College Decisions on Advanced Placement. II. An Interview Survey of Advanced Placement Policies and Practices at Sixty-Three Colleges

Author(s):

Casserly, Patricia Lund; Coffman, William E.; Peterson, Richard E.

Publication Year:

1965

Report Number:

RB-65-41

Source:

ETS Research Bulletin

Document Type:

Report

Page Count:

106

Subject/Key Words:

College Board, Advanced Placement Examinations, Educational Policy, School Policy, School Surveys, Student Placement

Abstract

This report, based on interviews with over 500 individuals at 63 colleges and universities, discusses details of institutional policy with respect to the Advanced Placement Program (AP) of the College Board; outlines the mechanics by which institutional policy is implemented; analyzes the problems of communication which in many cases prevent the development and implementation of sound policy; and assesses the overall impact of the AP on college curricula and faculty perceptions. The general picture is one of wide variability in policy, in mechanics, in communication patterns, and in impact. To some extent differences in policies and practices appear consistent with differences in institutional purposes and in characteristics of the student bodies. In significant numbers of cases, however, the observed differences in responses to the AP reflect assumptions based on misinformation or no information. A major generalization growing out of the study is that as college faculties become aware of the actual nature of the program, particularly through direct contact with AP students, their reservations diminish.

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