AP Students With ‘3 or Higher' Outperform Advanced Math, Physics Students Both in U.S., Abroad

New York
A College Board-commissioned study by the TIMSS International Study Center shows that Advanced Placement students who score three or higher on physics and calculus AP Exams outperform physics and advanced math students from the United States and other countries in mathematics and science achievement.
Using a representative sample of students taking AP Physics and AP Calculus courses, the new study replicates the TIMSS/Advanced Mathematics and Science Test, which was originally administered in 1995 as part of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) — then the largest, most comprehensive and rigorous international study of student achievement ever undertaken.
The results of this latest study, which was administered in May through July 2000, were compared to the 1995 results of physics and advanced mathematics students in their final year of secondary school from 18 countries: Australia, Austria, Canada, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, the Russian Federation, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States.
The 1995 TIMSS study showed that physics and advanced mathematics students from the United States lagged behind their peers from other nations in the study, a fact that caused concern in many education circles. However, only a small percentage of the students tested in 1995 indicated they were enrolled in AP Calculus or AP Physics courses.
Additional data that provide results according to gender, race and ethnicity, and subject content area are available within the complete report. A PDF file of the final results can be found online at <www.collegeboard.com> or <www.timss.org>.