After a Year of Virtual Learning, SOCES Students Are Set to Take the AP Exams

By: Auden Meyer '22

(Image courtesy of coronadoexplorer.com)

It may be spring, but to high school students the end of the year is known as AP season. It’s the time when teachers have finished lecturing and students are replacing note taking with endless review. With this year cut in half and restricted to online learning but with AP tests still at full length, students and teachers have been struggling to keep up.

“There’s so much to do and not enough time,” says Junior Melina Bindra. “We have almost a full AP exam and half the amount of hours learning in class. This entire year has been self learning and there’s not much our teachers can even do about that.”

This system is what APUSH teacher Mr. Jocz calls “completely inequitable,” and that “College Board should level the playing field and address concerns.” This is especially prominent in a year when SAT and ACT tests are on the back burner, leaving AP exams as a huge determining factor in college acceptances.

With this past year being online, it’s been very hard for students to absorb the material. A Junior who asked to remain anonymous says that “preparing has been difficult because it’s hard to stay on task online,” and that they are “literally learning the material right now, not even studying.”

For teachers, making sure students get all the material is also a strenuous task. Mr. Jocz states that “The amount of material you’re supposed to learn, even not in a pandemic, is just crazy. How many things you have to demonstrate mastery of.” Still, the tests are inevitable, so the least everyone can do is try to get an understanding of how they’ll work this year.

There are three administrations, but SOCES will only be using the second and third, the online versions, from May 18–21, 24–28 and June 1–4, 7–11, respectively. However, the language exams will be given on paper because there are no digital options for those, according to Ms. Haskins. All tests are either at 12 pm or 4 pm EST. Some tests look different in each version, so make sure to go to AP Classroom to see what’s going to be on your test. You should also go to the “About Your Exam” page to get an in depth explanation of each part of your exam.

To study, Mr. Jocz says students “should seize on opportunities teachers are giving,” and “Try to make the best of it, do study sessions, stupid games… try to create a sense of normalcy over the internet with your friends as you study.”

Despite all the hate that College Board gets, they have put out some decent resources to prepare for the tests. They’ve been doing 7 - 8 minute videos called AP Daily videos on a bunch of topics within each unit of every course, which can be found on AP Classroom, then click on “assignments to complete,” then click on “Home.” There are also 45 minute to hour long Live Review Sessions on the Advanced Placement YouTube that go over a little bit of content, but more so the test format and example questions. A third resource is to take a practice exam on the Digital Testing App. Of course, prep books and study sessions with peers are always great options, too.

Melina is preparing by “rewatching YouTube and College Board period reviews, rereading notes, making timelines, looking over key concepts, and looking over past exam questions.” Even if you don’t do this much, use whatever resources you find are helpful, because online testing doesn’t mean you shouldn’t study as much as you normally would.

To actually take the test, there is a Digital Testing App to be downloaded, which should be done now. Tests will be taken with that app, but it also has app demos and practice tests for each exam. Then, 3 days before your exam opens you’ll be able to start your exam setup, which needs to be done by the day before your exam, for each exam you are taking. This setup includes actually downloading the exam.

On the exam itself, you cannot go back to a question that has already been answered, nor can you move between unanswered questions. Between sections, you’ll get a break. Don’t close the app until you see a “Congratulations!” message pop up. All answers will be reviewed with plagiarism software and “post-exam analyses” to figure out if you worked with others or used unauthorized aids (like notes or a textbook).

After the exam, take a deep breath and go treat yourself. In a year like no other, you completed an exam that is not only challenging in itself, but you got through a class-full of that demanding work.

“These tests are no indicator of your worth or value as a person or as a student,” Mr. Jocz believes. He says that even if you don’t do as well as you wanted to, “Take some advice from Taylor Swift and shake it off!”