On Jan. 10, Hillsborough County released the most recent graduation rate of 82.9 percent for the 2016-2017 school year. This was one of the largest increases in graduation rates recorded in Florida, up from 79.1 percent for the county from the previous school year
This is a huge accomplishment for Hillsborough County as it is an all time record for the district. According to the Florida Department of Education, this is the first time that the graduation rate has been above 80 percent in recent years.
“The 3.8 percentage point increase over the last year highlights the tremendous work by students, teachers and staff in Hillsborough County Public Schools,” said the district press release.
Both Hillsborough County schools and teachers have worked hard to create and environment for success.
“The [graduation rate] is actually factored now into school grades [as well as] discipline records and absentee rates. All that gets factored into administrators evaluations. I know that there has been an emphasis over the years on increasing attendance to help people graduate. I know that there has been a variety of initiatives across different schools to tap into the students that are low performers because the students who are low performers lower the school’s grade if they don’t pass their standardized tests,” said social studies teacher, Shelli Barton.
However, there must be more to the situation than that, especially concerning student success. Specifically, there seems to be a correlation between the rise in AP classes and the graduation rates of students recently.
Nearly two decades ago, Florida implemented Advanced Placement into its curriculum. Since then, thousands of students have been enrolled in these classes and taken the end of course exams in hopes for college credit even though the grades of these classes go towards the student’s high school GPA.
A common belief among many critics of the AP program is that as the program expands to include more children and becomes more popular by students, unqualified students are being placed in these classes. This can be seen in the passing rates of the most popular AP tests such as AP Language and Composition and AP U.S. History, as these tests often have the lowest passing rates.
Although this may hold some truth nationally, Florida students are doing very well on the AP exams, ranking eighth nationally among other states. As of 2016, Florida is also ranked second in the nation for high school seniors taking AP courses.
“There are two different takes on AP courses. Some teachers say you need to have the skills to be in my class. Then there’s another take, I would fall under this category. I teach tenth grade world history and for a lot of students that is their first AP course ever. I feel a responsibility with these tenth graders to bring them up to speed and the college level skills. Most of my kids are going to do well on their own, they’re going to strive to it and rise up to the occasion. Then I have about five to ten percent of my students who are absolutely not ready for AP. I feel the need to target them and help them catch up with their skills and I do see success and I do see that they get smarter in their academic skills. I do believe that [AP classes] help them,” said Barton.
Not only are students taking AP classes at a higher rate and passing them, but they are graduating at a higher rate as well thanks to the diligence of teachers and ways in which the AP program academically prepares students for success.
In a study done by Collegeboard, they found that students who scored a passing grade on their AP exam were more likely to graduate college in four years compared to the student who did not earn a passing grade. They found that this was not only linked to the student receiving credit for the class but it can also be attributed to the diligence of the student. AP classes are preparing students to not only graduate from high school which boosts the county graduation rate but also to graduate from college as well.
Lauren Johnston // Backpage Editor and Business Manager
