Farmington High School Meets Advanced Placement Goals

FARMINGTON — Farmington High started the 2012-13 school year with a goal to increase the percentage of students who passed their Advanced Placement tests. The school ended the year by exceeding its goal.

Clint Jones, assistant superintendent, said he believes the school is on the right track but still has a lot of work to do.

Advanced Placement classes are more intensive courses designed to prepare students for college. The courses also offer students the opportunity to possibly earn college credit by scoring a 3 or higher on the AP exam at the end of the year.

Farmington had a passing rate of 27 percent in 2012, below the state average of 31 percent.

A score of 3, 4 or 5 is considered a passing score on an AP exam.

The goal was to improve the passing rate to 35 percent and Farmington exceeded that with a 36 percent passing rate, Jones said, adding that Farmington also exceeded the 2013 state average of 34 percent.

The high school implemented several strategies last year to meet its goal.

Addressing the Farmington School Board in July, Jones said school officials believe an incentive plan to award students with money for passing their tests made a difference.

The school will pay a total of $ 8,525 to 57 students who scored a 3 or higher on their AP exams, administered in the spring. Students who made a 3 on their test will receive $100.

A score of 4 brings $125 and students who scored a 5 will receive $150.

The school made strides in other ways with the AP program, Jones said.

The number of students taking AP classes increased from 128 in 2011-12 to 159 students in 2012-13.

The school also increased the number of exams given by 51 to a total of 277 exams for the year. (Some students take more than one AP class).

Clayton Williams, Farmington High’s instructional facilitator, said other strategies implemented last year included additional professional development and student testing.

“Many of the teachers included more AP style questions on their unit exams and almost all of them gave a mock exam either in one day or over a multiple day period to allow students to experience the full rigor of the AP exam in order to address timing issues and even the fatigue factor,” Williams wrote in an email.

A chart of the 2013 AP results shows the following passing rate for each course: 10 percent for calculus, 8 percent for chemistry, 44 percent for English language and composition, 53 percent for English literature and composition, 50 percent for European history, 25 percent for U.S. government, 19 percent for psychology, 20 percent for music theory.

Jones said the AP teachers will meet and discuss goals for 2013-14. He said he believes the school will continue its incentive plan to pay for a passing grade.

Superintendent Bryan Law said he was pleased with the school’s AP progress this past year.

“We certainly want to continue that,” Law said at the school board meeting. “We’re proud to be above the state average but we want to climb higher. We want to move the bar up and have more students involved.”