After a few weeks of vacation I am slowly getting back into school mode with some curriculum work and lesson planning. Part of this is going through my AP Instructional Reports for insights I can use to improve instruction next year.
The first piece of data I look at is rather basic, the correlation between student exam scores and their final grades in my class. Although outliers occasionally occur, I like to check the correlation to make sure my grading is neither too easy nor unfairly difficult. The right balance between in-class rigor and the exam is a contested topic of discussion. I generally err on the side of challenging students, but there is a danger in preaching rigor for the sake of rigor; Students and parents can be rightfully annoyed to see a C on their report card and then a score of 5 from College Board.
Of course, there are many behavioral variables that contribute to a student’s grade and exam scores. My point is that I believe teachers should assess their data seriously and never fall into complacency just because they have been doing the same instructional activities and strategies for years. Student and parent perceptions of learning matter more than some might want to admit.
Anyway, a few days after looking through my data I came across an interesting chart from a school where AP exam scores seem to be used as a factor in a student’s final grade. It’s pictured below. The summer logistics of this aside, I was intrigued by the intended and unintended consequences of such a policy.
I have never taught in a school or system that did this. In Florida, (I taught in the Hillsborough County Public School System) AP exam fees were paid for by the school board to incentivize both course enrollment and exam completion. I liked this policy as it aligned with the College Board’s equity policy and helped increase opportunities for all students to take challenging courses. Since exam scores came over summer I never even considered an argument for using them as evidence towards a student’s final grade.
The chart above is fairly generous in the opportunities it creates to boost a student’s grade. If a student earns a passing score on the exam they are essentially guaranteed a grade increase. The students who score a 1 or 2 on the exam are at risk of having a lower grade if they earned C or better in the course. It is an interesting strategy to combat grade inflation.
I need to spend a lot more time thinking about this, but initially I kind of like it. I believe teachers should always be expected to calibrate the rigor of their courses within a reasonable margin of error to the exam. Likewise, admin need to support their teachers and create policy to account for the variables of student demographics and school culture. Regardless of the teacher, If a class has a significant number of students earning As who go on to earn 1s on the exam, that is a sign of a deeper problem that needs to be questioned. I am really interested in what the student and parent perceptions of such a system would be.
A little thinking and digging has led me to following list of arguments for and against such a policy. This is not comprehensive and I would very much like to hear from teachers who have worked within a similar system about their experiences. If you are reading this and your school does something like this, I genuinely would like to hear about how it works for you. Teaching in a system makes its impact, positive or negative, so much clearer.
Some Arguments For:
- Such a policy would align with the spirit of a standards-based or competency-based grading system. The AP exam measures student learning without the in-class variables that might fall under behavior as opposed to knowledge. Beyond reflecting student mastery of content and skills, this policy could help address the subjective variables of student experience between classes or teachers.
- Students who struggled early in the course or hit various challenges may be motivated to prepare for the exam as a way of improving their grades.
- Within the U.S., a policy such as this may increase course enrollment and help AP programs compete with Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment courses.
- This could be a powerful tool for data-driven teacher training and support and would offer additional accountability. This assumes a lot of professionalism and good intentions from administrators.
- External validation of student learning can be a powerful defense of a school system or a curriculum. Policies like this could also offer credibility to student GPAs when grade inflation is increasingly an issue. I wonder how universities would feel about such a policy?
Arguments Against:
- The risk of any negative impact on a student’s grade will likely increase test anxiety.
- There are equity concerns in making sure all students have equal access to test prep. This policy would also be more contentious where students pay for their own exams.
- Many teachers or state curricula rightfully emphasize content and skills beyond the CED. As a result, the AP exam may not be a perfect assessment of student mastery across everything that was taught in a given class.
- Policies like this may place additional stress on teachers, particularly newer ones. Additional professional development and ongoing support would be needed to make sure teachers are treated fairly and set up for success.
- There are dozens of student-side variables that explain discrepancies between course grades and exam scores. Things like missing work, effort, attendance, etc. all impact a student’s learning whatever the grading system. Any discussion around exam scores being used to improve a student’s grade is going to start contentious debates around the role of fairness in assessment.
If I have time amidst all the other things I have to do, I would like to find some research or studies on the impact of using AP exam scores in grades. I am still not sure I would support it, but I am intrigued about how it could work in an independent school. Not only would you need teacher buy-in for it, but more importantly, you would need student and parent buy-in.
It has been several months since I have posted anything. It was a hectic end of the year for me and now that I have spent some time recharging over the summer I am looking forward to getting back to more writing, reflecting, lesson planning, and resource creation! Thanks for reading!