Learning and Understanding Improving Advanced Study of Mathematics and Science in U.S. High Schools (2002) / Chapter Skim
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2. Context of Advanced Study
2. Context of Advanced Study
Pages 28-63
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From page 28... ...
They implement widely varying curricula and administer different assessments, which are selected by their districts' or states' boards of education or boards of trustees. Local school boards organize their schools and implement policies related to ability grouping, course offerings, and staffirlt, patterns in ways that reflect their differing missions, educational `goals, and local political concerns and priorities.
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From page 29... ...
, 1999; Kaufman. Bradby, and Teitelbaum, 2000; National Association of Secondary School Principals [NASSP]
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From page 30... ...
Both programs provide a basic structure, quality standards, and nationally recognized external measures of student achievement, but states and individual schools can decide which students are able to take the courses, who is qualified to teach them, and how the courses will be taught. At least 26 states provide legislative support to AP programs in their schools by subsidizing examination fees or costs for teacher education, prosRiley, 1999, available at www.ed.gov/Speeches/09-1999/990915.html (February 11, 2002)
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From page 31... ...
For many years, policymakers have focused on making advanced-level courses available to all students who are interested in participating That goal has not yet been accomplished, but educators and policymakers have increased their efforts to provide many more students with equitable opportunities to learn and succeed in these courses. As discussed later in this chapter, the success of these efforts will depend on whether educational leaders assign top priority to increasing the number of underrepresented minority students who both are enrolled in advanced study and achieve at high levels.
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From page 32... ...
The AP and IB programs complement standards-based reform efforts at the advanced level. Both programs provide content-rich curricula and nationally recognized external measures of student achievement, but can be implemented by states and individual schools in ways that conform to local standards and link with other curricular offerings.
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From page 33... ...
found that within some districts, schools with higher levels of student poverty sometimes receive lower allocations of both money and other educational resources than more affluent schools within the same district. Establishing and supporting high-quality advanced study programs also means that school districts must allocate sufficient resources for teacher professional development, instructional resources, and adequate student preparation at the middle school level.
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From page 34... ...
. Results of a recent survey of secondary school teachers, students, school administrators, and parents also indicate that students who experience topquality teaching are more likely than those who experience poor teaching to have high expectations for their futures (Markow, Fauth, and Gravitch, 20013.
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From page 35... ...
For example, these experts say that while there is a teacher shortage in secondary and middle schools, there is no such shortage in elementary schools; while there is a strong need for more singlesubject teachers, especially in mathematics, physical science, special education, and bilingual education, there is no shortage of multisubject teachers or teachers of English or social studies; and while fast-growing cities in the South and dense urban areas will have a need for more teachers, suburban and more affluent schools will experience few shortages (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1999; Eubanks, 1996; Ingersoll, 19991. i3According to Education Week (2001)
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From page 36... ...
Consequently, teacher shortages in mathematics and science and the dearth of teachers willing to teach in hi~h-poverty and rural areas have implications for both access to and the quantity and the quality of advanced study programs available to students across the country. Education policy experts agree with this appraisal and suggest that government agencies, colleges and universities, and school districts initiate and support efforts to attract and retain qualified teachers in specific subjects and for particular geographic regions (National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Centurv.
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From page 37... ...
In science, most seventh-~rade students are studying life sciences or a biology-based curriculum, while most eighth-grade students are focusin, on a mix of earth science and physical science (Schmidt, McKnight, Cogan, [akewerth, and Hourang, 19991. CCSSO reports that a growing proportion of middle schools are instituting integrated or coordinated science programs.
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From page 38... ...
However, a majority of high school teachers never interact with their peers from elementary and middle schools on the crucial issue of curricular alignment.~4 Fewer than 30 percent of middle school teachers report having had any contact with high school teachers in their discipline with regard to curriculum structure, content, or design (NCHSSY, 2001a, p.16~. Even where school districts encourage and facilitate such vertical inte'~ration, however, their efforts can be compromised by the fact that today's students are far more mobile than ever before.
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From page 39... ...
As noted below in the discussion of disparities in opportunities to pursue and succeed in advanced study, this problem is compounded for minority students and those of low socioeconomic status. Early ability grouping at the middle school level has the most pronounced effect in mathematics because of the cumulative and sequential nature of the curriculum.
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From page 40... ...
Thus, grades earned in honors or advanced courses help increase students' GPAs. Weighted grades were first devised to entice students to take more-rigorous classes without fear of hurting their class rank or GPA.
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From page 41... ...
However, diversification and freedom of choice also allow many students to choose poorly and consequently to leave school underprepared for either college or work (AFT, 2001; Frome, 2001; NCHSSY, 2001a) .~9 More-ri~orous state high school graduation requirements have helped address these concerns, but the continuing, availability of many low-level academic courses and their effects on students' course-taking patterns and achievement remain a significant problem for students, schools, higher education, and prospective employers.
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From page 42... ...
Additionally, some school districts, understanding that students differ in the amount of time they may need to complete high school graduation requirements when expectations are high, have opted to allow their students to complete high school in 3, 4, or 5 years in accordance with individual achievement and educational needs (see, e.g., Johnston, 20001. This flexibility is consistent with recommendations made by the American Youth Policy Forum (20003.
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From page 43... ...
While the data reported in Table 2-2 for mathematics and in Table 23 for science do not reveal differences in course taking among students of different racial and ethnic groups, such is the case primarily because many 2iThere are numerous remedial and basic mathematics courses below Algebra 1, and some 10 percent of public high school graduates in 1998 never progressed beyond them (ACES, 1998)
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From page 44... ...
Of the 13 states that do report mathematics enrollment by race/ethnicity, enrollment of African American and Hispanic students in higher-level mathematics courses lagged behind that of whites and Asians in the same courses in all cases. Most state high school graduation requirements include the completion of at least 2 years of science (Education Week, 2000)
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From page 45... ...
Secondary school teachers are more likely than teachers at other levels to report feeling isolated and unsupported (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1999; NCES, 2000b; OERI, 1999~. They also report that there are many competing, demands on their own and their students' time that interfere with instruction.
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From page 46... ...
estimates that there will be more than 15 million students in grades 9-12 in public and private high schools in the United States in the fall of 2002 and an additional 235,000 home-schooled students in these grade equivalents (Parent Survey of the National Household Education Surveys Program, as cited in Basham, 20011. The majority of secondary school students say that seeing friends is the most important reason for goings to school; only a quarter of secondary school students cite academics as the most important reason (Hart Research Associates, 19991.
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From page 47... ...
Problems at home and with friends and concerns about school safety and personal well-being distract many secondary school students from their academic pursuits. Fully 25 percent of secondary school students report that it is difficult for them to concentrate in class because they are worried about problems at home.
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From page 48... ...
Students are more likely to take hiDher-level mathematics and science courses if their parents are highly educated and knowledgeable about the college admission process and help guide their children's course selection (Ekstrom, Goertz, and Rock, 1988; Horn et al., 2000; Lee and Ekstrom, 1987; Useem, 1992~. When asked to explain the disproportionate enrollment of whites and Asians in advanced classes as compared with other racial or ethnic groups, however, educators attributed this disparity to students' ability or wise choice of courses without considering the influence of parents on these decisions (Oakes and Guiton, 19959.
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From page 49... ...
In any case, education policymakers, school officials, and college leaders must evaluate and implement educational reforms that will improve the academic achievement of economically and educationally disadvantaged students. As a means of improving outcomes, the College Board and many school districts are focusing on improving teaching and learning, in the courses that lead to advanced study.
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From page 50... ...
. Strategies that have proven effective include reducing class size (Grissmer, 19991; eliminating low-level academic courses that do not prepare students academically (Frome, 2001; NASSP, 19961; enhancing professional development to help teachers incorporate researchbased instructional, curricular, and assessment strategies in their classrooms (see Chapter 7, this volume)
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From page 51... ...
However, a high school diploma currently does not guarantee success in either domain. This situation derives partly from a decentralized and disconnected system of K-12 education in which students encounter differing sets of requirements and expectations as they move from elementary school to the middle grades and on to high school.
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From page 52... ...
Advanced Study as a [ink Between High School and College Advanced study programs such as AP span the boundaries of secondary and higher education The content and structure of advanced study programs and the learning experiences they offer to high school students can provide one of the foundations for academic success in higher education. Students and their parents look to these programs to facilitate students' admission to college, to help them succeed in colle~,e-level work once admitted, and to yield college credit and the possibility of proceeding directly to more advanced courses when the students matriculate in college.
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From page 53... ...
This tendency is reinforced in AP science courses by the College Board's practice of basing its course outlines on surveys of institutions that accept large numbers of AP students. This practice can reinforce the status quo for AP courses instead of encouraging change to reflect emerging best practices in the disciplines involved.25 The Role of Advancer!
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From page 54... ...
Students who do not have access to AP or IB courses are at a disadvantage in this type of admission process unless provisions are in place to give equal weight to other kinds of advanced courses available to them. Thus, colleges and universities that use a formula to make admission decisions often give special consideration to grades earned in honors or college preparatory courses as well as to AP and IB grades.
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From page 55... ...
is of greatest importance for admission to highly selective schools seeking students who have taken 27Using the 1994 Carnegie classifications for ranking undergraduate institutions, schools were placed into four broad categories: national universities, national liberal arts colleges, regional universities, and regional liberal arts colleges. Institutions from these four categories were then sorted by their selectivity in the admission process, as defined by the percentage of applicants admitted.
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From page 56... ...
Some admission officers indicated that they might look for evidence that students lacking access to rigorous opportunities in school tried instead to participate in similar kinds of academic opportunities outside of school. A very small number of deans indicated that there might be indirect consequences for students from schools with limited advanced course offerings.
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From page 57... ...
Therefore, final examination grades for AP and IB courses taken during the senior year of high school are not a factor in admission decisions, although they are a factor in credit and placement decisions. Many educators contend that this makes it easy for seniors to reduce their level of commitment to academics once admission letters have been mailed, sometimes as early as December of the senior year for those students who have applied for early decision or rolling admission.
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From page 58... ...
Using AP anc! IB for Placement or Exemption from Required Courses As noted above, in addition to being able to graduate early, students can use their AP and IB credits to reduce overall course loads or to meet college prerequisite or distribution requirements, freeing time in their schedules to Approximately 1,400 institutions offer sophomore standing to students with sufficient AP credit (College Board, http://www.collegeboard.org/ap/students/benefits/soph_standing.html ll\ ovember 27, 2001]
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From page 59... ...
Many high school counselors and teachers encourage their students to use their AP and IB credits in this manner when they enter college, especially when the introductory courses they would otherwise be required to take are large lecture classes or are perceived not to be sufficiently challenging. At the same time, using credits from these examinations to fulfill distribution requirements means that students can potentially graduate from college without ever having taken courses in certain subject areas.
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From page 60... ...
Denial of Credit or Placement Although the College Board encourages colleges to award academic credit for an AP score of 3 or higher, and the American Council for Education endorses this stance (College Entrance Examination Board, 2000a) , nearly half of the colleges in the United States that accept AP credits do not abide by the College Board's standards (Lichten, 20003.
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From page 61... ...
Other survey findings include the following: 34The College Board is currently studying the validity of a grade of 3 on AP examinations. 35Departments of biology and mathematics to which survey forms were sent were selected from a list of schools gathered from the Gourman Report: A Rating of Undergraduate Programs in American Universities (Gourman, 1999)
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From page 62... ...
Additional survey findings are as follows: · A large majority of the mathematics departments offer credit to students with qualifying AP scores without considering any additional factors However, almost a third require a departmental test and/or an interview with the student before determining placement in courses beyond the introductory level. · Mathematics departments routinely offer credit for scores of 4 and 5 on AP Calculus AB or BC examinations.
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From page 63... ...
EPILOGUE From the perspective of higher education, advanced study in mathematics and science has both advantages and disadvantages. In theory, both the AP and IB programs should lead to learning of science and mathematics content at a more advanced and deeper level than would occur if students had taken only introductory high school courses in these subjects.
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