Florida high school students took AP classes and passed Advanced Placement exams last year in greater numbers than ever before, according to a new national report.
Florida ranked fourth in the nation, up two places from last year, based on the percentage of its 2012 graduates who had passed at least one AP exam while in high school, according to the College Board’s 9th annual “AP Report to the Nation.” Florida Governor Rick Scott attributes the success to the state’s teachers.
“Florida teachers continue to pave the way for the Sunshine State’s successes in education. With Florida high school students ranking fourth in the nation for success on AP exams, our teachers are truly demonstrating a high performance that competes and succeeds on the national scale,” Scott said.
Among last spring’s graduating class, 27.3 percent of students left with a successful AP score compared to about 24 percent for the class of 2011.
“Florida's students are clearly graduating high school better prepared for college, careers and life. We must continue to raise the bar and push student achievement to new heights,” said State Education Commissioner Tony Bennett.
Maryland, New York, and Massachusetts were the top three states for AP success. Escambia County School District Superintendent Malcom Thomas thinks equality in the classroom is what brought about the higher than expected AP scores.
“Our classrooms are the one place in our nation where equality should be unmatched. The fact that Florida is offering AP exams to more students on average than anywhere in the nation shows that our leadership, from the top down, supports the idea that all students can succeed when given the opportunity,” Thomas said.
Florida led the nation last year in the percentage of students taking an AP exam and has earned praise as student success has jumped significantly in the last decade.
You can check out the rankings here: http://www.collegeboard.org/
