AP classes, Important or just good?

ShinHell9

I started on here when I was like 14...
Okay so that doesn't quite describe what I'm getting at here. This Year I will be taking AP American, because the other history classes are BS classes. However that's not what this is about, so i don't know why i mentioned it. This year i'll also be taking pre-calc. I go to a half assed, "we're not a private school but we don't follow any of the stuff the district tells us to" school. They may or may not offer AP clac, depending on if they get a teacher. I plan to take AP calc senior year, but If I do:
1. I may have to stay for 3 more hours, no senior "yay we don't have any more classes to do because you made us finish them in middle school" half day thing. Which may keep me from getting a second job, which will mean that all of my money from my first job will prolly go towards insurance.
2. I'm not sure if I could handle AP calc because my former math B year 1 teacher told me that AP calc is basically the best way to send your grades into the crapper.
Since almost everyone here has gone through High School, I'm sure there's at least one who went into AP calc and could tell me how hard it is, and if it really does have any benefit other than not having to take it in college.
 
Eddie said:
Okay so that doesn't quite describe what I'm getting at here. This Year I will be taking AP American, because the other history classes are BS classes. However that's not what this is about, so i don't know why i mentioned it. This year i'll also be taking pre-calc. I go to a half assed, "we're not a private school but we don't follow any of the stuff the district tells us to" school. They may or may not offer AP clac, depending on if they get a teacher. I plan to take AP calc senior year, but If I do:
1. I may have to stay for 3 more hours, no senior "yay we don't have any more classes to do because you made us finish them in middle school" half day thing. Which may keep me from getting a second job, which will mean that all of my money from my first job will prolly go towards insurance.
2. I'm not sure if I could handle AP calc because my former math B year 1 teacher told me that AP calc is basically the best way to send your grades into the crapper.
Since almost everyone here has gone through High School, I'm sure there's at least one who went into AP calc and could tell me how hard it is, and if it really does have any benefit other than not having to take it in college.

You might be less bored. Do you like math? (at least relative to other stuff)
 

ShinHell9

I started on here when I was like 14...
Faust said:
You might be less bored.  Do you like math? (at least relative to other stuff)
eh? I'm mor indifferent on math...I like history and thats probably the only subject i'll ever say i like. But i don't have any aversion to math.
 

nir085

Horse and Armor
I have no idea what kind of student you are, math or otherwise, but I took a full AP load throughout high school and I thought calculus was the hardest course I ever took.

First off, if you didn't at least make 85s in algebra 2 then you probably won't be satisfied with your pre-cal grade. The same applies to the precal/calc transition. They're both excruciatingly painful, in my opinion, and the system of grading only gets more merciless. That is putting aside the demoralizing calculator fiends that happen to get 100s on every test and shove it into people's faces while half of the other class seems to fail. But that's just precal, in calc. you'll only be dealing with the calculator fiends.

Anyways, there are two levels of calculus, AB and BC. Despite the difference in letters and what people tell you, they're basically the same - BC just covers more. AB's not the calculus equivalent of double-blocked algebra.

Precal is geometrically-oriented while calc is algebraically oriented. You'll get a taste of calculus in your last 6 weeks of precal when you cover derivatives. You should consider whether you take calculus or not based on that section/test too.

Benefits from calculus? Nothing GPA-wise, needless to say, but if you are planning on going into a business, science, or math school, you'll be behind if you don't have it. It does nothing for liberal arts, however, and unless you go into a tier 1 college, they won't care. About the "not having to take it in college" part, don't be too sure about that, as the AP exam is really hard from what I have heard. Calculus skills don't really help you in any other course outside of advanced physics or math...

Then again, I came from a hard high school, took a bunch of other hard classes simultaneously, and didn't like numbers to begin with, so there may be nothing to fear. Ultimately, though, you'll probably want to observe how old the calculus teachers are and the color of their hair. That always seems to be the determining factor of difficulty levels in math.
 
Eddie said:
Okay so that doesn't quite describe what I'm getting at here. This Year I will be taking AP American, because the other history classes are BS classes. However that's not what this is about, so i don't know why i mentioned it. This year i'll also be taking pre-calc. I go to a half assed, "we're not a private school but we don't follow any of the stuff the district tells us to" school. They may or may not offer AP clac, depending on if they get a teacher. I plan to take AP calc senior year, but If I do:
1. I may have to stay for 3 more hours, no senior "yay we don't have any more classes to do because you made us finish them in middle school" half day thing. Which may keep me from getting a second job, which will mean that all of my money from my first job will prolly go towards insurance.
2. I'm not sure if I could handle AP calc because my former math B year 1 teacher told me that AP calc is basically the best way to send your grades into the crapper.
Since almost everyone here has gone through High School, I'm sure there's at least one who went into AP calc and could tell me how hard it is, and if it really does have any benefit other than not having to take it in college.


Depends on how many AP courses you've otherwise taken. Most colleges will not let you use more than 4 AP credits for classes. I took AP Calc AB and didn't think it was that challenging, and since I was taking physics simultaneously it was very helpful. At my high school physics is usually taken a year earlier when you only have experience with Trigonometry/Pre-Calc so it gave me a nice advantage to be able to figure out accelerations at any point virtually instantaneously using derivatives.

I am not a math person and I generally hate math. I'm definitely not one of those people who can do crazy calculations in their head and I tend to rely on my calculator a lot because I'm sloppy unless I'm really paying attention to every step. You need to know if your AP Calc teacher is good for you or if he/she isn't, that's the most important thing. Teachers don't all teach in a way that fits you, and then there are plenty of just plain bad teachers. I don't know how lenient your high school is to dropping classes, but I suggest signing up and seeing how it goes for you. Don't drop it if it's just hard work, but if it's really overwhelming you it's probably best to drop it. (IE, if you're spending more than 3 hours on routine homework and still not getting it, etc.)

Even though colleges will only recognize 4 AP classes, if possible it's best to take even more. I wasn't sure what I was going to major in when I got to college. I was debating between English and Computer Science, but most colleges will not let you skip out on their introductory English courses even if you have AP credit. And to be honest, I wouldn't have skipped out on my Eng 101 either since it nearly killed me but it got me ready for all the papers I've had to do since. In high school I was leaning towards an English major, and so it was pretty unnecessary for me to take AP Calculus, but then I got to my college and saw what the English department was like.
If I hadn't taken AP Calculus in high school I would have been in deep shit, not only because every single damn teacher in my College's Math department is horrible, but I would probably have to do another year of schooling. They didn't let me into Computer Science classes my first year because of sucky draw numbers and if I were required to take Calculus it would have delayed me in taking Linear Algebra and Discrete Mathematics, which would have delayed my ability to advance in Computer Science courses...Etc.
 
M

medievald00d

Guest
Even if colleges will recieve credit for 4 courses, they will still look at all the AP tests you have taken, and it is taken into consideration when choosing applicants.


My personal experience. AP calculus was much easier than i had imagined it to be. Seriously.
Calc AB is so easy you can learn it in a semester. Its just basic integrals and derivatives, and limits. Thats 3 subjects. It doesnt take too much to learn it, it just takes a lot of practice to understand it.
In other words, you could get a 5 on the AP test and not understand calculus...given that its AB
I took Calc BC and trust me, it wasnt as hard as i thought it would be.

also, getting a high score on the AP is easier than you think it is. I got a 5 on my BC and i completely missed one free response question.

Anyways, heres a few sites that might help you through high school.

http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/sat/scores/understanding/average.html

This site will help you gauge how well you're doing compared with the rest of the country.


http://www.collegeboard.com/ap/creditpolicy/

Check to see what AP's your dream college will accept, etc.

http://www.prstats.com/2009/

This is a site where a bunch of people put up their transcripts to make you feel worst about yours

One last thing. Go to www.collegeboard.com where you register for the SAT and stuff...Sign up as an educator/teacher (they dont check to see whether you really are a teacher). They have practice free response AP tests from the last 4 or 5 years for every subject, along with an answer key.

Anyways, for Calc, theres a lot of memorization. The first few chapters where they introduce derivatives is all memorization. MEMORIZE EVERY FORMULA AND PRACTICE THEM. That makes future calculus word problems much easier. Rinse and repeat for Integrals. Also, if you take Calc, try to understand how the derivative works before you actually start doing problems. It will help a lot.
 

ShinHell9

I started on here when I was like 14...
Thanks guys, I'm trying to find my PSAT scores, but i don't think i know where it is... I'm still not sure what I want to do or any of that crap, and I pretty much F'd up in my sophmore year, so I think I'm gonna need to bust my ass, and as far as redempyion, AP calc may be the road to take. I'll have an advanced regents diploma of the highest status though, do colleges even care about new york's regents'?
 
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medievald00d

Guest
do colleges even care about new york's regents'?
Maybe, but the schools on the west coast dont have regents, so its not much of an accomplishment.

as far as redempyion, AP calc may be the road to take

Find what AP course(s) your school excells in, and take that class. Get to know your teachers and counsellors. Buy them presents or something during christmas, joke with them, let them get to know you. Trust me, it ALWAYS helps. If your teacher knows who you are, he'll tend to give a higher score if you desperately need it, or he/she might bump your grade up if your at a B/C or A/B borderline.

Also, dont ever ask for a grade. It makes the teacher feel like their being used. If they think you care about their class, then they tend to care more about your grade.
 
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