The Advanced Placement (AP) Program of The College Board
enables students to complete college level studies at
Plano Senior High School. The "academic bridge" helps
smooth the transition from high school to college. The
primary goals of the
AP Program are to enrich the secondary school experience
of students ready to apply themselves to college level
courses and to provide the means by which colleges may
grant credit or placement, or both, to students with satisfactory
AP test scores.
The Benefits of AP
Each AP course stands alone, on its own merit. AP allows
students to explore their area of interest. For example,
a student who is strong in math may choose to take AP
Calculus, whereas a student whose strength lies in the
humanities may select one of the many history options.
Students who want to experiment with a college level course
may enroll in just one AP class. Students who are ready
to face the challenge of a college level curriculum
may enroll in as many as six AP courses.
Students who earn college credit through AP exams save on college
tuition and expenses. Some students start with sophomore
standing, saving the cost and time of one year of college.
Enrolling in AP
Plano offers one of the largest range of AP courses in the
nation for students. Students entering high school need
to plan with their counselors to insure that all prerequisite
courses are scheduled early enough to allow them to take
the AP course of their choice at the senior high level.
Most AP courses are one hour in length, the exceptions being
AP Studio Art, AP Biology, and AP Chemistry, which require
two-hour blocks of time. All AP courses earn advance placement
grade points.
PSHS offers the following AP courses:
Art History
Studio Art
-
2D & 3D
Studio Art - Drawing
Biology
Environmental Science
Computer
Science
A or AB
Calculus
AB
or BC
Statistics
Physics
B or C
Macro
Economics
Micro
Economics
European
History
English
Literature and Composition
Government
and Politics - US
US History
Music Theory
French Language
German Language
Latin (Vergil/
Catullus)
Spanish
Language & Literature
Chemistry
English
Language & Composition
Government
-
Comparative
Psychology
Chinese:
Language & Culture
AP Exams
The examinations are structured to measure three areas-
depth of knowledge, completeness of thought, and synthesis
of ideas. Approximately 1,200 institutions award credit
based on the student's AP exam scores. Exams are graded
on a five-point scale with credit usually given for scores
of 3 or higher. College credit is generally awarded upon
a student's enrollment, although some institutions award
sophomore standing only after a student has completed satisfactory
work on campus. The score requirement and number of college
credit hours varies among higher education campuses.
