Class of 2014 Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate Exam Participation and Performance. Memorandum

Beginning in 2006, Maryland has led the nation as the state with the highest percentage of graduates who earned one or more Advanced Placement (AP) exam scores of 3 or higher. Students in the Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools (MCPS) Class of 2014 continued to outperform students in the state of Maryland on AP examinations based on AP results recently released by the Maryland State Department of Education. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that MCPS graduates significantly contributed to Maryland's first-place national ranking for AP exam performance. Although MCPS 2014 graduates constituted nearly one fifth of Maryland graduates, MCPS graduates who earned a score of 3 or higher on one or more AP exams accounted for 31.3 percent of Maryland graduates with at least one AP exam score of 3 or higher. MCPS also provides the International Baccalaureate (IB) program for students at selected high schools as an option for experiencing college-level coursework and earning college credits in high school. The IB program continues to grow, and MCPS high school students demonstrate a steady increase in taking IB courses and exams. The increased participation of graduates in IB exams had a corresponding increase in the proportion of graduates who earned at least one IB exam score of 4 or higher--from 6.1 percent in 2012 to 6.6 percent in 2014. A similar trend was observed with regard to IB exam participation and performance for Asian, Black or African American graduates, and those who identified themselves as Two or More Races. The tables included in this memorandum provide data on AP and IB exam participation and performance of 2012 to 2014 public school graduates in MCPS, Maryland, and the nation. [For the 2013 report, see ED557737.]