentucky public high school students took Advanced Placement (AP) examinations and more scored at higher levels in 2004 than in 2003, data released today from the College Board indicates.
In 2003, 8,500 Kentucky public school students took 13,506 AP exams. In 2004, 9,688 took 15,211 exams -- an increase of 13.3 percent in test-takers and 12.1 percent in exams. Since 1999, the number of public school students taking AP exams has risen -- 6,175 took AP exams that year.
AP exams are graded from 1 to 5. In 2003, 6,169 of the exams taken by Kentucky public school students received grades of 3, 4 or 5. In 2004, 6,951 of the exams received grades of 3, 4 or 5 -- an increase of 12.6 percent.
"Thanks to legislative initiative, Kentucky has seen substantial growth in the number of students taking AP courses and the related exams over the past five years," said Kentucky Education Commissioner Gene Wilhoit. "That growth can be attributed to an increased interest by students, wider availability of AP courses and support from our high schools for more rigorous coursework. The Kentucky Virtual High School also has provided access to AP courses and exam preparation for hundreds of students."
The performance of ethnic groups in Kentucky's public schools also showed increases from 2003 to 2004. Since 1999, the number of non-white public school students taking one or more AP exams has more than doubled.
NUMBER OF PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS TAKING ONE OR MORE AP EXAMS BY ETHNICITY
1999-2000
African American 135
American Indian 13
Asian 202
Hispanic 54
White 5,621
Other 100
No Response 50
2000-01
African American 154
American Indian 16
Asian 234
Hispanic 66
White 5,883
Other 120
No Response 85
2001-02
African American 202
American Indian 14
Asian 282
Hispanic 69
White 6,656
Other 135
No Response 84
2002-03
African American 338
American Indian 23
Asian 298
Hispanic 82
White 7,529
Other 155
No Response 123
2003-04
African American 355
American Indian 33
Asian 382
Hispanic 114
White 8,471
Other 192
No Response 141
NUMBER OF PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS WITH GRADES 3-5 ON AP EXAMS BY ETHNICITY
1999-2000
African American 41
American Indian 5
Asian 147
Hispanic 42
White 2,802
Other 53
No Response 24
2000-01
African American 42
American Indian 8
Asian 159
Hispanic 41
White 2,903
Other 66
No Response 48
2001-02
African American 68
American Indian 4
Asian 197
Hispanic 45
White 3,345
Other 84
No Response 46
2002-03
African American 95
American Indian 11
Asian 207
Hispanic 43
White 3,690
Other 101
No Response 51
2003-04
African American 105
American Indian 16
Asian 260
Hispanic 71
White 4,140
Other 104
No Response 73
The College Board's Advanced Placement Program enables students to pursue college-level studies while still in high school. Based on their performance on rigorous AP exams, students can earn credit, advanced placement or both for college.
In 1987, the Kentucky Board of Education established the Commonwealth Diploma Program to encourage Kentucky's high school students to take demanding and rigorous courses that would prepare them for college. Criteria for the diploma include successful completion of at least four AP courses (English, science or mathematics, foreign language and one additional AP course) and completion of at least three AP exams.
Senate Bill 74, passed by the Kentucky General Assembly in 2002, required the development of a core AP curriculum and the expansion of access to AP courses through the Kentucky Virtual High School. Currently, 34 AP courses are offered in Kentucky, including art history, biology, chemistry, English literature, United States history, physics and statistics.
Schools and districts determine prerequisite requirements for student eligibility. Common criteria include grades, teacher recommendations and PSAT and other test scores. Many schools utilize an application process. The College Board encourages, but does not require, a non-exclusive admittance policy.
The College Board also released data on SAT and PSAT/NMSQT scores. Kentucky public high school students who took the SAT I in 2004 made slight gains in both the verbal and mathematics portions of the test.
In 2003, Kentucky public high school students who took the SAT I scored an average of 553 on the verbal portion and 555 on the mathematics portion. In 2004, the averages are 555 for verbal and 558 for mathematics.
A very small percentage of Kentucky public school students take the SAT I -- only 9 percent of graduating seniors participated in the test in 2004. Due to the varying degrees of participation among states, the College Board cautions against making comparisons based on mean scores.
The mean scores of Kentucky public high school sophomores and juniors who took the PSAT/NMSQT showed slight decreases in verbal and mathematics scores and slight increases in writing scores from 2003 to 2004.
YEAR GRADE #OF PSAT/NMSQT MEAN MEAN MEAN
LEVEL TEST-TAKERS VERBAL MATH WRITING
2003 Sophomore 9,521 42.0 43.2 43.6
2004 Sophomore 9,159 41.1 41.8 44.6
2003 Junior 9,981 48.5 49.1 48.9
2004 Junior 9,704 47.1 47.5 49.9
The SAT is a three-hour test that measures verbal and mathematical reasoning skills students have developed over time and skills they need to be successful academically. Many colleges and universities use the SAT as one indicator of a student's readiness to do college-level work. SAT scores are compared with the scores of other applicants and the accepted scores at an institution and can be used as a basis for awarding merit-based financial aid. Kentucky colleges and universities typically use the ACT as an admission requirement, which is reflected in the small percentage of students who take the SAT.
The SAT is scored on a scale of 200-800 (for math and verbal) and is typically taken by high school juniors and seniors. The test is administered several times a year. The class of 2006 will be the first to take the revamped SAT, which will include a new section on writing.
The Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) is co-sponsored by the College Board and the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. It's a standardized test that provides firsthand practice for the SAT Reasoning Test. The PSAT/NMSQT measures critical reading skills, mathematics problem-solving skills and writing skills.
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