Advanced Placement participation rate climbs 47 percent

By: Press Release | SCNow
Published: December 14, 2009

Schools' performance on 2009 Advanced Placement exams released by the State Department of Education show 47 percent more Horry County Schools' students participated in AP courses and took AP exams than in 2008. Districtwide, 1,217 students participated in AP courses, an increase of 389 over the 828 who participated last year. These students took a total of 1,734 exams, an increase of 543 from 1,191 exams taken in 2008.

The district's percentage of students scoring between 3-5 on AP exams decreased to 50.9 percent, down from 52.6 percent last year. Generally, scores greater than 3 allow students to receive college credit for an AP course taken in high school. The state and national percentage of students scoring 3-5 on AP exams is 57 percent. South Carolina had an 11 percent increase in the number of students participating in AP courses and the number of AP tests taken in 2009.

Since 1984, South Carolina has paid for AP instructional materials, paid students' test fees and offered specialized training for teachers. Every student enrolled in an AP course is required to take the test. The six most-taken AP exams in 2009 were: United States History, English Literature and Composition, English Language and Composition, Calculus AB, Biology, and Statistics.

Below are individual AP results from nine district high schools and two academies. Results indicate the school, number of participating students, number of exams taken and the passage rate of students earning a score of 3 or higher:

HCS Advanced Placement 2009

School

Number Tested

Number of Exams

Number of

3-5 Scores

Percentage of 3- 5 Scores

Academy for the Arts, Science, and Technology

38%

Academy for Technology and Academics

Aynor High School

114

45%