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The Fabulous Phenomenon of Pre-AP Strategies for Biology
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by Carolyn Schofield Bronston
Robert E. Lee High School
Tyler, Texas
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| | How Do "Pre-AP" and Science Connect?
Being from Texas, I just assumed everyone had classes to prepare students for AP work during middle and early high school. These classes fall under the broad spectrum of "Pre-AP," so let's define that term. It is not a new label for honors or gifted classes. Instead, it describes a course or series of courses, open to all interested students, where the aim is to provide the skills and basics that will translate into future AP course success. You may also see the Pre-AP concept called vertical teaming or Pre-AP strategies. The College Board does not design, develop, or assess courses labeled "Pre-AP," and no courses should be labeled as such in school catalogs or on student transcripts.
In my district, our science curriculum, which is based on Pre-AP principles, has become an indispensable means for our teachers from sixth grade up to collaborate, coordinate, and craft a seamless program in which each course builds on the strengths of the previous course, assuring each year there are new challenges and inquiries that keep science fresh and captivating (at least we hope!). So as I talked to my friends from "other parts of the world" at the AP Biology Reading in Nebraska, I was surprised to learn that the use of Pre-AP strategies is not a national phenomenon. Especially considering the AP Biology Redesign Advisory Panel's upcoming recommendations that stress the critical importance of a strong base of prior knowledge, it should be. Here's why.
An AP preparation program can familiarize students with the logistics of AP courses. Students who come from these classes:
- Have done several complete laboratory write-ups. Using the same format that is required in the AP course, students include a hypothesis, discuss sources of error, and (we hope) write a scientific conclusion concerning their findings.
- Are more competent graphers. All students must use scalar and labeled axes, must place dependent and independent variables in the correct place, and must include a meaningful title. We also stress the difference in using a bar graph versus a point-line graph.
- Can use our computer probeware and run the recording and graphical software. Because they have done several experiments in our computer-outfitted science lab, students come to AP with experience in handling that technology.
- Know how to write an essay. Working together, we have designed "AP-esque" questions with seven-point maximums. Student responses are scored using a rubric, and students often mark each others' writing so they understand the scoring process. Starting next year, the middle schools' AP preparation science classes will be writing five-point essays.
An AP preparation program can cover topics and experiences that save us valuable hours in AP Biology. My feeder teachers spend much time on cell organelles; therefore I do only a one-day brush-up. The lab on membranes is basically parts C and D of AP Lab 1, Diffusion and Osmosis. I refer to it, but I rely on the work my students did as freshmen to give them background. The first day of class, several teachers do AP Lab 11, Animal Behavior, with their students. The kids are not expecting to jump into real science on the first day, so it sets the stage for the hands-on involvement and high expectations for the year, plus it frees me to do a more in-depth behavior lab involving statistics later. The AP students do Lab 5, Cellular Respiration; in preparation, younger students do a lab on fermentation that covers a different area of metabolism. If you do not have time to spend a month on taxonomy in your AP course, perhaps curricular alignment efforts and vertical teaming can strengthen that area. No time for dissection? The syllabi in courses that feed into AP may be able to include that, paving the way for more in-depth systems studies in AP.
An AP preparation program can broaden your potential pool of AP students. Two years ago at my high school, our principal dictated that every freshman had to sign up for one course that would help to prepare them for AP. As a result, many students who never thought of pursuing advanced course work have found it interesting and fun to be challenged; previously they had been lethargically sliding by with minimal effort or turning into class clowns because they were bored. As the middle schools improve their curricular alignment with an AP goal in mind, we foresee even more students previously thought of as "average-to-borderline scholars" becoming enthusiastic learners, even if their final grade is not an A. Personally, some of my greatest successes have been kids who made it through AP Biology with a 74 average, perhaps earning a 2 on the AP Exam. These kids have come back from college holding their own, excited about the future, and not part of the HBO (Home Before October) contingent.
Giving More Students Access to AP
So the Pre-AP/AP Vertical Teams concept is, as Martha Stewart would say, "a good thing." It strengthens science from middle school up, getting teachers from all levels talking and collaborating. Over many years, it hones the skills students need in AP courses. It assures that kids aren't doing the same old frog dissection three times in their upper-school career; instead these kids are exploring new and different venues and experiences. And it captures an even greater range of kids, many currently "under the radar," who could benefit from and thrive in the AP experience.
Carolyn Schofield Bronston has taught at Spring Branch's Memorial High School and Tyler's Robert E. Lee High School in Texas. Traveling as a consultant for the College Board since 1979, she also reads the AP Exam each June, authored the Teacher's Guide -- AP Biology, created the AP Teacher's Corner, and is a member of the AP Biology Development Committee. She is a winner of the Presidential Award for Excellence, the OBTA for Texas, the Tandy Award, the Texas Excellence Award, and a 2003-04 Siemens Award for Advanced Placement.
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