Classroom Context: AP Access and Coursetaking

In 2010, the average NAEP U.S. history score for twelfth-graders who reported that they were either currently enrolled in or had taken an Advanced Placement (AP) course in U.S. history was 304, which was higher than the score of 284 for students who reported not taking the course. Results from the 2009 NAEP High School Transcript Study (HSTS) provide information on the extent to which students have access to an AP U.S. history course in their school and the proportion of students who complete the course. As part of the HSTS, transcripts from a representative sample of America’s public and private high school graduates are collected and analyzed to provide information about recent high school graduates. For nearly two decades, the study has informed the public about the type of courses graduates take, the number of credits they earn, and the grade point averages they receive. Results from the 2009 HSTS are based on a nationally representative sample of around 38,000 transcripts that represents approximately 3 million high school graduates from the “Class of 2009.”

For this analysis, graduates were considered to have access to an AP U.S. history course if at least one student in the school took the course or the course was listed in the school catalogue or course list. Differences in students’ access may be attributed to a number of factors, such as school enrollment.

Access

Coursetaking

Race/Ethnicity

School Minority Status

School Location

Access to an AP U.S. history course varied by the racial/ethnic composition of the schools. Those in schools with less than 10 percent Black or Hispanic students (termed “low minority”) had less access in 2009 than graduates in schools with medium concentrations or high concentrations of minority students. While there was no significant difference in access between graduates in low and high minority schools in 1990, about 66 percent of graduates in low minority schools had access compared to 90 percent in high minority schools in 2009.

Percentage of high school graduates who had access to an Advanced Placement (AP) course in U.S. history, by school minority status: 1990 and 2009

* Significantly different (p < .05) from 2009.
NOTE: Low minority = Schools with less than 10 percent minority students. Medium minority = Schools with 10 to 49 percent minority students. High minority = Schools with 50 percent or more minority students.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, High School Transcript Study (HSTS), 1990 and 2009.

See complete data (14KB XLS). Browse questionnaires for the NAEP assessments.