Average HS Student Given Little Chance of AP CS Success 293
theodp (442580) writes AP Computer Science is taught in just 10% of our high schools," lamented The White House last December as President Obama kicked off CSEdWeek. "China teaches all of its students one year of computer science." And the U.S. Dept. of Education has made the AP CS exam its Poster Child for inequity in education (citing a viral-but-misinterpreted study). But ignored in all the hand-wringing over low AP CS enrollment is one huge barrier to the goal of AP-CS-for-all: College Board materials indicate that the average 11th grader's combined PSAT/NMSQT score of 96 in reading and math gives him/her only a 20%-30% probability of getting a score of '3' on the AP CS exam (a score '4' or '5' may be required for college credit). The College Board suggests schools tap a pool of students with a "60-100% likelihood of scoring 3 or higher", so it's probably no surprise that CS teachers are advised to turn to the College Board's AP Potential tool to identify students who are likely to succeed (sample Student Detail for an "average" kid) and send their parents recruitment letters — Georgia Tech even offers some gender-specific examples — to help fill class rosters.
Average SD article containing TM unclear ABR in TI (Score:5, Funny)
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+1 WTF too many TLAs.
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It's OK AS. TM ABR in TI would be "AVG(HSS) good AP CS Success%"
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Yep, I thought Armor Piercing CS (gas) round might be useful for getting the crew to bail out so you can capture the tank and use it afterward.
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In all seriousness, would anyone like to provide a glossary?
CS I can guess, but AP??
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Advanced Placement (aka 'grade inflation').
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allowing it (and its tuition) to be skipped
LOL, oh you're serious, let me laugh harder. If you think skipped courses due to AP credits reduce the number of hours needed to graduate at the vast, vast majority of schools you're mistaken. No, it will just let you skip an intro course and fill the hours requirement for your major for something a little less dull.
some college force you to take PE classes at full (Score:3)
some college force you to take PE classes at full price and that price is LOT MORE then a good 2 year health club membership for just 1 class.
AP used to let skip classes not so much in the days of guaranteed student loans.
Re:Average SD article containing TM unclear ABR in (Score:5, Informative)
LOL, oh you're serious, let me laugh harder. If you think skipped courses due to AP credits reduce the number of hours needed to graduate at the vast, vast majority of schools you're mistaken. No, it will just let you skip an intro course and fill the hours requirement for your major for something a little less dull.
False.
Heck, it's even on the official AP exam website [collegeboard.org]:
You can save money and get a head start on your degree when you enter college with credit youâ(TM)ve already earned through AP.
But if you're not convinced, let's look at some of the top schools in the U.S., and what they will do for a person with AP credit. Harvard [harvard.edu] says the following:
Students may be allowed to use an AP exam score (or appropriate international credential) to meet certain requirements (foreign language, introductory departmental course, etc.).
Students with a full yearâ(TM)s worth of advanced workâ"documented by AP exams, an IB diploma, or certain other international credentialsâ"may be eligible to petition for Advanced Standing. The College grants four Harvard full-course credits, the equivalent of a year of study, to those students who activate Advanced Standing.
In other words, you not only can pass out of a number of requirements, but you can also skip an entire year of college... at one of the top colleges in the U.S.
Even MIT [mit.edu], which is notorious for having one of the most restrictive AP policies in the U.S., will still give you credit for and let you pass out of the first semester of calculus or physics (both required of all MIT graduates) with sufficient AP scores. And you'll get unrestricted credit that can count toward miscellaneous electives you need for your degree or whatever for some other AP tests (e.g., humanities).
Bottom line: At the "vast, vast majority of schools," many AP courses WILL reduce the number of credits you need for graduation, as well as allowing you to skip intro classes.
You're right that many schools will still require you to take something else within your major to fulfill a minimum set of required credit hours. But you'll often still be able to use miscellaneous AP credits toward random electives.
Seriously -- do at least a minimum of research before you show your ignorance while wrongly making fun of somebody.
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At Purdue for most math and science AP credits they still require you to take their own placement test during an orientation weekend.
Actually, if you read the MIT link, you'll note that MIT does precisely that for Chemistry and Biology credit, for example. If true, this souinds EXACTLY like one of the very schools I mentioned.
They flat out tell you during the physics one that maybe one kid a year will actually score high enough to opt out of the first physics class......so good luck.
Well, this link [purdue.edu] and this one [purdue.edu] both clearly state that getting a 5 on the physics C tests (as well as various scores on other science and math tests) will get you credit for various classes, including in the School of Engineering.
Now -- it's possible either (1) things have changed there since you were in school, or
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No, it will just let you skip an intro course and fill the hours requirement for your major for something a little less dull.
I took enough courses in the community college I went to that I had 3/4 of the bachelor degree credits when I transferred to the big university. They still required me to take two full years of classes, and I wound up taking classes like "African Politics" and "Cobol" just to get the credits. And "Linguistics". Not "less dull".
I'm fascinated by an article that claims that average students aren't getting AP. "Average" and "Advanced" are kinda orthogonal concepts.
Really? (Score:4, Insightful)
So you're suggesting that a K-12 focus on self-esteem doesn't result in outstanding academic ability?
This just in: difficult things are hard, and most people can't do them.
Re:Really? (Score:5, Insightful)
We know about some "Don't fuck it up" procedures (lead is not a dietary supplement, lots of early childhood stimulus is good, malnutrition stunts mind as well as body, etc.); and we know some things about getting better or worse results out of students of a given level of ability; but for anything that has some element of 'born, not made', it's a good day when we can accurately identify the good candidates, much less upgrade inadequate ones.
If your thesis is that 'difficult things are hard and most people can't do them', it wouldn't much matter if the K-12 focus is 'self-esteem', 'classical philology', or 'Measure Theory Bootcamp: No Place For The Weak.'
Re:Really? (Score:4, Insightful)
Being Asian seems to work pretty well.
Re:Really? (Score:5, Insightful)
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So the US is right on target to increasing academic performance?
I guess 'ol Winston was right - "you can count on Americans to do the right thing after they've tried everything else".
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I think we have a few more decades before we've 'tried everything else'.
Re:Really? (Score:4, Insightful)
Quite to the contrary: captialists (I am one) believe that it is necessity and the desire to improve one's material wealth that motivates people. You know, like those Chinese kids do you describe. And we actually believe that almost everybody has the capacity to succeed if they are only motivated, again like those Chinese kids.
It's people like you who divide the world into "dumbfucks" and brainiacs, then want to treat low performance as a disability, and reward people for it.
Re:Really? (Score:5, Insightful)
According to our presently available research and body of technique is there really anything on the table that 'results in outstanding academic ability'?'
Parental involvement.
Mod Parent Up (Score:2)
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That falls under "'born, not made". You're either born to good parents or you're not.
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That falls under "'born, not made". You're either born to good parents or you're not.
Not entirely true. Intelligence has a significant genetic component, but it isn't everything. And other skills or character traits, like hard work, curiosity, discipline, etc. often tend to fall more in the "nuture" category. Putting a kid in a home environment that encourages success will make a difference.
On the other hand, there have been other studies suggesting that the most important aspects of that nurturing environment for childhood development are based on who the parents/caregivers naturally
Re:Really? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Really? (Score:4, Insightful)
How about "Positive parental involvement" then?
Re:Really? (Score:4, Insightful)
Actually parental involvement is the very last thing kids need in the educational process. There is a school in Harlem that offers stunning success to low income kids and the way they do it is allowing the kids to visit their homes on Sundays only.
Yeah, what that says is that some people are shitty parents. So the saying could be amended to say that children benefit from positive parental involvement. Some people just aren't capable of providing that no matter how hard they try. They should be a) helped to become better people, primarily by not shitting on them systematically, as most of these people are poor and poorly educated and b) strongly encouraged to not become parents to begin with.
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The only parental involvement I see here is one or more of
> How dare you expect my angel to show up for class!
> How dare you expect my angel to turn in homework!
> How dare you expect my angel to know how to write!
> How dare you expect my angel to know how to do basic math!
> How dare you expect my angel to get off the phone!
> How dare you give my angel anything less than a passing grade!
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Maybe Seattle is just a bad example.
I am aware there are real parents out there, pe
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The focus on "self-esteem" can make people with high STEM potential think that it doe snot pay off to work hard (and all reasonable STEM education is hard), because the lazy and non-talented ones get just as much recognition and mire for what they invest.
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This just in: difficult things are hard, and most people can't do them.
"Educational Standards" proving that if you lower the bar enough, even an idiot can graduate. - Tropico 3/4
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With scholarships, testing early and often you can have the best of both worlds. A large pool of average happy students trapped in debt after 5 years of French or The Silmarillion or interpretive dance vs that few percentage who just seem to find real math jobs?
The US only has to ensure support a small pool of elite students who where on scholarships or had wealthy parents to fund them into the very best ma
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Graduating is not hard. Graduating in places where the degree actually has meaning is.
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High School is completely different than college. If you show up to class in Highschool it is the teacher's job to make sure you pass, and courses do not cost you money either way, so almost no one drops courses
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High School is completely different than college. If you show up to class in Highschool it is the teacher's job to make sure you pass, and courses do not cost you money either way, so almost no one drops courses
I guess things have changed quite a bit since I was in high school back in the stone age. Difficult elective classes had a significant drop rate, with the droppers usually opting to transfer into one of the "manual arts" (e.g., auto shop or wood shop) classes.
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Correction: most persons can't do them without studying / practicing hard.
The distinction is absolutely crucial to schools, parents, and nations.
There is such a thing as natural aptitude (Score:4, Interesting)
Throughout my entire educational career, I was a slacker. I got decent grades (if not straight A's) without studying, paying much attention in class, or doing homework. I have a natural aptitude for the humanities and the sciences, and am adequate in math. (Better with applied vs. theoretical math.)
My one exception was foreign languages; I have absolutely no ability whatsoever in foreign languages. In American, I can speed-read, and have reasonable facility with writing. In any other language, it mattered not at all how much I studied, practiced, or did my homework, I was horrible, even by the low standards of an American high-school foreign language class. French, Latin, even American Sign Language as an adult, and I was hopeless. I got barely passing grades in French and Latin out of pity more than anything else.
Some difficult things are simply difficult for some people, and no amount of hard work is going to fix that. Throwing students against subjects they are unable to master is a waste of resource and is discouraging for both the student and teacher. I'm not saying students shouldn't be challenged; just that the idea that "hard work" will magically enable a student to master any subject is toxic.
Did you read my post on your way to a rant? (Score:2)
I wasn't complaining that after two years of language instruction, I was not fluent in a language. I was stating that even compared the low bar set by the standards of the class, I was horrible, even in relation to my peers, who were being taught in the same way and came from the same background.
You'll get no argument from me that waiting until high-school to teach foreign language, and then doing so in typical lecture classes, isn't very effective. But that's not what my post was addressing.
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Have you considered that your education was poor, and that it's not very efficient to learn a foreign language by just sitting in a classroom and simply doing what they tell you?
I don't think that a good education is ever likely to make me a sociable person, and a lot of careers require being sociable. I actually even got fired once for not being sociable enough in a job that's infamous for being non-sociable.
I'm great at intuitive leaps in thinking. I'm utterly horrible in line-by-line "bookkeeper" tasks, and am eternally grateful that other people are not just like me so that they can do the essential bookkeeping and allow me to do the intuitive stuff. No, not for being surly and
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Certain disciplines require critical thinking, not just rote memorization or application of formula. I would suggest that some (possibly many) people cannot study their way into being good at critical thinking and problem solving.
Why Bother? (Score:5, Insightful)
All those jobs will be going to H-1B visa owners.
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All those jobs will be going to H-1B visa owners.
Not all of them. Many will leave the North American Continent entirely.
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So you're suggesting that a K-12 focus on self-esteem doesn't result in outstanding academic ability?
This just in: difficult things are hard, and most people can't do them.
Especially those people. Right? You've either missed the point of TFA or you are a racist. Don't feel bad. Not everyone gets it. You're still a very special person, in your own way.
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Indeed. Most people have no chance of being any good at a STEM subject. It requires specific talents, dedication and a true passion for the subject. Nobody sane would suggest increasing the number of mathematicians by teaching more mathematics in HS (not that HS mathematics has any real connection to University mathematics....). The same approach fails just as well for CS. The only thing you can do is identify those with a STEM talent (1-5% or so of the population) early on, support them with easy access to
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I found the CS AP class that I took in HS was actually pretty good. My University didn't accept the credit (even though I got a 5 on the exam), but I'd say we got a further into the true CS topics than I did in my earlier college classes. The class was built around C++ and included all the fun stuff like memory management, pointers, etc. The non-AP class was done in Pascal.
Not a shocker. (Score:4, Informative)
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That might be a Texas-specific problem. In New England we don't tend to have that.
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I would suggest that this may have more to do with you living in Texas, than the US. I went to school in 7 different states (military family), and the only one that had any emphasis at all outside of mandatory PE was Texas. For most of my schools they didn't even advertise the football games,so unless you played or knew a player, you had no idea when and where the game took place or who you were playing against.
It's called Advanced Placement for a reason (Score:5, Insightful)
College Board materials indicate that the average 11th grader's...
The "average" 11th grader isn't going to be taking AP classes. There is a reason they call it ADVANCED placement. It's supposed to be hard. It's supposed to be for the top end of the bell curve.
Not a sure fire thing anyway (Score:2, Interesting)
I took AP Computer Science in 10th grade, scored a 2 on it. I had some friends who were passionate about programming (doing it outside of High School like myself in C++) who ended changing their career choice just off of that test score, who also got 2s. On one hand, yes the AP class was great in that I got good practice every other day in C++ with a pretty good teacher there to ask questions, but the test itself I found very one sided for the folks who were great test takers. Just because I scored a 2,
Teach CS with Math classes (Score:4, Insightful)
They should integrate programming with math classes. They should start students using Mathematica or Sage as early as possible. Programming math problems would teach both math and programming. Students would see programming as a problem solving tool, and not just another burden of something else to learn. If they integrated programming into math classes they wouldn't have to worry about adding programming classes to their curriculum. They could also integrate programming into other classes like science, or even English.
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I dunno... You could alway make an argument for integrating any topic into any other, pretty much. Or for keeping them separate.
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Yes, you *could*, but you wouldn't always be as right as the one you replied to. Humans are tool-using creatures. Something as abstract as mathematics can be seen as a tool if programming is integrated with mathematics. Plus, it'll make it easier to understand why it works, which is something we desperately need in math education.
"When am I ever going to use this?" Well, how about right now?
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But don't think that math and programming go together like peanut butter and jelly?
To figure out how to program a math problem requires learning the math. Turning a problem into an algorithm means learning how the problem works in a very fundamental way.
Re:Teach CS with Math classes (Score:4, Interesting)
I'd say there are two very different levels of connection.
At the most obvious and shallow, computers are good at crunching numbers quickly, and early programming languages were designed to put that power to good use. But nowadays, at least at the application programming level, the focus of average programmers' work tends to be much more on string processing (for web pages, twitter feeds, etc.) and storage/retrieval (databases, etc.) There are certainly mathematical implications of that work, but not so much numerical math.
Then at the much deeper level you find out that graph theory, topology, and computability have powerful connections to type systems, program correctness proofs, etc. I suspect that my mind can only hold a small fraction of the interesting connections in this area. This is what I'd call serious, deep Computer Science, and this is where I see it really tying in fundamentally to math. To me, this is the purest form of CS, and most CS grads barely grok it and/or care about it. Advances in this area are probably like advances in pure mathematics: it may take decades or even centuries for us to understand their application to the software development changes right in front of us, but when we do, they're transformative. Although maybe that's over-selling it a little.
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Sorry, I forgot to include rewriting systems in all of that. No disrespect, yo.
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I disagree, on the grounds that math ought to be studied for itself. If you try to do everything in math through CS then you'll get a poor grasp of what math is really all about.
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I agree that everyone should learn as much math and statistics as they can. I think it turns off most kids to math when they teach pure abstract math. Adding programming might make math more appealing and less abstract. Have you ever used Mathematica? I bet grade school kids wold think math was a lot more fun if they learned math with Mathmatica. You wouldn't even have to mention that it involves programming. They should learn the basics of mathematical problems without calculators and programming fir
What about AP math? (Score:2)
If students are capable of handling AP math, they should be able to handle AP CS--since the way most CS college programs are run, they're basically the same thing.
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Obligatory xkcd [xkcd.com] reference.
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That would be because CS is a branch of Math.
Yeah, that's what I just said. You apparently didn't take AP English.
Computer Science curriculum (Score:2)
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I'm not sure we should hit kids with the full force of CS theory in their first CS course. I suspect there's a real benefit to giving them something with tangible results and immediately useful skills, like Javascript. Without that, I think they might be unable to see the relevance of the more advanced theory, and lose interest in CS altogether.
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Is this the exception for CS classes now? Or a typical program?
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There's probably more than one way to skin the cat, and I don't have enough experience in the design of CS curricula to know which works out better.
When I took CS 101 as an undergrad, the focus was primarily on using and implementing abstract data types, and getting the hang of programming in general. We did use pointers, but it was in Pascal.
It worked out okay in the end - most/all of us in that CS 101 class have good careers, and I managed to end up with a PhD in CS. But I suppose data isn't the plural
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That being said, I do take issue with one thing: as far as I can imagine, there is only one way to skin a cat.
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No, that's standard fare for a BS in CS. Problem is, many take BA/ or Associates of Arts in CS and believe they are the same thing.
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It's not just CS. (Score:2)
There's not a thing wrong with being average. By its very definition,and including those slightly above or below the mean, it describes the bulk of our human resources.
Identifying and lifting the gifted out of the noise is always a noble project.
Love the gender examples (Score:4, Funny)
All the female programmers I know (yeah yeah, n=3, anecdata sucks) got into it for the same reasons as their male counterparts - The love of ripping into the metaphorical guts of a computer and bending it to their will. The love of gaming, whether or not it satisfies the current BS about "strong female protagonists". The pure joy of losing countless hours in the trance-like state we enter in a really good coding session.
Then again, they all self-describe as "Tom-boys", so I see it as entirely plausible that those women currently in CS simply fall into the small minority that do like the same things as male geeks. Even if that holds true, however, I find it fairly disturbing that anyone would seriously try to promote a CS degree by offering it in pink.
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And we wonder why females have little interest in CS? The male version talks about gaming and creating toys, while the female version sounds like they want to target non-mathphobic social workers.
Yep. Full versions of the letters are available here [gatech.edu]. Also notice that the "Girl" letter states that a computing class may be required for any "science and math fields", while the "Boy" letter notes that a computing class may be required for any "science, engineering, and math fields." Even the signature blocks are different, with the "Boy" letter signed by GT's Director of Computing Outreach, while the "Girl" letter is signed "Teacher Name". There are many subtle differences throughout the letters that rea
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Show me ONE mechanic that looks like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates. The stereotype is that you have to be a jock to like greasy engines and the loud roar of a V8.
Stereotypes are everywhere. But we don't bemoan that there's so few geeks going into a job as a car mechanic, do we?
Besides, just to stay with the stereotypes, yes, there are boys that like pink. But they also don't major in CS, they major in arts.
Back in the '80's (Score:3)
Even though there was a bit of a gap between the two schools' programs, 30 years ago you could get an introduction to programming and CS concepts in both of them. It seems like we've been back-sliding since then.
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I flunked the AP CS test (Score:5, Insightful)
Waaaayyy back in the mid-90's, I took the AP CS test my junior year of HS. The test was scheduled right after I took the AP US History test in the AM (I rocked that test with a 5 and passed out of 2 semesters of history for it) and as my brain was fried, I staggered into the principal's conference room to take the AP CS test with another dozen or so kids from my class.
I completely bombed the test (a 2)... my brain was so scorched from the history exam that morning I couldn't make heads or proverbial tails of the essay questions. I got a 2, and I'm glad I did. Why? Because that was when the test was still being administered in Pascal, and by the time I got to college, my school had shifted over to C++ as their main "teaching language". It's no fun taking an advanced CS class when all your assignments take extra time while you give yourself a crash course in C-style syntax everybody else is taking for granted.
That said, despite the fact I flunked the test, my actual high school CS class was excellent. It meant that when I had to re-take intro-to-CS in college all I had to do was learn new syntax for the concepts I already knew; the overlap of the theory was pretty complete.
On another note, why would we expect the average high-schooler to pass a college-level CS exam? It's a hard test, just like it's supposed to be. And it's a subject that many students, no matter their other virtues, don't have much aptitude in. (I'd be interested to know what this one year in "Computer Science" that all Chinese kids are given actually consists of...)
All that said... yes, waaayyyy more than 10% of our high schools need to be offering the class. Every high school surely contains some students with both the aptitude and desire to take such a class.
I suppose that explains (Score:2)
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He may have meant checking ZF or something, but I am guessing not.
In any case smaller data size does take less time to process for many instructions, for instance a 32 bit DIV is faster than doing so on 64-bits, even on a 64-bit processor (it takes about a third the time.)
If you are packing bits it can also save time in transferring from memory (although you need enough bits to make it worthwhile.)
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That can actually be true depending on the processor, but I can only think of a few very old examples where you could save a cycle or two that way (although one has to admit, with the speed these things ran on, that cycle actually could make a bit of a difference...).
Why would a prospective CS major take the AP test? (Score:2)
AP tests are made to get you college credit, but many CS programs won't accept AP credit to fulfill requirements in CS. So there's not a lot of point for a student wanting to become a CS major to take the AP CS test.
Also note it is (or was, it's been a while) possible to take the AP test without taking the AP class.
I'm glad I never took any HS computer classes... (Score:2)
Think of all the unlearning that would get in the way of me actually being a decent programmer.
Does it have to much theory and lacking in real sk (Score:2)
Does it have to much theory and lacking in real skills that are more use fully in the over all IT field?
A lot of the posters here have it part right (Score:2)
However, I reckon the real issue is that CS at university cares less about what you did at high school. They want Calculus/Further Mathematcs and Physics for sure, and having Chemistry is a help. It is rare than a college cares about AP CS other than in a token way. All this has the effect of making CS in high schools a complete and utter waste of time, for the student and for the school, which is why CS in high school will (unless things change) always have a wave of enthusiasm sinking back into a slough o
I taught myself programming and did fine (Score:2)
my experiences (in the long, long ago) (Score:2)
When I took AP CS in highschool, they were just switching to C++. We actually hard two years of courses and AP was the second year. I pushed to skip the first class (which was basic at the time) and after taking the final was able to.
The school didn't even normally give the exam. After some parental rage, they finely setup so I could take the exam (just me). 45 minutes of test taking earned me a 5/5. Though since all the changes in the exam at the time my college just gave credit for an elective instead of
So China is the new Japan? (Score:3)
Now we learn from them?
The older ones amongst us might still remember how Japan was all the craze. Everything in your company had to be done the Japanese way. You had books and whole seminars dedicated to how the Japanese did stuff. Fully ignoring (just like this does) that there just might be a hint of a cultural difference that makes the systems fully incompatible.
Then the Japanese economy collapsed because, as we found out, it was all just a huge bubble they inflated for years. At first their economic growth was real. Well, duh! After WW2 their industry was in ruins. Growth rates in the two digit percentage are a given if you go from NOTHING to something. At least it's heaps easier than having two digit growth rates if you are already near the ceiling of what's possible.
Now the same shit again with China. Oh, China has an economic growth! We have to copy China! No, we don't you idiots! China has an economic boom because not only they had jack shit before but also because we let them. That's what makes China's economy grow by leaps and bounds. Going the Chinese way could only cripple our economy (actually, since we're already on the path, it does. Look around yourself and tell me that we're really so much better off than we were a decade ago). Why? Because we already have a living standard the Chinese may only dream of, and we don't have a USA that we can sell our cheap crap to.
Fuck, people, you can't simply copy another country and pretend it will work! Sure as hell it doesn't for economy, why the heck should it for education?
The average student shouldn't. (Score:2)
Average HS student (Score:2)
Teacher here.... (Score:5, Interesting)
I teach a section of AP Computer Science, so I'm getting a kick out of these replies...
To people who don't have any programming experience coming in to the course, the class is a real bear. One of the big issues from the early days of the exam was the push-and-pull between high school instructors and college professors over just what an AP computer science student should proficiently be able to do.
The professors won, and began to dominate the content choices of the course and the exam. Of course, they were full of shit when they did so, and found that people who passed the course weren't usually well prepared for additional CS courses unless they had additional experience outside of APCS. This means that APCS wasn't the predictor it should have been. So there's been all kinds of fun content changes over the years. (I'm not talking about the language change from Pascal to C++ to Java; the material on the exam will be changing about 20% for just the coming year, for example, and I'm making sure I'm at an AP seminar this summer so I can properly prepare.)
As trite as it sounds, part of the challenge is funding. In Texas, where I teach, AP Computer Science is funded with the usual tax dollars, where "business programming", which is too often VB-oriented, is funded at a higher level, making it a more attractive course if you're going to teach programming. Districts and high schools are financially disincentivized from offering this course, and lesser resources are generally available.
Want to teach Microsoft Office? Here, have a brand new lab. Then have a new one three years later. Want APCS? We're sure we can scrounge up something for you. And then they wonder why no one teaches AP Computer Science. Don't get me wrong; I actually think there's a lot of value to be gained out of a properly taught Office course with proper content. But the imbalance is too great.
About 5 years ago, I was asked to go to a meeting of all of the AP teachers of the East region of Houston ISD, in order the share information and resources. (This was back when they grouped schools by geographic regions.) I really didn't want to go, but our counselor convinced me that it was important. So many if not most of the AP teachers are sitting there on gym bleachers. And we're told to meet our cohorts and talk amongst ourselves. And all of these signs go up for the different courses -- US History, Spanish, etc. And I'm sitting there at Computer Science. Then I look to my left, look to my right. And I realized that I'm the only one.
And that's what it's like to be an AP Computer Science teacher.
Re:AP is what exactly? (Score:5, Informative)
They keep mentioning AP but its not actually written anywhere what this abbreviation stands for.
"AP" means "Advanced Placement". It is basically a college level class taught in high school, and intended for advanced college-bound students. The "news" in TFA is that "average" students would have difficulty in these classes. In other news: the sky is blue.
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Welcome to Lake Wobegon High School.
Well duh, of course all of /. 's men are good looking!
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Which I never understood. My highschool had AP courses, but they also had actual college credit courses (mostly CS, Math, and Physics). With the AP classes you had to take a test, and the university may or may not accept the results for credit. For the college courses, the grade you receive goes on the college transcript (in this case the city's JC) and can be transferred just as you would transfer any junior college credits to a university.
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They're not anywhere near college level. I've tutored the calculus variants and they do not cover anywhere near the full material for calc 1 let alone 2. At best it's a crappy outline of things to come in college. I would not want someone passing over calculus in college because of those classes.
Re: AP is what exactly? (Score:2)
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It stands for "Advanced Placement." It supposed to represent a more challenging level of work. However, from what I've seen of my sister-in-law's work, it's just a tremendous amount of busy-work wrapped around what I learned in "regular" classes. However, that might be a Texas thing. Our standards are lower, because we're just sittin' around waitin' fer the Rapture. At least, it feels that way.
Well the least you could do is keep your guns polished! Remember, the Devil finds work for idle hands!
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'scuse me, but could you please point us to those "high salaries" jobs you're talking of? The only ones I found expect a BA degree, not a CS one.