By Keira Zhong
Staff Writer
Next year, students can take AP Pre-Calculus and AP Music Theory. New classes must have student interest, a teacher with a credential for the specific class and approval by the school district. Students requested courses from Jan. to Feb.
AP Pre-Calculus
This is the first year that College Board offers high school students AP Pre-Calculus nationwide.
The course, which 162 students signed up for, will replace Honors Pre-Calculus classes starting next year due to the similar topics covered.
“If students are planning to take AP Calculus, I hope AP Pre-Calculus is a good preparation for them,” Mathematics Department Chair Florence Lee said. “If they don’t, I hope this is a good experience at a college-level math class. I would like to teach the class next year but the decision hasn’t been made yet.”
The school sent a Google Form to Pre-Calculus students in Oct. that students filled out if they were interested in taking the exam. After submitting, they received a join code for the AP Classroom. Students who are taking the exam self-study using videos on AP Classroom and the Pre-Calculus textbook.
“I don’t think the transition from Honors to AP Pre-Calculus will be an issue for future students,” sophomore Kendrick Phan said. “I’m doing well in the class. Although it’s not my favorite, the structure and pacing itself are fine. However, I’m not taking the test because it’s not worth the money.”
The pacing of AP Pre-Calculus will speed up near AP testing in May and include practice for AP-type questions. The textbook will remain the same because within the book, there are chapters only the honors class focuses on.
AP Music Theory
The AP Music Theory class is waiting to be approved in late April by the School Board. The class is officially funded by Proposition 28, a funding for the arts coming from the state of California. 25 students requested to take AP Music Theory.
“I taught AP Music Theory before the pandemic at another school,” Vocal Arts Director Tammi Alderman said. “It’s a fun and different side of music, giving students a better understanding of how music is put together and how it works. If any one wants to be a songwriter or a composer this class is foundational for the next steps.”
The course provides practice for the multiple choice questions based on listening to different pieces of music, the free response questions that require composing a piece with parameters and dictation and a sight-reading section where the student records their singing.
“Since one of my extracurriculars is Brighter Side, I hope to build my singing and music theory skills,” junior Belinda Lam said. “I’ve done band in middle school and I took piano and guitar lessons when I was younger but I’ve never done music theory lessons so I want to advance my knowledge of sight-reading. I’m debating taking the AP test but it depends on whether I can handle the difficulty.”