With all the AP exams done and finals coming up, we are ready to wrap up the year. Most AP classes are giving a project for their final as their cumulative test was before the AP exam because most teachers know that tests are great study tactics. However, some teachers at Campo overlook this and give a cumulative final at the end of the year after the AP exam.
AP Psychology, taught by Diane Bessette and Steven Dyer, gives students a cumulative test before the AP exam, also known as the final. Bessette believes that it is better to provide a test of all the material before the exam, “they have an incentive to really relearn and study all of the material before they take the AP test.”
Tommy Renno, an AP Comparative Government and Politics/Economics teacher, also believes in giving a cumulative test before the AP exam, “assessments, by nature, are supposed to provide students with feedback about where they are in terms of learning the material for the class and so I do feel like having an assessment that provides students with that feedback before the AP is very important.”
Although testing before the AP exam is important, most teachers want to continue the course to the end of the year. Renno believes that “we are all here to continue learning in school and in life, so the idea that students would learn after the AP test is done seems obvious to me.” Learning more after the AP exam is something that Campo teachers have made obvious that they are pursuing. However, when students are continuing to stress about a class after the AP exam, it feels unnecessary because the primary reason for taking an AP class is for the credit that it gives students for college.
When teachers choose to have the cumulative test before the exam, they often have the dilemma of what to do after the AP exam. Some teachers find creative ways to continue learning post-AP exam such as Renno who gives an entertaining final that involves material from throughout the year while also being low-stakes. Though Campo requires teachers to give an exam on the final day, teachers sometimes give projects to avoid the stress of having a big final test. This allows students to take a break from the rigorous year while continuing to learn in a different way than usual.
Most students are looking forward to the summer and feeling accomplished after the AP exams. Stressing about a grade for a final is the last thing that students want to be ending the year. However, seeing an AP class solely as a way to earn college credits is discrediting everything else in the class. Teachers’ goals are always to continue learning and just because a test is over does not mean that they should stop instruction.
