Cocke County High School
Honors & AP Informational Night
February 23, 2011
5:30 – 6:30 p.m.
About CCHS Honors Courses

Honors courses provide students with
opportunity for a more rigorous academic
course that best prepares students for AP
courses
 Honors courses carry a .5 GPA boost for
students entering CCHS beginning in 2010-11.
 AP courses carry a 1.0 GPA boost for students
entering CCHS beginning in 2010-11.
About AP Courses

College-level courses offered in high school
 Curriculum & Exams administered by the
College Board (http://www.collegeboard.com/)
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All AP teachers must have course-specific training
& have their syllabi approved by the College Board
National exam for each course given in May
(scored on scale of 1-5)
 Payment of exam fees by families (Currently
$87.00 or $57.00 for families that qualify for
free/reduced lunch)
Why Take AP Courses?
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Possible college credit or advanced standing
Colleges like to see academic rigor reflected in
student transcripts
AP courses provide opportunity to improve
valuable academic & life skills
Completion of AP courses provides confidence
boost & sense of accomplishment
CCHS AP program continues to grow
Why Take AP Courses?
ge
For every 100 ninth29
43
67
19
graders in
Tennessee
67 graduate from high school
43 enter college
29 return to college for their sophomore year
19 earn a bachelor’s degree within six years
Source:http://media.timesfreepress.com/docs/2010/01/TN_College_Completion_Recommendations.pdf
Why Take AP Courses?
•Students who succeed on AP Exams are more prepared for
College than matched peers
Five-year college graduation rate differences between matched AP
and non-AP students.
Student Demographic
Students who earned at least one AP Exam
Score of 3 or higher
African American
28% higher
Hispanic
28% higher
White
33% higher
Low Income
26% higher
Not Low Income
34% higher
Source: Chrys Dougherty, Lynn Mellor and Shuling Jian. 2006. “The Relationship Between Advanced Placement and College Graduation,”
(2005), National Center for Educational Accountability.
Why Take AP Courses?
AP Students are competitive with top performing students worldwide
according to the TIMSS Report: International Student Achievement in
Mathematics
Source: Eugenio J. Gonzalez, Kathleen M. O’Connor, and Julie A. Miles, (2001). “How Well Do Advanced Placement Students Perform on the TIMSS
Advanced Mathematics and Physics Tests?” The International Study Center, Lynch School of Education, Boston College.
Estimated College Savings at
CCHS 2009-2010

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Walters State…($111.00 C. Hour) $33,300.00
ETSU…($201.00 C. Hour)
$60,000.00
UT Knoxville…($248.00 C. Hour) $28,272.00
Tusculum…($361.00 C. Hour)
$41,154.00
Carson-Newman…($577.00)
$65,788.00
Some schools only accept scores of 4 or 5 on the AP Exam for
credit. TBR schools accept scores of 3,4, or 5. The AP Exam
cost $86.00 with no other student fees. For our 38 students, that
was a cost of $3,268.00 for the exams.
What AP Courses to Take?

Students considering registering for AP
courses for the upcoming school-year should
reflect on the following:

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What subject areas are you most interested in?
What subject areas are you most likely to use in
your major/profession of interest?
What other activities/responsibilities require your
time & energy?
What are the expectations for the course?
What AP Courses Do We Offer?
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AP Human Geography (NEW!)
AP Biology
AP Music Theory
AP Calculus
AP English Language and Composition
AP United States History
AP European History
AP English Literature
Other courses will be offered if interest continues to
grow.
Who Can Help Make Decisions
About AP Courses?
CCHS Counselors
 AP Teachers
 Curriculum Coordinator
 Parents
 Current or Former AP students

Additional Resources
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AP Central at College Board:
http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/Controller.jpf
Choose AP Brochure (English):
http://www.collegeboard.com/html/ap/docs/Choose-AP-Brochure.pdf
Choose AP Brochure (Spanish):
http://www.collegeboard.com/html/ap/docs/Choose-AP-Spanish.pdf
AP and the Cost of College Article:
http://professionals.collegeboard.com/profdownload/ap-exam-promo-flyer2009.pdf
Curriculum Coordinator, Michael Short:
shortm@mail.cocke.k12.tn.us