As AP exams get closer in May, many classes in Brophy undergo a change. For AP classes, the final months of the school year can look very different from other times throughout the semester; as teachers shift their focus towards review, testing, and minimal work following exams. Across the nation, millions of students take AP exams each year. According to The College Board, nearly 3 million students took over 5.5 million AP exams in 2024.
In her AP Government and Economics class, AP teacher Ms. Kelly Guffey knows that the change in curriculum needs to start early on.
“My AP exam is one of the first ones that’s given in May, so I have to finish the content early,” said Guffey. “We will finish the content the week after break… then we use [the final exam] as a review tool.”
Unlike many other teachers, Ms. Guffey does not focus too much on giving practice tests to prepare students for the AP exam.
“We go over content that I’ve noticed they’ve gotten questions wrong, and we review those things,” she said. “They also do quiz and test corrections.”
However, Guffey acknowledges that review periods could seem repetitive, but students stay motivated because of their objective.
“The whole point of taking an AP test is to do well on the exam,” she said. “Students have been asking me how much review we’re doing.”
Following AP exams though, the structure of classes completely changes due to many factors.
“Many students take three to six AP tests, so they’re absent for a lot of those days,” Guffey said. “For my class, there’s only about three class periods after the AP exam.”
With limited time and irregular attendance in class, the remaining lessons focus less on teaching and more on engaging activities.
“We’ll do some activities, maybe watch a documentary, and finish a project,” she said.
Many students believe that the second half of the semester is just review; however, Guffey insists otherwise.
“In social studies, we have a lot of content, so we definitely have to keep teaching,” she said.
At the end of the day, the AP class experience depends entirely on preparing for the AP test.
“It’s just good teaching to finish the class before the AP test,” Guffey said. “Otherwise, kids won’t be prepared.”
