Release Date: Feb 20, 2013 8:00 AM  

Three districts also receive national honor for broadening access, success


More Delaware public high school students are participating — and succeeding — in college-level Advanced Placement courses and exams than ever before, according to a report released today by the College Board.
And three Delaware school districts are being honored for increasing access to AP courses for a broader number of students while also maintaining or improving the rate at which their AP students succeed on the exams.

Caesar Rodney, Sussex Technical and Woodbridge school districts were among 539 districts across the U.S. and Canada that were named to the AP’s 3rd Annual Honor Roll.

"AP courses help students develop critical thinking, reasoning and communication skills. The AP experiences in their Delaware high schools are setting these students up for greater success in college and for a greater likelihood that they'll complete their degrees,” Secretary of Education Mark Murphy said.

“Congratulations to the educators and students at these districts who are working hard to make sure every student has the opportunity to take these college-level courses and succeed in them,” he said.

Succeeding in AP is defined as achieving a score of 3 or higher on the five-point AP Exam scale. This also is the score needed for credit, advanced placement or both at the majority of colleges and universities. 

Research suggests that students who succeed on an AP Exam typically experience greater overall academic success in college and are more likely to graduate – and graduate on time – than their peers who do not take and succeed on an AP exam. They also graduate college with lower costs than the majority of American college students, according to the College Board, the nonprofit organization that administers the exams.

The 9th Annual AP® Report to the Nation, released today, highlights steady increases in AP participation and success in Delaware over the past 10 years, including:

•  The number of public school graduates leaving high school having taken an AP Exam in Delaware has increased by 138 percent in the last decade.
• More graduates in the Delaware class of 2012 scored a 3 or higher on at least one AP Exam than took AP Exams in 2002.

Trends in AP Participation and Success – Delaware	2002	2007	2012
Graduates who took an AP Exam during high school	1,017	1,843	2,417
Graduates scoring 3+ on an AP Exam during high school	617	979	1,257

• 31.6 percent of graduates from Delaware’s public high school class of 2012 took at least one AP Exam during high school, compared to 26.1 percent from the class of 2007 and 15.7 percent from the class of 2002.
• 16.4 percent of graduates from Delaware’s public high school class of 2012 scored a 3 or higher on at least one AP Exam during high school, compared to 13.8 percent from the class of 2007 and 9.5 percent from the class of 2002.

In addition to increasing the overall number of students taking and succeeding on AP Exams, Delaware has made progress increasing AP participation and success among the state’s minority and low-income students.
But more work needs to be done. Minority and low-income graduates remain under-represented not only in many of the nation’s AP classrooms but also among Americans earning a college degree.  Research consistently shows that under-served minority and low-income students who score a 3 or higher on an AP Exam are more likely than their peers to earn higher grades in college and to earn a college degree within five years, according to the College Board.
“We must ensure all students, particularly those under-represented at this time, are prepared for these rigorous courses, have access to take them and then are given the supports they need to succeed in them,” Murphy said.

Closing Equity Gaps in Participation and Success in Delaware	2002	2007	2012
Black
Percentage of the graduating class who were black	26.0	28.0	30.0
Percentage of AP Exam takers in the graduating class who were black	7.7	9.5	14.0
Percentage of graduates scoring 3+ on an AP Exam during high school who were black	4.7	6.0	8.4
Hispanic/Latino
Percentage of the graduating class who were Hispanic/Latino	3.7	5.7	7.9
Percentage of AP Exam takers in the graduating class who were Hispanic/Latino	1.5	5.7	6.7
Percentage of graduates scoring 3+ on an AP Exam during high school who were Hispanic/Latino	1.1	5.8	6.5
American Indian/Alaska Native
Percentage of the graduating class who were American Indian/Alaska Native	0.2	0.5	0.4
Percentage of AP Exam takers in the graduating class who were American Indian/Alaska Native	0.6	0.5	0.6
Percentage of graduates scoring 3+ on an AP Exam during high school who were American Indian/Alaska Native	0.6	0.5	0.5
Low-Income*
Percentage of AP Exam takers in the graduating class who were low income	N/A	9.3	20.2
Percentage of graduates scoring 3+ on an AP Exam during high school who were low income	N/A	8.3	15.1

* A central source of low-income data is not available from which to estimate the percentage of the graduating class who were low income by state.  Low-income AP data are not available prior to the class of 2003. 

The 9th Annual AP Report to the Nation and the state supplement for Delawareare available at apreport.collegeboard.org.

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Delaware's Department of Education is committed to promoting the highest quality education for every Delaware student by providing visionary leadership and superior service.	Contact Info. Alison Kepner Delaware Department of Education 401 Federal Street, Suite #2 Dover, Delaware 19901 Phone: (302) 735-4035 Fax: (302) 739-4654 Email: akepner@doe.k12.de.us
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