AP Tests, cont.

voice and choice and applied learning in real-world contexts,” King wrote in an email to The Coat of Arms.

Formato stressed that some APs have been and will continue to be treated differently than others. “Not all AP courses are equivalent. [...] Some AP classes like AP Physics are a very good curriculum, and when we drop AP Physics, we’re not going to deviate from that curriculum much anyways because there’s a very strong alignment between college physics departments and the College Board program for that subject,” Formato said.

align well with college curriculums, and those classes may require significant changes. Junior Jackson Deutch believes that certain subjects are better suited for an AP curriculum. “For my AP U.S. History class last year, I felt satisfied, but I wish that some things had been different about the year. For AP Physics 2, it’s the best class that I’ve taken so far in my life.” According to Deutch, this is because some AP classes do a better

Since the beginning of the 2022-23 school year, Menlo has reopened cafeteria seating and recently reintroduced reusable cutlery and dishes to the cafeteria in an effort to move away from plastic and paper dishes. “These things may strike one as minor, but in the grand scheme of things, that’s one more step back toward normal,” Schafer said. “We’re not 100% normal yet, but we are eager to move in that direction.” COVID restrictions have also been lessened for gym assemblies, with masks being optional since last semester. was just easier [for the faculty] to get together. It was easier to socialize, to have lunch together, to congregate,” Schafer said. Because of the COVIDrelated restrictions during the past couple of years, faculty members are more separated, and some of the newer members aren’t familiar with all of their colleagues.

Schafer believes that strong bonds within departments can enhance the teachers’ ability to teach their students. “It should be wonderful to work with your colleagues. There are some pretty dynamic, interesting people here that we could all learn from and share ideas with,” Schafer said. Some of these plans include activities similar to what students have experienced, such as getting together the day before school begins and going

Menlo Abroad has also been revived, offering a trip to Costa Rica for rising sophomores, juniors and seniors during MTERM. The main focus of the trip is the extended homestay, where pairs of students are hosted by Costa Rican families and will be able to visit community organizations including an organic farm and a local elementary school. The Borderlands program is also continuing for another year, offering three one-week trips to the southwestern United States to study indigenous America, immigration and related issues. Students will travel to El Paso, Texas, Northern Arizona or Southern Arizona.

Schafer also looks forward to building a stronger sense of community within the faculty. “Before COVID, it on retreats. “We’re trying to rebuild a sense of community within the faculty,” Schafer said. job of being creative about the curriculum or getting students to focus on learning rather than just the test. He clarified that it is not the teacher that makes some AP classes less desirable; it is the curriculum. Deutch believes that the inflexibility of AP curriculums can make a class feel less enjoyable as it can create a sense of

Senior Bax Barlow understands why the school is getting rid of many APs but also believes they serve an important purpose: providing college credit. “As someone who is applying to college and looking at getting some credit, I think it would be four other colleges give students no credit for AP tests.

Deutch agrees with Barlow that AP classes have some value in college admissions. “From a college standpoint, as a method of differentiation, [...] I think that they do serve as a little bit of an advantage,” Deutch said.

Schafer said that students see AP classes as a way to distinguish themselves from others, but he emphasized that Menlo’s curriculum offers other diffcult courses that are not AP. “Students think about AP as the way they distinguish themselves. Well, the AP is not the only game in town for our classes, there are plenty of challenging, rigorous and intriguing classes in our curriculum that are not AP,”

Additionally, Schafer said that passing AP tests plays a different role than in years past. “There are a lot of colleges that don’t give you a credit [for taking APs] or they give you some other placement test to see what level of whatever math or whatever it is you go into [instead of relying on the AP score],” good,” Formato said.

Dartmouth College, Williams College and