Spaces still available in UW-Madison advanced placement program

Space is still available for Wisconsin public high school students to enroll in a popular new advanced placement (AP) distance learning program offered through the University of Wisconsin–Madison and funded by the U.S. Department of Education.

Courses utilize a high school’s videoconferencing facilities to provide face-to-face, real-time classroom instruction with a Wisconsin certified teacher during regular school hours. A limited number of spaces are still available in AP Biology, AP Calculus, AP Chemistry, AP French, AP Physics, AP U.S. Government and AP U.S. History.

Students who are interested – but not yet registered for a course – should talk with their high school guidance counselors as soon as possible. The first enrollment deadline is Friday, May 23.

Currently 175 students from 25 high schools have enrolled so far. Participating schools include: Athens, Bayfield, Bonduel, Chippewa Falls, Clintonville, Colby, Coleman, Crivitz, Durand, Florence, Greenwood, Lena, Loyal, Marion, Medford, Mishicot, Oconto, Oconto Falls, Phillips, Prentice, Rib Lake, Rosholt, Sevastopol, Southwestern Community and Wittenberg-Birnamwood. Additional school districts are welcome to participate in this program.

The Wisconsin Advanced Placement Distance Learning Consortium is a clearinghouse for real-time AP distance education courses taught in the state. The goal of the consortium is to provide Wisconsin public high school students with access to advanced placement courses through use of their school’s BadgerNET videoconferencing studio.

Seventy percent of this year’s freshmen class arrived with AP college credits that were earned while in high school, says UW–Madison Chancellor John Wiley. Unfortunately, nearly one-quarter of Wisconsin’s public high schools cannot offer AP courses for their college-bound students. Budget constraints and sparse numbers of students who are eligible for AP coursework have been the most common reasons given for the lack of courses.

Wisconsin high school students taking these courses receive many benefits. They include:

• Saving money on college tuition by graduating from college in less than four years. Students who pass an AP exam through the College Board usually receive three undergraduate credits and are often waived from taking that course in college.
• Preparing for college by developing the study habits and skills (such as analysis, writing and exam preparation) that are vital in college.
• Enhancing their applications to competitive colleges. Admissions committees often view the successful completion of AP courses taken in high school as a benchmark for serious academic preparation.
• Developing self-confidence. Taking and successfully completing an AP course will enhance a student’s confidence in his or her ability to do well in college.
• Exploring new career interests while still in high school. Taking an AP course may assist a student in determining a career path previously not considered.
• Gaining experience communicating via two-way videoconferencing. Many employers are embracing videoconferencing as a way to conduct meetings with their remote sites. Since consortium courses are conducted using BadgerNET, students comfortable with videoconferencing will be able to transfer this skill to employment situations.

To learn more about this program, visit http://www.APConsortium.wisc.edu or call Renee Nies at the Wisconsin Advanced Placement Distance Learning Consortium hotline, (608) 263-0799 or (800) 446-0399.