High-level courses attract Q.C. students

For the first time in many years, Queen Creek High School students are getting the chance to take advanced placement classes.

Queen Creek students started back to school on Wednesday, and dozens of juniors and seniors have signed up for the school's two new AP courses: AP English literature and composition, and AP biology.

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"Our ultimate goal is to give our kids the widest variety of options we can," said Queen Creek High School Principal Angela Chomokos. "Our goal is to start AP social studies next year and to keep adding AP courses each year."

The higher-level academic courses already had the AP English students spending the summer doing homework, said teacher Kate Hope, who taught the pre-AP English class last year.

The summer assignment was to read three novels, complete a reading journal for each novel and write a three-page literary analysis on one of the books. The work was to be turned in on the first day of school, and about three-quarters of Hope's students finished their assignment and did "very well." The students who didn't complete the assignment were told to take another class, she said.

"I think we're off to a good start," Hope said. "I'm very excited to get this going. I anticipate it will be very beneficial to the students on many levels. They'll learn some good study skills and analysis skills."

Hope said she was surprised when she came to the school four years ago that it didn't offer AP classes, and was also surprised the community wasn't demanding these advanced courses.

"In order to be able to compete, we've got to have AP classes," Hope said.

Chomokos, who is entering her sixth year at the school, said she believes the school offered AP classes at one time. However, when dual-enrollment classes began to be offered at the school, more students chose to take those college-credit classes and there weren't enough students to fill out the AP classes.

Also, the high school has offered AP courses in the course description book since Chomokos has been at the school. However, there weren't enough interested students to offer the classes, Chomokos said.

"I think a lot of the honors kids chose to do the safer route," she said. "When you do dual enrollment, you can get the college credit as long as you get a 'C' in the class, whereas with AP, it's based on one test (at the end of the year) and the score you get on that test. You can get college credit for that if you do good on the test (depending on the college)."

Senior Joe Cowen-Richards is taking AP biology because he plans to go to college out of state. Many out-of-state colleges do not accept dual-enrollment credits.

"So far, I really, really like the class," he said. "The class is difficult, but I feel more comfortable with the students I'm working with because I know we'll get the job done."

Queen Creek High offers several honors pre-AP courses, such as English, geometry and algebra. The school also offers dual-enrollment courses through Chandler-Gilbert and Rio Salado community colleges.

Teachers who want to teach AP courses have to attend certification seminars offered through the College Board, a national organization that governs AP classes. The board must then approve the class syllabus.

Universities across the country recognize the AP exam, which is the same regardless of what school and state the student attends.

Matt Chicci, who will teach AP biology, attended a three-day seminar where the group went through the 12 required AP laboratory experiments. The seminar also discussed teaching strategies, instructional techniques and AP exam preparation, Chicci said.

Chicci, who is also an adjunct professor at Rio Salado Community College, is in the process of getting the class certified as a dual-enrollment class through Chandler-Gilbert Community College.

"I thought it would be an awesome opportunity to offer a college-level class that is not only AP certified but also can grant the students college credit if they choose to take advantage of that," Chicci said in an e-mail.