SNOW HILL – As schools remain closed through at least May 15, educators and school system officials are preparing Advanced Placement students to complete their exams from home.
Earlier this month, the College Board announced plans to develop Advanced Placement (AP) exams that students can take from home. In Worcester County, the school system continues to hand out hotspots and deliver instructional content to prepare students for the new online format.
“It’s going to be very, very different, more so than ever before.” said Annette Wallace, the school system’s chief operating officer and chief academic officer for grades 9-12.
The Advanced Placement Program, like the SAT assessment, is administered by the College Board and enables students to pursue college-level studies while in high school. Each year, AP courses conclude with a college-level exam.
This year, however, the College Board has developed a secure, online exam for each course that AP students can take from home. Tests will only include topics that most AP teachers and students have covered by early March.
While the school system is not responsible for administering the AP exams, Wallace said teachers and school system officials are doing their part to make sure students have access to resources and materials needed to complete the online assessments.
“Our number one concern with the AP exams is making sure our students have connectivity to the internet,” she said. “We feel like we are in a very good place with that.”
As part of the school system’s distance learning initiatives, educators are using the learning management system Schoology and video conferencing programs to connect with students. At the high school level, Wallace said, 95% of students are participating in online instruction through Schoology.
Wallace added that the school system continues to hand out mobile hotspots that allow students to connect to the internet. To date, roughly 640 hotspots have been delivered to students.
“Regardless if we return to school or don’t return to school, those exams are going to be online,” she said.
Wallace said the school system’s efforts to prepare students for the AP exams are part of a two-pronged approach.
“The second prong of our approach is making sure that our kids are getting as much review as possible and we are covering all the content we need to cover through our learning management system Schoology,” she said. “The College Board has also been really supportive of virtual learning. They are posting lessons for the kids as well.”
This year, AP exams will take place between May 11 and May 22, with make-up testing dates between June 1 and June 5. Students will be able to take exams on their computer, tablet, or smartphone. They will be able to either type and upload their responses or write responses by hand and submit a photo via their cellphone.
This year’s exams will also be “open book/open note,” according to the College Board, but students will not be able to consult others during the testing period. For students who may try to gain an unfair advantage, the College Board has developed a comprehensive and strict set of protocols in place to prevent and detect cheating.
“If school reopens, they can certainly take the exams online at our schools,” Wallace said. “If our schools reopen, we would very likely do that … We wouldn’t ask them to do it at home.”
Wallace said the College Board has also canceled all spring and summer administrations of the SAT exam, but included new testing dates in August and September.
