Reporting Texas AP Examination Performance: Promoting a Head Start on the Transition to College The concept behind the College graduation programs (of which AP is districts, and other entities. During the Board’s Advanced Placement Pro- a component) and college and univer- school year, the College Board also gram® (AP Program) is to provide sity AP policies. The Texas Ad- offers one-day and two-day profes- college-level courses and examina- vanced Placement Incentive Program sional development workshops for tions to high school students and and national reporting of AP perfor- new and experienced AP teachers. thereby ease the transition to college mance, both of which provide an (CEEB & ETS, 1994). The College impetus for increased participation Table 1 on page 2 shows current Board outlines introductory college and improved performance, are AP examinations, corresponding AP curricula, offers support materials and described. National and Texas AP courses offered in Texas public professional development to high examination participation and perfor- schools, and 1993-94 recommenda- schools, and designs and administers mance data provide a backdrop for tions by the American Council on the AP examinations nationally as part discussion of issues related to report- Education (ACE) (CEEB & ETS, of the AP program (CEEB & ETS, ing of AP indicator data. 1994) for minimum college credit 1994). In addition, it advocates higher hours to be granted for AP examina- education policies that provide college AP Courses and Examinations tion grades of 3 or higher. credit or advanced placement to students achieving a sufficiently high AP courses are developed locally Except for the two Studio Art AP examination grade — generally 3 based on course descriptions and other examinations, which require a portfo- or higher on a 1- to 5-point scale. materials provided by the College lio of work from students, AP exami- Board to interested schools. AP nations consist of both multiple-choice College Board sponsorship of the teachers typically supplement text- items for breadth of content coverage AP program began in 1954, and the book and College Board course and free-response questions that first examinations were administered description materials with other “allow students to demonstrate depth in May 1956 (CEEB, 1995d). By materials, special studies, student of understanding and an ability to 1993-94, the AP program had grown presentations, and other student organize and present ideas” (CEEB & to include 29 courses and examina- performance activities (CEEB, ETS, 1994, p.16). Free-response tions in 16 disciplines (CEEB & ETS, 1993c). In addition, instructional questions may require essay responses, 1994). Some 2,900 institutions of approaches used in AP courses can analysis of historical documents, oral higher education allow advanced include student-centered seminars language listening and speaking placement or credit for successful AP with student presentations and instruc- fluency, and completion of problem- examination scores (CEEB, 1995d). tor-guided discussion on supplemen- solving tasks. Annual AP examina- tary readings and outside projects. AP tions are developed by committees that This report focuses on AP exami- teachers can receive training relevant include discipline experts from college nation participation and performance to the content covered in AP courses faculty and teachers of the relevant by Texas public school students. and on AP examinations, relevant high school AP courses. Development Background information on AP teaching strategies, and types of periods for annual examinations span courses and examinations, including resource materials available from two or more years. The development benefits and costs, is provided, along summer institutes set up and adminis- committees also formulate AP course with information on Texas high school tered by colleges, universities, school descriptions in each subject area,
Transcript
Policy Research Report Page 1
Reporting Texas AP Examination Performance:Promoting a Head Start on the Transition to College
The concept behind the College graduation programs (of which AP is districts, and other entities. During theBoard’s Advanced Placement Pro- a component) and college and univer-school year, the College Board alsogram® (AP Program) is to provide sity AP policies. The Texas Ad- offers one-day and two-day profes-college-level courses and examina- vanced Placement Incentive Programsional development workshops fortions to high school students and and national reporting of AP perfor- new and experienced AP teachers.thereby ease the transition to college mance, both of which provide an(CEEB & ETS, 1994). The College impetus for increased participation Table 1 on page 2 shows currentBoard outlines introductory college and improved performance, are AP examinations, corresponding APcurricula, offers support materials anddescribed. National and Texas AP courses offered in Texas publicprofessional development to high examination participation and perfor- schools, and 1993-94 recommenda-schools, and designs and administersmance data provide a backdrop for tions by the American Council onthe AP examinations nationally as partdiscussion of issues related to report-Education (ACE) (CEEB & ETS,of the AP program (CEEB & ETS, ing of AP indicator data. 1994) for minimum college credit1994). In addition, it advocates higher hours to be granted for AP examina-education policies that provide college AP Courses and Examinations tion grades of 3 or higher.credit or advanced placement tostudents achieving a sufficiently high AP courses are developed locally Except for the two Studio ArtAP examination grade — generally 3 based on course descriptions and otherexaminations, which require a portfo-or higher on a 1- to 5-point scale. materials provided by the College lio of work from students, AP exami-
Board to interested schools. AP nations consist of both multiple-choiceCollege Board sponsorship of the teachers typically supplement text- items for breadth of content coverage
AP program began in 1954, and the book and College Board course and free-response questions thatfirst examinations were administered description materials with other “allow students to demonstrate depthin May 1956 (CEEB, 1995d). By materials, special studies, student of understanding and an ability to1993-94, the AP program had grown presentations, and other student organize and present ideas” (CEEB &to include 29 courses and examina- performance activities (CEEB, ETS, 1994, p.16). Free-responsetions in 16 disciplines (CEEB & ETS, 1993c). In addition, instructional questions may require essay responses,1994). Some 2,900 institutions of approaches used in AP courses can analysis of historical documents, oralhigher education allow advanced include student-centered seminars language listening and speakingplacement or credit for successful AP with student presentations and instruc-fluency, and completion of problem-examination scores (CEEB, 1995d). tor-guided discussion on supplemen- solving tasks. Annual AP examina-
tary readings and outside projects. APtions are developed by committees thatThis report focuses on AP exami- teachers can receive training relevantinclude discipline experts from college
nation participation and performance to the content covered in AP courses faculty and teachers of the relevantby Texas public school students. and on AP examinations, relevant high school AP courses. DevelopmentBackground information on AP teaching strategies, and types of periods for annual examinations spancourses and examinations, including resource materials available from two or more years. The developmentbenefits and costs, is provided, along summer institutes set up and adminis-committees also formulate AP coursewith information on Texas high schooltered by colleges, universities, schooldescriptions in each subject area,
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Table 1AP Examinations, Texas Public School Courses,
and Minimum College Credit Hours Recommended
AP Exam AP Course in PEIMSRecommended
Minimum Credit Hours
History of Art A3500100 History of Art 6Studio Art — Drawing Portfolio A3500300 Studio Art - Drawing (1 unit) 6Studio Art — General Portfolio A3500200 Studio Art - General 6Biology A3010100 General Biology (1 unit) 8Chemistry A3020100 Chemistry 8
Computer Science A A3580100 Computer Science I (1 unit) 3–4Computer Science AB A3580200 Computer Science II (1 unit) 6–8Economics — Macroeconomics A3310200 Macroeconomics 3Economics — Microeconomics A3310100 Microeconomics 3English Language and Composition A3220100 English Language & Composition 6
English Literature and Composition A3220200 English Literature & Composition 6French Language A3410100 French Language 6–8French Literature A3410200 French Literature 6–12German Language A3420100 German Language 6–8Government and Politics — Comparative A3330200 Comparative Government & Politics 3
Government and Politics — United States A3330100 U.S. Government & Politics 3History — European A3340200 European History 6History — United States A3340100 U.S. History 6Latin Literature A3430200 Latin (Catullus-Horace) 6–8Latin — Vergil A3430100 Latin (Vergil) 6–8
Mathematics — Calculus AB A3100100 Calculus AB or BC 3–4Mathematics — Calculus BC A3100100 Calculus AB or BC 6–8Music Theory A3150200 Music Theory 6Physics B A3030100 Physics B 6–8Physics C — Mechanics A3030200 Physics C 3–4
Physics C — Electricity and Magnetism A3030200 Physics C 3–4Psychology A3350100 Introductory Psychology 3Spanish Language A3440100 Spanish Language 6–8Spanish Literature A3440200 Spanish Literature 6–12
Data Sources: CEEB and ETS (1994); TEA PEIMS (1995) for Texas AP courses; and ACE (cited in CEEB and ETS, 1994) for recommendedminimum college credit hours for qualifying AP examination scores.
which they review and revise everytwo years to ensure that currentthinking about course content andinstructional reforms, such as techno-logical advances, are being reflected.Following are examples of recentchanges in the disciplines that haveresulted in changes to AP courses andexaminations: introduction of scien-tific calculators in Calculus, Chemis-try, and Physics courses and examina-tions and graphing calculators in
Calculus courses and examinations;emphasis on longer, more complexproblems from case studies used inComputer Sciences courses andexaminations; and inclusion of alaboratory-based essay item in theBiology examinations reflecting morefocus on analysis and experimentaldesign in the courses.
In addition to these approaches toensure the content validity of AP
examinations, the AP program em-ploys established educational measure-ment practices to ensure that APgrades are valid measures of college-level performance. These include
• using psychometric procedures in designing and analyzing AP
examinations so that they reliably measure college-level achievement,
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• guiding training of college faculty and AP teachers in the reliable application of college- level scoring standards for the free-response items,
• evaluating and comparing the performance of college stu-
dents taking AP examinations upon completion of relevant college courses to that of high school students taking AP ex- aminations upon AP course completion, and
• studying the performance of AP versus non-AP students in relevant sequences of college courses (CEEB & ETS, 1994).
AP Benefits and Costs
According to the College Board(CEEB, 1993c, 1995b; CEEB & ETS,1994), the AP program benefitsstudents, teachers, secondary schools,and colleges and universities in anumber of ways. For instance, APparticipation provides students theopportunity to study certain academicsubjects in greater depth and todevelop analytical and other studyskills that can contribute to college-level success. AP can also enrichacademic experience because, via theexternal review of AP examinations,students are provided a basis forcomparing their own achievement tothat of their peers, which can moti-vate and give examinees the confi-dence to manage academic challengesin college. Most obviously, studentswith sufficiently high AP examinationgrades can receive college credit oradvanced placement, depending onpolicies of the college or universitythey attend. In a longitudinal studyreported by Willingham and Morris(1986), AP students tended to bebetter prepared for college than theirnon-AP peers and were more likely tograduate from college with doublemajors and to be admitted to doctoralprograms.
For secondary teachers, APintroduces opportunities for profes-sional development through writtenmaterials provided by the CollegeBoard and the workshops it sponsors,as well as the chance to teach chal-lenging subjects to able, motivatedstudents. For secondary schools, APhelps enrich the academic curriculumand enhances the quality and reputa-tion of college preparatory programs.For colleges and universities, APprovides a means to identify andrecruit students who have successfullymet demands in challenging college-level courses; moreover, AP providesadmissions officers with anotherimportant predictor of student successin college.
To participate in the AP program,secondary schools must indicatewillingness to institute the courses,encourage teacher training and profes-sional development, and administerthe AP examinations (CEEB, 1995b).No fee is charged to schools forparticipating in the AP program, butsome expenses may accrue for coursematerials, textbooks, and professionaldevelopment. For students taking theAP examinations, a fee of $72 ischarged per examination; however, theCollege Board will reduce this fee by$22 for students in financial need andencourages districts to waive the $7administrative fee that is included inthe total examination cost. In addi-tion, beginning in 1995 the TexasAdvanced Placement IncentiveProgram can provide a $25 examina-tion fee subsidy for students in finan-cial need. Thus, the cost to students infinancial need is as low as $18 perexamination. Of course, the potentialbonus to students is the savings ontuition costs if the college they attendawards credit for acceptable APexamination grades.
High School GraduationRequirements
Currently, State Board of Educa-tion (SBOE) rules and policy establishfive levels of requirements for gradua-tion from a Texas public high school,some of which have AP components.Rules on all levels of graduationrequirements are subject to review forreadoption by the SBOE by September1996. The minimum graduationrequirements are 21 credits earnedacross the disciplines of Englishlanguage arts, mathematics, science,social studies, economics, physicaleducation, health education, and fromelective courses (19 TAC §75.151).These minimum graduation require-ments were adopted in 1984 and lastrevised in 1989.
The advanced high school pro-gram requires 22 credits, but creditmust be earned in additional disci-plines including other languages,computer science, and fine arts orspeech. In the advanced high schoolhonors program, 5 of the 22 creditsmust be from state-approved honorscourses, which include all CollegeBoard AP and International Baccalau-reate (IB) courses. The advanced highschool program was adopted in 1984and last revised in 1995 (19 TAC§75.152).
In 1993, the SBOE approved arecommended high school programthat includes a 21-credit academic corecurriculum, plus a 3-credit electivecourse component selected from oneof three areas of specialization —mathematics and science, career andtechnology, or college preparatory(SBOE, 1993). The recommendedhigh school program was not previ-ously required by law and has not yetbeen adopted as SBOE rule. It repre-sents a standard core curriculum for allstudents in excess of the minimumgraduation requirements (TEA,1995c). Demonstrated proficiencies
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on appropriate end-of-course assess-ments, such as AP and IB examina-tions, as well as AP and IB coursesmay be used to satisfy requirements ofthe recommended high school pro-gram but are not required.
The distinguished achievementprogram, which will replace theadvanced high school program, buildson the recommended high schoolprogram. In addition to the require-ments of the recommended highschool program, the distinguishedachievement program requires highperformance on four advanced mea-sures that are equivalent to college orprofessional level work (TEA, 1995c).Advanced measures approved by theSBOE as meeting those high perfor-mance standards are (a) originalresearch and/or a project judged by apanel of experts or directed by men-tors and reported to an appropriateaudience; (b) test scores of 3 or aboveon an AP examination, 4 or above onan IB examination, or a PreliminaryScholastic Assessment Test (PSAT)score qualifying for national recogni-tion; (c) college courses that count fordual or concurrent enrollment; and(d) a professional license. In addition,AP courses may be used to satisfy theacademic core curriculum of thedistinguished achievement program.Districts may begin offering thedistinguished achievement program in1995-96, and must implement theprogram to replace the advanced highschool and advanced high schoolhonors programs by 1999-2000.
College and University Policies
Periodically, the College Boardconducts comparability studies in eachof the AP subject areas to ensure thatAP examination grades representachievement comparable to that ofnon-AP students taking collegecourses in corresponding AP examina-tion subjects (CEEB & ETS, 1994).Generally, AP examination grades of 3to 5 are set to correspond to mean
college course grades of C to A. Boththe College Board and the AmericanCouncil on Education (ACE) recom-mend an AP examination minimumgrade of 3 for higher educationacademic departments to use as a basisfor granting course credit (CEEB &ETS, 1994). In addition, the ACE(CEEB & ETS, 1994) has noted anincreasing tendency for colleges togrant provisional credit for AP exami-nation grades of 2 because compara-bility studies indicate that some ofthese students may be qualified forcredit, especially if a subsequentcourse in the same discipline iscompleted successfully. The APgrading scale helps outline the CollegeBoard’s general guidelines for theconsistent awarding of college creditor advanced placement across aca-demic departments within colleges anduniversities.
AP Grading Scale5 = Extremely well qualified4 = Well qualified3 = Qualified2 = Possibly qualified1 = No recommendation
Although the above recommenda-tions are followed with some consis-tency, policies for awarding advancedplacement or credit for particular APexamination grades often vary in anumber of important ways acrosscolleges and universities and evenamong departments within universi-ties. Therefore, students seekingcredit or advanced placement for APexamination scores should investigateAP policies at the colleges and univer-sities they plan to attend.
In a study of AP policies, 18 APConsortium institutions in the south-western region of the country (Koch,Fitzpatrick, Triscari, Mahoney, &Cope, 1988) were surveyed about APexaminations that qualified studentsfor credit, exemption, or placement inspecific courses; AP examinationgrades required; whether the free-
response booklet from the AP exami-nation was required along with the APgrade; number of hours credit awardedby AP examination grade; coursegrade awarded by AP examinationgrade; and any prerequisites and/orexceptions in the AP policy. Mostinstitutions awarded credit for scoresof 4 and 5, somewhat fewer grantedcredit for scores of 3, and only a fewaccepted scores of 2 — mainly inforeign language subjects — whilerequiring institutional prerequisites.At that time, relatively few institutionshad researched setting appropriate cutscores for these policies or had studiedstudent performance in subsequentcourses in a discipline for which APcredit or advanced placement wasreceived.
Results from a survey of Texaspublic postsecondary institutions(Brasel, 1993) about AP acceptancepolicies found consistency in thegeneral rather than in the specificpolicies for awarding credit by exami-nation, which includes other testsalong with the AP. For instance, toreceive credit by examination studentsgenerally have to be enrolled and ingood standing at the institution;petition for the credit; not use thecredit to satisfy residency require-ments; not petition for credit in acourse prerequisite to a course inwhich a grade was already earned; andearn more credits by class attendancethan by examination. In addition, untilthis year Texas law prohibited studentsin institutions receiving public fundsfrom earning more than 3 credit hoursby examination in U. S. history and ingovernment (TEC §§51.301-51.302).
The College Board’s (1995a)College Explorer software providesinformation on more than 2,800postsecondary institutions obtainedfrom the Annual Survey of Colleges,1995-96, including information on APand admission policies. Informationon AP policies was listed for 35 Texaspublic colleges and universities.
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Policy Research Report Page 5
Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1993-94 Texas public school AP exam data and of TEAPEIMS 1993-94 enrollment data using examinee grade level from PEIMS as available and fromAP files otherwise.* Data masked to protect district anonymity.
A comparison of 1993-94 Advanced Placement (AP)examination participation and performance with participa-tion and performance on other statewide tests showed apositive relationship. Districts with high participationrates on 1992-93 college admissions tests also tended tohave high participation rates on 1993-94 AP examina-tions. Districts and campuses with high performance onthe 1993-94 TAAS and the 1992-93 SAT/ACT also hadhigh performance on 1993-94 AP examinations.
Districts were grouped into three categories based onthe percent of graduates taking the 1992-93 ScholasticAptitude Test (SAT) and/or American College TestingProgram’s ACT Assessment. The higher the percent ofgraduates taking the SAT and/or ACT, the higher thepercent of Grade 11-12 students taking 1993-94 APexaminations.
The SAT/ACT criterion is a score of 1000 on the SATand/or an ACT composite score of 24. In districts with
fewer than 10 percent of graduates meeting the SAT/ACTcriterion, 53.2 percent of AP examinees had an AP scoreof 3 or above, compared to 82.5 percent in districts with35 percent or more of graduates meeting the SAT/ACTcriterion. The same pattern was seen in relation to percentof examination scores at 3 or above.
Districts were grouped into five 1993-94 TAAS(Texas Assessment of Academic Skills) categories withpercent of students passing ranging from under 47.7percent to over 68.8 percent. The TAAS testing program,which is a criterion-referenced test emphasizing academicskills rather than minimum skills, is administered tostudents in Grades 3-8 and 10. Percent of AP examineeswith at least one AP score of 3 or above ranged from 60.2percent for the lowest TAAS passing group to 79.2percent for the highest TAAS passing group. A similarpattern was seen for percent of examination scores of 3 orabove. The pattern is even more pronounced whenlooking only at campuses offering AP examinations.
Almost half of the 35 institutions offeras much as sophomore standing tostudents with acceptable scores on APexaminations. Three indicated accep-tance of AP examination scores tosatisfy admission requirements.Texas public colleges and universitiesaccepted qualifying scores on anaverage of 23 of the 29 types of APexaminations. For institutions forwhich acceptable AP score rangeswere listed, acceptable scores varieddepending on examination subject. Onaverage, Texas public colleges anduniversities appeared to accept quali-fying scores on a greater number ofdifferent AP subject examinations thanwas the case in 1993. AP minimumscore requirements at private collegesand universities were generally moreconsistent across all examinations thanwas the case with their public counter-parts.
Many colleges and universitiesrequire or allow examination scores tobe used for course placement or forawarding course credit. Types of testsused other than AP may includeAmerican College Testing Programtests such as the ACT Assessment andthe ACT PEP: Regents CollegeExaminations, College Board testssuch as Multiple Assessment Programsand Services (MAPS), ScholasticAssessment Test (SAT I, formerly theScholastic Aptitude Test, or SAT),College Level Examination Program(CLEP), SAT II: Subject Tests(formerly College Board AchievementTests); International BaccalaureateExaminations; and locally-developeddepartmental or divisional tests withinthe individual institutions (e.g., Brasel,1993; University of Texas at Austin,1995).
Texas Advanced PlacementIncentive Program
In 1993, the Texas Legislatureauthorized a program of financialincentives and awards for students,teachers, and school campuses for
National AP Reporting
For many years the College Boardhas prepared summary reports (e.g.,CEEB, 1993b, 1994b) of AP examina-tion results for the nation and forindividual states. Typically, thenational results have provided animplicit benchmark or standard forexamining state performance. How-ever, the state versus national APperformance comparisons are mostappropriate when AP examinationparticipation rates, educational anddemographic characteristics of exam-inees, and AP policies within statesand within secondary and postsecond-ary institutions are similar. Still, suchcomparisons, if made with consider-ation of other potential explanationsfor performance differences, can helpin evaluating educational progresswithin and among institutions overtime.
In recent years, interest in usingAP examination results as indicators ofeducational progress and comparativeperformance has emerged nationally,as well as within certain regions of thenation. One example is the NationalEducation Goals Panel’s (NEGP)(1994a, b) annual reporting of APexamination participation and perfor-mance progress as a direct measure ofGoal 3, one of the eight NationalEducation Goals adopted by Congressin 1994. Goal 3 calls for the nation’sstudents to demonstrate mastery ofchallenging content in a broad array ofacademic subjects by the year 2000.AP measures in the NEGP reportsinclude the number of AP examina-tions taken per 1,000 11th and 12thgraders, which is consistent withCollege Board reporting, and thenumber of AP examination scores of 3or higher per 1,000 11th and 12thgraders. These reports compare themost recent year’s performance to aprior benchmark year to gaugeprogress on the measure for the nationand for individual states, which hasbeen improving generally for bothTexas and the nation.
performance and participation in theAP program of courses and examina-tions. In the following biennium,statute included similar incentives,awards, and examination fee subsidiesfor International Baccalaureate (IB)courses and examinations (TEC§§28.051-28.058). The followingtypes of awards and subsidies areincluded under the Texas AdvancedPlacement Incentive Program.
For schools—• a one-time $3,000 equipment award, based on need as deter mined by the commissioner of education, for providing an AP or IB course and• $100 for each student scoring 3 or higher on an AP examination or 4 or higher on an IB exami- nation.
For teachers teaching AP or IBcourses—
• a subsidy up to $450 for teacher training for an AP or IB course,
• a one-time $250 award for teaching an AP or IB course the first time, and• a share of the teacher bonus pool proportional to the number of courses taught. The school may deposit $50 for each student scoring 3 or higher on an AP examination or 4 or higher on IB examination in the teacher bonus pool.
For students—• an examination fee reimburse ment of up to $65 may be received for a score of 3 or higher on an AP examination or 4 or higher on an IB examina- tion, and• with SBOE approval, an exami- nation fee subsidy of up to $25 for each examination taken by students demonstrating financial need according to guidelines adopted by the College Board or the International Baccalaure- ate Organization.
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Policy Research Report Page 7
Percent of Teachers with Advanced Degrees
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
9%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Under16.5%
16.5% to22.7%
22.7% to30.3%
Over30.3%
Participation Performance
2.1%TakingExams
2.8%TakingExams
59.1%Scoring 3or Above
70.0%Scoring 3or Above
75.3%Scoring 3or Above
5.0%TakingExams
5.6%TakingExams
$24,434 to$26,640
$26,640 to$28,167
Under$25,434
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
9%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Over$28,167
Participation Performance
38.0%Scoring 3or Above
3.1%TakingExams
1.4%TakingExams
5.8%TakingExams
51.3%Scoring 3or Above
57.8%Scoring 3or Above
74.0%Scoring 3or Above
AP Participation and Performance
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
9%
Under10 Years
10.0 to 11.4Years
11.4 to 12.7Years
Over 12.7Years
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%Participation Performance
Average Teacher Experience
59.9%Scoring 3or Above
71.4%Scoring 3or Above
72.0%Scoring 3or Above
71.6%Scoring 3or Above
3.8%TakingExams
3.6%TakingExams
4.9%TakingExams
5.0%TakingExams
TeacherExperience,Salary, andEducation
Districts with more experienced teachers,higher average teacher salaries, and more teacherswith advanced degrees in 1993-94 tended to showa fairly consistent pattern of higher 1993-94Advanced Placement (AP) examination participa-tion and performance. Districts were groupedinto four categories based on each of theseteacher characteristics. In districts with averageteacher salaries below $25,434, only 1.4 percentof Grade 11-12 students took at least one APexamination in 1993-94 and just over one-third ofthose examinees scored 3 or above on at least oneexamination. By comparison, in districts withaverage teacher salaries over $28,167, 5.8 percentof students took an AP examination and almostthree-fourths of those examinees scored 3 orabove on at least one examination. The higherAP participation and performance in districts withhigher average teacher salaries may be linked inpart to other district characteristics, such asdistrict size, that are also related to teachersalaries. For example, large districts, which havehigher AP examination participation and perfor-mance, also typically have higher teacher salaries.
49.6%Scoring 3or Above
1.3%TakingExams
Average Teacher Salary
Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1993-94 Texas publicschool AP exam data and of TEA PEIMS 1993-94 enrollmentdata using examinee grade level from PEIMS as available andfrom AP files otherwise.
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For 15 states in the southernregion of the nation (Texas, Okla-homa, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missis-sippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama,Georgia, Florida, South Carolina,North Carolina, Virginia, WestVirginia, and Maryland), the SouthernRegional Education Board (SREB)(1995) goals for AP are the following.
• Increase the percentage of high schools offering Advanced Placement courses to at least 60 percent . . .• Increase the percentage of students taking Advanced Placement examinations to the national average or higher . . .• Increase the ‘passing rate’ to at least the national rate (p. 11).
Analysis of 1993-94 AP examina-tion data indicates that Texas (alongwith three other SREB states) metonly the third goal of increasing thepassing rate to at least the nationalrate, while eight of the SREB statesmet the first goal and six met thesecond goal.
Methodology
Two levels of decisions must bemade regarding reporting of perfor-mance data — decisions related to thedata source and decisions related toindicator definitions. The data sourcedecisions primarily concern method-ological and technical issues related tothe source of information to be used.The indicator definition primarilyconcerns policy decisions such asconsideration of the local schooldistrict behavior that will be promotedby use of the indicator.
Data Sources
Data files provided by the CollegeBoard are the source of AP examina-tion and participation data. Studentgrade level, ethnicity, and gender, aswell as other district, campus, andstudent demographic information aretaken from the Public EducationInformation Management System
(PEIMS) database as available andfrom the AP data files otherwise.Consistent with other reporting of APexamination data, all AP examinationstaken by Texas public school studentsin a given school year are reportedfor that year (e.g., CEEB, 1994a, b;NEGP, 1994a, b; SREB, 1995).
Texas and national summary APexamination data for 1992-93, 1993-94, and 1994-95 were extracted fromreports published by the CollegeEntrance Examination Board (CEEB,1993b; 1994a, b; 1995c). In addition,data files of individual student APexamination scores for 1992-93 and1993-94 were provided to the TexasEducation Agency (TEA) by theCollege Board through the EducationalTesting Service (ETS). (The 1994-95individual student AP data files werenot available at the time the analysesfor this report were conducted.) Theindividual student scores were linkedwith TEA PEIMS individual studentrecords, including course completionrecords, for the appropriate year.Therefore, analyses based on APexamination data that have been linkedwith PEIMS data are reported for the1992-93 and 1993-94 school yearsonly. This includes analysis of APexamination participation and perfor-mance by student, campus, and districtcharacteristics, and analysis of APexamination participation in relation tocourse completions. Data are reportedfor 1994-95 whenever available,including student course completionsfor 1994-95, which were availablethrough PEIMS.
Measures technically defined inthis report include the number ofexaminations taken and number ofscores above the criterion or standard.These are discussed in relation tocampus, district, region, or stateenrollment, which for Texas is the fallsnapshot enrollment as of the lastFriday in October. This is consistentwith other reporting using enrollmentwith AP examination data. Althoughthe AP examinations are not adminis-
tered until May, most examinees areincluded in the fall enrollment. Thissuggests that currently there is lowmobility among AP examinees, atrend that should be monitored asparticipation increases. Fall enroll-ment is also the base against which theadvanced course enrollment indicatoradopted by the SBOE (of which APcourses are a part) is reported. Thisreport highlights the combined perfor-mance of 11th and 12th graders, whomake up 95 percent of the 1993-94Texas AP examinees. Again, this isconsistent with other reporting or APexamination data.
Therefore, the AP examinationparticipation and performance datapresented in this report are for Grade11-12 students enrolled in a givenschool year, on AP examinationstaken that school year, disaggregatedby demographic information asreported through PEIMS.
Indicator Definitions
The primary AP indicators to bedefined from a state-level policyperspective concern AP examinationparticipation and performance. Forexaminations such as the AP, SAT,and ACT, which are taken on anoptional basis and especially encour-aged for students interested in attend-ing college, proper reporting ofexamination results requires somesummary of the degree to which allstudents participate in or have accessto the testing. In addition, a perfor-mance measure should not be easilysubject to distortion. For example,higher state, district, or campusaverage scores or score percentagescan be obtained more easily whenonly a small, select group of betterprepared students is tested. If higherperformance alone becomes animportant goal, schools might chooseto discourage AP participation by allbut the best prepared students, whichwould artificially increase the perfor-mance rate. However, educationalopportunities, which AP examinations
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Policy Research Report Page 9
indirectly measure, are limited forsome students by such a practice.Examination score results reportedwithout concomitant results on testingparticipation are subject to misinter-pretation for the same reason.
The main issue for reporting APparticipation is the numerical unit thatwill be used in making this compari-son. Because the numbers of APexaminees and enrollees at state andnational levels are generally large,reporting number of examinees per1,000 Grade 11-12 enrollees providesa realistic base for comparison. Fordistricts and campuses, however, usingper 1,000 enrollees as the comparisonbasis is much less meaningful, givenenrollment for most Texas schooldistricts and high schools is less than1,000. The option is to report examin-ees as a percentage of enrollment. Inmost reporting at the district andcampus levels, percentages are re-ported with one decimal position (one-tenth of a percent). At some campusesand districts, participation percentagesround to zero when a small number ofstudents out of several hundredenrolled take AP examinations. Inthese instances, a reporting note can beused to indicate that the percentage isnon-zero.
The measure of AP examinationparticipation presented in this reportis percent of Grade 11-12 enrolledstudents taking at least one AP exami-nation, with percents reported withone decimal position. This is consis-tent with reporting of SAT/ACTparticipation by TEA. Also, a percent-age reported with one decimal positioncan be easily converted to a numberper 1,000. A 4.6 percent participationrate, for example, converts to 46examinees per 1,000 students.
Somewhat less consistency existsbetween College Board and otherreporting of AP examination perfor-mance than with reporting of partici-pation. For example, NEGP (1994a,b) reports performance in terms of the
number of AP examinees with scoresof 3 to 5 per 1,000 11th and 12thgraders, while the College Board(1994a, b) and SREB (1995) focus onthe percentage of 3 to 5 examinationscores. The main considerations forselecting appropriate AP examinationperformance indicators are
• using the appropriate scores in setting performance criteria;• linking score criteria to either examinations, examinees, or both;• using either examinations taken or enrolled students as a basis for comparison; and• reporting the appropriate numerical unit — either rate per
1,000 or a percentage.
Performance criterion. As notedearlier, 3 is the minimum AP examina-tion score recommended by ACE forhigher education course credit, al-though a few colleges and universitiesgrant credit in some courses for scoresof 2 (CEEB & ETS, 1994). In addi-tion, state statute and SBOE rules forthe Texas Advanced PlacementIncentive Program tie some student,teacher, and school incentives to APexamination scores of 3 or above. Forthese reasons and for maintainingconsistency with most AP examinationscore reporting, using a minimum APscore of 3 appears to be the mostappropriate score criterion to use indefining AP performance indicators.
Linking to examinations orexaminees. Regarding the question ofwhether the minimum AP scorecriterion should be referenced to thetotal number of examinations or thetotal number of examinees, compellingarguments can be made for both. Onthe one hand, regardless of the numberof examinations taken per examinee,performance across all examinationstaken (the number of examinationscores that are 3 or above) is ofinterest for an indicator because,conceivably, performance may bebetter or worse depending on thenumber and type of examinations
taken by individual examinees. Onthe other hand, performance acrossexaminees has merit, especially ifsome examinees are unable to score 3or above on any examination taken,and other examinees score 3 to 5 onevery examination taken. A viablesecond, complementary indicatorbecomes one that uses the number ofexaminees with at least one APexamination score that is 3 or above.
Basis for comparison. Since onlya small percentage of students aretaking AP examinations, a case can bemade for using total examinationstaken rather than students enrolled asthe extent to which AP criterionscores were obtained. Using totalexaminations as the reporting basis isconsistent with College Board andSREB reporting. Also, if the numberof students enrolled is used as a basisfor criterion score reporting, actualrates of criterion score attainment arethen severely and somewhat artifi-cially lowered by including non-APstudents in the definition of themeasure.
Reporting unit. The questionabout defining AP examinationperformance indicators as percentagesor as rates per 1,000 11th and 12thgraders can be considered from theperspective of consistency withCollege Board and TEA reporting.Academic Excellence IndicatorSystem (AEIS) reports, the primaryvehicle for reporting performanceindicators for Texas public schoolsand districts, present all performancemeasures as percentages rather thanrates per 1,000 students, and thisformat is followed in other perfor-mance data reporting by TEA. Fromthat perspective, the appropriatereporting unit is a percentage ratherthan a rate. The argument raisedregarding reporting participation atthe district and campus levels alsoapplies here — most Texas highschool campuses and school districtshave fewer than 1,000 students. Forreporting percentages at the district
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Page 10 Policy Research Report
Student Course Work
Algebra I; science courses such as Biology II,Chemistry II, and Physics II; Creative/ImaginativeWriting and Humanities; Debate III; AdvancedSocial Science Problems; and advanced languagecourses.
From 1992-93 to 1993-94, the percent of APexaminees completing at least one AP course rosefrom 33.7 to 48.3 percent. At the same time, thepercent of AP examinees completing at least oneadvanced course went from 85.3 to 87.5 percent.This indicates that a high percentage of examineesoverall completed courses considered to be morerigorous generally in preparation for the examina-tions. The increase in the number of examineeswith AP course completions was consistent with theincrease in the number of schools offering APcourses between 1992-93 and 1993-94.
Correspondences in the opposite direction werealso examined — AP and advanced coursecompleters who took AP examinations. Althoughthe percentage of AP course completers taking atleast one AP examination dropped from 41.6percent in 1992-93 to 37.3 percent in 1993-94, thepercent of advanced course completers taking APexaminations rose from 12.2 to 13.6 percent overthe same period. Considering that the number ofstudents completing at least one AP course almostdoubled from 1992-93 to 1993-94, the drop in thepercentage of AP course completers taking exami-nations is not necessarily alarming, especially giventhe number of schools reporting AP course comple-tions for the first time in 1993-94. However, moststudents completing advanced courses did not takeAP examinations (86.4% in 1993-94), as expected,but over one-third of AP course takers took APexaminations.
Further analysis provided information on theextent to which students taking AP examinationscompleted the corresponding AP courses.In 1993-94, 39.2 percent of AP examinations weretaken by students who completed the correspondingAP course. For example, students taking the APBiology Examination had completed the AP Gen-
Correspondences among Texas Grade 9-12 publicschool Advanced Placement (AP) examinees, APexaminations taken, AP courses completed, and ad-vanced courses completed were explored. Advancedcourses included AP courses as well as courses notdesignated as AP. Non-AP advanced courses arecourses such as mathematics courses above the level of
1992-93 1993-94
ExamineesNumber
Percent of
Group Number
Percent of
GroupAP Courses No Courses 9,334 66.3 8,570 51.7 At Least 1 Course 4,747 33.7 8,014 48.3
Advanced Courses No Courses 2,068 14.7 2,071 12.5 At Least 1 Course 12,013 85.3 14,513 87.5
AP Examinee and Advanced CourseCompleter Correspondence:
1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas Public Schools(Grades 9-12)
Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas AP publicschool examination data and TEA PEIMS course completion data, using onlylast semester completion of courses as the basis for numerical counts.
1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas Public Schools(Grades 9-12)
1992-93 1993-94
Course Completers
Number
Percent of
Group Number
Percent of
GroupAP Course Completers No Exams 6,655 58.4 13,491 62.7 At Least 1 Exam 4,747 41.6 8,014 37.3
Advanced Course Completers No Exams 86,528 87.8 92,213 86.4 At Least 1 Exam 12,013 12.2 14,513 13.6
Policy Research Report Page 11
and AP Examinations
eral Biology course taught in Texas public schools.This represented an increase from 27.2 percent in1992-93.
For 31.8 percent of the AP course completions in1993-94, students took the corresponding AP exami-nation. The 22,356 students who completed an APcourse without taking the corresponding examinationincluded students who did not take any AP examina-tions as well as students who took an examination inan area other than the AP course completed. Manystudents take more than one AP course (the averagewas 1.5 courses per student in 1993-94) and may nottake AP examinations corresponding to all coursescompleted. These findings were consistent with thepattern for students completing any AP course and atleast one AP examination.
Although most AP examinations were takenwithout the student having completed the corre-sponding AP course, those students who did com-plete the corresponding course performed better onthe examinations. In 1993-94, higher percentages ofexaminations taken by students who had completedthe corresponding AP course received scores of 3 or
above than examinations taken without the correspondingAP course. In 1992-93 this was true for scores of 4 and 5.The higher scores were also reflected in higher mean scoresfor students who completed the AP course correspondingto the examination.
Note: AP examinations were linked to corresponding AP courses by student to obtain the statistics above. In a small number ofinstances, scores were not available for exams that were taken and, thus, are not included in the statistics above.
Correspondence Between Specific AP Exams andAP Courses Completed: 1992-93 and 1993-94
Texas Public Schools (Grades 9-12)
Correspondence Between AP Exam Scores and AP Courses Completed:1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas Public Schools
(Grades 9-12)
1992-93 1993-94
Examinees andCourse Completers
Number
Percent of
Group Number
Percent of
GroupExams Taken Without Corresponding AP Course 15,992 72.8 16,135 60.8
Data Sources: CEEB (1995c); CEEB (1994b) and personal communication with P. Williamson, College Board, Southwestern Regional Office,October 13, 1995, for number of schools data.
Since 1990-91, AP program participation in public schools has shown consistent growth, increasing by 64 percent inTexas and 17 percent nationally. During the same period, the number of examinees and examinations taken more thandoubled in Texas, while the national increase for examinees and examinations was about half the Texas rate. In 1994-95, the national percentage of 3-5 examination scores slightly exceeded the Texas percentage for the first time in thefive year period.
placement or credit for college sopho-more standing via the AP examinationroute. For these reasons, the numberof AP courses and examinations towhich students have access is ofinterest even though it is not a directindicator of campus or district perfor-mance. Information related to thenumber of AP courses and examina-tions offered can also be helpful ininterpreting indicator data and canencourage schools and districts tooffer students a wide variety of APcourses and examinations.
The following data related tocourses and examinations offered arepresented in this report: AP coursescompleted (number of types of APcourses completed) and AP examina-
and campus level, appropriate report-ing should indicate “not applicable”on examination and examinee perfor-mance indicators for campuses ordistricts with no AP examinationparticipation, and 0.0 percent for thosedistricts or campuses that par-ticipatein the AP program but have no scoresor examinees with scores of 3 orabove.
This report presents data for twocomplementary indicators of APperformance as best incorporating theissues related to the four main consid-erations discussed above. AP exami-nation performance is reported aspercent of Grade 11-12 AP examina-tion scores at 3 or above. AP exam-inee performance is reported as percent
of Grade 11-12 examinees with atleast one AP score at 3 or above. Bothpercentages are reported with onedecimal position.
Because AP examinations aredeveloped to test the breadth anddepth of student knowledge gainedfrom college level courses in variouscontent areas, AP courses are designedto offer the requisite preparation. Thedegree to which students withinschools and districts perform well onthe AP examinations can depend onthe extent to which these students havethe opportunity to enroll in AP coursesthat correspond to the examinationsubjects. Undoubtedly, students withaccess to only one or two AP coursesare less likely to achieve advanced
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Policy Research Report Page 13
tions taken (number of types of APexaminations taken). AP coursescompleted includes all AP coursescompleted by students, whether or notthose courses are offered on theirhome campuses. Although smallerdistricts and schools may be morelimited in the number of AP coursesthey can offer, students can gainaccess to a wider variety of coursesthrough cooperative arrangements anddistance learning. This measure putssmall districts and campuses at less ofa disadvantage than reporting ofcourses offered, which includes onlycourses offered on the campus. Themaximum number of AP courses andexaminations currently available is 29.
AP Examination andCourse Data
State and National Trends
Over the past few years, thenumber of schools and studentsparticipating in the AP program hasincreased both in Texas and nation-ally, but to a relatively greater extentin Texas (CEEB, 1995). As shown inTable 2, the total number of publicschool students taking at least one APexamination doubled in Texas from12,102 in 1990-91 to 24,593 in 1994-95. The number of examinees nation-ally rose from 281,628 to 407,030. Inaddition, the number of AP examina-tions more than doubled in Texas from18,237 in 1990-91 to 40,346 in 1994-95. The number of examinationstaken nationally increased by over 50percent; U.S. examinees took 415,336examinations in 1990-91 and 628,393in 1994-95. Thus, in 1994-95 Texaswas averaging 1.6 examinations perexaminee versus 1.5 examinations perexaminee nationally. Table 3 shows asimilar pattern of participation inTexas and nationally for all schools(public and private).
Table 2 also shows the numberand percentage of AP examinationscores of 3 to 5. In Texas public
schools, the number of scores of 3 orbetter doubled between 1990-91 and1994-95, although they decreased as apercentage of all scores. Nationally,scores of 3 or better also declined as apercentage of all scores. In 1994-95,60.2 percent of Texas AP examinationscores were 3 or better, compared to60.5 percent nationally. Consideringthe large increases in the total numberof examinees and examinations from1990-91 to 1994-95, the decline inoverall AP examination scores is notsurprising, especially if the decline isassociated with schools participatingin the AP program for the first time.The number of Texas public schoolswith AP examinees jumped to 577 in1994-95 — up by 224 schools since1990-91. The largest increase was in1994-95, with 123 additional schoolsoffering AP examinations. The num-ber of public schools offering APexaminations also increased nationallyfrom 1990-91 to 1994-95.
AP Examinations by Subject
A richer understanding of Texasand national AP examination volumeand performance can be obtained fromstudying examination data by subject.Table 4 on page 14 summarizes 1993-94 examination data by subject. TheEnglish Language and Compositionand the English Literature and Compo-sition examinations each accounted for18.0 percent of total Texas examina-tions in 1993-94. The English Litera-ture and Composition and U.S. Historyexaminations were the most popularnationally. The statutory limitation oncollege credit hours by examinationthat could be awarded for U.S. Historyuntil this year in Texas may accountfor the lower interest in that APexamination. Calculus AB was thethird most popular examination inTexas and nationally. Texas meanscores were higher than those for theU.S. for 18 of the 29 AP examinationsin 1993-94. Of those examinationstaken by more than 500 Texas stu-dents, Texas mean scores exceedednational scores by the greatest amount
on the Computer Science A andEconomics-Macroeconomics examina-tions. Economics-Microeconomicswas the only examination taken bymore than 500 Texas students onwhich national scores exceeded Texasscores.
Examinees by Grade Level,Gender, and Ethnicity
In 1993-94, almost all AP examin-ees (96.5% in Texas and 92.3%nationally) were enrolled in Grades11-12, as shown in Table 5 on page15. Both in Texas and nationally therewas a slight increase between 1992-93and 1993-94 in 9th-11th grade stu-dents taking the examinations, as apercent of all examinees.
The percentage of male andfemale examinees remained about thesame for Texas in 1993-94 as in 1992-93 (54.5% female versus 45.5% male).Nationally, the percentage of femalesincreased 1.1 percent. Althoughfemales made up 9.0 percent more ofexaminees than males in Texas in1993-94, they accounted for only 2.0percent more of the examinationstaken. Approximately 69.0 percent ofTexas examinees were White, com-pared to 66.8 percent nationally.Hispanic students made up 15.3percent of Texas examinees in 1993-94; this was the only ethnic group thatincreased as a percent of all examin-ees. African American students madeup only 2.9 percent of AP examineesand other minorities comprised theremaining 12.3 percent.
Figure 1 on page 17 shows 1993-94 AP examination scores by genderfor Texas public schools. Overallthere is little difference between maleand female scores. Males obtainedslightly higher percentages of scoresfrom 3 to 5 than females (69.8% formales versus 67.5% for females).However, the 1993-94 gap betweenfemale and male 3-5 examinationscore percentages in Texas narrowed,resulting from gains in Texas female
Page 14 Policy Research Report
compared to 1992-93 in Texas andnationally, as shown on Table 6 onpage 18. In Texas, scores of 3 andabove were posted most often byAsian Americans, followed by Whites,and American Indians. Texas scores
ExamNumber of
ExamsPercent of
Total ExamsPercent of Exam
Scores 3-5Mean Score
Texas U.S. Texas U.S. Texas U.S. Texas U.S.English Language and Composition 5,309 35,260 18.0 6.3 65.5 60.9 3.0 2.9English Literature and Composition 5,299 104,692 18.0 18.8 74.3 69.5 3.2 3.1Mathematics - Calculus AB 3,288 74,241 11.2 13.3 69.4 65.3 3.1 3.0History - United States 3,252 101,635 11.0 18.2 55.3 52.3 2.8 2.8Government and Politics: United States 1,835 25,988 6.2 4.7 69.5 67.5 3.0 3.0
Physics B 297 12,198 1.0 2.2 56.2 58.7 2.7 2.7French Language 249 7,708 0.8 1.4 55.0 57.3 2.7 2.8Physics C - Electricity and Magnetism 238 3,652 0.8 0.7 61.3 64.3 3.1 3.2Studio Art - General Portfolio 226 3,707 0.8 0.7 78.8 77.3 3.4 3.3Computer Science AB 225 3,403 0.8 0.6 65.8 67.9 3.3 3.2
Government and Politics - Comparative 135 4,381 0.5 0.8 40.7 61.5 2.3 2.9Studio Art - Drawing Portfolio 116 1,791 0.4 0.3 84.5 71.4 3.7 3.2History of Art 101 3,423 0.3 0.6 77.2 74.0 3.3 3.2Spanish Literature 92 3,024 0.3 0.5 84.8 82.3 3.4 3.3German Language 83 1,986 0.3 0.4 55.4 66.8 2.9 3.2
Latin - Vergil 79 1,260 0.3 0.2 68.4 55.2 3.0 2.7Music Theory 41 1,680 0.1 0.3 68.3 66.8 3.3 3.1Latin Literature 25 641 0.1 0.1 48.0 58.8 2.4 2.8French Literature 10 589 0.0 0.1 90.0 60.3 3.3 3.0
Table 41993-94 AP Exam Score Statistics by Subject:
Texas versus U.S. Public Schools
Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas public school AP exam data; and CEEB (1993b, 1994b) for U.S.public school exam data.
In 1993-94, the most popular AP examinations for Texas and the nation were English Language andComposition, English Literature and Composition, Mathematics-Calculus AB, and History-U.S. Texas meanscores by subject were higher than those for the U.S. for 18 of the 29 AP examinations.
scores from 1992-93, and was smallerthan the gap nationally in 1993-94.
Percentages of examinations withscores of 3 and above went up foralmost every ethnic group in 1993-94
were higher than national scores for allethnic groups except Hispanics andother ethnicities. However, in 1993-94 Texas Hispanics made up 15.3percent of AP examinees compared to7.5 percent of examinees nationally.
Table 51993-94 Examinees by Grade Level, Gender, and Ethnicity:
Texas versus U.S. Public Schools
Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas public school AP examinee data, using examinee grade level,gender, and ethnicity from TEA PEIMS as available and from AP files otherwise; and CEEB (1993b and 1994b) for U.S. publicschool examinees.
In 1993-94, 11th and 12th graders accounted for most of the AP examinees—about 97 percent in Texas and92 percent nationally. Females were about 55 percent of both Texas and U.S. examinees. Hispanics ac-counted for about 15 percent of Texas examinees, compared to about 8 percent nationally, while about 3percent of Texas examinees were African American compared to about 5 percent nationally.
District- and Campus-Level Trends
A breakdown of AP examinationparticipation and performance bydistrict and campus characteristicsfurther delineates statewide trends anddifferences among various types ofdistricts and school campuses. Table7 on page 19 shows that the percent-age of Grade 11-12 students taking atleast one AP examination improvedfrom 4.0 to 4.6 percent statewide from1992-93 to 1993-94. The percentageof examinees with at least one score at3 or above and the percentage of APexamination scores at 3 or above arerelevant because these scores mayqualify examinees for advanced
standing or college course credit onceenrolled in a college or university.From 1992-93 to 1993-94, statewidescores at 3 or above rose from 68.6 to70.6 percent for examinees and from67.0 to 68.6 percent for examinationstaken.
The percentage of students takingat least one AP examination and thepercentage of scores at 3 or above mayindicate, to some extent, the degree ofstudent access to more advancedcourses. As Figure 2 on page 20shows, larger districts, between 25,000and 50,000 students, had the greatestAP examination participation in 1993-94. This is probably due in part to the
ability of these districts to offer awider selection of courses at the highschool level, especially courses notrequired for graduation. The samepattern is also seen at the campuslevel, with higher participation in thelargest campuses.
Districts with higher percentagesof students taking 1992-93 and 1993-94 AP examinations also tended to besituated in major suburban or othercentral city locations and be located infour major urban regions of the state.(Additional information on AP partici-pation and performance by region canbe found on page 16.) Both districtsand campuses with higher AP partici-
(Continued on page 17)
Page 16 Policy Research Report
17
18
19
16
9
13
14
15
20
1
2
3
4
56
7
8
12
1011
Less Than 2%
2% to 5%
Over 5%
17
18
19
16
9
13
14
15
20
1
2
3
4
56
7
8
12
1011
Less Than 60%
60% to 70%
Over 70%
4
56
1011
13
15
17
4
13
1011
Performance: Percent of ExamineesScoring 3 or Above
Participation: Percent of Students Takingat Least One Exam
Education ServiceCenter Regions
The state is divided into 20 regions, each of which isserved by an Education Service Center. The highest1993-94 Advanced Placement (AP) examination partici-pation (percent of Grade 11-12 students taking at least oneexamination) tended to be in four major urban regions ofthe state — Austin, Fort Worth, Houston, and Richardson/Dallas. Austin, Fort Worth, Houston, and Richardson/Dallas were also among the regions with the highestpercent of AP examinees scoring 3 or above on at leastone examination. The Beaumont, Huntsville, Lubbock,and San Antonio regions also had over 70 percent ofstudents scoring 3 or above.
Statewide AP examination participation increased by0.6 percent from 4.0 percent in 1992-93 to 4.6 percent in1993-94. The greatest increase was in the Huntsvilleregion, where participation grew from 3.0 percent in1992-93 to 4.9 percent in 1993-94; the percent of studentswith scores of 3 or above also increased from 1992-93 to1993-94. Both the number and percent of Grade 11-12students taking AP examinations declined between 1992-93 and 1993-94 in the west Texas regions of Abilene,Amarillo, and San Angelo.
Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1993-94 Texas public school APexam data; and TEA PEIMS 1993-94 enrollment data using examineegrade level from PEIMS as available and from AP files otherwise.
Less Than 2%
2% to 5%
Over 5%
Less Than 60%
60% to 70%
Over 70%
AP Participation and Performance
ESC Region
Percent of Students
Taking at Least One Exam
Percent of Examinees Scoring 3 or Above
Number of
Districts
36 1 Edinburg 2.1 57.434 2 Corpus Christi 1.7 61.733 3 Victoria 1.8 52.152 4 Houston 5.9 76.729 5 Beaumont 1.7 74.9
58 16 Amarillo 2.4 64.460 17 Lubbock 1.7 70.731 18 Midland 3.4 60.312 19 El Paso 3.2 55.448 20 San Antonio 4.8 67.9
971 State Total 4.6 70.6
Policy Research Report Page 17
Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1993-94 Texas public school AP examination data usingexaminee gender from TEA PEIMS as available and from AP files otherwise.
In 1993-94, 51 percent of Texas AP examinations were taken by females, whilemales took 49 percent. Of examinations taken by males, 70 percent of examina-tion scores were 3 to 5, compared to 68 percent for females. Eight percent ofexaminations taken by both males and females showed resulting scores of 1.
Male Scores
22.0%Scores
at 2
32.6%Scores
at 3
24.1%Scores
at 220.8%Scores
at 4
8.3%Scores
at 1
31.2%Scores
at 3
16.8%Scores
at 5
21.8%Scores
at 4
8.1%Scores
at 114.2%Scores
at 5
Female Scores
Figure 1AP Exam Scores By Gender:
Texas Public Schools (51% Female, 49% Male)
pation and performance tended to havefewer economically disadvantagedstudents. Districts with higher thanaverage teacher salaries and higherpercentages of teachers with advanceddegrees tended to have higher APparticipation and performance; dis-tricts with higher average teacherexperience also tended to have higherAP performance up to 12.7 averageyears of experience. (The table onpage 7 presents more detailed informa-tion on district teacher characteristics.)
Districts with high percentages ofstudents passing the Texas Assessmentof Academic Skills (TAAS) test andachieving high SAT or ACT scoresalso tended to have high AP perfor-mance. This suggests that AP exami-nation performance may be linked tosome of the same factors that areassociated with higher performance onother tests. For example, SAT andACT performance have been linked tonumber of academic courses com-pleted and percent enrollment inadvanced academic courses (TEA,1995f). (The table on page 5 providesadditional information on test partici-pation and performance.)
AP and non-AP Course Trends
As noted earlier, the CollegeBoard encourages schools with APexaminees to offer AP courses incorresponding subject areas. How-ever, circumstances such as resourceconstraints or too few students maymitigate against AP courses beingoffered at some high schools. On theother hand, non-AP advanced coursesor other types of courses may preparesome students sufficiently to performwell on the AP examinations. In anyevent, not all AP examinees are takingAP courses, and vice versa.
As Figure 3 on page 21 shows,the number of Texas public schoolsparticipating in the AP program byoffering either courses or examina-tions increased substantially from1992-93 to 1994-95. In 1992-93, 158
schools reported students completingAP courses; by 1994-95, the total was390 schools. This compares to 426schools with AP examinees in 1992-93, increasing to 577 schools in 1994-95. Almost one-fourth of Texas publicschools serving Grades 9-12 offeredAP courses in 1994-95, and over one-third had AP examinees. However,only 135 schools had students takingboth AP examinations and courses in1992-93. This increased to 215schools in 1993-94. Thus, a relativelylarge number of schools appear to havestudents taking AP examinationswithout AP courses (288 schools in1992-93 and 241 in 1993-94); a muchsmaller number of schools had stu-dents completing AP courses but nottaking the AP examinations (23schools in 1992-93 and 47 in 1993-94).
Table 8 on page 22 shows theextent to which Texas public schoolshave students completing AP coursesfrom school years 1992-93 through1994-95. Although the number ofstudents with AP and non-AP ad-vanced course completions has grownsteadily over the past three years, AP
courses relative to non-AP coursesaccounted for the largest portion ofthe increase. The number of studentscompleting at least one AP coursealmost tripled from 1992-93 to1994-95, while students completingadvanced courses increased by 19.5percent. Students were also enrollingin more AP courses per student. In1994-95, students completing APcourses completed approximately 1.6courses, compared to 1.5 in 1992-93.This is consistent with earlier findingsthat from 1988-89 to 1992-93, growthin course enrollment overall exceededgrowth in number of students in Texaspublic schools (TEA, 1994b). (Fur-ther analysis of advanced courses andAP examination participation andperformance is presented on pages 10and 11.)
AP Indicator Reporting
State Statute and SBOE Rule
Texas public school districts arerequired to prepare and distribute anannual performance report to thepublic. TEA must provide districts
(Continued from page 15)
Page 18 Policy Research Report
Table 61993-94 AP Exam Participation and Scores by Ethnicity;
Texas versus U.S. Public Schools (All Grade Levels)
ExamineeNumber of Exams
Percent of Scores at 2
Percent of Scores at 3-5
Difference from 1992-93 in
Percent Scores 3-5Group
Texas U.S. Texas U.S. Texas U.S. Texas U.S.American Indian 85 2,528 20.0 32.3 67.1 49.5 1.4 1.0African American 776 23,722 33.2 35.3 48.3 33.9 6.5 2.2Hispanic 3,814 37,961 26.0 22.4 56.5 63.3 1.0 1.8Asian American 4,130 75,351 17.4 21.2 75.7 69.2 1.7 2.4White 20,462 368,709 23.3 25.1 70.2 65.4 1.8 1.7Other Ethnicity 42 11,332 26.2 23.5 61.9 65.6 –11.2 2.7
Totals 29,476 558,330Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas public school AP exam data, using examinee ethnicity from TEAPEIMS as available and from AP files otherwise; and CEEB (1993b, 1994b) for U.S. public school exam data.
In 1993-94, Texas AP scores were higher than national scores for all ethnic groups, except for Hispanics.Of all Texas and U.S. ethnic groups, Texas African Americans showed the largest gain in percentages of 3 to 5examination scores between 1992-93 and 1993-94.
with performance information on allperformance indicators, as well asdescriptive information about thedistrict for inclusion in the annualperformance report (TEC §39.053(a)).Performance on the indicators must becompared to state standards (whichare set by the commissioner of educa-tion (TEC §39.051(c)) and to prioryear performance, disaggregated bygender, ethnicity, and socioeconomicstatus (TEC §39.051(b)). The agencyprovides this information through thedistrict and campus Academic Excel-lence Indicator System (AEIS) reportsissued each year. The AEIS reportspresent performance on all indicatorsas well as profile (descriptive) dataitems. Profile items are student, staff,and financial information that providecontext for interpreting the perfor-mance results (TEA, 1995a). TheAEIS reports are the primary vehiclefor reporting performance indicatorsto districts and campuses.
The SBOE has statutory authorityto adopt performance indicatorsfor Texas public schools (TEC§39.051(a)). In addition to eight
indicators specified in law to be usedto either accredit districts or report aspart of the AEIS system, the SBOEmay adopt other indicators to bereported on the AEIS reports (TEC§39.051 (b)(9)). The statutoryindicators used for accreditation andreporting and other indicators adoptedby the SBOE for reporting through theAEIS become part of an integratedaccountability system. The systemintegrates district accreditation status,campus ratings, district and campusrecognition for high performance, andcampus, district, and state-levelreports (TEA, 1995a).
Each year TEA determines theaccreditation status of school districts,based on state law and standards setby the commissioner of education(TEC §39.073). State law designatesthose performance indicators thatmust be considered in the rating of adistrict, and other criteria that may beconsidered (TEC §§39.072-39.073).The commissioner of educationdetermines the frequency of on-siteaccreditation investigations based onan analysis of all performance indica-
tors, including the indicators adoptedby the SBOE (TEC §39.074).
The commissioner is also respon-sible for preparing a school report cardthat each school must provide to everystudent’s family (TEC §39.052(c)).From a set of indicators specified inlaw, the commissioner identifiesstudent performance indicators thatwill appear on the school report card(TEC §39.052(b)).
The first indicator adopted by theSBOE was percent of students com-pleting advanced academic courses,adopted in June 1994 (SBOE, 1994).The advanced academic coursesindicator was first reported on the1993-94 AEIS reports. (Percent ofstudents enrolled in advanced courseswas previously reported on the AEISreports.) AP indicators, if adopted bythe SBOE, could first be reported inthe 1995-96 AEIS reports, released inthe fall of 1996. Performance indica-tors and associated profile data arereported for the current and priorschool years. Therefore, 1995-96 and1994-95 AP examination participationand performance would be reported in
Policy Research Report Page 19
Percent of Students Taking At Least
One Exam
Percent of Examinees Scoring 3-5 on
At Least One Exam
Percent of Exams With Scores of
3 or AboveStudent Groups 1992-93 1993-94 1992-93 1993-94 1992-93 1993-94
American Indian 5.0 4.9 68.3 70.7 66.2 66.3African American 1.0 1.0 42.6 52.7 41.7 48.5Asian American 17.0 18.2 76.5 77.7 74.1 75.7Hispanic 1.8 2.2 58.7 60.3 54.2 54.7White 5.2 6.0 70.3 72.2 68.6 70.4
Table 7Texas AP Exam Participation and Scores:
1992-93 and 1993-94 Public Schools, Grades 11-12
Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas AP public school examination data using grade level, genderand ethnicity from TEA PEIMS as available and from AP files otherwise.
From 1992-93 to 1993-94, the percentage of 11th and 12th graders taking AP examinations in Texaspublic schools increased from 4.0 to 4.6 percent. Asian American, Hispanic, and White students ac-counted for the increase. The percentage of Texas examinees with at least one 3 to 5 exam score in-creased by 2.0 percentage points, while the percentage of 3 to 5 scores went up by almost the sameamount. Females posted relatively larger gains for the same score percentages than males.
the 1995-96 AEIS reports. As notedearlier, AEIS reports present data forthe total group at the district, regional,and state levels, and the campus levelwhere appropriate. By law, data aredisaggregated by gender (male andfemale) and ethnicity (AmericanIndian/Native American, AsianAmerican/Pacific Islander, AfricanAmerican, Hispanic, and White).Where possible, AEIS data are alsodisaggregated by socioeconomicstatus; the data agreement with theCollege Board precludes reporting bysocioeconomic status for SAT and APexamination scores.
Reporting and Analysisof AP Data
The AEIS report is the primarymechanism for reporting indicatordata for Texas public schools indi-vidually at the state, region, district,and campus levels. Data are reportedfor the two most recent years forwhich data are available. More
detailed and comprehensive statewideindicator information is also providedthrough reports published by TEA ofsystem-wide data or data related toindividual indicators. Snapshot:School District Profiles (e.g., TEA,1995g) provides an annual summaryof profile and indicator information atthe state, region, and district levels.
Report on Public School Dropouts(e.g., TEA, 1995e) reports state,region, county, district, and campusdropout rates, as well as analysis ofdropout rate trends. Results of CollegeAdmissions Testing in Texas forGraduating Seniors (e.g., TEA, 1995f)reports state, region, district, andcampus SAT and ACT results, withanalysis of participation and perfor-mance trends. Both reports arepublished annually. Report on GradeLevel Retention of Texas Students(e.g., TEA, 1995d), published bienni-ally, provides state level analysis ofstudent retention. Annual state reportsof results on the Texas Assessment of
Academic Skills (TAAS), the statecriterion-referenced test administeredin Grade 3-8 and 10, are also pub-lished in Texas Assessment of Aca-demic Skills and End-of-CourseExaminations Student PerformanceResults Statewide and RegionalResults (e.g., TEA, 1995h).
In addition to possible reporting ofAP examination data in the AEISreports as an additional indicator,more detailed research analysis andreporting of AP examination data byTEA may include annual or biennialreporting of AP results and incorpora-tion of AP results into the StatewideTexas Education Progress Study(STEPS) framework. STEPS is anongoing data collection and analysisproject beginning in 1995-96 that willexamine the progress of the Texaspublic education system as a whole byexploring the relationships betweeninputs, processes, contexts, andperformance.
Page 20 Policy Research Report
Figure 2Percent of Texas Students, Grades 11-12, Taking at Least One AP Exam
By District Size — 1992-93 and 1993-94
0.00
1.00
2.00
3.00
4.00
5.00
6.00
7.00
Over50,000
Students
25,000to 49,999Students
10,000to 24,999Students
5,000to 9,999Students
3,000to 4,999Students
1,600to 2,999Students
1,000to 1,599Students
500to 999
Students
Under500
Students
1992-93 1993-94
Percent ofStudents
District Size
Data Sources: TEA analysis of CEEB 1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas public school AP exam data and TEA PEIMS 1992-93 and 1993-94enrollment data using examinee grade level from PEIMS as available and from AP files otherwise.
Overall, the percentage of 11th and 12th graders taking at least one AP examination in Texas public schooldistricts tended to be higher in 1993-94 than in 1992-93. These percentages are higher as district sizeincreases up to 50,000 students.
Primary areas for additional studystem from state-level implementationof statutory programs and policiesdeveloped to improve the quality ofeducation, such as the Texas Ad-vanced Placement Incentive Programand wider reporting of AP indicatordata — both of which are expected tofuel growth in the number of studentsand schools that participate in the APprogram of courses and examinations.The recommended high schoolprogram, which can include both APand IB examinations, will be reportedas a statutory indicator beginningwith the 1995-96 AEIS reports, whichmay further stimulate changes in
of these types of questions is theextent to which taking AP, other typesof advanced and honors courses(e.g., Herr, 1993), and courses preced-ing advanced courses relate to stu-dents’ AP examination scores, othertypes of test scores, and overallacademic success in high school.Students’ course work and course-taking patterns fall into a realm ofcontrol that can be directly addressedby educators and policy makers.Trends in students’ course takingpatterns, campus and district availabil-ity of AP and various other courses,and examination scores are also of
course-taking patterns. Schooldistricts will also begin identifying IBcourses in the data submitted to TEA.Participation in IB will be monitoredand can be expected to increase as aresult of the Texas Advanced Place-ment Incentive Program, which maygenerate interest in exploring possibleIB examination performance indica-tors.
Various types of AP-relatedresearch and analysis will be ofinterest to educators and policy makersfor evaluating existing policies andinforming decision making on policyquestions. One of the most important
Policy Research Report Page 21
426
454
577
158
262
390
288
241
135
215
2347
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
1992-93 1993-94 1994-95
Numberof Schools
Schools With AP Exams
Schools With AP Courses
Schools With AP Exams but no AP Courses
Schools With Both AP Exams and Courses
Schools With AP Courses but no Exams
Data Sources: CEEB (1995c); TEA analysis of 1992-93 and 1993-94 Texas public school AP exam data; and analysis of 1992-93 to 1994-95 TEAPEIMS course completion data, using only last semester completion of courses as the basis for numerical counts. Note: 1994-95 data were notavailable for all counts.
Since 1992-93, the number of Texas public schools with AP examinees has increased substantially, as well as the numberof schools with students completing AP courses. Only a small number of schools had students completing AP courseswithout taking the exams, and the number of schools with AP examinees and no AP courses decreased from 1992-93to 1993-94.
interest, as well as the longer-termbenefit of AP participation oncestudents are in postsecondary educa-tion.
Other types of questions concernthe degree to which student andcampus AP performance relates toeducation inputs (such as instructionalmaterials and staff developmentefforts) and instructional processes(such as year-round versus the tradi-
tional calendar) and the extent towhich these relationships vary de-pending on contextual factors (such asdistrict wealth, geographic region, andcampus size) and whether or not theserelationships are consistent with thosefor other indicators of student, cam-pus, and district performance (such asTAAS passing rates, SAT and ACTscores, IB scores, school completionrates, and college attendance andcompletion rates).
Figure 3Number of Texas Public Schools With AP Courses and Exams — 1992-93 to 1994-95
General Issues
As is the case for any examinationnot required of all students, such as theSAT, ACT, and especially AP exami-nations, the extent of student participa-tion can be affected by any number offactors, some of which are especiallyimportant if schools or districts will becompared based on participation.First, although the $72 fee per APexamination, which provides the
Table 8Texas Advanced Courses and Students with Advanced Course Completions:
1992-93 to 1994-95 (Grades 9-12)
Data Sources: TEA analysis of 1992-93 to 1994-95 TEA PEIMS course completion data, using only last semester completion of courses asthe basis for numerical counts.
Although the number of students with AP and non-AP advanced course completions has grown steadily over thepast three years, AP courses accounted for the largest portion of the increase. The number of students completingat least one AP course almost tripled over this time period, while students enrolled in all advanced coursesincreased by 20 percent; the number of AP courses completed per student also went up.
advanced courses. However, smalldistricts have a history of collaboratingto meet the educational needs ofstudents. Also, solutions throughtechnology, such as increased accessto distance learning courses, arebecoming more of a reality as theLong-Range Plan for Technology isimplemented (TEA, 1995b). A specialnote should also be made of schoolsthat have not previously or recentlyshown any AP examination participa-tion. A reasonable expectation is thatschools with no previous AP examina-tion experience may be at a disadvan-tage when compared to schools withprior experience.
As previously noted, all perfor-mance indicators are not used foraccountability or accreditation pur-poses; however, there is the assump-tion that the reporting of additionalindicators will encourage schools anddistricts to appropriately focus educa-tional efforts in those areas and acrossthe full diversity of student groups.
potential for high school students toearn college credit with qualifyingscores, is much less than the cost oftaking a college course, the fee can beprohibitive for many students. Theexamination cost is becoming less ofan issue with College Board feereductions, the advent of the TexasAdvanced Placement IncentiveProgram, and other locally sponsoredfee reductions and waivers. Theseefforts usually include special provi-sions for assisting economicallydisadvantaged students. Still, as longas examination fee costs remain as apotential barrier to campus or districtparticipation rates, AP indicatorresults among campuses and districtsshould be interpreted and used cau-tiously and appropriately.
Second, Texas data show that thusfar small schools and small districtstypically have lower AP examinationparticipation than large schools anddistricts. Small numbers of studentsmay make it more difficult for schoolsor districts to offer AP or other
For this reason, comparisons ofcampuses or districts with similarstudent demographics, as well ascomparisons to the state are important,along with reporting of AP participa-tion and performance disaggregated byethnicity. Other considerations forinterpretation include making com-parisons among schools or districtsthat are similar in staff, school, andacademic characteristics, as well asstudent demographics; noting theextent of AP participation and perfor-mance equities or inequities amongdifferent groups of students; andnoting the subject diversity in APcourse and examination participation.Finally, interpretation of any indicatormust be based on the recognition thatindicator data based on small numbersof students (usually less than 30) isgenerally more subject to year-to-yearfluctuation unrelated to educationalconditions and must be maskedentirely when numbers are smallenough to compromise the confidenti-ality of individual student data.
Policy Research Report Page 23
ReferencesBrasel, M.D. (1993). Advanced Placement Program acceptance policies at Texas public postsecondary
institutions: An overview. Unpublished report to the commissioner of the Texas Higher EducationCoordinating Board. Austin, TX.
College Entrance Examination Board. (1993a). College Explorer Plus [Computer guidance software anduser’s manual]. New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board. (1993b). 1993 AP Texas and national summary reports.New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board. (1993c). The Advanced Placement challenge: Providingexcellence and equity for the future. New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board. (1994a). AP program statistics for 1992 to 1994 public schools.New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board. (1994b). 1994 AP Texas and national summary reports.New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board. (1995a). College Explorer [Computer guidance software anduser’s manual 1996]. New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board. (1995b). Facts about the Advanced Placement Program—1995.New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board. (1995c). 1995 Advanced Placement Program Summary.Southwestern Region. New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board. (1995d). The College Board’s Advanced Placement Program40th Anniversary AP Yearbook. Access to excellence. New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board and Educational Testing Service. (1994). College and universityguide to the Advanced Placement Program. New York: Author.
College Entrance Examination Board and Educational Testing Service. (1995). A guide to the AdvancedPlacement Program. May 1996. New York: Author.
Herr, N. E. (1993). The relationship between Advanced Placement and Honors science courses.School and Science Mathematics, 93, 183-187.
International Baccalaureate North America. (n.d.). The International Baccalaureate: An internationallyrecognized curriculum and examination [Leaflet]. New York: Author.
Koch, W. R, Fitzpatrick, S. J., Triscari, R. S., Mahoney, S. S., & Cope, J. E. (1988, October).The Advanced Placement Program: Student attitudes, academic performance, and institutionalpolicies. Austin, TX: The University of Texas at Austin, Measurement and Evaluation Center.
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National Education Goals Panel. (1994b). Data Volume for the National Education Goals Report(Volume Two: State Data). Washington, DC: Author.
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Southern Regional Education Board. (1995). Challenging students to higher standards throughAdvanced Placement. Atlanta, GA: Author.
State Board of Education. (1993, November). Adoption of Recommended High School Program.Minutes: November 12, 1993. Austin, TX: Texas Education Agency.
State Board of Education. (1994, June). Adoption of Additional Indicators for the 1994 and 1995Academic Excellence Indicator System. Minutes: June 10, 1994. Austin, Texas:Texas Education Agency.
State of Texas. (1995). Texas Education Code. Austin, TX.
Texas Administrative Code, Title 19, Part II: Texas Education Agency. (1994). Austin, Texas:West Publishing Company.
Texas Education Agency. (1994a). Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS)Data Standards 1994-95 (Publication No. T12 082 01). Austin, TX: Author.
Texas Education Agency. (1994b). Teacher Supply, Demand, and Quality Policy Research Project:Texas teacher diversity and recruitment. Policy Research Report Number 4(Publication No. GE4-170-12). Austin, TX: Author.
Texas Education Agency. (1995a). Accountability manual: The 1995 accountability rating system forTexas public schools and school districts and blueprint for the 1996-2000 accountability systems.Austin, Texas: Author.
Texas Education Agency. (1995b). Progress report on the long-range plan for technologySeptember 1992 - August 1994 (Publication No. GE5 214 02). Austin, TX: Author.
Texas Education Agency. (1995c). Questions and answers on the Distinguished Achievement Program.Austin, TX: Author.
Texas Education Agency. (1995d). Report on grade level retention of Texas students 1992-93 and1993-94 (Publication No. GE 601 12). Austin, TX: Author.
Texas Education Agency. (1995e). 1992-93 Report on Texas public school dropouts(Publication No. GE 601 09). Austin, TX: Author.
Texas Education Agency. (1995f). Results of college admissions testing in Texas for 1992/93graduating seniors (Publication No. GE5 601 05). Austin, TX: Author.
Texas Education Agency. (1995g). Snapshot ’94: 1993-94 school district profiles(Publication No. GE5 602 01). Austin, TX: Author.
Texas Education Agency. (1995h). Texas Assessment of Academic Skills and end-of-course examina-tions student performance results 1992-1993 and 1993-1994 statewide and regional results(Publication No. GE4 212 01). Austin, TX: Author.
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Willingham, W.W., & Morris, M. (1986). Four years later: A longitudinal study of AdvancedPlacement students in college (College Board Report No. 86-2). New York: College EntranceExamination Board.
Policy Research Report Page 25
Project Staff
Department of Programs and InstructionFelipe Alanis
Deputy Commissioner
Office of Policy Planning and ResearchCriss Cloudt
Associate Commissioner
Research and Evaluation DivisionNancy Stevens
Director
Linda L. HargroveProject Director
Research and Editorial AssistanceGema BarkanicSherry E. HenrySpring W. Lee
Michael X. MaoLynn T. Mellor
Vicky A. KillgoreGraphics, Layout, and Design
TEA Reviewers
Office of Policy Planning and ResearchMaureen Scheevel
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