Supporting Effective Teaching in Tennessee: Executive Summary | Page 33

Transitioning to Higher Education
One of the clear goals of K-12 education is to prepare and
transition an ever increasing number of students into higher
education, whether that be a two-year community college or
a four-year university. For this to occur, students need to take
high school classes that prepare them for the rigors of collegelevel course work, be educated about the paths for getting into
higher education institutions, and have realistic options for
financing their higher education.
Far too many college-bound Tennesseans graduate high
school without the skills needed to excel in higher education.
For example, approximately forty percent of all Tennessee
high school graduates entering a Tennessee Board of Regents
institution had to take remedial courses, with nearly three
quarters of students enrolling in local community colleges
requiring remedial classes.58 Estimates suggest the state could
save $46 million annually if entering freshmen did not have to
take these remedial courses.59
One strategy for ensuring high school students are prepared for
college is having them enroll in college-level classes. One of the
most well-known programs for doing so is the College Board’s
Advanced Placement (AP) program. After each AP course,
students take an AP exam and, if they perform well, receive
college credit. In 2006, 67 percent of Tennessee’s public high
schools offered at least one AP course, up from 54 percent in

1996.60 Since 2002, the number of Tennessee students taking
AP exams has increased 59.8 percent while the number of AP
exams taken has increased 65.0 percent (see Figure 3.15). In
2006, 63 percent of Tennessee students taking an AP exam
scored a three or higher, a score typically considered passing
and transferable for college credit.61 This translated into 16
percent of all Tennessee’s graduating seniors taking an AP
exam in 2006, up from ten percent in 2002, and ten percent
scoring at least a three or higher, up from six percent in 2002.62
While these are significant improvements, Tennessee still
ranks behind all other Southeastern states except for Alabama,
Louisiana, and Mississippi on both these metrics.63
The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB) is
similar to the AP program in that it is an exam-based collegecredit option widely recognized by universities and colleges
across the globe. However, unlike the AP program which allows
students to take any number or combination of AP classes, the IB
program is a comprehensive two-year curriculum that requires
classes in six areas: English, foreign language, experimental
sciences, mathematics and computer science, individuals and
societies, and the arts. Additionally, IB students are required
to take a class on the theory of knowledge and conclude their
coursework by writing an extended essay on a topic of their
choosing. Currently nine high schools from seven districts in
Tennessee offer the IB Diploma Programme.64

Figure 3.15

Advanced Placement Exam Participation in Tennessee, 2002-2007
25,000
22,638

20,000

Number of Exams Taken

13,883

Number of Students Taking
at Least One AP Exam

21,259
18,388

15,000

16,432
13,722

14,729

10,000
8,688

9,239

10,368

11,542

13,176

5,000

0
2002-03

2003-04

2004-05

Source: Tennessee State Board of Education

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T h e S t a t e o f E d u c a t i o n i n T e n n e ss e e

2005-06

2006-07

2007-08