LITTLE ROCK — The number of Arkansas high school students taking rigorous Advanced Placement courses and earning scores of "qualified" or better continued to climb in 2008-09, fueled by supporting state laws.
Arkansas students taking Advanced Placement exams in 2009 totaled 18,437, an 8.2 percent increase from the 17,037 test takers in 2008, according to statisticsprepared by the College Board, a New York-based nonprofit agency that administers the Advanced Placement program.
The enrollment increases inthe college preparation courses come at a time when Arkansas is ranked 49th among the 50 states and Washington, D.C., in the percentage of students who complete a four-year college degree and when more than 51percent of freshmen at public colleges and universities must take one or more noncredit remedial courses.
The Advanced Placement program enables students whoearn scores of 3s, 4s or 5s on the exams to qualify for college credit for their high school work. That can mean savings on college-tuition and placement into more advanced courses while in college.
The total number of Advanced Placement exams given in Arkansas this past school year was 30,114 - a 6.7 percent increase over the 28,231 tests in 2008.
There was an 8.1 percent increase in the number of exam scores of 3 or better - 8,654 exams up from 8,005 the previous school year. That is a pass rate of a 28.7 percent in 2009 compared with 28.3 the previous year.
A student who earns a score of 3 is considered "qualified, a 4 "well qualified and 5 is "very qualified." The College Board states that more than 90 percent of the nation's four-year colleges provide either credit or advancement to students based on qualifying scores.
The number of exams given in Arkansas has grown nearly three-fold from 11,112 in 2004.
"Arkansas has built a quality Advanced Placement system, and it works," Interim EducationCommissioner Diana Julian said. "What greater affirmation for our state's education policies than the significant progress we've seen in these rigorous courses, both in terms of numbersof students taking the higher level courses and the quality of work they are doing in them."
The College Board in past years has been complimentary of Arkansas for the growth in the program, which is the result of the state requiring all public high schools to offer at least four Advanced Placement courses and the use of state funds to pay the student test fees.
The College Board's annual national report that will compare state programs for 2008-09 will be released in February.
"They still hold us in high regard," Amanda Peebles, state program adviser in the office of gifted education and Advanced Placement, said Tuesday.
In a recent visit to the state, College Board representatives applauded Arkansas in particular, she said, for increasing the numbers of black and Hispanic students taking the college preparatory courses and scoring well on the tests.
The number of black students from Arkansas earning a score of 3 or better increased by 45.2 percent, compared with 19.4 nationally, she said. About 2,533 black students took one or more exams, with 228 earning a 3, 4 or 5, according to a College Board count.
Similarly, the number of Hispanic students from Arkansas scoring a 3 or better in 2009 increased 22 percent over 2008, compared with 15 percent nationally. About 930 Hispanic students took the test and 305 earned 3s or better.
"We beat the national average on those by quite a bit," Peebles said.
She speculated that the gains among the two student groups were the result of greater accessibility to the Advanced Placement program and encouragement by the faculty.
"We're opening those doors, paying for the exams and making sure each school offers the courses," she said.
Increases in the numbers of students taking Advanced Placement courses and tests is fueled by state law.
Act 102 of the 2003 special legislative session on education requires every high school to offer an Advanced Placement course in each of four core academic subjects. High schools had several years to phase in those courses in English, math, science and social studies but all four courses had to be in place this past 2008-09 school year.
Additionally, Act 2152 of 2005 requires students in Advanced Placement courses to take the year-end exams to be eligible for weighted grades in those course. The law also authorizes state funding to pay for the exams as well as for training programs for teachers of the Advanced Placement courses.
"I think the Advanced Placement program is an awesome way for kids to get the rigor that they need," Bill Waskom, coordinator of gifted education in the Benton School District and president of Arkansans for Gifted & Talented Education, said.
"I think it is a very strong program," he said. "When a student makes a 3, 4 or 5 on an AP exam, you know what kind of instruction they've received. There is no grade inflation."
The Benton district has long offered Advanced Placement courses, but the legislation, Waskom said, "certainly has helped our students in paying for the test," which was $71 a test last year.
Benton High offers 10 Advanced Placement courses and is seeing an increased enrollment in those courses.
Along with that increase is a proportionate increase in the scores of 3s, 4s and 5s, Waskom said.
"You would think that if you were teaching the courses to more students perhaps you wouldn't have as many qualify for 3s, 4s and 5s but, proportionately, we are seeing just as many," he said.
Students who take Advanced Placement courses in Benton can also receive college credit for the same courses from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. The "blended" system enables a student who passes a course but doesn't necessarily do well onthe Advanced Placement test to still receive some college credit, Waskom said.
Paul Shelton, superintendent of the Caddo Hills School District, said his Montgomery County district taught Advanced Placement courses before the state law requirements. Some of those are currently taught by teachers on campus and others through distance learning.
However, Advanced Placement courses are not necessarily courses of first choice among Caddo Hills students, Shelton said. The majority prefer taking concurrent high school and college credit courses through Rich Mountain Community College in Mena or National Park Community College in Hot Springs.
"They can still get the college credit, but they don't have to worry about passing the Advanced Placement exam at the end of the course," Shelton said.
"But we still have some students that go both routes."
Front Section, Pages 1, 7 on 08/26/2009