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February 5, 2010
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features
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The Eye
SAS sees record number of students pass AP exams in 2009 by Nihal Krishan It is no surprise that SAS students take the most number of AP exams internationally with a resounding 1200 exams last year. Not only did students take a record number of AP’s last year, but they also had record results in the exams. While students have generally proven successful in AP exams scores, with approximately 90 percent of all exams receiving a three or higher for the last decade, 2009 was still a remarkable year for AP students. In 2008, 91.6 percent of AP students received a passing grade - a grade between 3 and 5. This percentage rose to a record 95 percent in 2009. A 3.4 percent jump may not seem remarkable at ďŹ rst, but since 90 percent of students consistently place in the passing range between 3 and 5, even a small difference in scores is considered a signiďŹ cant achievement. AP Statistics, AP Psychology and AP European History were a few of last year’s AP’s which helped boost SAS’s average scores. During the ďŹ rst AP European History class of this year, social studies teacher Rick Bisset drew three triangles ďŹ lled with the digits
‘3, 4, 5’ on the whiteboard of his classroom. He then asked his students to guess what the triangles meant. Eventually he told them the numbers signiďŹ ed all the scores that last year’s AP European History students received on the AP exam. In 2008 only 80 percent of European History students received a score of 3 or higher. Last year 100 percent of all students received a 3 or higher. Sophomore Augusta Soeryadjaya, who is taking AP European History this year, credited the high scores to the extra preparation and work that Bisset made his students do last school year in the class. “He prepares us a lot for the essay proportion of the exam, which makes up 50 percent of the AP score, by making us write a lot,â€? Soeryadjaya said. “He also makes his tests, essays and homework much harder than the real exam, so that when we get to the real thing, we ďŹ nd it a lot easierâ€? Out of the 90 students who took AP Statistics last year, 99 percent of them received a passing grade of three or higher, in comparison to 2008 when 92 percent of students received a passing score. Senior Alvi Hasan, who took the class last year with Dr. James Kett,
History of interim began in Asia
Interim beginnings: Veteran math teacher Don Adams in front of Annapurna mountains with locals and students on a trip to Nepal back in 1986.
by Anbita Siregar Ah, February. The month of Valentines, groundhogs and Interim Semester. While the rest of the world is buying candy hearts, SAS students are packing for their interim trips. Back in 1973, the ďŹ rst year of
interim, students didn’t worry about which pair of Uggs to bring to Spain, or if they could borrow their best friend’s sleeping bag for Australia. Back then, the six interim trips were all in Southeast Asia. Then, students took their
1973
Total Exams
Exams per Student
Average AP Score
2009
535
1239
2.31
4.12
94.8
2008
511
1215
2.37
4.03
91.6
2007
458
1104
2.41
4.13
92.3
2006
389
886
2.27
3.99
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*Not all AP courses have AP review books available, 21 out of 29 AP teachers responded to our survey
AP Psychology students averaged exam score of 4.27 last year which was the highest ever in SAS history. AP Psychology teachers have been experimenting with new ways of preparing for the AP exams. “For AP Psychology, we made a song to learn the material, and used lots of other non-textbook related material to help memorize the info. Our teacher (Kent Knipmeyer) gave us lots of quizzes to test our memory as well, because so much of the
exam is based on memorization,� said senior Will Bradley, who scored a 5 on the exam last year. With a mean score of 4.12 for all AP exams taken by students last year, the mean score was highest its been in the past ten years. “The high scores are a combination of good students and good teaching. It’s as simple as that,� said AP exam co-coordinator, Mark Devine. krishan.eye@gmail.com
midterm exams after winter break. There was time between the exams and second semester. Three teachers decided to stage trips during the interim between the two semesters. Hence the name “Interim Semester.� The purpose of Interim was to get students out of the Singapore bubble to explore Asian cultures. The idea was proposed by three teachers, ex-teachers Barry Donaldson and Dave Paratore, and social studies teacher Jim Baker, during a faculty meeting before the 1972-1973 school year started. They wanted students to have a unique experience while learning things that could not be taught in a classroom. “There are places in Asia you wouldn’t think of going later in life,� Baker said.
These were the places Baker, Paratore and Donaldson wanted students to travel to. Cities in Europe and America were thought of as conventional places to go with your family; Baker, Paratore and Donalson wanted students to venture to places where they otherwise might not go. Interim in the 1980s came with a few surprises. In-Singapore trips like “Modeling and Grooming� and “SAT/ACT Math� were introduced, and before students would ski in Switzerland, they skiied in Japan. Former social studies teacher Michael Imperi played a role in modifying Interim in the mid 80s. “Being a part of the Interim program was the most satisfying and enjoyable aspect of working at SAS,� Imperi said. Imperi taught social studies at SAS from 1981 until 1997. Today, he is the headmaster of Alexander Dawson School in Las Vegas. He became Interim program director in 1982 when the program was about 10 years old. Imperi believed bus trips in Europe defeated the purpose of Interim Semester. He offered new trips that were not only academically
and physically challenging, but had a service element as well. While he thought Interim should be focused in Asia, Imperi also believed there should be exibility with where students go. He was the ďŹ rst to head to Western Australia in the ‘80s and Africa in the ‘90s. A number of trips were out of bounds because of the Gulf Crisis. Although there were no direct threats to SAS, Interim Semester was cancelled in 1991. Some teachers and parents objected to the escalating prices, the addition of European and African trips and the loss of teaching time. The addition of community service trips changed critics’ views on the signiďŹ cance of Interim. Interim Semester was not a big part of SAS 20 years ago. There were no shortened class periods for Interim meetings or parent nights. After Interim, some trips didn’t do anything. Now, Interim Semester is one of the highlights of the school year and has become part of what makes SAS tick. siregar.eye@gmail.com
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credited the success to the experience of the statistics teachers. “Our teachers have been doing it for a long time, so they’re very experienced with the topics, and they gave us a lot of review material for the exam� Hasan said. “We each were given our own AP review books and I’ve never been given a review book in any of my other AP classes at SAS.� Hasan has taken a total of 11 AP’s in high school.
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