M-DCPS INCREASES AP EXAM PASSING RATES, AS WELL AS ENROLLMENT

Results are in and for the 5th year in a row, Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) continues to increase Advanced Placement exam passing rates, while also increasing AP enrollment. More than 26,000 M-DCPS students participated in May 2015 AP exams, showing an overall passing rate of 48.6 percent, with a 2.6 percent increase over the previous year.

Through the AP Program, students have the opportunity to enroll in advanced courses of study and earn college credit and/or AP credit while still enrolled in high school. Taking AP classes that earn college credit can help offset the cost of college, saving students and families thousands of dollars in tuition fees.  M-DCPS offers 35 AP courses including art, government, history, languages, literature, math, music, and science.

Scores on the AP examinations range from 5 to 1 and are interpreted as follows: 5 – Extremely Qualified; 4 – Well Qualified; 3 – Qualified; 2 – Possibly Qualified; and 1 – No recommendation.

Additional highlights from M-DCPS results include:

•     The total number of AP course offerings in M-DCPS has increased by 34 percent over the past 7 years, from 838 in 2008 to 1,125 in 2015.

•    Current Miami-Dade AP enrollment data shows an increase of 65 percent from 17,049 in 2008 to 28,136 in 2015.

•  The total number  of AP examinations taken increased by 58 percent from 30,434 in May 2008 to 48,068 in May 2015.

•  The total number  of 3, 4, and 5 scores (of all tests taken) increased by 84 percent from 12,118 in May 2008 to 22,341 in 2015.

•    While  participation  has  increased,  the  performance  of  M-DCPS  students  on  AP exams has also increased.  In 2008, 40 percent of students scored a 3 or higher on the AP exam and in 2015, 48.6 percent of students scored a 3 or higher, an increase of almost nine percentage points.

•    Among the Hispanic subgroup, the percent of students scoring a 3 or higher has increased by over nine percentage points, to 50.1 percent in 2015. Among the African-American subgroup, the percent of students scoring a 3 or higher has increased by over 11 percentage points, from 18 percent in 2008 to 29.2 percent in 2015.

•  The College Board's 2015 AP Report to the Nation indicates:
   
o     Miami-Dade  was  FIRST  in  the  nation  in  the  number  of  individual Hispanic students scoring 3+ on AP Exams (9,206), and FIRST in the nation in number of AP Exams with scores 3+ taken by Hispanic students (13,678); and

o     Miami-Dade ranked sixth in the nation (and 2nd in Florida) in the number of individual African-American students  scoring 3+ on AP Exams (762), and sixth in the nation in number of AP Exams with scores 3+ taken by African-American students (1,104).

• In 2014, M-DCPS was recognized by the College Board as the AP District of the Year for Expanding Opportunity and Improving Performance of AP Students.

For additional information and school-specific AP Exam results, please visit the website for Assessment, Research, and Data Analysis at http://oada.dadeschools.net/.

# # #

 15-DGD/082/TC

Back to News Releases