AP Exam Season

AP Exam season is upon us! The nature of these exams and classes in general can be stressful, especially if a student has more than one AP course. That makes this upcoming month exhausting and overwhelming, but with a lot of studying and information, it could turn out to be much less stressful than one thinks.

Current Taft students who have AP classes know that exams are coming up, all of them taking place from May 6 to May 23. The school offers a variety of courses, ranging from typical high school classes to some one would normally see offered in college. It gives students solid choices to pick from while often applying to career paths.

Only 12 of the AP courses have test dates. Seven of those 12 have two, which include Human Geography, Government and U.S. Politics, Computer Science Application, Statistics, Environmental Science, Spanish Literature and Culture, and Psychology. This allows students to make up the test if the first date was missed.

The others, U.S. History, Art, Calculus, Spanish Language, and Computer Science Principles have only one test date, which makes it harder, but not impossible to make it up.

Exams vary between online and physical tests. Most include multiple choice and free-response sections, while others involve speaking or submitting portfolios.

Naturally, teacher and student perspectives differ during exam season. While it may seem like a stressful time for students more than teachers, it’s still a demanding time for staff.

“For my class, for AP Government, we’re lucky enough that we’re the first test. If you’re at the end, it doesn’t give a very consistent study period. It’s kind of a give and take here, it will be a very chaotic time for the school, too,” said Abigail Cozariuc, one of the AP Government teachers here at Taft.

While some students are fortunate enough to have teachers who offer study material, not everyone has that opportunity. There are many cases in which students end up having to study on their own, and that often creates more stress on top of potential club and other busy classes.

“I think stress is something that everyone experiences, but unfortunately the only solution is to get the work done. If you need further assistance, talk to your teachers. All of us are here to try and help you pass the exam,” said Annamaria Castellucci Cabral, one of the AP Art teachers.
Fortunately, there are effective ways to study for such extensive exams. Not every course requires the same study tactics, but some turn out to be much simpler than one might expect.

“For me, I’m just gonna review my notes and make a bunch of flashcards. Most of it depends on what test you’re taking, so some of it is just memorization,” said junior Matia Chemngorem, a student in AP Psychology and Computer Science.

Overall, it’s a very intense and demanding time for the school, but with enough resources and dedicated time to study and prepare, one would find that it’s enough preparation to help ease some of the AP exam stress.