The sun is glistening, it’s finally warm, yet many of my friends are greatly stressing. Of course, the seniors I have class with aren’t (or at least shouldn’t be), but for my fellow juniors, AP and IB (International Baccalaureate) testing is an extremely trying time. It’s astonishing how the material we studied for months all comes down to a matter of hours.
But can this mere number, a single digit, we receive as a score truly state whether we have mastered a supposedly college-level course? These tests only take into account what we know, rather than how we learned it. From the impressions of college I’ve obtained so far, it seems that the latter is far more significant.
In today’s competitive admissions environment, AP courses are a catch 22. Many take them because others take them, thereby creating a vicious cycle. Challenging courses are selected not because of passion for the subject, but because they would look good on a transcript. As great as it would be to truly focus on the areas on loves, no one wants to risk their chance at a prestigious school.
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