Freshman face the challenge: Supports when taking AP classes for the first time

With the beginning of the school year, a lot of freshmen are curious about what their first AP class will be like. According to  OH Assistant Principal of Curriculum and Instruction Tania Sharp, adjusting to high school and these AP classes can be an adjustment. 

Sharp said, “Your first AP class, especially as a freshman, can be overwhelming, and you might be learning new skills.” 

Help is on the way, however, through seasoned students like seniors who have been through this process. OH senior Leila Medina said, “It was hard to manage the time and workload with all my other clubs, so I was really overwhelmed, but by the end of first semester, I got the groove of it.”

It can be stressful figuring out how to study and keep up with classwork, so here are some of the biggest pieces of advice to freshmen or other first-time AP students.

Don’t procrastinate

In a lot of AP classes, students are told about a lot of assignments, tests and due-dates at once, so it’s important to keep track of them all.

AP Human Geography teacher Mark Johnson said, “people… think they can push off, push off, push off, and then they have a ton of homework… and then they’re overwhelmed.”

To avoid this, Medina suggests that students “sit down and have a physical planner, plan out all your assignments, times, dates– I wish I did that.”

Ask for help and communicate with peers

“A lot of kids are super scared… they don’t want to ask a question, because they might look stupid, and the thing is, probably five or six other kids have the same question,” said Johnson. Seasoned AP students have learned that if they are ever confused it is important to not be scared to reach out for help.

Johnson said, “Every student that’s got a study group, they tend to do really good on tests, because they might not understand how I say it, but if you say it to your friend, they might understand it better than me.”

Use a variety of resources

Going to things like after school tutoring and support can be helpful for these courses. For example, Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesday, and Thursdays, Social Studies Department Chair Jennifer Keto, offers support for students. These opportunities can be of significant support, as one-on-one assistance gives both academic support and an opportunity to ask questions.

Another valuable resource is AP Classroom, which has official resources from the College Board, the organization that makes AP tests. Looking back at earlier units and reviews can be a major help when studying for the AP exam. 

However, grades are not the end-all, be-all in AP classes. “[O]ne bad grade isn’t going to determine… your whole course grade,” Medina said. For AP classes if students receive a C or better grade, they will receive the honors weight. 

Remember: You’ve got this

As Medina says, “Literally just take a deep breath. … just sit there and think like, this is what I want in the future, like, this is going to benefit me so much, so if you just come back to your goals and like, tell yourself that you can do it  like, you literally can.”

AP classes and exams can be stressful, but staying ahead and being prepared is the best way students can succeed in these more challenging classes.