Videoconference AP classes open to high schoolers

Distance learning classes designed to challenge Wisconsin public high school students while saving them money and providing them with college credit still have openings for the upcoming academic year.

The courses, offered through the Wisconsin Advanced Placement Distance Learning Consortium at the UW–Madison, offer real-time classroom instruction in AP classes during regular school hours.

Registrations are still being accepted for advanced placement classes in biology, calculus, chemistry, computer science, economics, English literature, French, physics, psychology, statistics, U.S. government and U.S. history.

Students interested in the program but not yet registered for a class should consult with their high school counselors. Although students may enroll until the first day of classes next fall, they are encouraged to register prior to May 21.

More than 150 students from 19 school districts have enrolled for the classes, and additional school districts are welcome to participate, consortium officials say.

Districts currently scheduled to participate in 2004-05 include: Birchwood, Bonduel, Boyceville, Clintonville, Coleman, Crivitz, Frederic, Gillett, Lena, Marion, Mauston, Medford, Oconto, Rosholt, St. Croix Falls, Siren, Suring, Tigerton and Wittenberg-Birnamwood.

The consortium’s goal is to provide all Wisconsin high school students with access to AP courses through the use of their school’s BadgerNET videoconferencing lab.
Students who pass an AP exam through the College Board usually receive undergraduate credits and are often exempted from taking that class in college, saving them both time and money.

The classes also help students prepare for college-level work and enhance their application to competitive colleges. At UW–Madison, for example, 80 percent of this year’s freshman class arrived with AP college credits earned in high school.
The courses also allow students to gain self-confidence, explore new career interests and gain hands-on experience with videoconferencing.

To learn more about the consortium, visit www.apconsortium.wisc.edu or call Renee Nies at (608) 263-0799 or (800) 446-0399.