Nyah, Nyah, Nyah, He Picked Us Anyway

Judging which High Schools are the best, based solely on the ratio of students taking AP tests, is an exercise in flawed reasoning and silliness.

First, anyone can take an AP test. According to a gentleman I talked to at the College Board, you don't have to be enrolled in an AP class in your High School to take an AP exam. In fact, Home Schooled children can take the exams as well. Additionally, since the exam costs $84, High Schools with poor students who can't afford to take the exam would be under represented. So the premise that the number of students taking the exam reflects the number of children in challenging courses is wrong.

A more meaningful metric (though still flawed) is a ranking based on the ratio of students in a High School who score a 3 or better on an AP test.

It's a shame a great deal of those students "sitting" for AP tests got out of their seats after writing their names on the test and left. The system is flawed.

I think the Newsweek ranking system is completely irrelevant. Here's the one I think we should really start paying more attention to, and not to sound like an optimist, but I have a good hunch Montclair is going to score near the top.

rankings by state

From an article in today's Ledger:

"In middle-income districts, expectations for students may not be as high and money is sometimes an issue.

Bloomfield, a middle-income district in Essex County, offers nine AP courses, and about 7 percent of students take an AP exam, according to DOE data. In part, the cost is "prohibitive for some," said Bloomfield High School principal Chris Jennings."

Full article here:

http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-13/1211258147145710.xml&coll=1&thispage=1

So the rankings are then mostly about affluence?

I am sure that is part of it - my son graduated BHS last year and I shelled out over $400 between his AP tests and other AP type registration fees his senior year.

And yet McNair Academy, a public school in Jersey City (albeit a school one has to test into)scored highest.

FYI-the college board waives part of the fee for needy students and the state of NJ provides additional subsidies.
It's not all about affluence.