51����

Opting to enroll in any high school Advanced Placement (AP) course requires incredible determination, intelligence, and personal drive. Of course, the rigors of these classes arrive with their own rewards. Students who earn a passing score on an AP exam can earn college credit, saving students and their families thousands of dollars on future tuition costs. However, will your AP exam scores even count? Unfortunately, if your school fails to abide by the testing guidelines set forth by the , your AP exam scores may be canceled.

Strict AP Testing Procedures

As the College Board articulates, every public and private school student opting to participate in AP exam(s) must adhere to specific and strict testing guidelines. AP administrators demand that "all students are given the same opportunity to demonstrate their abilities and to prevent any student from gaining an unfair advantage over another because of testing irregularities or improper conduct."

The full scope of exam procedures are outlined in the College Board manual for teachers and students, but specific violations include:

• Students taking an AP exam after the original date of administration
• Students taking an AP exam at a different time of day than is mandated
• Teachers "interviewing" students for test information after a student finishes his or her AP test (teachers can then use this information to unjustly provide their own students with advantages in the future)
• AP teachers looking at the actual test questions, answers, and/or processing any unauthorized test materials

These guidelines, along with

Aided by technology, more students cheat in public schools than ever before. While only 20% of students in the 1940s admitted to cheating in school, this statistic has skyrocketed to 75% of today's high school student population, according to . From cell phones and text messages to emails, cheating has found technological accomplices.

Cheating Trends

According to the , Dr. Donald McCabe, a management and global business professor at Rutgers, has found that nearly all high school students have admitted to engaging in some form of cheating. Unbelievably, 95 percent of all of McCabe's surveyed students report that they have cheated (at some point) during their educational years! Whether the cheating involved copying homework, sharing answers on a test, or using other tactics, McCabe asserts that most teens participate in these behaviors - often without getting caught.

From surveying the cheating practices of high school students for over six years, McCabe has accumulated data from 24,000 high school students in 70,000 high schools. Based on this extensive data, McCabe found that 64 percent of the students have admitted to engaging in serious test-based cheating (including copying, helping someone during a test, and using hidden notes).

Why Students Cheat

Why do such a large majority of students cheat in school? While cheating was once stereotypically confined to struggling students, today's cheaters are often the "best" students. In fact, according to The Josephson Institute, "Cheating is higher among college-bound

Although your freshman daughter or son may be intimidated by the looming hallways of high school, there are ways you can help ease their transition. With new schedules, seemingly endless course options, and extracurricular choices, upcoming freshmen need tremendous parental support as they struggle to make major decisions on a new campus.

Freshman Orientation Programs

Most public high schools provide upcoming freshmen with an orientation program. Typically hosted a few weeks before the official start of the school year, orientation programs are designed to review school policies with new students. In addition, the orientation typically allows students to tour the school, obtain their schedules, and ask specific questions regarding their upcoming year. While each public high school or district will offer its own unique agenda, a common example of a freshman orientation event can be reviewed through the (WPS) program.

Through schools located in the eastern region of Nebraska, freshmen attending a Wahoo 51���� can meet teachers, become familiar with their schedules, and ask any and all questions at an extensive orientation event each August. The orientation runs from 5 pm to 8:30 pm, including a potluck dinner, allowing new students to meet and greet their peers while parents learn more about their son or daughter's new school. Best of all, the WPS event even allows freshmen to adhere to a "mini school day schedule," where parents and students can go through the established motions and procedures of a regular class

Established nearly 60 years ago, Advanced Placement (AP) courses have allowed students across the country to earn college credit even before receiving their high school diplomas. Guided by the College Board, a non-profit organization, AP courses maintain rigorous standards while providing young students with the incredible opportunity to engage in challenging and mature coursework.

However, many parents feel that the AP pathway is simply a "hoop" through which students must jump in order to get into a good college. While students with AP courses on their transcripts tend to experience greater college acceptance rates, experts argue that there are an array of benefits that extend beyond the perks of college admissions.

This video offers an overview of AP courses.

The Advanced Placement Advantages

According to reports, over one million high school students engaged in more than two million AP tests last year. While many high school students simply take AP classes to improve their college application candidacy, there are far greater benefits to these rigorous courses.

College Credit

Colleges today are certainly seeking students with AP experience, as the AP coursework allows college admissions officers to gain greater insight into an applicant's collegiate potential. However, one of the greatest perks of AP coursework is the amount of money that can be cut from a student's tuition bill!

According to the College Board, over 90 percent of colleges and universities in the United States

With a seemingly intense focus on standardized tests and rote memorization, are public schools effectively preparing kids for the "real world" beyond high school boundaries? The answers may be troubling.

In fact, nearly 82 percent of college students report that if their secondary educational experiences had established higher standards, they would have happily exerted more rigorous efforts as students. Additionally, as the National Governors Association reveals, approximately 65 percent of current high school students desire more demanding and interesting courses.

As schools struggle to meet academic expectations while simultaneously adjusting to budget cuts, are public school students currently lacking a sound preparedness for life after graduation?

Are Tests Helping Students Gain Relevant Experience?

In an attempt to boost the performance of all public schools, federal legislation implemented the No Child Left Behind act. This act, established nearly a decade ago, mandated increased student testing in order to verify the effectiveness of each individual public school's progress and instructional practices. While this act had ideal intentions, many have realized that the initiative merely distracted students from learning, while emphasizing a new focus on testing and progress scores.

An American Diploma Project, is one of the leading programs striving to foster real-world readiness among public school students. As Achieve reveals, "To close the expectations gap and better prepare students for college and the workplace, states must first ensure that high school standards reflect the real-world skills and knowledge students need to be successful after