Close
About
FAQ
Home
Collections
Login
USC Login
Register
0
Selected
Invert selection
Deselect all
Deselect all
Click here to refresh results
Click here to refresh results
USC
/
Digital Library
/
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
/
Curriculum and assessment alignment, instructional practices, and the impact on Hispanic/Latino students advanced placement exam achievement
(USC Thesis Other)
Curriculum and assessment alignment, instructional practices, and the impact on Hispanic/Latino students advanced placement exam achievement
PDF
Download
Share
Open document
Flip pages
Contact Us
Contact Us
Copy asset link
Request this asset
Transcript (if available)
Content
Running head: ADVANCED PLACEMENT IMPACT 1
Curriculum and Assessment Alignment, Instructional Practices, and the impact on
Hispanic/Latino Students Advanced Placement Exam Achievement
By
Yousef Nasouf
An Executive Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION
May 2019
Copyright 2018 Yousef Nasouf
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 2
Dedication
To my day ones and number ones, the world is full of uncertainties and chaos but my love for you
is certain and unwavering. Thank you for sacrificing for our family during the past three years so
that I can attain a doctorate degree. I appreciate your support and love, which sustained me during
the challenging parts of the journey. We did it!
To Amira, who is my little shark of the ocean! You are a smart and driven young lady and you are
full of potential. Keep striving to be the best version of you and you will make many positive
contributions to our world. You are creative and have many talents and ideas. Your personality
always makes me laugh and keeps me entertained. Daddy’s girl, always and forever! Thank you
for being the best daughter a father could ever dream of!
To Ayman, who has shown me a level of resilience that I have not encountered from anyone else.
You have been through a lot and you have never complained once. You are a brave young man and
I have learned many lessons from you. You are also compassionate and kind and you are always
trying to help others and taking care of their needs before yourself. Thank you for being the best
son a father could ever dream of!
To Elizabeth, who is the best thing that’s ever happened to me! Thank you for walking along side
with me for the last 17 years. You came into my life just at the perfect time when I needed to have
a special angel to help me overcome my previous struggles. You saved me and I will forever be
grateful and thankful for your kindness, love, and dedication to me and our relationship. Thank you
for being the best wife a husband could ever dream of!
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 3
Acknowledgements
Thank you to my committee: Dr. Helena Seli, Dr. David Cash, and Dr. Darlene Robles. Thank you
for guiding me, mentoring me, and pushing me to levels I did not know existed. I appreciate all of
the time and energy that you committed to assist me and other students to continue to contribute to
our world.
Dr. Seli, you are an amazing and patient committee chair. I appreciate your demeanor and
willingness to always support my research and dissertation. Thank you for pushing me to be the
best version of myself. I never thought I could complete a dissertation until you were able to
provide me with encouragement, support, and feedback.
Dr. Cash, I appreciated being in your course during the OCL program and learning from you. I will
never forget your consistent message of “doing the right thing” even when it might not be the
popular “thing.”
Dr. Robles, I had the honor and privilege to be in two of your courses during the OCL program. I
appreciate your passion for diversity and support for those who are marginalized and often
forgotten. You have inspired me to be vocal for those who our society is quick to ignore.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 4
Table of Contents
Dedication ........................................................................................................................................ 2
Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... 3
List of Tables ................................................................................................................................... 7
Abstract ............................................................................................................................................ 9
Introduction to the Problem of Practice ......................................................................................... 10
Organizational Context and Mission ............................................................................................. 11
Importance of Addressing the Problem ......................................................................................... 13
Organizational Performance Status ............................................................................................... 14
Organizational Performance Goal ................................................................................................. 15
Stakeholder Group of Focus and Stakeholder Goal ...................................................................... 16
Purpose of the Project and Questions ............................................................................................ 17
Methodological Approach ............................................................................................................. 18
Review of the Literature ................................................................................................................ 19
Historical Origins of the AP Program…………………………………………………………20
Government Involvement in the AP Program ........................................................................... 22
College Board Organization, Structures, and Student Achievement ......................................... 24
Hispanic/Latino Students’ Access, Enrollment, and Achievement in the AP Program………27
Implications of Advanced Placement Courses on Students ...................................................... 28
Hispanic/Latino Population and the Impacts of Educational Achievement. ............................. 29
Social, financial, and health impacts on individuals and society………………………….......31
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 5
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………..32
Advanced Placement Teacher Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational Influences…………34
Knowledge…………………………………………………………………………………….35
Motivation…………………………………………………………………………………......40
Organizational Influences…………………………………………………………………......42
Conceptual Framework: The Interaction of Advanced Placement Teachers’ Knowledge, Motivation
and the Organizational Context…………………………………………………………………..46
Participating Stakeholders: Sampling and Recruitment……………………………………….51
Interview Sampling Criteria and Rationale……………………………………………………51
Interview (Recruitment) Strategy and Rationale………………………………………………52
Documents Sampling Criteria and Rationale………………………………………………….54
Document Sampling Strategy and Rationale……………………………………………….....54
Explanation for Choices………………………………………………………………………55
Data Collection and Instrumentation………………………………………………………….....56
Interviews……………………………………………………………………………………..58
Documents and Artifacts……………………………………………………………………...59
Findings……………………………………………………………………………………….....60
Knowledge Influences…………………………………………………………………………61
Motivation Influences………..………………………………………………………………...67
Organizational Influences……………………………………………………………………...72
Document Findings…………………………………………………………………………….79
Summary of General Themes……………………………………………………………………81
Knowledge Themes……………………………………………………………………………81
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 6
Motivation Themes…………………………………………………………………………….82
Organizational Influences' Themes…………………………………………………………….83
Recommendations for Practice to Address KMO Influences…………………………………….83
Knowledge Recommendations…………………………………………………………………84
Motivation Recommendations…………………………………………………………………88
Organization Recommendations……………..………………………………………………...90
References………………………………………………………………………………………...96
Appendix A: Protocols…………….…………………………………………………………….104
Appendix B: Credibility and Trustworthiness...…………………………………………………107
Appendix C: Ethics……………………………………………………………………………...108
Appendix D: Review of the Literature Topic Sentence Outline…………………………………111
Appendix E: Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan…………………………………..119
Appendix F: Immediate Evaluation Tool……………………………………………………….132
Appendix G: Delayed Evaluation Tool………………………………………………………….134
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 7
List of Tables
Table 1: AP Courses Offered by the College Board…………………………………………….26
Table 2: Organizational Influences and Assessments for Organizational Gap Analysis………..45
Table 3: Interview Participant Comments Regarding Curriculum Alignment with the College
Board Course Description……………………………………………………………………….62
Table 4: Interview Participant Comments Regarding Instructional Strategies Incorporated Within
their Course………………………………………………………………………………………65
Table 5: Interview Participant Comments Regarding What Strategies They Use to Assess
Students and Possibly Reflect Regarding Supports within the AP Course……………………...66
Table 6: Interview Participant Comments Regarding Student Success Factors Within the AP
Course……………………………………………………………………………………………69
Table 7: Interview Participant Comments Regarding Impacting Student Achievement on AP
Exams……………………………………………………………………………………………71
Table 8: Interview Participant Comments Regarding a Culture of High Achievement at Baxter
High School……………………………………………………………………………………...74
Table 9: Interview Participant Comments Regarding a Culture of Professional Development at
Baxter High School……………………………………………………………………………...76
Table 10: Interview Participant Comments Regarding Implementation of Professional
Development Trainings Within their AP Course………………………………………………..77
Table 11: Interview Participant Comments Regarding Goal Setting Within the AP Course…...78
Table 12: Summary of Knowledge Influences and Recommendations…………………………84
Table 13: Summary of Motivation Influences and Recommendations………………………….88
Table 14: Summary of Organization Influences and Recommendations………………………..91
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 8
Table 15: Outcomes, Metrics, and Methods for External and Internal Outcomes……………..120
Table 16: Critical Behaviors, Metrics, Methods, and Timing for Evaluation………………….122
Table 17: Required Drivers to Support Critical Behaviors…………………………………….123
Table 18: Evaluation of the Components of Learning for the Program………………………..127
Table 19: Components to Measure Reactions to the Program…………………………………128
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 9
Abstract
College admission is a crucial determinant in a student’s future outcomes. There are many life-
long implications for individuals and society that evolve based on student academic
achievement. The implications include financial, health, social, and academic factors.
Advanced Placement (AP) participation and success results have been used for many years to
assess prospective student’s college readiness and admissions eligibility. Nationally,
Hispanic/Latino students have underperformed their majority classmates on AP exams. The
purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the performance gap that exists for
the Hispanic/Latino student AP exam achievement at an urban high school, serving primarily
Hispanic/Latino students and to evaluate the AP teachers’ knowledge, motivation, and
organizational influences in their impact to effectively provide the students with an aligned
curriculum and instructional strategies to succeeded on AP exams. The study utilized qualitative
methods for data gathering and analysis to understand the assumed performance dynamics. Nine
interviews and a document analysis of five syllabi were conducted. The findings highlight
several areas to address for the AP teachers and for the high school. Based on the findings and
literature review, the study recommends several possible solutions that can guide the AP teachers
and the high school to achieve the stakeholder goal and the organizational goal.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 10
Introduction to the Problem of Practice
The Advanced Placement (AP) program was introduced in the 1950s to give students the
opportunity to engage in a rigorous college level curriculum while they were enrolled in high
school. Klopfenstein and Thomas (2009) stated that the AP program was designed to support
high school students in achieving college credit. As the years progressed and the program
expanded, Latino students began to fall behind and an AP achievement gap developed. Lambie
and Ohert (2009) asserted that Latino and African-American students were under-represented
nationwide and those who were enrolled in AP classes scored much lower than White students.
Minority students had less access to AP courses, lower enrollment, and lower pass rates
(Cisneros, Gomez, Powers, Holloway-Libell, & Corley, 2014). This is a crucial problem for
Hispanic/Latino students for several reasons. The first major impact is related to college
acceptance and performance. Colleges and universities rely heavily on AP participation and pass
rates in their acceptance criteria. Klopfenstein and Thomas (2009) declared that AP course
participation has become a primary method to identify high achieving students in a competitive
college admissions process. Once enrolled, students who achieved a score of three or higher on
an AP exam earn higher GPAs, display strong performance in subsequent college courses, take
more courses in the discipline, are more likely to graduate within five years, and have higher
graduation rates (College Board, 2014).
Another factor that impacts Hispanic/Latino students are the ramifications post college.
Lack of a postsecondary education typically excludes citizens out of the middle class, reduces
their engagement in the democratic process, and increases physical and mental health problem
(Theokas & Saaris, 2013). Finally, Hispanic/Latino students performing at higher levels through
access to AP classes and a college education is important for America because minorities are
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 11
projected to have a higher population than Whites by 2060. Colby and Ortman (2015)
articulated that the United States census projects that minorities will be 56.4% of the population
in 2060 from 37.8% in 2014 while the White population will decrease from 62.2% in 2014 to
43.6% in 2060.
Organizational Context and Mission
Baxter High School (pseudonym) is a comprehensive high school in the Apple Unified
School District (pseudonym). The district serves thousands of students in several neighboring
cities, and has various programs and campuses. Baxter High School is a comprehensive school
comprised of students in grades nine through twelve. The gender breakdown of the school is
52% female and 48% male and the student population is predominately Hispanic/Latino. Baxter
High School also serves many Special Education students in various designations. The special
education program is comprehensive and serves the needs of students with various disabilities.
English learners are another large group represented in the student population.
Socioeconomically disadvantaged students are a majority population consisting of over 80%.
Baxter High School is a school-wide Title I school and receives federal funding to support the
students who make up the designation.
Baxter High School has many programs that aim to create a comprehensive school that
meets the needs of all of the different student populations and aims to support academic
achievement. Parent groups include the PTSA (Parent, Teacher, Student Association), ELAC
(English Learner Advisory Committee, SSC (School Site Council), Band Boosters, and Football
Boosters. Academic programs include IB (International Baccalaureate), AP (Advanced
Placement), ROP (Regional Occupational Program), CTE (Career Technical Education), and a
technology academy. Baxter High School also has intervention programs that are coordinated to
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 12
support students academically and socially. Baxter High School attempts to educate and address
the needs of the “whole” student.
Student achievement results have varied over the years. The following figures are the
most current results, which include 2017 and 2018. The A-G rates, which indicate college
readiness, are 47%. The graduation rate is 89%. The pass rate for the IB exams is 30% with 10
students receiving an IB Diploma out of a total of 30 candidates. The AP program has seventeen
course offerings, 548 exams attempted, and a 39% pass rate. The Smarter Balanced Assessment
Consortium (SBAC) results for English are 25% exceeded standard, 44% met standard, 21%
nearly met standard, and 11% did not meet standard. In Math, the results were 4% exceeded
standard, 23% met standard, 31% nearly met standard, and 41% did not meet standard.
Baxter High School has gone through a vast amount of change during the last fifteen
years. The campus has been through a lot of turmoil, which has negatively impacted many
aspects of the organization. The issues range in severity and in context. The deficits that exist at
Baxter High School include curriculum alignment, instructional focus, student discipline, student
engagement in school activities, staff morale, staff turnover, parent engagement, and a variety of
other structures and systems. The school has also endured three phases of a 35 million dollar
construction project, which made half of the campus a construction site. This created a difficult
environment for the students and staff because they had to use temporary classrooms that were
not in the best condition. Overall, the school has been in a very challenging phase and a lot of
changes need to occur to support the students, staff, and to comply with various local, state, and
federal mandates and accountability measures.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 13
Importance of Addressing the Problem
The problem of Hispanic/Latino students at Baxter High School passing AP exams at low
rates is important to solve for various reasons. The passing of an AP exam has positive
implications for various stakeholders. The Hispanic/Latino students at Baxter High School, and
society will benefit tremendously from successfully passing AP tests. Ndura, Robinson and
Ochs (2003) stated that society will benefit from minority students participating in higher-level
courses, including AP courses and tapping this human resource will also be beneficial for the
individual students involved. Baxter High School aims to prepare all students during their high
school experience for a successful future by ensuring that they are college and career ready.
Students who pass AP exams progress toward success by being able to graduate college sooner
when they pass the exams during high school. Students who are successful in completing AP
courses at Baxter High School can graduate college in a shorter period than students who do not
attempt AP classes. Moore and Slate (2008) stated that students graduate in four years or less
when they complete two or more AP classes. The rigor of AP courses also prepares students for
the level that they will encounter in college (Morgan & Klaric, 2007). This is beneficial for the
students and universities as the students will bypass entry level classes and will be prepared to
successfully pass college level courses and attain their degree (Moore & Slate, 2008). Baxter
High School strives to prepare students for college and careers and improving the AP exam pass
rates can serve as a strong element of attaining that goal.
Baxter High School can be negatively impacted if the organizational goal is not reached
by the spring of 2019. The school can face various state and federal consequences such as being
negatively labeled and possibly taken over by the state of California and the local county office
of education if the students perform poorly on the AP exams for a sustained duration. The state
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 14
of California has created a new school accountability system called the Dashboard to evaluate
schools. Student AP exam success rates are weighted in this new accountability system under
the career readiness indicator. The state published rankings to the public on December 8, 2017.
Baxter High School achieved the following results on the career readiness indicator: 49.6%
prepared, 36.6% approaching prepared, and 13.7% not prepared. This indicator will be crucial
for Baxter High School to improve for several reasons. The state of California will place schools
in “Technical assistance” if they earn two red performance indicators on the Dashboard. Being
identified by the state as a school in need of “technical assistance” leads to mandates that could
force the school to implement a specific external program to improve performance. There are
many families who are currently transferring to neighboring schools and districts due to the low
rankings on the previous accountability system and will be considering these new results. If the
student achievement levels do not improve, the pattern of transfers will continue or rise and a
negative school reputation will most likely continue.
Organizational Performance Status
The organizational performance problem at the root of this study is the low exam pass
rates for students who are enrolled in AP courses at Baxter High School. Prior to 2016, the
school also had an access gap, which did not provide students with the opportunity to participate
in the AP program. The current AP course offerings of seventeen courses have been expanded
from seven courses, which was very low for a comprehensive high school. This created an
opportunity gap, as students did not have the appropriate level of options to adequately compete
with students in neighboring high schools that typically offer double the amount of AP courses.
The total number of students who participated in the AP program in 2016 was 310. The
expansion of the course offerings is connected to the pass rates because a lot of the teachers did
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 15
not have previous AP teaching experience and the students enrolled in these rigorous courses for
the first time. The primary gap currently is that the students enrolled in AP classes pass the
exams at a very low rate compared to the state and global averages in mean scaled scores and
percentage pass rate as indicated by a score of three or higher. The current AP pass rate for all
exams at Baxter High School is 39% and the mean score is 2.07. The pass rate for California is
59%, United States 59%, and globally 59% (College Board, 2016). The mean score for
California is 2.91, United States 2.89, and Globally 2.87 (College Board, 2016). These results do
not align with the organizations mission of providing access to a quality education and
supporting learning for success. Failure to improve the pass rates will have significant
ramifications in the future. To avoid federal, state, and community consequences, Baxter High
School will need to address the current performance gap in AP pass rates and mean scores.
Organizational Performance Goal
Baxter High School’s goal is to improve the pass rates on Advanced Placement exams to
50% by July 2020 for all students enrolled in the courses during the 19-20 school year. By
meeting this goal, the pass rates will improve 11% from 39% to 50%. The intention was to set a
goal that is attainable and also addressed the need for the students to be successful in these AP
courses, which will eventually have a positive impact on their high school education, college
acceptance, and college graduation. The superintendent and the school board have specific goals
in the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) to improve student achievement in higher-
level classes. At Baxter High School, the LCAP plan is monitored and aligned to the local
school plan to ensure calibration. The school sets a goal that is attainable and also addresses the
need for the students to be successful in AP courses, which will eventually have a positive
impact on their high school education, college acceptance, and college graduation. If the
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 16
students are not successful, they risk not attending college and not being able to successfully
compete with other students who completed AP courses successfully. Various measures will be
used to track the performance of the goal. First, the amount of total students who enroll in AP
courses will be measured. Baxter High School will also measure the percentage of enrolled
students compared to the students who achieved a sufficient score on the PSAT indicating AP
readiness. There are six-week progress reports and semester grades that will be analyzed to track
how the students are progressing throughout the year. Finally, the official College Board results
are released in the month of July, which will be analyzed to track the goal.
Stakeholder Group of Focus and Stakeholder Goal
While the contributions of all stakeholders will impact the achievement of the overall
organizational goal to improve AP pass rates to 50% or higher by July, 2019, for practical
purposes, only one stakeholder group will serve as the focus of this study. This group consists of
twenty-one teachers who vary in educational experience and tenure at Baxter High School. Most
of these teachers teach a few AP courses and various college preparatory courses. It is the goal
of Baxter High School that by July 2019, the Advanced Placement teachers will achieve 100%
alignment with the College Board course description as measured by common course guides.
Baxter High School has not required the AP teachers to align their curriculum to the College
Board course description thus they have not made curriculum alignment a central focus area
within their courses. Many of the AP course are new at Baxter High School and the focus for the
AP teachers has been on attending trainings and figuring out how to balance the various aspects
of the course such as curriculum, instruction, assessments, and interventions. This wide scope of
focus has placed the AP teachers in a challenging dynamic of attempting to include many
important course elements concurrently. The AP teachers see the students on a daily basis and
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 17
are responsible for delivering the curriculum using a variety of instructional strategies. If the
alignment of the AP teachers’ curriculum is not addressed, the organizational goal will be
extremely difficult to achieve. The students would encounter content on the AP exam that is
misaligned to the content that was covered in their class. Various measures can be used to track
the goal. Common course assessments can be compared to examine how the students performed
which can give an indication regarding how closely the curriculum was aligned. Using the
proper curriculum is fundamental to the students being successful on the AP exams. The AP
teachers will have the primary responsibility of aligning and delivering the curriculum to the
students. If the teachers do not achieve the stakeholder goal, the organizational goal will also not
be achieved and a performance gap will persist.
Purpose of the Project and Questions
The purpose of this project was to conduct a gap analysis to examine the root causes of
2017 academic year 39% Advanced Placement (AP) exam pass rates for students at Baxter High
School and why the results are below the state average of 59% and the global average of 59%.
This analysis was focused on the causes for this problem and focused on the possible gaps in
knowledge, motivation, and organizational structures (Clark & Estes, 2008). The analysis began
by examining a list of assumed influences and examined their impact on the problem of practice.
While a complete gap analysis would focus on a larger group of AP teachers, for practical
purposes the stakeholders who were the focus in this analysis are the AP teachers at Baxter High
School. The study will be presented as an executive dissertation.
As such, the questions that guided this study are the following:
1. To what extent is Baxter High School achieving its goal of 50% pass rate on AP
exams?
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 18
2. What is Baxter High School AP teacher’s knowledge and motivation in relation to
aligning curriculum, instructional strategies, and assessments with the College Board
Framework?
3. What is the interaction between Baxter High Schools’ culture and context and AP
teachers’ knowledge and motivation related to 100% alignment of the curriculum,
instructional strategies, and assessments with the College Board Framework?
4. What are the recommendations for Baxter High School organizational practice in the
areas of knowledge, motivation, and organizational resources related to achieving
100% alignment with the College Board framework.
Methodological Approach
In order to analyze the stakeholder knowledge, motivation, and organizational assumed
influences, a qualitative research methodology was used. The Clark and Estes (2008) framework
was the primary framework that was used throughout this study. This framework provides a
systemic gap analysis method that was used to understand the organizational goal and examined
the gaps in actual performance. Creswell (2014) identified three approaches to research, which
include qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods. Qualitative research was used as the
approach to understand the problem of practice within this study. Creswell (2014) stated that
qualitative research explores and attempts to understand the meaning a group or individuals
create to understand meaning to a human or social problem. Qualitative research seeks to answer
crucial questions and has three important characteristics such as naturalistic, descriptive, and
focused on meaning and explanation (McEwan & McEwan, 2003). This research approach was
appropriate for this study because it was important to be in the natural environment, descriptive
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 19
words will be used to record what is observed, and there will be a focus to explaining and
interpreting what is observed and heard (McEwan & McEwan, 2003).
Research design is also crucial once the method is selected (Creswell, 2014). The
direction of the study provides clarity for the researcher. Creswell (2014) stated that there are
various qualitative research designs including narrative, phenomenology, grounded theory,
ethnographies, and case study. The most appropriate design for this study was a case study
because it provided the opportunity to deeply asses a program, process of one or more
individuals and allows the researcher to collect data over a sustained period of time (Creswell,
2014). During this research study, descriptive questions were used to develop an understanding
of what is happening in the AP classrooms and how that impacts the AP exam pass rates. Within
research questions, six common methods exist to collect the data including tests, questionnaires,
interviews, focus groups, observations, constructed and secondary or existing data (Johnson &
Christensen, 2014). For this study, the primary methods that were used to collect data were
interviews, and documents and artifacts.
Review of the Literature
Equity and quality are two concerns in many schools for Hispanic/Latino students that
policymakers, educators, and researchers have been attempting to improve for many years
(Hallett & Venegas, 2011). One way to address these two dynamics has been through the AP
program in which students take college level courses while in high school and earn college credit
(Kolluri, 2018). While an effort to improve equity and quality has been a focus for educators,
policymakers, and researchers, Hispanic/Latino students continue to perform at lower levels than
Asian and White students (Klopfenstein, 2004; Solorzano & Orneles 2004). Failure to address
this performance gap and elevate minority students’ performance can lead to negative economic,
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 20
social, and health implications for Hispanic/Latino students and society as this population is
growing in large numbers throughout the nation (Colby & Ortman, 2015; Oreopoulos &
Salvanes, 2011).
This literature review examines causes of the performance gap of Hispanic/Latino
students accessing and successfully passing Advanced Placement (AP) exams and is divided into
several categories to provide a comprehensive understanding of the relevant literature as it
pertains to the performance gap of the problem of practice. The review begins with the general
historical origins of the Advanced Placement program. The second category examined is the
government involvement and how that impacted the program. The College Board philosophy
will be examined to provide a foundational understanding of the program and its intent. Next,
literature will be reviewed regarding access, enrollment, and pass rates for minority students in
relation to AP courses. Another category of the review will focus on the impact of AP courses in
relation to the college acceptance process and how that impacts students. As students enroll in
colleges, the literature will be examined to highlight how students are impacted based on their
AP experience while attending high school, and how students are impacted post college in areas
of health, income, and social participations. Finally, the review will focus on the Clark and
Estes’ gap analysis model to examine the motivation, knowledge, and organizational influences
on the stakeholders’ ability to increase AP participation rates and exam pass rates. Appendix A
contains a topic sentence outline, which provides a broad summary of the related main concepts
within the literature examined for this study.
Historical Origins of the AP Program
Advanced Placement courses have become a critical component of the American
educational system, expanding well beyond a program intended for elite private schools into a
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 21
global program that is available in a variety of public school and private schools (Sadler, 2010).
In the initial stages, the drive to provide students with a college experience during high school
was provided by the Ford Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation (Lacy, 2010). The Ford
Foundation for the Advancement of Education sponsored a study with three private high schools
along with Harvard, Princeton, and Yale to examine the issue (Nugent & Karnes, 2002). During
this period, Kenyon College was also conducting a project internally with the faculty to create
entry-level courses that could form the bases for advanced placement courses (Nugent & Karnes,
2002). Throughout the work of these organizations and for the desire to provide gifted students
with the opportunity to have a bridge between secondary education and college education, the
Advanced Placement Program was established. Warne, Larsen, Anderson and Odasso (2015)
stated that the Advanced Placement program was established in 1952 by the College Board to
meet the needs of high achieving students and to provide them with the opportunity to earn
college credit upon passing an end of course exam. The program started out on a small scale and
has grown over the years to become one of the main vehicles for high achieving students to
challenge themselves while enrolled in high school.
The first year that the AP exams were administered was in 1956. During the first year,
104 schools participated, 1229 students took an exam, the total exams taken was 2199, and 130
colleges were involved with the program (College Board, 2018). Throughout the proceeding
decades, the program grew each year in each of the four categories previously mentioned. The
2017 data is the most current and highlights the tremendous growth of the AP program. During
the 2017 school year, 22,169 schools offered AP courses, 2,826,068 million students took an AP
exam, the total exams taken was 5,129,304 million, and 4221 colleges were involved in the
program (College Board, 2018). Another aspect of growth is the course offerings that are
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 22
available for the students. The program began with a small number of courses and currently
offers 38 courses in seven different topics (College Board, 2018).
While the overall AP program has experienced a tremendous level of growth during the
past 61 years, Hispanic/Latino students struggled with gaining access initially and being
successful on the exams currently. Lambie and Ohert (2009) stated that Latino and African-
American students are under-represented nationwide and those who are enrolled in AP classes
score much lower than White students. The most current data published in the summer of 2017
indicates that this achievement gap continues to persist. Hispanic/Latino students had a mean
score of 2.39 on all exams compared to 3.25 for Asian students, and 3.02 for White students, and
score below the overall population score of 2.84 (College Board, 2018). This achievement gap
has many consequences that will be examined throughout this literature review and the overall
research study.
Government Involvement in the AP Program
The federal government has been involved in various initiatives regarding education as
early as 1893 when the Committee of Ten proposed a college preparatory track for all students
(Ndura, Robinson, & Ochs, 2003). During the 1980s a variety of reports, including the famous
A Nation At Risk, were issued, articulating the need for high school students to be engaged in a
rigorous program to prepare the United States to compete globally (Ndura et al., 2003). In 1989,
the 50 American governors and former President George H.W. Bush created the national goals
for education for the first time in America’s history (Scafidi, Clark, & Swinton, 2015). The
initiative was given the name “Goals 2000” and had a variety of goals. Scafidi et al. (2015)
stated that the initiative identified a few goals including students in grades four, eight, and twelve
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 23
having demonstrated competency in rigorous subjects and a specific goal listed was the number
of students in Advanced Placement courses.
The government’s support for academic rigor and specifically for the Advanced
Placement program was primarily an effort to provide students with rigorous options, however,
there was also a focus on providing marginalized students with the option to compete on a level
platform. Hertberg-Davis, Callahan and Kyburg (2006) stated that the federal government
endorsed AP courses in an effort to elevate diversity in higher education by allocating $3 million
to support these courses beginning in 1998. The core goal of this federal initiative was to
increase the participation of minority and low-income students in the AP program by subsidizing
the AP exam fees (Hertberg-Davis et al., 2006). The United States Department of Education
(2018) funds the program through section 1706(d)(3) of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB).
The latest figures published are for the year 2014. The net awards for 2014 were $28,483,000
for the forty-two participating states with the awards ranging from $4,604-$10,736,965, with an
average of $678,167 per award (The US Department of Education, 2018). This translates into
low-income students paying $15 per exam compared to the full cost of $94 per exam.
State governments have also been a contributing factor in the AP program. The state of
California has been involved in attempting to increase opportunities for minority students as data
continues to illustrate that a gap persists. Zarate and Pachon (2006) detailed analysis by the
researchers of the Tomas Rivera Institute (TRPI) regarding AP courses in California public
schools which concluded that AP courses do offer students the opportunity to access rigorous
content, however, the program was not available to all students in the state of California. Instead
of providing access, the AP courses were referred to as a “sorting mechanism” that limits the
opportunities for some groups to prepare for college (Zarate & Pachon, 2006). Solorzano and
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 24
Ornelas (2004) examined race and AP through the lens of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and
discovered troubling signs impacting minorities, specifically the disproportionate number of
minority students as a percentage of the population compared to minority students accessing AP
courses. Due to this disproportionality in California, two court cases emerged, the first is Daniel
et al. v. State of California (1999) and the second was Casteaneda et al. v. University of
California Regents (1999) (Solrzano & Ornelas, 2004). The Daniel case resulted in a settlement
of $30 million by the California legislature to expand the AP program (Santoli, 2002). The
settlement provided funds to support lower income students to access the AP exams through
reduced fees. California continues to provides funds ($10,736,965) to support low-income
students through fee waivers and has explicitly stated in the educational code (51228 (a)) that
school districts shall offer students a course of study that will fulfill the requirements for
admission to a California public institution which would include the access to advanced
placement courses.
College Board Organization, Structures, and Student Achievement
The College Board oversees the Advanced Placement program and has established
criteria and philosophies to guide the program and to provide schools and students with a clear
understanding of their expectations. The College Board encourages schools to provide equitable
access as a guiding principle while eliminating barriers to entry with the belief that students
deserve the opportunity to participate in a rigorous program and courses (Moore & Slate, 2008).
Schools are encouraged to consider the diversity within their AP courses and allow access. The
College Board’s philosophy is that all students are capable of successfully attempting an AP
course. Advanced Placement is not a special set of courses for higher performing students,
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 25
instead it is a comprehensive program for students, including minority students, to complete
college level work while in high school (Dougherty & Mellor, 2006).
To ensure consistency amongst schools, the College Board has established common
expectations. The College Board organizes workshops and conferences, course guidelines,
publishes sample exams, and reviews course offerings (Santoli, 2002). Furthermore, the College
Board provides detailed set of expectations regarding what is considered college level within
each course and expects the AP teachers to develop and submit a syllabus with these standards in
mind, which is processed through the AP Course Audit. To ensure that the students receive a
high level of instruction, the College Board makes recommendations regarding teacher
preparation. AP teachers should be experienced and have a degree in the course that they are
teaching (Klopfenstein, 2003). The College Board has a specific philosophy and expectations
that have been shared with schools to ensure alignment and equity throughout all stakeholders.
The College Board offers 38 courses and exams in seven subject areas. The exams are
scored through a five-scale system by college professors and experienced AP teachers and many
universities award college credit for scores of three or higher (College Board, 2018). The AP
courses and exams are designed by a committee made up of experienced AP teachers and college
faculty which determine the general content, the requirements for course syllabi, and write the
review course and exam questions (College Board, 2018). The exams have a fee component of
$94 per exam with fee waivers available for low-income students, occur annually in May and are
administered throughout thousands of high schools. Table I illustrates the various course
offerings available to students.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 26
Table 1
AP Courses Offered by the College Board
Arts English History and Social
Sciences
Interdisciplinary Math and
Computer
Science
Sciences World
Languages
and Cultures
1) Art
History
2)
Music
Theory
3)
Studio
Art: 2-D
Design
4)
Studio
Art: 3-D
Design
5)
Drawing
1) English
Language
and
Composition
2) English
Literature
and
Composition
1) Comparative
Government and
Politics
2) European
History
3) Human
Geography
4)
Macroeconomics
5)
Microeconomics
6) Psychology
7) United States
Government and
Politics
8) United States
History
9) World
History
1) AP
Research
2) AP
Seminar
1)
Calculus
AB
2)
Calculus
BC
3)
Computer
Science
A
4)
Computer
Science
Principles
5)
Statistics
1) Biology
2) Chemistry
3)
Environmental
Science
4) Physics C:
Electricity and
magnetism
5) Physics C:
Mechanics
6) Physics 1:
Algebra-
Based
7) Physics 2:
Algebra-
Based
1)
Chinese
Language
and
Culture
2) French
Language
and
Culture
3)
German
Language
and
Culture
4) Italian
Language
and
Culture
5)
Japanese
Language
and
Culture
6) Latin
7)
Spanish
Language
and
Culture
8)
Spanish
Literature
and
Culture
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 27
Student participation and achievement on the AP exams has fluctuated over the past 61
years. During the past ten years, there has been a 70% increase in the number of graduates who
have taken an AP exam and the number of scores of three or higher has increased to from 57.7%
to 59% for the graduates of the class of 2018. During the May 2018 exam administration,
2,808,990 students in various grade levels took 5,090,324 exams with a total mean score of 2.89
(College Board, 2018). According to the College Board (2018) the percentage distribution for
each score category was the following, 5(14.2%) – 721,962 students, 4(19.9%) – 1,014,499
students, 3(24.9%) - 1,266,167 students, 2(23.1%) - 1,177,295 students, 1(17.9%) – 910,401
students. The overall population “pass rate” which is considered a score of 3 or above is 59%.
Hispanic/Latino Students’ Access, Enrollment, and Achievement in the AP Program
The educational priorities throughout the nation have shifted to emphasize college and
career readiness. National goals have evolved beyond the focus on reducing student dropouts
and instead the focus has shifted to raising the percentage of high school graduates who are
prepared for college or a career (Royster & Gross, 2015). Various methods exist to aide students
to become college and career ready including access to and successfully completing AP courses,
however, these courses are not universally accessible to all students. Royster and Gross (2015)
highlighted that even when a student possesses the ability and desire to engage in rigorous course
work, many schools do not have the capacity to offer such work and only 50% of public schools
offer AP courses. Wright, Ford and Young (2017) argued that the lack of access for minority
students limits their opportunity and is a direct reflection of historical and contemporary
segregation. The national enrollment for Hispanic/Latino students is 25% and the enrollment in
higher-level classes is 16%, which illustrates a 36% under representation (Wright et al., 2013).
Beyond the specific scope of the educational system, Hispanic/Latino students face barriers that
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 28
pose various challenges. Hispanic/Latino students are not privy to information regarding the
unwritten rules of education that would connect them to college resources and often end up in
lower level courses because they are not aware of the pre-requisites that are necessary to enroll in
AP classes (Welton & Martinez, 2014). If Hispanic/Latino students are able to navigate the
educational system and gain access to AP courses, they have not been able to achieve at the
levels of other majority populations and a gap continues to persist. During the May 2017
administration, Hispanic/Latino students achieved a score of 3 or higher at a rate of 42% while
Asian students achieved 69%, White students achieved 62%, and the overall population of
students achieved 61% (College Board, 2018).
Implications of Advanced Placement Courses on Students
There are many positive benefits for students who attempt and complete AP courses. The
students benefit while in high school, during the admissions process, while in college, and after
they graduate from college. Morgan and Slate (2007) stated that after controlling for SAT
scores, students who take AP exams have higher grades in intermediate courses and improve
their probability of graduating than their non-AP counterparts. The college admissions process
has become extremely competitive and complex throughout the nation. College admissions
officers look positively upon students who have AP course experience and most schools reward
college credits when a student earns a passing score on the AP exams (Klopfenstein, 2003).
Colleges use different criteria to evaluate students and make admissions decisions. Klopfenstein
(2009) stated that a survey of 962 four-year colleges showed that AP experience is considered in
five out of the top six admissions criteria. To ensure that they remain competitive for the college
admissions process and entry, students are attempting AP courses and participating in the exams.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 29
Once students begin their college experience, their preparation in high school impacts
their success rates in college. Students who complete an AP course are more prepared for the
rigors of college level work when they pass AP exams (Moore, Slate, 2008). As they progress in
their college tenure, students who have completed AP courses perform at higher levels. Studies
have found that students who completed one or more AP courses were more likely than their
counterparts to maintain a B average, complete more course work in their AP subject, and
graduate with honors (Morgan & Klaric, 2007). The amount of time that a student spends
completing their degree is also impacted by their AP participation. Moore and Slate (2008) have
found that 61% of students who attempted two or more AP courses and 45% who attempted one
AP course are graduating with a degree in four years. Completing AP courses in high school
also impacts students while they are at the college level. Students save money on college tuition
by successfully passing AP exams and also benefit by not having to take courses that they
already mastered (Santoli, 2008).
Hispanic/Latino Population and the Impacts of Educational Achievement
The Hispanic/Latino population has been growing for many years. During the 2014
census, the Hispanic/Latino population was 17.4% and is projected to grow to 28.6% of the
population by 2060 representing a 114.85% growth rate and the third fastest group growth rate
following two or more races and Asians (Colby & Ortman, 2015). During this same timeframe,
the majority White population is projected to decrease from 62.2% of the population to 43.6% of
the population representing an 8.2% decline (Colby & Ortman, 2015). In California, the
Hispanic/Latino population surpassed the White population as the largest group in the state in
2014, however, Hispanic/Latino students have been the largest ethnic group in K-12 public
school for two decades and currently is 51% of the population compared to 28% of the K-12
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 30
population for White students (Education Trust, 2017). This data and future projections are
important for policy makers and educators because the future of America and California will be
greatly shaped by the surging Hispanic/Latino population (Education Trust, 2017).
While the Hispanic/Latino population data is clearly growing, the academic achievement
rates of this population have faced many obstacles outside of the AP exam achievement rates as
outlined previously. At the K-12 level, Sciarra and Whitson (2007) asserted that Hispanic/Latino
students are overrepresented in special education and underrepresented in college preparatory
and AP courses. Preparation for AP classes has implications on student outcomes in AP classes.
Hispanic/Latino students tend to begin AP classes with less academic preparation and lower
student skills than White students (Klopfenstein, 2003). Access to qualified teachers is an
important variable for student success. Hispanic/Latino students typically have under qualified
teachers (teachers who lack a major or minor in the field they are teaching) and they typically
teach in high-poverty schools (Sciarra & Whitson, 2007). At the college level, Nicholas (2017)
highlighted a concerning achievement gap, Hispanic/Latino students have gained greater access
to college, however, they still have a bachelor’s degree gap of 25 percentage points compared to
Whites (43.7% vs. 17.8%). The college graduation rate for Hispanic/Latino students has
improved to 53.6% but it still trails the 63.3% rate of White students (Nicholas, 2017). There
could be many reasons for this achievement gap and a vast amount of the reasons begin when
Hispanics/Latinos are young. Nicholas (2017) argued that the degree rates are partly a result of
systemic disadvantages including less access to a high-quality pre-school, Hispanics/Latinos are
more likely to be English learners, low income, attend schools with fewer resources, have less
experienced teachers, and classmates with a higher percentage of low-income status. The data
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 31
combination of a surging population and a population achieving at lower levels than other ethnic
groups will lead to many implications for the individuals specifically and for society generally.
Social, Financial, and Health Impacts on Individuals and Society
Attaining a college degree has a substantial amount of financial and non-financial
benefits. The financial benefits of attaining a higher education are substantial on many measures
including economic well being and career opportunities, job satisfaction, and full time
employment, which has led to the disparity between college graduates and those with a high
school diploma at the greatest levels it has ever been in the modern era (Taylor, Fry & Oates,
2014). While there is a large focus on the financial benefits of higher education, there are also
other valuable non-financial benefits. Oreopoulos and Salvanes (2011) detailed a variety of non-
financial returns associated with higher education including occupational prestige, the reduction
of the likelihood of being on welfare or unemployed, improved success in the marriage market,
better health, happier marriages, more successful children, long-term thinking, and civic
participation.
The financial data regarding the benefits of college are clear and substantial and the
college premium continues to expand. During a 40-year career, high school graduates have
lifetime earnings of $1.3 million while college graduates have lifetime earnings of $2.3 million,
which amounts to a 74% premium (Carnevale, Rose, & Cheah, 2013). The college premium has
expanded over the years and grew from 43% in 1971 to 56% in 1991 to 70% in 2011 for women
and 25% in 1971 to 56% in 1991 to 69% in 2011 for men (Baum, Ma, & Payea, 2013). Baum et
al. (2013) highlighted the individual benefits of higher education and the advantage that college
graduates gain over high school graduates including earnings, employment, job satisfaction,
social mobility, pension plans, and health insurance. College graduates also impact society and
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 32
their local, state, and federal governments through higher tax revenues, and lower reliance on
government support programs. In 2011, 2% of college graduates lived in households that used
SNAP (Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program) compared to 12% for high school
graduates (Baum et al., 2013).
The non-financial benefits of higher education are not as clear as the financial benefits,
however, they have many positive impacts on individuals and society. Oreopoulos and Salvanes
(2011) stated that non-financial benefits of higher education include better health, lower divorce
rates, less abuse of children and better parenting, having trust in others, having a long term view,
delaying child birth, lower arrest rates, and smoking less. College graduates are also more
civically engaged in their community than high school graduates. In 2012, 42% of college
graduates volunteered for various organizations and 80% voted in elections while 17% of high
graduates volunteered and 59% voted in elections (Baum et al., 2013). Health benefits of college
graduates encompass several categories. College graduates exercise once a week 68% of the
time compared to 40% for college graduates, and have lower obesity rates, 28% compared to
37% (Baum, et al., 2013).
Conclusion
Advanced Placement courses can serve as an equalizer for marginalized students. The
theoretical and empirical research highlighted above illustrated various elements regarding the
AP program and its impact on Hispanic/Latino students. The AP program began in the 1950s as
a way to provide higher performing students in a select amount of schools with the opportunity
to engage in a college level curriculum while enrolled in a high school and grew to become a
widely utilized program to provide a range of students in thousands of schools with the
opportunity to participate in a rigorous curriculum and possibly earn college credit (Sadler, 2010;
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 33
Lacy, 2010; Nugent & Karnes, 2002; Warne et al., 2015; College Board, 2018; Lambie & Ohert
2009; ). As the AP program grew, local, state, and federal governments became involved
through various structures including financial support, laws, and judicial decisions to provide
access for marginalized students (Ndura et al., 2003; Scafidi et al., 2015; Hertberg-Davis,
Callahan, & Kyburg, 2006; The US Department of Education, 2018; Zarate & Pachon 2006;
Solorzano & Ornelas 2004; Santoli, 2002). The College Board was another factor in the growth
of the increased levels of the AP program. The College Board provided research, trainings,
course frameworks, data, new courses, and an active philosophy to grow marginalized students’
access and participation (Moore & Slate, 2008; Dougherty & Mellor, 2006; Klopfenstein, 2003).
While various groups were actively attempting to grow the AP program, not all students
benefited to the same degree. Hispanic/Latino students faced several challenges and struggled to
attain access to AP courses, as many attended schools that did not have many course offerings,
had inexperienced teachers, enrolled at low rates, and did not pass the AP exams at the same
levels as White or Asian students (Royster & Gross, 2015; Wright et al., 2017; Welton &
Martinez, 2014). This gap in performance has many implications for Hispanic/Latino students
because there are several advantages of attempting an AP courses and successfully passing the
AP exam including advantages while in high school, during the college admissions process, and
post college graduation (Morgan & Slate 2008; Klopfenstein 2009; Morgan & Klaric, 2007;
Santoli, 2008). The implications for society are important to consider as the Hispanic/Latino
population has grown over the last decades and is projected to continue growing throughout the
future, however, Hispanic/Latino students have encountered various academic struggles and have
achieved at lower rates than White and Asian students in many academic measures (Colby &
Ortman, 2015; Education Trust, 2017; Sciarra et al., 2017). This gap in academic performance
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 34
will have an impact on Hispanic/Latino students and society as theoretical and empirical
evidence has highlighted the advantages of a higher education in financial and non-financial
ways (Taylor et al., 2014; Oreopoulos & Salvanes, 2011; Carnevale et al., 2013; Baum et al,
2013).
Advanced Placement Teacher Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational Influences
The Clark and Estes (2008) gap analysis model will be utilized throughout this study to
understand the reasons behind the 39% AP pass rate at Baxter High School. Clark and Estes
(2008) stated that it is important to understand the stakeholders specifics of who, when, where,
why, and what of their goals. To better understand the performance gap, this research study will
examine the AP teacher’s assumed knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences. The
knowledge component will be critical to understand because it can provide preliminary evidence
regarding why the AP teachers are not meeting the stakeholder goal. Clark and Estes (2008)
asserted that when people do not achieve their performance goals they need more knowledge.
The knowledge dimension is the initial assumed influence that can impact performance,
however, stakeholders need to be motivated in addition to having the necessary knowledge.
Rueda (2011) asserted that simply knowing how to do something does not mean that someone
will want to do it or will do it. The assumed motivation component will be examined to
understand the AP teacher’s attributions and self-efficacy as related to the stakeholder goal.
Motivational issues impact educators just as much as they impact students (Rueda, 2011). The
last section will examine the assumed organizational influences and the ways in which they
might contribute to the AP stakeholder goal. There are scenarios, in which stakeholders know
the what, when, and why regarding how to achieve the stakeholder goal, and they are highly
motivated, the organization itself can impede their performance (Rueda, 2011). The AP teacher
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 35
stakeholder group will be analyzed to gain a deeper understanding of the assumed influences and
how they impact the organizational goal. Literature will be reviewed to examine the assumed
knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences that impact the stakeholder performance
goal at Baxter High School. Understanding these assumed influence foundations is crucial to
understanding how to address the stakeholder goal and to closing the organizational performance
gap.
Knowledge
In order to close the current performance gap and achieve the organizational goal, Baxter
high school AP teachers will have to acquire knowledge and specific skills. Krathwohl (2002)
stated that the knowledge dimension has four categories including factual, conceptual,
procedural, and metacognition knowledge. Baxter High School AP teachers will need a strong
understanding of conceptual knowledge, procedural knowledge, and metacognition knowledge to
achieve the stakeholder goal. Conceptual knowledge is defined as the interrelationship between
different elements and how they work together, procedural knowledge refers to how to do
something, metacognition is the awareness of one’s own cognition (Krathwohl, 2002). All three
of these knowledge dimensions will be considered in relation to the knowledge levels of the AP
teachers and the impact on the stakeholder goal and the organizational performance gap.
Conceptual knowledge will be an important aspect for the AP teachers at Baxter High
School to attain to address the stakeholder goal. Rueda (2011) defined conceptual knowledge as
the knowledge of categories, classifications, principles, generalizations, theories, models, and
structures that are specific to a certain area. There will be a critical need for the AP teachers to
demonstrate an understanding of the impact of curriculum and assessment alignment on student
achievement on AP exams. If the AP teachers do not understand this knowledge, there will be a
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 36
misalignment between what the AP teachers cover in class and what the students will encounter
on the College Board AP exams. The teachers will also need to have an understanding of
procedural knowledge, which is defined as knowing how to do something, methods of inquiry,
specific or finite skills, techniques, and various methodologies necessary to achieve a specific
task (Rueda, 2011). It will be important for the teachers to gain procedural knowledge regarding
the various instructional methodologies they use and how they connect to the students’
performance on the AP exams. Finally, metacognition knowledge will be a dimension that the
AP teachers will have to attain in order to achieve the stakeholder goal. Metacognition is the
awareness of one’s own thinking and is the type of knowledge that allows an individual to
determine when and why to do something (Rueda, 2011). AP students do not always perform at
high levels thus the AP teachers will have to think about their practices and reflect on how to
support the students to pass the AP exams. The reflection process will also enable the teachers to
consider all elements that impact student achievement. Rueda (2011) stated that metacognitive
knowledge allows an individual to consider contextual and conditional aspects of an activity.
Possessing metacognition knowledge can support the teachers to develop a deeper, contextual
understanding of their practice and how they impact the AP student’s exam achievement.
Stronge (2018) argued that teaching is a complex activity that requires teachers to have content
knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and learner knowledge. All three of these elements will be
examined as related to the AP stakeholder group.
Curriculum alignment. A central aspect of the AP program is standardization on a
global level, which provides educators with clarity regarding what is expected on the culminating
exams. Martinez and Klopott (2005) stated that the main principle of standardization is to ensure
that schools provide students with the knowledge and skills based on common expectations
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 37
throughout the educational system. Standardization has various components that will be
important for the AP teachers to gain knowledge of. Martinez and Klopott (2005) asserted that
there are four considerations for standards-based reform: external authority, classroom
curriculum, external assessment that is created by an overseeing authority, and an accountability
component with possible rewards and sanctions. Having a deep understanding of the basis and
reasons for standardization can provide the AP teachers with critical conceptual knowledge
regarding the necessity of curriculum alignment in their classroom and how it impacts students’
achievement on AP exams.
Once the AP teachers have the necessary knowledge regarding standardization, it is
important to have knowledge regarding the importance of curriculum alignment and how it
impacts student achievement. Schmoker (2018) argued that the actual curriculum that a teacher
taught has a substantial impact and the implementation of a coherent curriculum may have more
effect on student achievement than any other factor. The College Board provides schools with a
course description for each course, which clarifies what the students need to learn and what will
be assessed (Martinez & Klopott, 2005). The AP teachers will need conceptual knowledge
regarding the importance of ensuring that their course is aligned to the AP course description,
which will provide the students with access to the same rigorous curriculum that is utilized
globally. Schmoker (2018) described the need for educators to provide a “guaranteed and viable
curriculum” which refers to a school being able to “guarantee” any community member that
what is being taught is aligned by every teacher. The AP teachers also need a clear
understanding of alignment. In an educational setting, alignment refers to the degree in which
standards and assessments are matched and serve to support student learning (Martone & Sireci,
2009). The students need clarity regarding what they will be expected to know and accomplish
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 38
at the conclusion of the course in order to be successful on the exams. Martone and Sireci
(2009) stated that what the students are tested on should be derived from what is taught by the
teachers in the course. Baxter High School AP teachers are important in this aspect of the
program because they are the main stakeholder group that is responsible for aligning the
curriculum to the AP course description. The AP teachers need to have conceptual knowledge
regarding the importance of curriculum and assessment alignment to student achievement on AP
exams.
Instructional strategies. Once there is a clear understanding of what will be taught, the
AP teachers will need to have procedural knowledge regarding how the curriculum should be
taught as outlined in the AP course description because of the importance of instruction. Stronge
(2018) argued that when determining teacher’s effectiveness, there is nothing more important
than a teacher’s instruction. Having content knowledge is not sufficient to students learning,
teachers need to also have sufficient pedagogical knowledge. Stronge (2018) stated that
effective teaching requires teachers to translate their content knowledge to student learning
which is accomplished through pedagogical skills. While there is strong evidence regarding the
importance of instruction, contextual issues prevent the creation a simple or short list of effective
instructional behaviors (Stronge, 2018). The AP teachers at Baxter High School need procedural
knowledge regarding the various, research based instructional strategies to ensure they are
providing the students with an experience that is aligned to the College Board course description.
Once they acquire the knowledge, they can implement one of various research based models or
instructional strategies.
Various educators and researchers have detailed various models and research-based
instructional strategies to provide teachers with evidence of what is effective to elevate student
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 39
achievement. Marzano (2003) identified instructional strategies that have a high probability of
elevating student achievement for students in all grade levels and all subjects. Researchers at the
Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL) analyzed research studies to find
the most effective instructional strategies that teachers could utilize (Marzano, 2003). Through
this process, a list was created to provide teachers with evidence regarding what works as related
to student achievement. The nine instructional strategies identified were identifying similarities
and differences, summarizing and note taking, reinforcing effort and providing recognition,
homework and practice, nonlinguistic representation, cooperative learning, setting objectives and
providing feedback, generating and testing hypotheses, questions, cues, and advance organizers
(Marzano, 2003). Hattie (2008) detailed a synthesis of over 800 conducted a meta-analyses
related to student achievement. Through this process, Hattie (2008) detailed many effective
instructional strategies that can elevate teaching and support student achievement. The AP
teachers at Baxter High School will need to gain procedural knowledge regarding instructional
strategies that are research-based and clearly explained by various educational researchers and
educators in order to achieve the stakeholder goal.
Student support. AP teachers will have students in their courses that do not all learn at
the same levels and at the same time. When they struggle with various topics they will need the
support of their teachers to process the learning objectives. Baxter High School teachers will
need metacognition knowledge to effectively think about their practices and offer support
opportunities for their students. AP teachers often hold the perspective that high expectations are
in conflict with support structures. Kyburg et al. (2007) stated that stakeholders must be
committed to high expectations for learners while also providing the appropriate support
structures. To ensure success for all AP students, Baxter High School teachers need a strong
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 40
foundation in this knowledge dimension. When consistent support structures are provided,
students of various backgrounds can overcome learning gaps within a standardized AP course to
prepare them for the future (Kyburg et al., 2007). Classrooms that prepare students for success
through supports have two key factors. Kyburg et al., (2007) asserted that creating environments
that nurture growth of students contain a pervasive belief that students can succeed and
scaffolding to challenge students who are able. What does not work for students are inflexible
AP courses with a singular approach. AP programs that were less successful to supporting
students contained a rigid one-size-fits all to the curriculum (Kyburg et al., 2007).
Motivation
Clark and Estes (2008) stated that motivation is what gets people going, keeps them
moving, and guides them regarding how much effort to spend on a task. The factors that are
related to the AP teachers and what they coordinate in their classrooms are aligned to motivation.
According to Clark and Estes (2008), motivation consists of active choice, persistence, and
mental effort. Active choice refers to when an individual has made an intention to begin
pursuing a goal, persistence is when an individual continues in the face of distractions, and
mental effort is centered on people working smarter to develop solutions (Clark & Estes, 2008).
When these three motivational factors are coordinated together, increased performance develops
in the achievement of the stakeholder goal.
Motivation has many different theories that can impact stakeholder performance. This
study focuses on two specific motivational theories: attributions and self-efficacy. These two
theories were examined in conjunction with the motivation influences of the AP teachers at
Baxter High School. Attribution theory was used to analyze how AP teachers felt regarding the
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 41
impact of their curriculum on student achievement. Self-efficacy examined how teachers need to
feel confident about their ability to support student performance on the AP exams.
Attribution. Attribution theory refers to how individuals believe they impact success or
failure regarding a task or activity as well as the amount of control that they have in determining
the outcomes (Rueda, 2011). Anderman and Anderman (2006) expressed that attribution theory
examines individual’s beliefs regarding why various events occurs and correlates those beliefs to
subsequent motivation and that people want to understand their surroundings and gain a better
understanding about why certain events occur. Bernard Weiner at the University of California at
Los Angeles who created a model that outlined how learners are affected by both environmental
and personal factors examined attributions theory and these variables determine the types of
attributions that individuals will typically make (Anderman & Anderman, 2006). Attribution
theorists generally examine attributions within three dimensions: stability, locus, and control
(Rueda, 2011). A crucial element of attribution theory is that when individuals believe that
failing to meet a certain goal is not final and permanent and may be influenced by increased
effort, they are more likely to continue to persist and persevere as an activity or a task (Rueda,
2011). Teachers have a tremendous amount of influence when working with their students.
Anderman and Anderman (2006) stated that teachers can have long-term effects on student
learning and motivation on a daily basis through the comments they make, feedback on
assignments, and the types of praise that they can share during lessons.
Self-Efficacy. Self-efficacy beliefs are the core of social cognitive theory and are the
self-perceptions that individuals have regarding their abilities (Pajares, 2006). Bandura (1994)
stated that self-efficacy beliefs impact how individuals think, feel, and motivate themselves.
Self-efficacy levels can impact people in positive or negative ways. People with high confidence
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 42
in their abilities approach difficult tasks as a challenge to be mastered instead of a threat that
needs to be avoided (Bandura, 1994). Other attributes of people with self-efficacy include
setting of challenging goals, commitment to goals, sustained effort during difficulties, recovering
quickly from setbacks, and approaching threatening situations with the thought that they can
exercise control over them (Bandura, 1994). People with low levels of self-efficacy are impacted
in a different way. Bandura (1994) expressed that people with low self-efficacy shy away from
difficult tasks, have low aspirations, weak commitment to their goals, dwell on their deficiencies
and obstacles, and they give up quickly when confronting a difficult situation.
Self-Efficacy beliefs can be formed in various ways. Learners come to different tasks
with experiences, aptitudes, and social supports that influence their self-efficacy (Cook and
Artino, 2016). Individuals are influenced by four different sources that can impact their
performance. Pajares (2006) asserted that individuals form their self-efficacy beliefs through
four different sources: mastery of experience, vicarious experience, social persuasions, and
physiological reactions. While all of these sources can play a role, one source appears to have a
strong influence on most individuals. Pajares (2006) stated that most people are influenced as a
result of their own performance or mastery experience, individuals gauge their actions, and how
they interpret the results create their self-efficacy beliefs.
Organizational Influences
There are many factors that influence employee performance within an organization.
Organizational processes and structures shape the culture of an organization and influence the
employees in a variety of ways. Organizational culture is not simply having a mission, vision,
and commitments. As articulated by Schein (2010), organizational culture is how a group
behaves and works toward a given mission, pattering and integration. Culture is very important
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 43
to an organization and its employees, yet it is not always clear. Clark and Estes (2008) stated
that organizational culture is the most critical work function in organizations because it
influences how people work as a team and coordinate their various tasks. Rueda (2011) stated
that culture and cultural process are difficult to define because they are not visible at all times,
they are mostly automated, and involve relative values. Clark and Estes (2008) defined culture
as “a way to describe the core values, goals, beliefs, emotions, and processes learned as people
develop over time in our family and in our work environments” (p.108). Rueda (2011)
articulated that people could still use culture and cultural processes to describe organizations and
individuals. Culture is a concept that develops over time and includes individuals and
organizations. Individuals are not born with culture; it is continuously evolving and changing
during the course of a lifetime (Rueda, 2011). Cultural models and cultural settings are
examined below to attempt to understand the organizational impact related to the AP teachers at
Baxter High School.
Cultural models and settings might not be easy to evaluate but they can be studied and
explained by observers (Rueda, 2011). Observers can ask many questions when they consider
the performance of an organization and the dynamics or models and settings. Rueda (2011)
stated that individuals can ask many questions such as what are the beliefs and attitudes, how are
activities structured, when do they occur, who are the participants, what are the rules, how are
decisions made, and how do all of these dynamics work towards achieving the organizational
goals. It is crucial to gain a deep understanding to these questions because they have an impact
on how the change process is considered. Understanding the answers to these questions provides
the first glimpse to the factors that impede performance or strengthen an organization to enhance
performance (Rueda 2011).
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 44
Clark and Estes (2008) argued that the causes and solutions to gaps in performance need
to be translated so that they are aligned with the organizational culture. The authors argued for
the need to create a cultural profile. Within this profile, Clark and Estes recommend asking the
following questions, in what ways is this organization different and unique? What aspects of
your organization and its goals do people here value the most? What is different about the way
that you get your job done? How and when do you get performance feedback? When major
changes are made, who drives the change and what typically happens, how and by whom are
important decisions made in this organization? Clark and Estes (2008) stated that new hires are a
good source for asking these questions because they are not familiar enough with the
organization that they are not aware of their own patterns. This strategy they believe would help
an individual assess the cultural profile of an organization.
Cultural models. Gallimore and Goldenberg (2001) defined cultural models “as a
shared schema or normative understanding of how the world works, or ought to work.” (p. 47).
Cultural models encompass a shared environment, interpretations, settings, values, and
interpretations (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001). Cultural models provide clarity for individuals
and organizations. They are so familiar that they might not be visible, are unnoticed, and are
often taken for granted (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001).
Cultural settings. Cultural settings are defined as “when two or more people come
together, over time, to accomplish something” (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001, p. 47). Rueda
(2011) stated that cultural settings are the who, what, when, where, and the why of specific daily
life. Culture and setting work together and have a relationship that is dynamic. That aspect is
very crucial to understand in viewing organizational performance. Rueda (2011) argued that
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 45
organizational settings can be a hindrance to increased performance even if individuals are
motivated and have sufficient knowledge.
Table 2 illustrates the assumed knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences
occurring at Baxter High School. These influences are related to Baxter High School’s
performance gap of AP exam pass rates. Analyzing the assumed influences in relation to the
performance gap provided a foundational basis for understanding and possible solutions to create
improvement and achieve the AP teacher’s goal and organizational goal.
Table 2
Organizational Influences and Assessments for Organizational Gap Analysis
Assumed Knowledge
Influence
Knowledge Type Knowledge Influence Assessment
Teachers need to be aware that
aligning the course curriculum
and assessments to the College
Board course and exam
description supports the
students in achieving better AP
exam results.
Conceptual
Teachers will be asked to share
their knowledge regarding how the
impact of curriculum alignment can
influence student outcomes.
Teachers need to be aware of
how to align instructional
practices with the AP
instructional resources to
provide scaffolds for the
students.
Procedural
Teachers will be asked regarding
how they align their instructional
strategies with the AP content.
Teachers need to self-reflect
on how to support students
who are struggling at
mastering the AP curriculum.
Metacognition Teachers will be asked to evaluate
their response when a student
displays signs of being challenged
in their course.
Assumed Motivational Influence Motivational Influence Assessment
Attributions
Teachers need to feel that student success on
AP exams is directly determined by their
(teacher) efforts rather than uncontrollable
factors such as student SES, etc.
Interview:
Teachers will be asked regarding their impact
on student’s achievement results of AP exams.
Self Efficacy Interview:
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 46
Teachers need to feel confident about their
ability to support student performance on the
AP exams.
Teachers will be asked regarding their
confidence in providing supports when their
students exhibit signs of difficulties in their
class.
Assumed Organizational Influence Organizational Influence Assessment
Cultural Model Influence 1:
Baxter High School needs to have a culture
of high achievement with supports in
which the stakeholders feel capable of
navigating the various aspects of their roles
and elevate student achievement.
Interview questions about teacher beliefs regarding
a culture of high achievement.
Cultural Model Influence 2:
Baxter High School needs to have a system
of professional development to support the
stakeholders to improve curriculum,
instruction, and assessments.
Interview questions regarding Baxter High
School’s professional development workshops and
conference structures.
Cultural Setting Influence 1:
Baxter High School has an insufficient
amount of teachers who implement the
various skills and strategies into their
courses after attending professional
development conferences.
Interview questions regarding how attending
training has impacted teacher implementation in the
AP courses.
Cultural Setting Influence 2:
Baxter High School has an insufficient
amount of teachers who set annual
SMART (Specific, Measurable,
Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goals
to meet various targets that can elevate
student achievement.
Interview questions regarding teacher’s goals and
how they can affect student achievement.
Conceptual Framework: The Interaction of Advanced Placement Teachers’ Knowledge,
Motivation and the Organizational Context
There are several purposes for a conceptual framework. Merriam and Tisdell (2016)
stated that a conceptual framework, also referred to as a theoretical framework, provides
concepts, terms, models, thoughts, and ideas to theories. The authors further expanded on the
definition by stating that a theoretical framework is the scaffolding and the underlying structure
for a study (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). Having a conceptual framework is a crucial element of a
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 47
study and provides context and understanding, which can guide a researcher to a deeper
understanding of a performance gap. The conceptual framework is brought in from the stance
that the researcher brings to the study, and every study has a conceptual framework (Merriam &
Tisdell, 2016). Maxwell (2013) stated that the most important thing to understand regarding a
conceptual framework is that it is a conception of a model, a look at what is going on and why, a
tentative theory that is being investigated. He continued by stating that the function of the theory
is to help in assessing and refining the goals, to develop realistic research questions, select proper
methods, and to identify validity threats that might compromise the conclusions (Maxwell,
2013).
Maxwell (2013) stated that a concept map of a theory illustrates a picture of what the
theory claims is occurring with what is being studied, and expanded by arguing that concept
maps can be used to visually display the design of a study. In figure 1 below, a visual
representation of the conceptual framework is introduced to highlight the connection between the
organization, the stakeholders, stakeholder’s goals, and the organizational goal. A large circle
containing the stakeholders represents the organization. Within the large circle are the cultural
settings and cultural models as they play a critical role in how the organization achieves goals
and how the stakeholders operate within the organization. The AP teacher stakeholders are
depicted in the rectangle below the circle because they are one group of many stakeholders
within the overall organization of Baxter High School. The crucial components that the AP
teachers will need in order to achieve the stakeholder goal and the organizational goal are
knowledge and motivation. The final component of the conceptual framework are the
stakeholder goal and the organizational goal articulated in the rectangles below the big
organizational circle and below the stakeholder assumed influences to achieve the goal. The
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 48
arrows represent how the various dynamics interact and move in various directions that influence
the organization, stakeholders, and goals. This framework illustrates the interdependent
relationship that the organization and the stakeholders have and how they are both crucial to each
other in order to achieve the stakeholder goal and organizational goal.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 49
Figure 1. Conceptual framework: The interaction between Baxter High School, the AP teachers,
the stakeholder goal and organizational goal.
Baxter High School
Cultural Settings and Cultural Models:
Cultural Model- Baxter High School needs to develop a culture of
high achievement with support and a system of professional
development to support the stakeholders to improve curriculum,
instruction, and assessments. Cultural setting- Baxter High
School needs to support teachers to implement learned strategies
after professional development conferences and to create annual
SMART goals to elevate AP pass rates.
Baxter High School Advanced Placement Teachers
AP teachers’ will need conceptual knowledge regarding curriculum
alignment, procedural knowledge regarding instructional strategies to
support students, and metacognitive knowledge to self-reflect on how to
assist struggling students. The knowledge components will be evaluated in
relation to the teachers’ value motivation and how their curriculum impacts
student achievement and their self-efficacy motivation to feel confident
that they are an important element of the students AP exam performance.
Goal for Stakeholder
By July 2019, the Advanced Placement
teachers will achieve 100% alignment with
the College Board course description.
Goal for Organization
By July 2020, the Hispanic/Latino
students at Baxter high School will
achieve a 50% pass rate on AP
exams.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 50
Organizations are complex, dynamic, and constantly evolving. In figure 1 above, a large
circle that contains cultural settings and cultural models illustrates the organization. The
organization has a large role in the overall impact on the organizational goal and the stakeholder
goal. Gallimore and Goldenberg (2001) stated that in order to improve schools, a society needs
to analyze and understand the structures, processes, and dynamics of culture and how they
impact schools and students. This study seeks to analyze the current cultural setting and models
presented by the large circle in order to support the AP teachers in achieving the stakeholder
goal. Culture exists in settings where people come together to accomplish a goal they value
(Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001). The AP teacher’s knowledge and motivation was illustrated
by the small circle and examined through this study because these two elements are very
important to achieving the organizational goal and stakeholder goal. The knowledge theories
used throughout this study are metacognitive, conceptual, and procedural knowledge. The study
examined how the AP teacher’s knowledge impacts their students’ performance on the AP
exams. Rueda (2011) raised the following question in regards to issues about teaching and
learning, “what does one need to know in order to achieve his or her goals?” (p. 27). Another
aspect presented in the small circle is the motivational theories of self-efficacy and value.
Simply knowing how to do something does not mean someone will want to do it; motivational
issues impact teachers and administrators as much as they impact students (Rueda, 2011). These
two components impacting the AP teachers were studied along with the organizational influences
to determine how the stakeholder goal can be achieved. The conceptual framework presented
above presents a visual on how the various theories were examined and how they are
interdependent.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 51
Participating Stakeholders: Sampling and Recruitment
The stakeholder population of focus for this study was the AP teachers at Baxter High
School. The teachers vary in a variety of aspects including educational levels, educational
experience, AP experience, and AP professional development experience. The main criteria
used for this stakeholder group was that they are currently teaching AP courses at Baxter High
School. Retired teachers and teachers who are interested in teaching AP, teachers who formerly
taught AP were not included in the research study. The total number of teachers who were
invited to participate was nine, seven from Baxter High School and two from two other school
districts with a variety of content areas represented. The goal of teacher content diversification
was to gain a comprehensive examination of various ways in which the curriculum, instruction,
and assessments are coordinated throughout the different departments at Baxter High School.
Because of the board policy at Apple Unified School District that requires a researcher to
conduct research at a school outside the district, two AP teachers from two high schools were a
part of the study and the data was used to provide context to the study occurring at Baxter High
School.
Interview Sampling Criteria and Rationale
Criterion 1. Current AP teachers at Baxter High School were interviewed because they
plan lessons, use various instructional strategies, provide assessments, and support the students
to ensure that they can be successful on the AP exams. Former AP teachers were excluded
because the curriculum and other components from the AP program have evolved and the former
teachers might not have the current knowledge.
Criterion 2. Teachers who have taught an AP course for one or more years were
interviewed. Teachers who are currently teaching AP courses for the first time were excluded as
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 52
they have not gone through one teaching cycle and might not have the proper experience to
provide insight that can further the research study.
Criterion 3. Teachers that have a minimum of two years of teaching experience were
interviewed. New teachers might not have enough experience in pedagogy and content to
adequately influence the AP students’ exam pass rates.
Interview (Recruitment) Strategy and Rationale
The sampling design for this study was non-probability sampling. Merriam and Tisdell
(2016) stated that non-probability sampling is used to solve qualitative problems such as what is
occurring, the implications of what is occurring, and the relationship that links occurrences. The
sampling strategy that was used is typical purposeful sampling. Merriam and Tisdell (2016)
stated that purposeful sampling is based on the premise that the researcher wants to discover,
understand, and gain insight and thus they should select a sample that will enable them to learn
the most. Baxter High School is a comprehensive school with a typical program. The school is
not atypical or radically different from other comprehensive high schools. Merriam and Tisdell
(2016) stated that a typical sample is selected because it reflects the average person, situation, or
instance of what is being studied. The study used seven AP teachers from Baxter High School
and two teachers from outside the school district. The organizational goal is to increase the
percentage of students passing the AP exams regardless of subject. If certain AP teachers are
excluded, valuable information might be missed that could assist in the attainment of this goal.
A teacher with a high pass rate being excluded can possibly influence the study due to the
researcher not having access to the possible characteristics that are making the teacher
successful. The AP teachers were interviewed once during the study to gain knowledge
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 53
regarding how various factors have impacted the teachers and how they implement pedagogy,
assessments, and curriculum within their classrooms.
The recruitment process is crucial in a research study. Due to my current position as the
Principal of Baxter High School and the Apple Unified School District’s policy of requiring
researchers who conduct research at their schools to also research an outside school, I took
diligent steps to efficiently and ethically recruit the AP teacher participants. Rubin and Rubin
(2012) highlighted several ways to ethically recruit participants including assuring them that they
will not be harmed, that the researcher will behave ethically, will not pressure or deceit. They
expanded by also mentioning that the researcher should ensure the participants that they will be
treated with respect and that all promises, such as how the data will be used, their job status, and
confidentiality to them will be kept (Rubin & Rubin, 2012). I made sure that all of the
participants understood that I would behave ethically by taking every possible measure outlined
above to protect them and to do no harm during the research process and when the study was
complete.
Using the sampling criteria articulated above, I invited the AP teachers from Baxter High
School and the two schools outside of the Apple Unified School District. Participants were sent
an individual invitation email outlining the purpose of the study and were asked for their
permission to participate. The Apple Unified School District was also asked for permission in
order to conduct the study. I made sure I completed all of the required forms and complied with
all of the outlined procedures of the Apple Unified School District. Some researchers provide
respondents incentives to participate while others do not because some respondents view
participating in a research study as a reward in contributing to the research (Weiss, 1994). I
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 54
provided respondents with a small monetary gift card to thank them for their time and
contribution to the research study.
Documents Sampling Criteria and Rationale
Criterion 1. AP teachers at Baxter High School submit an annual syllabus to the
assistant principal overseeing curriculum and instruction. The syllabus provided information
regarding how the teachers planned lessons, used various instructional strategies, provided
assessments, and supported the students to ensure that they can be successful on the AP exams.
Criterion 2. AP teachers at Baxter High School conduct assessments throughout the
year. The assessments can provide information regarding alignment with the College Board
course guides assessment section. Analyzing the syllabus section regarding assessments
provided information regarding the level of rigor contained in the assessments and how that
aligned with the College Board rigor expectations.
Criterion 3. AP teachers at Baxter High School create lesson plans to coordinate various
aspects of student learning. The lesson plans can provide information regarding instructional
practices of the AP teachers and how they align with the College Board course description. The
lesson plans typically incorporate a learning objective, student engagement strategies, and
formative assessments. Analyzing the syllabus section to gather information regarding lesson
plans expanded the understanding necessary for analyzing the problem of practice.
Document Sampling Strategy and Rationale
Documents are another form of data that was used to study the performance gap within
Baxter High School. The AP teachers at Baxter High School submit a syllabus annually, which
detail information regarding assessments, and lesson plans to coordinate the learning process of
their students. Merriam and Tisdell (2016) stated a qualitative study of classroom environment
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 55
typically will lead to documents that include student assignments, lesson plans, grade reports,
school records, and so on. Since the AP teachers submit their syllabus annually, they were not
required to change their typical routine. The assistant principal who oversees curriculum and
instruction analyzed the AP teachers’ syllabus to look for themes and patterns related to
curriculum, instruction, and assessment and how they aligned with the College Board course
description. The AP teachers do not submit assessments and lesson plans as a standard practice.
Due to this fact, the assistant principal overseeing curriculum and instruction analyzed the
syllabi’s to view information related to lesson plans and assessments. The information related to
lesson plans can provide data regarding how the teachers coordinate their lessons and the various
strategies that they implement to support student learning. The information related to
assessments served to provide data regarding AP teachers’ assessment alignment with how the
College Board course description and how the students might be assessed.
Explanation for Choices
This study was focused on interviews and documents to gain knowledge regarding the
low AP exam pass rates at Baxter High School. Interviews were used during this study and they
provided advantages and limitations as a data collection tool. According to Creswell (2014),
interviews have the advantage of allowing the researcher to control the questions and for the
participants to provide historical information. Creswell (2014) continued by listing the
limitations of interviews beginning with the presence of the researcher possibly creating a bias,
the respondents providing indirect information through their views, the information being
provided in a designated place and not the field, and not all of the respondents being able to
articulate their views equally. While there are limitations to interviews, the advantages exceeded
the possible limitations in providing a first-hand perspective of the AP teachers as the primary
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 56
stakeholder group of focus in the study. It was beneficial to find out from the teachers their
opinions, observations, and professional experiences to further the knowledge base for the
research study.
Similar to interviews, documents also have advantages and limitations. Creswell (2014)
listed the advantages of documents as follows: 1) they enable the researcher to access data in the
language of the participants, 2) they provide convenience for the researcher, 3) the data is
participant focused, and 4) the process saves the researcher cost and time from transcribing.
Some of the limitations to documents include the fact that not all people are equally articulate,
the documents might be unavailable or private, might be difficult for the researcher to obtain,
materials might be lacking or incomplete, and the documents might not be accurate (Creswell,
2014). While documents contain limitations, they provide the researcher another opportunity to
examine the participants and the research question from another perspective. Merriam and
Tisdell (2016) stated that personal documents are a valuable source of data that provide a
glimpse of a participant’s attitude, view of the world, and their beliefs. Merriam and Tisdell
(2016) continued by highlighting that documents reflect a participant’s perspective, which is
typically what a researcher is attempting to discover in a qualitative study.
Data Collection and Instrumentation
In order to study the problem of practice regarding the AP exam passage rates and
teacher impacts on achievement and determine the possible reasons for the performance gap, I
used various methods to collect data. Specifically, interviews and document analysis both have
strengths and weaknesses that together made up the data corpus for this research study. The
documents collected from the teachers provided a reference to how the courses are conducted
and that information can be analyzed in relation to the data provided by the teachers through the
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 57
interviews. While the various methods are not perfect, they allowed me to gain valuable insights
into this research problem and a deeper understanding to support possible recommendations.
Merriam and Tisdell (2016) stated that research methods such as interviews, observations, and
documents can help a researcher uncover meaning, gain an understanding, and find information
that is relevant to the research problem. Interviewing the teachers and collecting documents
provided data to answer the research questions that are central to this study: What is Baxter High
School AP teacher’s knowledge and motivation in relation to aligning curriculum and
assessments with the College Board Framework? What is the interaction between Baxter High
Schools’ culture and context and AP teachers’ knowledge and motivation related to 100%
alignment of the curriculum and assessments with the College Board Framework? The AP
teachers at Baxter High School are connected daily to the curriculum, instructions, assessments,
and the students. Interviewing them provided rich data to understand the organizational
performance gap.
Another benefit of using multiple methods was the ability to triangulate data. Data
triangulation refers to using multiple sources of data, multiple investigators, and multiple data
collection methods to increase creditability and internal validity of a research study (Merriam &
Tisdell, 2016). McEwan and McEwan (2003) stated that triangulation lessens the chance that a
researcher will draw conclusions without insufficient evidence. Finally, I used a variety of
methods because I did not have a precise understanding of why there is a gap in performance
regarding the problem of practice that I was studying. By approaching the data collection from
various aspects, I attempted to observe the problem of practice through various lenses. Maxwell
(2013) argued that using multiple methods helps the researcher gain information regarding
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 58
different aspects of a phenomena. Analyzing the data from the interviews and documents
provided various perspectives to view the problem of practice from different angles.
Interviews
As the current principal of Baxter High School, I did not conduct the interviews with the
AP teachers. As their immediate supervisor, there is a built-in conflict of interest for the AP
teachers, which could have jeopardized the accuracy of the interview data and posed an ethical
threat of the perception of coercion. I attempted to combat this issue by having a Rossier Doctor
of Education (Ed.D) student who is CITI certified from the USC OCL (Organizational Change
and Leadership) program conduct the interviews with the Baxter High School AP teachers. I
conducted the interviews with the AP teachers from the two outside school district. Because the
interviewer does not have the same background knowledge on the subject as I do, I spent a
considerable amount of time educating him to ensure an understanding of the questions and to
ensure that he was able to ask follow up questions if necessary. The teachers were interviewed
one time in a formal setting in the conference room at Baxter High School for half an hour. This
location was central to the teachers and created a more of a formal setting. I did not want the
interviews to take place in their classrooms because they could be distracted by the phone, a
student or a colleague walking in, and possibly feeling too informal, as they are very familiar
with their surroundings. The teachers at Baxter High School were interviewed from 7:30AM to
3:00PM based on their conference periods and schedule availability. The interviews were the
first data collection method used in the study. The interview questions and answers helped to
guide my research when I viewed various documents related to the problem of practice. I was
interested in finding out how the teachers’ answers aligned with the documents that were
collected.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 59
Various protocols can be used during a qualitative study. Merriam and Tisdell (2016)
outlined three possible interview structures including highly structured, semi-structured, and
unstructured or informal. For this study, I used a semi-structured approach, as I believe it is the
most appropriate for this study because there are various nuanced aspects to teaching and follow
up questions will allow for a deeper level of understanding. Semi-structured interviews have the
benefit of more or less structured questions, questions used flexibly, and the largest part of the
interview guided by a list of questions or issues to be explored (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The
questions used during the study were open-ended and aligned to the research conceptual
framework in order to gain a deeper understanding regarding the assumed knowledge,
motivation, and organizational influences that could be impacting the AP teachers at Baxter High
School. As suggested by Merriam and Tisdell (2016), I avoided multiple choice questions,
leading questions, and yes-or-no questions because they will not provide the rich data necessary
to understand the performance gap for the problem of practice.
Documents and Artifacts
Documents and artifacts can provide valuable data for a research study. Merriam and
Tisdell (2016) shared that various types of documents can assist the researcher in developing an
understanding, uncovering meaning, and determining insights that are relevant to a research
problem. Documents were valuable for this study because they provided me with the
opportunity to compare how the teachers respond to the questions versus how they planned their
curriculum, designed lessons, and coordinated assessments. It was also important to study the
alignment of the curriculum with the documents collected and analyze the congruence. The
analysis that was conducted attempted to identify aggregated findings that emerged and was not
intended as a “performance analysis” of the AP teachers. Baxter High School’s assistant
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 60
principal who oversees curriculum and instruction collects a syllabus from every teacher
annually. She collected each AP teacher’s syllabus to check for alignment and to view how he or
she articulates his or her curriculum goals, assessments, and policies for the year. The assistant
principal analyzed the documents and reported the findings without identifying the participating
teachers. I did not view the syllabi, the assistant principal collected them, analyzed them, and
reported to me the major themes that emerged from her analysis.
Findings
The purpose of this study was to examine the Baxter High School AP teachers’ assumed
knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences at related to the organizational
performance gap of Hispanic/Latino students’ low achievement rates on AP exams. Baxter High
School has an organizational goal to reach a 50% AP exam pass rate from the current 39% pass
rate. The AP teacher stakeholder group at Baxter High School is crucial to achieving the
organizational goal. While a complete study would focus on all the stakeholders that can
influence the organizational goal, for practical purposes, the stakeholder group that was included
in this study was the AP teachers. The AP teachers were chosen because they create the
curriculum, assessments, instructional strategies, and academic and emotional supports within
the AP courses.
The AP teacher interviews were conducted at Baxter High School in a small conference
room. I did not conduct the interviews due to my role as the principal of the school and the AP
teacher’s supervisor. A USC doctoral student and CITI trained researcher conducted the entire
interview process at Baxter High School while I conducted the external interviews. He used a
semi-structured interview protocol with the interview being based on 15 questions, which
encompassed knowledge, motivation and organizational perspectives. Seven AP teachers were
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 61
interviewed and the main course content areas of Math, Language Arts, Social Science, World
Languages, and Science were involved in this process through the interviews. I made this
decision to gather a different perspective from each one of the main content areas that are
available at Baxter High School. The interviewer recorded the interviews and transcribed them
using rev.com. After a few days, I received the data without names or identifying information. I
also had one of the assistant principals examine five random syllabi to gain more information
regarding the AP teacher’s curriculum, instruction, and assessments. The assistant principal
shared the analysis with me to help me understand the levels of alignment between the interview
responses and the syllabi but the original documents were not shared with me nor did I know
which teachers’ syllabi were analyzed.
Knowledge Influences
The interview protocol utilized eight questions to assess the capacity of the AP teachers’
knowledge influences on Baxter High School’s ability to achieve a 50% AP exam pass rate.
Three questions probed for the AP teachers’ conceptual knowledge influences. The AP teachers
were asked about their understanding of the College Board curriculum, their alignment with the
College Board curriculum, and their curriculum pacing. Procedural knowledge influences were
examined by asking the AP teachers to share the instructional strategies that they incorporate in
their courses and their knowledge of the College Board instructional information. The final
knowledge questions were regarding the AP teachers’ metacognition knowledge. The AP
teachers were asked to articulate how they assessed the students’ readiness in their courses and
their beliefs regarding their students’ previous academic preparation and how that impacts their
performance in the course. All participants answered the knowledge question even when given
the option of not having to answer if they elected not to answer.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 62
AP teachers have knowledge of the AP course description but they do not use it as a
primary resource to align their course curriculum. AP teachers use a curriculum structure
that they have created through various resources, they do not use the AP course description as
the primary method to align their curriculum in the course, which highlights a gap in alignment.
All of the teachers indicated that they have an understanding of the College Board Curriculum as
outlined in the course description. The AP teachers indicated that they were aware of the course
description, one teacher shared that “The College Board, I think, does a really good job of
outlining a syllabus to give you an idea of different ways of covering all that material in a
systematic and methodical way.” While the AP teachers acknowledged having an awareness of
the College Board course description, only one of them indicated that they use the course
description to ensure they achieve alignment with their course curriculum. The AP teachers
indicated that they create a pacing structure for the course, the structure is mostly based on the
resources from the various professional development opportunities they attended and other
schools and colleagues and not the College Board course description. One teacher shared the
following regarding the course curriculum pacing, “Pretty much what I need to cover I use the
College Board. In terms of the pacing of it, what I did last year is I mimic what some of the
other high achieving schools do.” The quotes related to the AP teachers’ knowledge about
curriculum alignment with the College Board course description are presented via table 3.
Table 3
Interview Participant Comments Regarding Curriculum Alignment with the College Board
Course Description
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q1: Describe your knowledge and understanding
of the College Board Advanced Placement
curriculum as detailed in the course description.
How did you come to learn about the curriculum?
“My knowledge about the curriculum. I am
aware that it's there. I used it as often as possible,
but I don't think I have mastered it to the point
where I can incorporate it one hundred percent
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 63
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q3: Describe how you determine the curriculum
pacing in your class. What is your process for
determining which content to cover and which
content to exclude?
within my classroom. I am aware of what they
are looking for, the ... there is a certain
percentage given to certain topics. I am aware of
which topics weight heavier in the tests. But as
far as, like I said, incorporating all that, in every
single aspect of the curriculum into the class I
don't think I have done that with fidelity a
hundred percent.”
“From these documents I got pretty much a
broad spectrum of what students should know at
the curriculum. Outside of that, I used their
practice tests, past AP tests, their practice
multiple choice problems, all of the resources
available that the College Board, I utilized to
prepare the students for the test.”
“I did a lot of reading ahead of time, and then we
did a study of several of the books that we would
be adopting, myself and one of the other teachers.
When I began teaching this particular course,
which is going to identify me, I had never taught
it before. I was learning from scratch. Then I had
to basically learn everything as I was going the
year before, so I got to read all about it and
interpret the information, find a curriculum.
Then I went to workshops that summer. We went
to workshops, myself and another teacher who
was also teaching the same course that I was
teaching. There were several other AP teachers
going as well. We all went to these workshops,
and we learned the breaks. One of them was like
a mini what is this course all about workshop. It
was one of those eight hour workshops.
That was the first real introduction to the course
that I had received, apart from reading online
and going to the AP online website. Then we
learned all about what the different aspects of the
test, and then how to break it down, and then also
different how to teach it.”
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 64
AP teachers are highly knowledgeable regarding instructional strategies but they do
not rely on the College Board course description instructional recommendations within
their course. Interview results indicated that the AP teachers use a variety of research based
instructional strategies and many of them are aligned with those outlined by Marzano (2003).
The AP teachers mentioned a variety of instructional strategies that they incorporate throughout
their daily lessons. One teacher specifically mentioned, “We're doing a lot more group activities,
and where lessons would have taken a day and a half to two days, now I can take an extra day so
I can do more group activity.” Another teacher noted, “We do a lot of games, activities, things
like that. Lab activities, games where they really get to feel.” The AP teachers did not mention
that they specifically have knowledge of the College Board instructional information, instead
they rely on professional development conferences, interactions with colleagues, and attempting
various strategies throughout the years. Most of the AP teachers mentioned specific strategies
that placed a heavy emphasis on students’ engagement and accountability for being an active
learner within the classroom. Only one teacher mentioned the use of lecture but the teacher
stated that lecture was used for only a portion of the instructional process. Specifically, the
teacher mentioned, “I usually start with very lecture based, but that's a day, maybe two, of
information. Almost like the kids are reading, and then it's a flipped, where we discuss the
reading, and we have a power point.” The AP teachers indicated a heavy emphasis on projects,
labs, presentations, and various other strategies to ensure that the students are not passive in their
courses. The quotes related to the AP teachers’ knowledge regarding instructional strategies
incorporated within this course are presented via table 4.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 65
Table 4
Interview Participant Comments Regarding Instructional Strategies Incorporated Within their
Course
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q4: What are the instructional strategies that you
incorporate in your AP courses? Can you provide
a few specific examples?
“So, I'm very ... I tell the kids I'm very
unorthodox. I don't really stick to "read the
passage, answer the questions." I'm more
creative. I like to do projects. And I don't like
necessarily to give quizzes or tests. And the
reason for that is because, usually when you do
that, then in order for you to be able to do that,
you have to pretty much lecture. And, what ends
up happening is they regurgitate what you've told
them. And so what I like to do is, I like to discuss
things with them. I'll post questions, and when
they give me a response, I'll come back with a lie.
I tell them to challenge me. I tell them I'm going
to lie to them, and if I lie, then what it their job?
And they're shocked. And they're like, "Oh! We
have to ask questions." I'm like, "Exactly."
Because if you're stuck with that lie, then you're
gonna hold on to it. So, your job is to challenge
me and make sure that I am not lying to you.”
“It’s a lot of activities. Lab activities, games
where they really get to feel, because I feel like
environmental science is something that you can't
just have on a worksheet, its out there, so it's a lot
of outside activities, it's a lot of manipulation of,
like I mentioned, games.”
“So they bring the topic and that day we have a
gallery of art. We call gallery of art, so they bring
their umbrella with the cardboard. It's a partner
activity. One of the partner explaining what they
did, meantime the other ones are in the different
stations. The students, I love this activity. They
have to bring their books so they can take notes
and I have my timer, five minutes for stations,
they have to take notes. When the time is over,
then they switch so now the partner is gonna
come and do the explanation for the whole
students and the other one is gonna be taking
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 66
Interview Question Participant Comments
notes.”
AP teachers use methods to determine student ability levels but there is a gap
regarding how they support the students. The AP teachers indicated that they use an
assortment of methods to determine the academic levels of their students at the beginning of the
course. Three mentioned that they used a structured method such as a diagnostic test or a
summer assignment, while two mentioned an informal process such as discussing the rigor of the
course and evaluating the student’s responses. One of the teachers described an informal
process, “So usually what I'll do is, the first day of school I'll give them a very general five
questions.” Another teacher expanded “We give them a list of nonfiction books to read, and they
pick one of them. Then we have them writing sometimes just a few paragraphs, so I can get an
idea of where they are.” The AP teachers indicated that this guided their thinking to ensure they
understood the students’ ability levels. Only one teacher discussed the next steps after
determining the students’ ability levels. The teacher mentioned specifically, “They have to show
me what they know. So I can know what help is needed.” The AP teachers did not provide
specific information regarding how to support the students once they established their ability
levels. The quotes related to the AP teachers’ assessment of student levels and possible ways to
support them are presented via table 5.
Table 5
Interview Participant Comments Regarding What Strategies They Use to Assess Students and
Possibly Reflect Regarding Supports within the AP Course
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q4: At the beginning of the year, what strategies
do you use to assess your students’ readiness for
your course?
“I always do a diagnostic test. Some of them are
informal. Some of them are formal. And some of
them are even in different ways, like oral. And
some of them are written, of course. And some of
them are in drawings. Even with TPR, I'm very
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 67
Interview Question Participant Comments
big in TPR, hands right? Very big in TPR. So I
just teach them some sentences with hands and
they have to turn back to me. Especially with
literature. Like a literature device. Some more
involved vocabulary, so they have to show me
what they know. So I can know what help is
needed. Right and written too. I ask them to do an
essay, a persuasive essay. So I know they're
grammar, their ability to critical extraction of
information from evidence, textual evidence. All
that I have already taught them, I need to see they
have it stick.”
“So I first tried to just explain to them the rigor of
the course and that they're taking college level as
freshmen. And then to assess where they're at, I
do a pre-assessment. But again AP human is not
history really so it's nothing they've ever done
before.”
“Right away they come in with some work that's
already completed. We give them a list of
nonfiction books to read, and they pick one of
them. Then we have them writing sometimes just
a few paragraphs, so I can get an idea of where
they are just writing about a nonfiction novel. I
have them looking at vocabulary. It's mundane
and a little but boring, but it shows me their work
ethic. Are you willing to put some work into
something that's a little bit boring because it's
necessary? They use that vocabulary notes all
year long.”
Motivation Influences
The interview protocol included two questions to assess motivational influences, one was
regarding attributions while the other centered on self-efficacy. The attribution question probed
for how the teachers’ regarded their impact on the AP exam outcomes. An effort was made to
not ask this question directly as it can be perceived as offensive to teachers, instead the AP
teachers were asked to identify what they considered to be the factors that they felt had the
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 68
largest impact on academic achievement and how they could address those factors. Self-efficacy
beliefs were analyzed through assessing how the AP teachers support their struggling students
within their courses. This question probed for the AP teachers’ beliefs regarding their
motivation to persist in supporting the students to achieve academically at higher levels. All of
the AP teachers answered these two questions, which contributed to a 100% response rate.
AP teachers attribute student academic achievement to students’ behaviors and
backgrounds. Attributions refer to the beliefs that individuals have regarding failure or success
as well as the levels of control they have in affecting the outcome (Rueda, 2011). Attribution
theory is important because it can provide a crucial method for understanding motivation in
academic settings (Anderman & Anderman, 2006). This aspect of the study attempted to assess
the AP teacher’s beliefs regarding their contribution in determining student success on AP exams
rather than uncontrollable factors. Four AP teachers communicated two specific factors that they
felt contributed to student success on AP exams and courses such as their previous academic
preparedness and building their motivational levels, one of the teachers shared how they
motivated their students “sometimes you have kids who just try really, really, really hard. You've
just got to just be super supportive of those kids and try to give them everything that they need.
Support, mental support, academic support.” One teacher shared that the students had the
primary responsibility to be motivated “A lot of it is intrinsic motivation. They have to want to
be there, and they have to be open to learning. Especially because my course is so new to them.
The curriculum is brand new.” Most of the AP teachers shared social dynamics such as having
interest in the students’ lives, and building their motivation levels can contribute to students’
academic achievement. All of the AP teachers did not share academic factors such as
instructional strategies, curriculum coverage, or academic interventions that are centered on their
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 69
efforts to impact student achievement that can contribute to such on the AP exams. This is
somewhat problematic as the AP teachers are making external, uncontrollable attributions that
they cannot control. The quotes related to the AP teachers’ external attributions are presented
via table 6.
Table 6
Interview Participant Comments Regarding Student Success Factors Within the AP Course
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q12: What factors do you feel have the largest
impact on the students’ academic achievement on
the AP exams? How do you address those
factors?
“Yeah last year, I had a student coming from
Guatemala and after school he has to go to work
with their cousins or brothers and he said "Oh, I
don't have time to do the homework." And I said
well "The only way I can support you, if you come
here in lunchtime, then we can work together."
Or "I don't have a printer." "Okay, that's fine, you
can come to my classroom and print your
papers." Cause I know that some of them, they
don't even have a computer up in their home.”
“I think it's the teacher's interest in the student.
It's very important. Connections. It's so
important, especially with our Latino population.
I would say that every human needs connections
and human contact. But especially the Latinos.
We are so one to one, so open, so, you know,
getting into your life. That [inaudible 00:19:27]
in our population, so that's something that is very
important for our students. To know that the
teachers care- Yeah, many, many moons ago my
master teacher told me that the students will not
care to learn unless they know you care. So if you
care for them, they will sense it and they will
want to learn.”
“Individual. Try to find out what is going on. I
had a particular student who wasn't really trying,
quote unquote trying, because I don't know. After
talking to the kid, getting to know a little bit
more, kind of build their confidence a little bit,
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 70
Interview Question Participant Comments
and he started turning that around. That's how it
works. When it comes to work ethic, it's actually
finding out what's going on with the student. Is he
here for the right reasons? I think too, building a
student's motivation. That they can do the work. If
they feel confident, I think that that goes into
them doing better on the AP test. If they feel good
about themselves they are going to try to
perform.”
AP teachers did not display high levels of Self-Efficacy. Self-efficacy refers to the
self-perceptions that individuals have regarding their abilities to perform specific tasks (Pajares,
2006). Individuals with a high level of self-efficacy are more likely to be motivated to engage
in, persist, and work at challenging tasks and activities (Rueda, 2011). This study sought to
establish the degree to which the AP teachers felt confident in their ability to impact student
achievement on AP exams. Three AP teachers indicated that they offer supports to students who
are struggling in their courses through the interviews conducted. A specific teacher mentioned,
“What I have them do is they can come see me with any of their essays that I've corrected, and
we can talk through the essay. I always try to talk to them over their first three essays one on one.
After that, they have to come to me on their own.” The supports that the AP teachers mentioned
were conducted individually and included elements such as tutoring with individual students,
grouping based on academic levels, and AP review sessions on Saturdays prior to the exam date.
One teacher indicated that student supports is a growth area due to the time required to cover the
AP curriculum. Another teacher mentioned using other students to support their classmates,
“We have many ways, one of the things I like to do is peer help.” Overall, the AP teachers did
not share concrete information regarding their importance to students’ success and the role that
they have regarding the students’ achievement levels on AP exams even when indicating their
desire to support the students through various methods. The AP teachers did not share
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 71
information regarding their confidence to positively impact their students’ achievement on AP
exams through reteaching, scaffolding, study sessions after school, or writing instruction. The
quotes related to the items are presented via table 7.
Table 7
Interview Participant Comments Regarding Impacting Student Achievement on AP Exams
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q8: How do you support the students who are
struggling in your AP courses as the year
progresses?
“For me this is my biggest area of attention that I
need to grow in. Because it is hard with the time
to go back. The students are ... the basics. They're
able to come in at lunch, before school, after
school to talk to me, but being freshmen they
usually don't. So I will extend deadlines for
certain students who reach out.”
“So, I do a variety of things. I'll do group work,
partner work, independent work. And that allows
me to see how it is and where it is that they're
struggling. So are they struggling in the group
work? Are they struggling in the pair work and
the individual work? I'll do a variety of things.
We'll practice the multiple-choice test so they can
get a feel for it. We'll practice the timed writing.
So I'm not neglecting the actual College Board
stuff that we need to do, but at the same time it
allows me to see where the little gaps are. So
depending on what it is, I'll work with students
one-on-one or with small groups, it just varies.
Sometimes ... it's not usually just one-on-one. But,
it's something that I'll have to say, "Okay, hold on
a second. Let's stop right there." And I have to
direct myself to everybody. Usually I'll try to do
more of the "everybody" thing so as to not single
out any one person. And when it comes to groups,
usually I'll tell the groups, "Okay, you guys pick
your groups, and if someone's not working, kick
them out of your group." So everyone kinda holds
each other accountable.”
“I do tutoring. I assign ... No, I don't assign, I say
“I'm here at lunch time and after school.” Like
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 72
Interview Question Participant Comments
today we had chapter test and it was kind of hard.
I told them to study, but because it's the first one,
the big chapter test, they thought it was gonna be
multiple choice, I said, “No this is a AP course,”
So they say “Can I come back at lunchtime?” I
said, “Okay, I'm gonna give you a chance.” So I
gave them extra time and if they need to finish the
test, so they can come I also, for their recording
parts, I told them they need to come and see me
so we can do it a one on one and speak together
because that's one of the most important parts. If
I have thirty-seven students in a classroom and
we do the recording, every Thursday we do the
recording part, it's hard for me to listen one of
each. So I say “You have to come in your own
time. You can do it after school, lunchtime,” And
sometimes I do it in the classroom when they are
doing a worksheet or an activity.”
Organizational Influences
Five organizational influence questions were included in the AP teacher interviews to
better understand their cultural setting and the cultural models present at Baxter High School.
Two questions probed for a culture of high achievement with support systems. The AP teachers
were asked if the school placed any obstacles in their way that might prevent higher achievement
and what the school could improve to ensure that they have all of the resources necessary to
elevate student achievement on the AP exams. The AP teachers were also probed for the levels
of implementation once they received training. A final aspect propped was the AP teachers’
participation in AP trainings and how they were supported to implement and achieve annual
goals. All of the AP teachers answered these five questions, which contributed to a 100%
response rate.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 73
AP teachers work and feel supported in a culture of high achievement with
academic supports but there are obstacles that impact their performance. The AP teachers
indicated that they strive for a rigorous academic environment within their courses. Two of the
AP teachers specifically mentioned their pass rate improving from previous years and their
intentions to continue to elevate the pass rate in the future. Six of AP teachers indicated that they
felt they receive the proper resources from the school in order to elevate student achievement on
the AP exams. They indicated that they are able to attend professional development conferences,
have access to equipment, and various resources such as books and study guides, “We went to
workshops, myself and another teacher who was also teaching the same course that I was
teaching. There were several other AP teachers going as well. We all went to these workshops.”
A few of the AP teachers mentioned that the school needs to remove some obstacles in order for
them to be able to elevate student exam achievement. The AP teachers mentioned the need to
reduce some of the class sizes that are close to 40 students, strengthen the curriculum for the pre-
AP courses (Honors courses) to ensure student preparedness, and more involvement in the
enrollment process to ensure that the students entering the courses are adequately prepared for
the rigor of the courses. One teacher directly mentioned class size when asked regarding
organizational obstacles that could be influencing performance, “Make sure I don't have almost
40 students in a class that doesn't fit 40 students. That's the environment of the classroom. My
classroom doesn't fit. I have students who are crowded in a classroom.” Another teacher
commented about being more involved in the enrollment process, “I think I would like to just be
more involved with the process in getting the students added to my class.” Overall, the AP
teachers feel that they receive support from Baxter High School and mentioned a few obstacles
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 74
that they think could be impacting performance. The quotes related to the AP teachers’ culture
of high achievement are presented via table 8.
Table 8
Interview Participant Comments Regarding a Culture of High Achievement at Baxter High
School
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q14: What could your school improve to ensure
that you have all the possible resources to elevate
student achievement on the AP exams?
Q15: Describe any obstacles that your school
might have placed in your way that could be
leading to the students achieving lower pass rates
on the AP exam.
“I think that enforcing certain curriculum in the
lower grades to make sure that they have an
emphasis on some of the things that we're
teaching. I don't know if that's even possible
because I wouldn't want to take anyone's
autonomy. I don't want to take anyone's choices
away from them. It's been a struggle to get some
of the teachers to incorporate some of these
ideas, and because they're learning some of them
from scratch. Even the students were like, "God I
wish we'd learned some of this last year."
“I have been very fortunate. I've always had
support from the moment I entered the school to
the current administration is fabulous. In any
sense logistically, in terms of any need, training,
in terms of any support at any level. I have
always received a great deal of support. I can
mention all kinds of examples.”
“Honestly, I don't see any. No and we have a very
good principal. Everything we request, we have
it. And the vice principal who is in charge of the
AP program, the same way. Like last year we said
"We don't have enough recorders, and the kids
are using their phones, but I think they have to
have the recorders to have experience how
they're gonna do it on the real test." She moved
quickly, and she ordered more recorders, and we
get them. The same thing with books cause every
year we have more AP students, a lot. The
librarian, we send an email, same week, they're
ordering more books for the kids. So I think we
have all the materials to be successful.”
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 75
Interview Question Participant Comments
AP teachers receive adequate professional development to coordinate their courses
but the professional development has not been consistent. All of the AP teachers indicated
that attending professional development trainings have been beneficial to their professional
practices. The teachers indicated that they have not always been provided with the opportunity
to attend trainings by Baxter High School, however, during the last two years, opportunities to
attend conferences have been available and the teachers attended several conferences. The AP
teachers did not indicate that there is a consistent structure of professional development. Some
of them indicated they attended AP trainings in the past and one mentioned teaching an AP
course without receiving training, “I was learning from scratch. Then I had to basically learn
everything as I was going the year before, so I got to read all about it and interpret the
information, find a curriculum.” Four of the teachers commented that they valued a training
called “AP by the Sea.” This training was mentioned by most of the AP teachers and they shared
that they found it beneficial because it was coordinated by experienced teachers within their
content subject, they were given various resources, and they were given and trained regarding
curriculum topics and course pacing. “The second summer we went to a more extensive
workshop, which was AP by the Sea. It's specifically a workshop, three or four days, just in your
particular subject. It was more intensive, and it was much better.” Another teacher added, “So
far, I think AP by the Sea was amazing.” The quotes related to the AP teachers’ culture of
professional development are presented via table 9.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 76
Table 9
Interview Participant Comments Regarding a Culture of Professional Development at Baxter
High School
AP teachers work within a setting that lacks accountability for implementation. All
of the AP teachers articulated that they learned various strategies that they acquire during
conferences and from peers. One teacher mentioned that learning from an AP teacher assisted in
their practice, “The information that I learned from the teacher who was there, because he's also
an AP grader, he made me feel confident on some of the strategies that I was using in the
classroom.” Two teachers mentioned receiving information regarding detailed activities that
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q10: How has attending training impacted your
curriculum implementation in your course?
“I definitely needed the workshops. The second
summer we went to a more extensive workshop,
which was AP by the Sea, which is in San Diego.
It's specifically a workshop, three or four days,
just in your particular subject. It was more
intensive, and it was much better. I wish I'd had it
the year before. I felt like I was walking in to this
year much more prepared because before I'd had
these little conference workshops. This one broke
down the four aspects of the test. They gave us
material, practice material. What they did. We
heard from other people, and I felt much more
prepared My scores the second year increased by
20% after my second year and more practice.”
“And they gave you samples of how they organize
their binders. How they do their key issue
worksheets. What they do for test corrections.
Different things like that. So that was actually
pretty helpful- And then last year, last summer, at
AP by the sea it's more so content based. So it
was like they were teaching the course to me
again. And then I was able to pull some new ...
like the case studies and strategies from that. I
think it connected me to other people.”
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 77
support their content subjects specifically that they felt helped them to prepare for the course,
“This one broke down the four aspects of the test. They gave us material, practice material. What
they did. We heard from other people, and I felt much more prepared.” The AP teachers also
mentioned that they felt comfortable receiving information from experienced teachers and
applying the learned strategies within their courses. All of the teachers mentioned attending
various conferences, however, they did not indicate specifically their implementation once they
returned to their classrooms. The quotes related to the AP teachers’ professional development
training and implementation within their course are presented via table 10.
Table 10
Interview Participant Comments Regarding Implementation of Professional Development
Trainings Within their AP Course
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q9: Tell me about the trainings that you have
participated in regarding the Advanced Placement
Program.
“I attended AP by the Sea during the summer.
Yeah, so AP by the Sea is for AP classes and it
affirmed what I was doing. A lot of activities it's
just it gave me the more official activities to do. I
was doing, sort of, a variation of the activities
and it really was just a list of different activities
that cover the same content just, I guess, more
official ones.”
“The only one that I went to, it was a one-day
session last year on a Saturday. I think it was in
Santana. It was really good. I felt really
comfortable coming away from that one even
though it was only one day.
“I just don't teach up in the front. I try to get the
students engaged in the lesson, teaching them to
visualize what's going on. Some of what he was
using was very similar to how I like to teach. Just
the way he approached the curriculum, he kind of
said like don't do this, you don't have to know this
but focus on this. It's kind of made me a little bit
more confident and comfortable in teaching the
class and preparing the students for the AP. I
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 78
Interview Question Participant Comments
came back from it, even if it was just one day, it
was like cool, like we got this.”
AP teachers lack a culture in which goal setting is supported. The AP teachers
indicated that they receive a vast amount of support from the Baxter High School; however, they
did not indicate that Baxter High School supports them to achieve their goals within the AP
program. One of the teachers mentioned specifically that the only support received from the
school was training, “The only support that I got was sending me to training, and that's about it.”
Overall, the AP teachers had various, positive feedback regarding the value of professional
development opportunities and the support from their school. Specifically, they discussed
teacher support coaches, after school paid sessions, collaboration time, and lesson design
support. One of the teachers highlighted the support that is provided, “There's two person that
we have to coach us here at school and they meet in the other conference room and you sit with
them. So there's a lot of support that we have.” The quotes related to the AP teachers’ goal
setting items are presented via table 11.
Table 11
Interview Participant Comments Regarding Goal Setting Within the AP Course
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q13: Describe how your school supports you to
achieve your goals within the AP program.
“The only support that I got was sending me to
training, and that's about it.”
“This year, one thing that I really like, the
principal is giving us the opportunity to meet
together, to have extra time. We have learning
teams and that's every morning on Mondays, and
we have to choose if we want to go to ...
[inaudible 00:26:07] If I want to work with an
AP teacher, that Monday, I can. Well I'm in the
department chair, so I assigned where to go. And
if I see that there's a necessity to go to see the
level 1 and 2, then I got to that. But they give us
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 79
Interview Question Participant Comments
time to do that. Also, we have afterschool and
they pay. If you wanna do it, you get paid. There's
two person that we have to coach us here at
school and they meet in the other conference
room and you sit with them. And if you need help
with your lessons or you have any strategies, they
share with you, they go over with you, you can be
there and for an hour and also get extra help. So
there's a lot of support that we have.”
“All the training that I've been able to go to, just
in the beginning, has been incredible, and I know
it's pretty extensive. That part, I can't even
describe how helpful it's been. It's been amazing,
for me specifically. I love going to all these new
trainings and learning.”
Document Findings
The assistant principal who oversees the curriculum and instruction at Baxter High
School randomly selected five syllabi to analyze the contents that the AP teachers detailed. Each
year, the AP teachers submit a syllabus to the assistant principal and to the College Board
website for approval. The assistant principal’s analysis is highlighted within this section.
Five AP course syllabi were analyzed for their alignment to the AP curriculum and
course expectations as well as any details of instructional strategies used in the class. The five
syllabi included one from each of the following courses: US History, French Language, English
Language, English Literature, and Psychology. Each of these syllabi were approved by the AP
Course Audit website.
Alignment to AP curriculum. Four out of five syllabi explicitly stated the same exact
course description from the AP Collegeboard website. All syllabi referenced the AP curriculum
through its expectation of rigor, student work (e.g., attendance, reading, writing, etc.), and course
materials. One syllabus listed the AP curriculum requirements, which are the course content
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 80
standards. Throughout the syllabus, these curriculum requirements were explicitly connected to
each student activities to explain how each learning activity connected to the standards. For
example, within Unit 1, students are asked to conduct a historical scholarship analysis by
listening to a podcast on the Pueblo Revolt. This learning activity is connected to AP curriculum
requirement (CR) 14, which reads, “students are provided opportunities to develop written
arguments that have a thesis supported by relevant historical evidence that is organized in a
cohesive way.” The syllabus noted seven comprehensive units for this AP course. Each unit
included approximately 10 learning activities in depth which are explicitly connected to at least
one CR.
Instructional strategies. Of the five AP syllabi analyzed, three authors did not note or
reference instructional strategies utilized. The two authors that explored instructional strategies
in their syllabus were the French Language and US History courses. The French Language
syllabus explicitly noted several of the instructional strategies. A section titled “Teaching
Strategies” enunciates the importance of communication via written and speaking language
skills. In order to “enhance writing,” the syllabus explained that the students will engage in
journaling, emailing, and writing for blogs. Students will also create projects that allow students
to express their understanding through different mediums, such as a song, a poem, comic, film,
brochure, etc. Another section highlighted the importance “listening comprehension,” in which
the instruction strategies includes the use of realias such as “interactive videos, commercials,
video clips, speeches, and interviews.” The following section detailed how students’ speaking
skills will be enhanced using instructional strategies such as role plays, class presentations,
speeches, debates, interviews, jigsaw activities, games, and tv shows. To support reading
comprehension, the syllabus explained that students will participate in “jigsaw activities” as well
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 81
as engage in game-like activities, peer and reciprocal teaching, Socratic Seminars, and various
thinking maps and graphic organizers.
The second syllabus that referenced instructional strategies is the US History course. In
the introduction, students’ historical thinking skill is referenced, specifically outlining how they
will analyze and interact with historical text. This syllabus also detailed learning activities for
each unit, and describes the learning activities, which include group work, group discussion,
graphic organizers, thinking or concept maps. It also references the use of images and realias, as
well as the importance of connecting the content to the students’ life. The syllabi seemed to
indicate that there is a level of congruence with the College Board which is an initial step to
support the students to achieve higher levels on AP exams.
Summary of General Themes
Knowledge Themes
Three primary themes emerged from the knowledge questions that were presented to the
AP teachers. The AP teachers indicated that they plan their course curriculum through different
methods, which include information from conferences, online resources, and teacher peers who
also teach AP courses. The first theme that emerged was regarding the AP teacher’s curriculum
alignment with the College Board course description. The College Board course guide is used as
a reference and is not the primary curriculum guide that is universally used to create the course
curriculum within the AP courses. Another knowledge theme was that the AP teachers use
various instructional strategies, however, they do not examine the College Board course
description instructional strategies section and use those strategies within the AP courses. The
final knowledge theme was related to student support systems. The AP teachers indicated that
they attempt to identify the students’ academic levels at the beginning of the school year,
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 82
however, they did not provide clear structures regarding how they would academically support
students who encountered difficulties as the course progressed. Based on the interview analyses,
the three knowledge themes of curriculum alignment, instructional alignment, and academic
supports for students need to be addressed to support the AP teachers to achieve the stakeholder
goal and the organizational goal of improving AP exam achievement.
Motivation Themes
Two themes emerged from the motivation questions that were presented to the AP
teachers. The AP teachers indicated that they determine a student’s ability level at the inception
of their course but they did not indicate their levels of impact in determining how successful the
student can achieve on the AP exams. The first theme, which was related to attribution theory,
was centered on the AP teachers’ willingness to support student achievement but not on teacher
impacts. None of the AP teachers indicated that they are a factor in the academic achievement of
their students. This is problematic because the teachers indicated external attributions that they
are not able to control and instead cited the students’ role regarding achievement. The second
theme, which was related to self-efficacy theory, was centered on the AP teacher’s beliefs
regarding how they can support the students who are struggling academically in their courses.
The specific theme was the AP teachers’ willingness to support students when they have gaps in
performance, however, they did not indicate their levels of confidence to support the students
and how that might impact student achievement. Based on the interview analyses, the two
motivation themes of ineffective attributions and low self-efficacy need to be addressed to
support the AP teachers to achieve the stakeholder goal and the organizational goal of improving
AP exam achievement.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 83
Organizational Influences’ Themes
Four themes emerged from the organizational influence questions that were presented to
the AP teachers. The first organizational theme was the need to remove obstacles for the AP
teachers in order to support them to raise student achievement. Two specific obstacles were
detailed, the number of students placed in a course and a deeper emphasis on elevating the rigor
in pre-AP courses (Honors courses). The second theme detailed by the AP teachers was the
recent support from Baxter High School to provide them with professional development
opportunities, however, professional development has not been consistent and some of the AP
teachers have taught AP classes without professional development. The third theme that was
evident was the lack of a structured implementation component when the AP teachers received
professional development. Baxter High School does not use a structured process to evaluate the
AP teachers’ implementation, possible gaps, and future needs to address performance. The final
theme was the lack of goal setting support from Baxter High School. The AP teachers do not
universally create annual goals to support their practice and elevate academic achievement.
Baxter High School has not made goal setting an expectation and has not provided training.
Based on the interview analyses, the two cultural models and two cultural themes of
organizational influences need to be addressed to support the AP teachers to achieve the
stakeholder goal and the organizational goal of improving AP exam achievement.
Recommendations for Practice to Address KMO Influences
This section details the proposed solutions and recommendations that could assist the AP
teachers and Baxter High School to eliminate the knowledge, motivation, and organizational
gaps that influence the low AP pass rates of the students. A comprehensive implementation and
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 84
evaluation plan based on the New World Kirkpatrick Model (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016) is
presented in Appendix F.
Knowledge Recommendations
There are various knowledge types for the AP teachers to acquire in order to address the
39% AP exam pass rate. Baxter High School teachers will need a strong understanding of
conceptual knowledge to address curriculum alignment, procedural knowledge to address
instructional practices, and metacognitive knowledge to support the students in their courses.
Table 12 illustrates the knowledge influences, theoretical principles, and context specific
recommendations that emerged as gaps to the teachers’ ability to improve AP exam performance.
Table 12
Summary of Knowledge Influences and Recommendations
Knowledge Influence
Principle and Citation Context-Specific
Recommendation
Teachers need to be aware
that aligning the course
curriculum and
assessments to the College
Board course and exam
description supports the
students in achieving better
AP exam results (C)
Conceptual knowledge is
when we are aware of our
thinking and is made up of
all the facts, concepts,
processes, and principles that
we have learned and once
thought about (Clark &
Estes, 2008)
Provide job aids in the context of a
workshop that includes
information to target the various
theories of aligning the College
Board curriculum to support
student AP exam achievement
Teachers need to be aware
of how to align
instructional practices with
the AP instructional
resources to provide
scaffolds for the students.
(P)
Procedural knowledge is
knowing how to do
something and also refers to
methods of inquiry that are
required to perform specific
activities (Rueda, 2011)
Provide professional AP training
for the teachers so that they
understand the steps involved in
using instructional strategies that
are aligned with the AP
instructional expectations.
Teachers need to self-
reflect on how to support
students who are
struggling at mastering the
AP curriculum (M)
Self-regulatory strategies,
including goal setting,
enhance learning and
performance (APA, 2015:
Dembo & Eaton, 2000;
Denler, et al., 2009).
Provide professional learning
community training for the AP
teachers to ensure they gain the
knowledge and strategies to be
able to self-reflect on how they can
support struggling students to
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 85
Metacognition (Rueda, 2011) master the AP curriculum.
Increase the AP teachers’ ability to align their course curriculum with the College
Board course description. The findings of this study showed that one of the biggest challenges
that AP teachers confront is having the awareness that aligning the course curriculum and
assessments to the College Board course and exam description supports the students in achieving
better AP exam results. Clark and Estes (2008) declared that conceptual knowledge is when
individuals are aware of their thinking and aware of all the facts, concepts, processes, and
principles that have been learned and once thought about. This indicates that in order to improve
the performance gap, the AP teachers at Baxter High School need to gain a high level of the AP
facts, concepts, process, and principles as related to the College Board curriculum and
assessments in order to improve student achievement on AP exams. The curriculum alignment
component is extremely important and if this aspect is not coordinated with fidelity, the other
recommendations will not be as beneficial to the overall recommendation plan. A heavy
emphasis will be placed on this initial step. The recommendation is to provide job aides in the
context of a workshop that provides information to target the various theories of aligning the
College Board curriculum to support student AP exam achievement.
Paek, Braun, Ponte, Trapani, and Powers (2010) describe the classroom context, which
includes several variables related to curriculum and assessment alignment. They stated that
several factors are relevant to content coverage including how teachers negotiate depth of the
course concepts in relation to the breadth of the course content, and to what extent the content of
an AP class is aligned with the content of the AP exam (Paek et al., 2010). This information
supports the recommendation to provide job aides for the AP teachers to learn about various
theories of aligning the course content to the College Board curriculum.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 86
Increase the AP teachers’ ability levels to align their instructional strategies with the
College Board course description. The findings of this study showed that the AP teachers need
procedural knowledge of how to align instructional practices with the AP instructional resources
to provide scaffolds for the students. Krathwohl (2002) defined procedural knowledge as the
process of how to do something, inquiry, using skills, algorithms, techniques, and methods. AP
teachers at Baxter High School need to develop the skills to consistently align their instructional
practices to the AP instructional resources. The recommendation to address this gap in
performance would be to provide professional AP training for the teachers so that they
understand the steps involved in using instructional strategies that are aligned with the AP
instructional expectations.
Hollins (2011) described teaching as a complex process that requires deep knowledge and
understanding in a variety of areas and having the ability to integrate and apply this knowledge
under varying conditions, and with a diversity of groups and individuals. Furthermore, there are
specific essential skills and knowledge that teachers need to ensure success. Hollins (2011)
outlined five essential knowledge and understanding for quality teaching that include 1)
knowledge of learning, 2) knowledge of subject matter, 3) knowledge of pedagogy, 4)
knowledge of accountability and assessment, 5) ability to participate in a professional learning
community. Knowledge of pedagogy implementation is a procedural knowledge element that
will be fundamental for the AP teachers at Baxter High School in developing lessons that use
effective instructional strategies to support student learning. Stronge (2018) argued that the most
critical aspect of assessing a teacher's effectiveness is their instructional strategies. An effective
teacher uses a variety of research-based instruction strategies within their content area to engage
their students (Stronge, 2018). The instructional aspects of teaching have many elements of
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 87
procedural knowledge. Stronge (2018) identified an instructional delivery framework consisting
of seven elements, including using a variety of instructional strategies, differentiating instruction,
communicating high expectations, promoting complex and higher-order thinking, using high-
quality questioning, and supporting student engagement in learning. Within this framework,
scaffolding for students when they lack the foundational levels necessary to succeed in an AP
course is a procedural knowledge element that is important to assist them process various
concepts within their course. This information supports the recommendation to provide AP
training for the teachers to gain a deeper knowledge of the various complexities of the
instructional process and provide scaffolds for the students.
Provide support to increase self-reflective practices to elevate the teachers’
understanding or their role within the courses. The findings of this study showed that the AP
teachers need to self-reflect on how to support students who are struggling at mastering the AP
curriculum. Metacognition refers to the awareness of one’s own cognition and cognitive process
and allows individuals to know when and why to do something (Rueda, 2011). Connected to
metacognition is when one self-reflects and self regulates their behaviors and actions. Dembo
and Eaton (2000) indicated that successful individuals are able to monitor and control their
behavior by setting goals, using alternative strategies, and developing a plan of attack when
confronting a problem. Based on this, it is important that the AP teachers at Baxter High School
increase their self-reflective practices regarding how to support students who are struggling at
mastering the course content. It is recommended that the teachers be provided with professional
learning community training to ensure they gain the knowledge and strategies to be able to self-
reflect on how they can support struggling students to master the AP curriculum.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 88
In order to promote educational equity and ensure that minority and disadvantaged
students are college and career ready, educators and policy makers have attempted to expand the
AP program in schools who serve those students (Dougherty & Mellor, 2006). As the expansion
has grown around the nation, the exam pass rates of minority students have remained low and
educators are examining ways to support them. Dougherty and Mellor (2006) argued that
interventions need to start early with educators committing to the steps necessary to prepare
disadvantaged students to coordinate the challenges of AP course, which require them to
navigate college-level work while they are attending high school. Therefore, the
recommendation would be to provide professional learning community training for the AP
teachers to ensure they gain the knowledge and strategies to be able to self-reflect on how they
can support struggling students to master the AP curriculum.
Motivation Recommendations
In this section, the AP teacher’s motivation influences will be discussed to provide
possible recommendations to address the AP exam performance gap. Table 13 illustrates the
motivation influences, theoretical principles, and context specific recommendations that emerged
as gaps to the teachers’ ability to improve AP exam performance.
Table 13
Summary of Motivation Influences and Recommendations
Motivation Influence
Principle and
Citation
Context-Specific Recommendation
Attributions
Teachers need to feel that
student success on AP exams is
directly determined by their
(teacher) efforts rather than
uncontrollable factors such as
student SES, etc.
Adaptive
attributions and
control beliefs
motivate
individuals
(Pintrich, 2003).
Provide training for the AP teachers that
focuses on aspects within their control
such as curriculum, instructional
strategies, interventions, and
assessments.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 89
Self Efficacy
Teachers need to feel confident
about their ability to support
student performance on the AP
exams.
High self-efficacy
can positively
influence
motivation
(Pajares, 2006).
Provide specific AP training with
practice and immediate feedback for the
teachers to ensure that they elevate their
confidence of the program and improve
their ability to support student
performance.
Provide teachers with opportunities to learn about internal, controllable factors that
contribute to student achievement. The data showed that the AP teachers need to feel that
student success on AP exams is directly determined by their (teacher) efforts rather than
uncontrollable factors such as student SES. Pintrich (2003) argued that individuals who feel that
they have more personal control regarding their behavior and learning are more likely to succeed
and perform at higher levels than individuals who do not feel in control. This assertion leads to
the importance of ensuring that the AP teachers at Baxter High School focus on the aspects that
they can control as this can lead to better performance and eventually translates to improved
student achievement. The recommendation is to provide training for the AP teachers that
focuses on aspects within their control such as curriculum, instructional strategies, interventions,
and assessments.
Rueda (2011) argued that when an individual believes that not meeting a goal is not
always permanent and can be influenced by factors they can control, they are more likely to
persist and work hard at a task or activity. People who are pessimistic and have a belief that they
will be ineffective regardless of their effort will not actively pursue work goals, persist, avoid
distractions, or invest the required mental effort to do their best (Clark & Estes, 2011). From a
theoretical perspective, increasing controllable attributions for student success would improve
the performance of teachers at Baxter High School and through that, elevate the students’
achievement.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 90
Increase the AP teachers’ confidence regarding their ability to positively support
student achievement. The data indicated that the AP teachers need to feel confident about their
ability to support student performance on the AP exams. Pajares (2006) stated that self-efficacy
beliefs are at the core of human motivation and personal accomplishment. When people believe
that there is a correlation between their actions and the outcomes that they desire, they will have
an incentive to persevere when faced with challenges (Pajares, 2006). The study’s data suggest
that the AP teachers at Baxter High School need structures that will increase their self-efficacy.
The recommendation is to provide specific AP training with practice and immediate feedback for
the teachers to ensure that they elevate their confidence of the program, and improve their ability
to support student performance.
Clark and Estes (2008) report that motivation is what gets people going, keeps them
moving, and guides them regarding how much effort to spend on a task. People can be
intelligent and experienced but if they lack motivation, they will lack the direction, persistence,
and energy to accomplish tasks successfully (Clark & Estes, 2008). Bandura (1994) stated that
self-efficacy beliefs impacts how individuals think, feel, and motivate themselves. Bandura
(1994) goes on to state that people with high confidence in their abilities approach difficult tasks
as a challenge to be mastered instead of a threat that needs to be avoided. From a theoretical
perspective, increasing the self-efficacy of the AP teachers at Baxter High School would improve
their performance and elevate student achievement.
Organization Recommendations
In this section, the AP teachers’ organizational influences will be discussed to provide
possible recommendations to address the AP exam performance gap. There are various cultural
models and cultural settings at Baxter High School that can impact the AP teachers’ performance
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 91
in being able to acquire a 50% AP exam pass rate. Baxter high school needs to implement a
philosophy or professional development and annual goal setting. Table 14 illustrates the
organizational influences, theoretical principles, and context specific recommendations that
emerged as gaps to the teachers’ ability to improve AP exam performance.
Table 14
Summary of Organization Influences and Recommendations
Organization Influence
Principle and Citation
Context-Specific
Recommendation
Baxter High School needs
to have a culture of high
achievement with supports
in which the stakeholders
feel capable of navigating
the various aspects of their
roles and elevate student
achievement.
Organizational influences
such as structures, policies,
and practices can have an
impact on stakeholder
performance or an entire
school and can determine
whether goals are met (Rueda,
2011).
Implement professional
development structures for pre-
AP teachers (Honors teachers) to
ensure vertical alignment with the
curriculum, instruction, and
assessments to prepare the
students for the rigorous elements
of AP courses.
Baxter High School needs
to have a system of
professional development
to support the stakeholders
to improve curriculum,
instruction, and
assessments.
Organizational influences
such as structures, policies,
and practices can have an
impact on stakeholder
performance or an entire
school and can determine
whether goals are met (Rueda,
2011).
Implement a professional
development plan, which contains
a budget for AP professional
development and ensures that the
AP teachers attend to continue to
elevate their knowledge regarding
the program.
Baxter High School has an
insufficient amount of
teachers who implement
the various skills and
strategies into their courses
after attending professional
development conferences.
Organizational performance
increases when individuals
communicate constantly and
candidly to others about plans
and processes (Clark & Estes,
2008)
Create a PLC team for the AP
teachers to communicate and
adopt best practices to increase
student achievement.
Baxter High School has an
insufficient amount of
teachers who set annual
SMART goals to meet
various targets that can
elevate student
achievement.
Organizational performance
increases when individuals
have a sense of their short-
term priorities and the various
steps that they can take to
achieve their benchmarks.
(DuFour, DuFour, Eaker,
Thomas and Mike Mattos,
Introduce and train AP teachers
regarding the process of creating,
monitoring, and assessing
SMART goals to elevate their
practices.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 92
2016).
Create a philosophy of continuous learning for AP teachers at Baxter High School.
The data indicated that one of the barriers teachers felt existed that kept them from being able to
elevate AP exam achievement is that Baxter High School does not have a philosophy of
professional development to support the stakeholders to improve curriculum, instruction, and
assessments. AP teachers have taught classes without training in the past and at times attended
trainings individually without the support of Baxter High School. Rueda (2011) stated that
organizational influences such as structures, policies, and practices can have an impact on
stakeholder and organizational performance and can determine whether goals are met. This
suggests that the performance of the AP teachers can be impacted negatively if Baxter High
School continues to not provide a structured system of ongoing professional development
opportunities for the AP teachers and pre-AP teachers. The recommendation is to implement a
professional development plan, which contains a budget for AP professional development and
ensures that the AP teachers and pre-AP teachers attend to continue to elevate their knowledge
regarding the program.
Clark and Estes (2008) stated that organizations need to provide adequate knowledge,
skills, and motivational support for all stakeholders to address performance gaps related to
organizational influences. The researchers continued by arguing that even when a stakeholder
has a high level of motivation and exceptional knowledge, if the organization has inadequate
processes and materials, they will encounter challenges to achieving performance goals (Clark &
Estes, 2008). This connection to organizational structures and stakeholder achievement closely
matches Yoon, Duncan, Lee, Scarloss, and Shapley (2007) research connecting teacher
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 93
professional development to student achievement. The researchers found that teacher
professional development affects students through three steps. The first is that professional
development enhances the teacher’s knowledge, more effective knowledge and skills improve
teacher practices in the classroom, and finally improved teacher practices raise student
achievement (Yoon et al., 2007). From a literature perspective, there is support to ensure that
Baxter High School create a structure of professional development to increase the AP teacher’s
and pre-AP teacher’s knowledge and overall effectiveness levels.
Create a system at Baxter High School in which goals are set and checked on an
annual basis. The data indicated that Baxter High School has not provided the AP teachers with
training and support regarding how to implement the various aspects of what they learn during
professional development conferences and how to create and structure SMART goals in order to
support high student academic achievement in AP courses. Clark and Estes (2008) asserted that
organizational performance increases when individuals communicate constantly and candidly to
others about plans and processes. SMART goals help stakeholders to close the gap between their
current reality and what they aim to achieve (Dufour et.al, 2016). These assertions suggest that
the AP exams results can possibly increase as a result of the AP teachers candidly
communicating regarding their various structures and best practices through the PLC process and
the creation of SMART goals. The recommendation to address this assumed performance gap is
to create a PLC (Professional Learning Communities) team for the AP teachers to adopt best
practices to increase student achievement and to create, monitor, and assess annual SMART
goals.
Rueda (2011) shared that there are instances in which everyone in a specific school
knows what to do and are highly motivated, and there are things specific to the organization that
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 94
can impede their performance which can include how people interact with each other within the
setting. Organizations play a crucial role in determining how people interact and work together.
Marzano (2003) addressed the importance of collegiality by arguing that it is the manner in
which people interact, openly share successes and failures, demonstrate respect, and
constructively providing feedback regarding practices and procedures. Venables (2017) detailed
teacher collegiality specifically within PLCs by arguing that members of a PLC look critically at
student and teacher work, provide feedback to one another, design common assessments, review
student data, and create a plan of action when students need support. This information supports
the need for an AP PLC team at Baxter High School to provide teachers with the structure to
coordinate the various aspects of their roles within the organization and the creation of annual
SMART goals in order to meet their performance goals.
Conclusion
The purpose of this study was to examine the problem of Hispanic/Latino students at
Baxter High School passing AP exams at low rates and to provide recommendations to reduce or
eliminate the performance gap. The Hispanic/Latino population is a large minority group that
has been growing and will continue to grow in numbers throughout America. Addressing the
academic needs of this group will have many impacts on society in general and Baxter High
School specifically. Educational attainment plays a large role in many aspects such as financial,
health, and social factors thus addressing this gap is crucial nationally. On the local level, Baxter
High School has several incentives to elevate the AP exam rates which include students
admittance to colleges, meeting accountability measures, and overall elevated school reputation.
As such, the study examined the relevant research, highlighted research data, and provided
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 95
recommendations to support the AP teachers stakeholder group to make adjustments, which
could lead to a possible increase in Hispanic/Latino students’ AP exam achievement.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 96
References
Anderman, E., & Anderman, L. (2006). Attributions. Retrieved from http://www.education.com
/reference/article/attribution-theory/.
Bandura, A. (1994). Self-efficacy. In V. S. Ramachaudran (Ed.), Encyclopedia of human
behavior (Vol. 4, pp. 71-81). New York: Academic Press. (Reprinted in H. Friedman
[Ed.], Encyclopedia of mental health. San Diego: Academic Press, 1998).
Baum, S., Ma, J., & Payea, K. (2013). Education pays, 2013: The benefits of higher education
for individuals and society. Trends in higher education series. College Board.
Burton, N. Whitman, N. Yepes-Baraya, M. Cline, F. Myung-in Kim, R. (2002). Minority student
success: The role of teachers in advanced placement program (AP) Courses. College
Board Research Report No. 2002-8. 44
Carnevale, A. P., Rose, S. J., & Cheah, B. (2013). The college payoff: Education, occupations,
lifetime earnings.
Cisneros, J. Gomez, L. Powers, J. Holloway-Libell, J. & Corley, K. (2014). The advanced
placement opportunity gap in Arizona: Access, participation, and success. AASA Journal
of Scholarship and Practice, 11(2), 20-33.
Clark, R. E., & Estes, F. (2008). Turning research into results: A guide to selecting the
right performance solutions. Atlanta, GA: CEP Press.
College Board. (2012). The 8th annual AP report to the nation.
College Board. (2014). The 10th annual AP report to the nation.
Colby, S. Ortman, J. (2015). Projections of the size and composition of the U.S population:
2014-to 2016. United States Census Bureau.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 97
Conger, D., Long, M. C., & Iatarola, P. (2009). Explaining race, poverty, and gender disparities
in advanced course‐taking. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 28(4), 555-576.
Cook, D. Artino, A. (2016). Motivation to learn: an overview of contemporary theories. Medical
Education 2016. P. 997-1014.
Corra, M., Carter, J., & Carter, S. (2011). The interactive impact of gender on high school
advanced course enrollment. The Journal of Negro Education, 80(1), 36-46.
Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods
approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Darling-Hammond, L. (1997). Doing what matters most: Investing in quality teaching. National
Commission on Teaching & America's Future, Kutztown Distribution Center, 15076
Kutztown Road, PO Box 326, Kutztown, PA 19530-0326.
Darling-Hammond, L. (2000). Teacher quality and student achievement. Education Policy
Analysis Archives, 8, (1).
Dembo, M.H., & Eaton, M.J. (2000). Self-regulation of academic learning in middle-school
levels. The Elementary Middle School Journal, 100(5), 473-490.
Denler, H., Wolters, C., & Benzon, M. (2006). Social cognitive theory. Retrieved from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/social-cognitive-theory/.
Dougherty, C., Mellor, L., & Jian, S. (2006). The relationship between advanced placement and
college graduation. National Center for Educational Accountability.
DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., Many, T. W., & Mattos, M. (2016). Learning by doing: A
handbook for professional learning communities at work™. Solutions Tree Press.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 98
Eccles, J. (2006). Expectancy value motivational theory. Retrieved
from http://www.education.com/reference/article/expectancy-value-motivational-
theory/.
Education Trust. (2017). The majority report: Supporting the educational success of Latino
students in California. Education Trust.
Fry, R., & Gonzalez, F. (2008). One in five and growing fast: A profile of Hispanic public
school students. Washington, DC: Pew Hispanic Center.
Goldenberg, C., Gallimore, R., Reese, L., & Garnier, H. (2001). Cause or effect? A longitudinal
study of immigrant Latino parents' aspirations and expectations, and their children's
school performance. American Educational Research Journal, 38(3), 547-582.
Hallett, R. E., & Venegas, K. M. (2011). Is increased access enough? Advanced placement
courses, quality, and success in low-income urban schools. Journal for the Education of
the Gifted, 34(3), 468-487,544,546. Retrieved from
http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-
com.libproxy2.usc.edu/docview/856977291?accountid=14749
Hattie, J. (2008). Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to
achievement. Routledge.
Hollins, E. (2011). Teacher preparation for quality teaching. Journal of Teacher Education.
62, 395-407.
Johnson, R. B., & Christensen, L. B. (2015). Educational research: Quantitative, qualitative,
and mixed approaches (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Kirkpatrick, J. D., & Kirkpatrick, W. K. (2016). Kirkpatrick's four levels of training evaluation.
Association for Talent Development.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 99
Klopfenstein, K. (2003). Recommendations for maintaining the quality of advanced
placement programs. American Secondary Education, 32(1), 39-48.
Klopfenstein, K. (2004). The advanced placement expansion of the 1990s: How did
traditionally underserved students fare? Education Policy Analysis Archives, 12
(68).
Klopfenstein, K., & Thomas, M. (2009). The link between advanced placement experience and
early college success. Southern Economic Journal, 75(3), 873-891.
Knox, J. Anfara, V. (2013). What research says: understanding job satisfaction and its
relationship to student academic performance. Middle School Journal, 44(3) 58-64.
Kolluri, S. (2018). Advanced placement: The dual challenge of equal access and
effectiveness. Review of Educational Research.
Kyburg, R. Hertberg-Davis, H. Callahan, C. (2007). Advanced placement and international
baccalaureate programs: Optimal learning environments for talented minorities?
Journal for Advanced Academics. 18(2), 172-215.
Martinez, M. Klopott, S. (2005). The link between high school reform and college access and
success for low-income and minority youth. American Youth Policy Forum and
Pathways to College Network.
Martone, A., & Sireci, S. (2009). Evaluating alignment between curriculum, assessment, and
instruction. Review of Educational Research Association, 79(4), 1332-1361.
Marzano, R. J. (2003). What works in schools: Translating research into action. ASCD.
Maxwell, J. A. (2013). Qualitative research design: An interactive approach (3rd ed.). Thousand
Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 100
McEwan, E. K., & McEwan, P. J. (2003). Making sense of research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications.
Merriam, S. B., & Tisdell, E. J. (2016). Qualitative research: A guide to design and
implementation (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Milewski, G. B. & Gillie, J. M. (2002). What are the characteristics of AP teachers? An
examination of survey research. (Research Report No. 2002-10). New York, NY:
The College Board.
Moore, G., & Slate, J. (2008). Who’s taking the advanced placement courses and how are
they doing: A statewide two-year study. The High School Journal, 19(1), 55-67.
Morgan, R, & Klaric, J. (2007). AP students in college: An analysis of five-year academic
careers. The College Board Research Report No. 2007-4.
Ndura, E., Robinson, M., & Ochs, G. (2003) Minority students in high school advanced
placement courses: Opportunity and equity denied. American Secondary Education,
32(1), 21-38.
Nogales High School WASC Report (2016)
Noguera, P. (2008). Creating schools where race does not predict achievement: The role and
significance of RACE in the racial achievement gap. The Journal of Negro
Education, 77(2), 90-103.
Nugent, S.A. & Kames, F.A. (2002). The advanced placement program and the
international baccalaureate programme: a history and update. Gifted Child
Today, 25(1), 30-39.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 101
Ohert, J., Lambie, G., & Leva, K. (2009). Supporting Latino and African-American
students in advanced placement courses: A school counseling program’s approach.
Professional School Counseling, 13(1), 59-63.
Oreopoulos, P., & Petronijevic, U. (2013). Making college worth it: A review of the returns to
higher education. The Future of Children, 23(1), 41–65.
https://doi.org/10.1353/foc.2013.0001
Oreopoulos, P., & Salvanes, K. G. (2011). Priceless: The nonpecuniary benefits of schooling.
Journal of Economic Perspectives, 25(1), 159–184. https://doi.org/10.1257/jep.25.1.159
Paek, P. Ponte, E, Sigel, I., Braun, H., & Powers, D. (2005). A portrait of advanced placement
teachers’ practices. (College Board Research Report No. 2005-7). New York: The
College Board.
Pajares, F. (2006). Self-efficacy theory. Retrieved
from http://www.education.com/reference/article/self-efficacy-theory/
Pazzaglia, A. M., Stafford, E. T., & Rodriguez, S. M. (2016). Survey methods for educators:
Selecting samples and administering surveys (part 2 of 3) (REL 2016-160). Washington,
DC: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for
Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Regional Educational Laboratory
Northeast & Islands. Retrieved from http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs.
Pintrich, P. R. (2003). Motivation and classroom learning. Handbook of psychology, 103-122.
Royster, P., Gross, J., & Hochbein, C. (2015). Timing is everything: Getting students back on
track to college readiness in high school. The High School Journal, 98(3), 208-225.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 102
Rubin, H. J., & Rubin, I. S. (2012). Chapter 6: Conversational partnerships. In Qualitative
interviewing: The art of hearing data (3rd ed.) (pp. 85-92). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE
Publications.
Rueda, R. (2011). The 3 dimensions of improving student performance. New York, NY:
Teachers College Press.
Salkind, N. J. (2017). Statistics for people who (think they) hate statistics: Using Microsoft Excel
2016 (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
Santoli, S. (2002). Is there and advanced placement advantage? American Secondary
Education, 30(3), 23-35.
Scafidi, Benjamin P. and Clark, Christopher and Swinton, John R. (2015). Who takes
advanced placement (AP)? (June 2015). Eastern Economic Journal, Vol. 41, Issue 3, pp.
346-369, 2015.
Schmoker, M. (2018). Focus: Elevating the essentials to radically improve student learning.
Ascd.
Sciarra, D., & Whitson, M. (2007). Predictive factors in postsecondary educational
attainment among Latinos. Professional School Counseling, 10(3).
Struyven, K., Jacobs, K., & Dochy, F. (2013). Why do they want to teach? The multiple reasons
of different groups of students for undertaking teacher education. European journal of
psychology of education, 28(3), 1007-1022.
Solorzano, D., & Ornelas, A. (2004). A critical race analysis of Latina/o and African-
American advanced placement enrollment in public high schools. The High School
Journal, 87(3), 15-26.
Stronge, J. H. (2018). Qualities of effective teachers. ASCD.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 103
Taylor, P., Fry, R., & Oates, R. (2014). The rising cost of not going to college. Retrieved from
http://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2014/02/SDT-higher-edFINAL-
02-11-2014.pdf
Theokas, C. Saaris, R. (2013). Finding America’s mission AP and IB students. The Education
Trust: Shattering Expectations Series.
Venables, D. R. (2017). Facilitating teacher teams and authentic PLCs: The human side of
leading people, protocols, and practices. ASCD.
Webb, S. Williams, A. (2016). Perceptions of teacher motivation in public schools:
From NCLB to Common Core. Retrieved from:
epubs.library.msstate.edu/index.php/srcea/article/download/348/358
Weiss, R. S. (1994). Chapter 1: Introduction. In Learning from strangers: The art and method of
qualitative interview studies (pp. 1-14). New York, NY: The Free Press.
Welton, A. D., & Martinez, M. A. (2014). Coloring the college pathway: A more culturally
responsive approach to college readiness and access for students of color in secondary
schools. The Urban Review, 46(2), 197-223.
Wright, B. L., Ford, D. Y., & Young, J. L. (2017). Ignorance or indifference? Seeking
excellence and equity for under-represented students of color in gifted
education. Global Education Review, 4(1), 45-60.
Yuan, K. Le, V. McCaffrey, D. (2013). Incentive pay programs do not affect teacher
motivation or reported practices: Results from three randomized studies. Educational
Evaluation and policy Analysis, 35(1), 3-22.
Zarate, M. E., & Pachon, H. P. (2006). Gaining or losing ground? Equity in offering advanced
placement courses in California high schools 1997-2003. Tomas Rivera Policy Institute.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 104
Appendix A: Protocols
Stakeholder interview questions
I would like to first begin with expressing Yousef Nasouf’s gratitude for agreeing to
participate in his study. He would like to thank you for taking time out of your extremely busy
schedule to meet with me as his research representative and answer some questions. This
interview will take about half an hour, although we have allocated forty-five minutes for some
cushion on time.
Yousef Nasouf is currently enrolled in a doctoral program at USC and is conducting a
study on curriculum and assessment alignment, instructional practices, and the impact on
Hispanic/Latino students advanced placement exam achievement. He is focusing on the
alignment calibration between the College Board framework and teachers’ curriculum and
instruction.
Throughout this process he will not be serving as an employee of this organization to
make a professional assessment or judgment of your performance as a teacher. He would like to
emphasize that I as his research representative am only acting in the role of collecting data for
his study. The information you share with me will be placed into his study as part of the data
collection. Before Yousef Nasouf views the transcript, I will remove any potential identifiers to
ensure that he will not identify you individually. In addition, this interview is completely
confidential and your name or responses will not be disclosed to anyone or anywhere outside the
scope of this study and will be known only to him specifically for this data collection. While he
may choose to utilize a direct quote from you in his study, he will not know your name
specifically and will make the best effort possible to remove any potential identifying data
information. He will gladly provide you with a copy of his final product upon request.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 105
During the interview, I will be utilizing a recording device to assist me in capturing all of
your responses accurately and completely. This recording will not be shared with Yousef
Nasouf and anyone outside the scope of this project. The recording will be transcribed for
Yousef Nasouf, thus he will not be able to identify the respondents through their voices. Next,
the transcription will transferred to his password-protected files on a cloud file storage account
and deleted from the recording device immediately upon transfer. The recording will then be
destroyed after two years from the date his dissertation defense is approved.
With that, do you have any questions about the study before we get started? If not, I
would like your permission to begin the interview. May I also have your permission to record
this conversation?
1. Describe your knowledge and understanding of the College Board Advanced Placement
curriculum as detailed in the course description. How did you come to learn about the
curriculum?
2. How does you course curriculum alignment with the College Board course guide affect
how students perform in their AP classes?
3. Describe how you determine the curriculum pacing in your class. What is your process
for determining which content to cover and which content to exclude?
4. What are the instructional strategies that you incorporate in your AP courses? Can you
provide a few specific examples?
5. Based on your experience, how do instructional strategies impact AP exam results?
6. Describe your knowledge of the College Board instructional information as described in
the course description document.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 106
7. At the beginning of the year, what strategies do you use to assess your students’
readiness for your course?
8. How do you support the students who are struggling in your AP courses as the year
progresses?
9. Tell me about the trainings that you have participated in regarding the Advanced
Placement Program.
10. How has attending training impacted your curriculum implementation in your course?
11. Describe your beliefs regarding how a student’s previous academic experience impacts
their performance in your course.
12. What factors do you feel have the largest impact on the students’ academic achievement
on the AP exams? How do you address those factors?
13. Describe how your school supports you to achieve your goals within the AP program.
14. What could your school improve to ensure that you have all the possible resources to
elevate student achievement on the AP exams?
15. Describe any obstacles that your school might have placed in your way that could be
leading to the students achieving lower pass rates on the AP exam.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 107
Appendix B: Credibility and Trustworthiness
Credibility and trustworthiness are crucial elements of research and study design.
Research is focused on producing reliable and valid knowledge and information in a manner that
is ethical (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). In my role as an educator practitioner, credibility is
important because there are implications of trust, relationships, and future professional
implications that will impact students, parents, staff members, and myself. Merriam and Tisdell
(2016) argued that research trust is critically important in applied fields because practitioners
intervene in the lives of other people. There are many validity strategies that can be used to
enhance the credibility in this research study. Creswell (2014) stated that there are eight primary
strategies that can be implemented to improve validity including triangulation, member
checking, rich, thick descriptions, clarify the bias, present negative or discrepant information,
spend prolonged time in the field, peer debriefing, and the use of an external auditor. These
validity measures need to be clearly articulated throughout the study to ensure that the reader has
confidence in the findings. I used a few of these strategies for various aspects of the research
study including triangulation, member checking, clarifying my bias, and spending an adequate
time in the field. McEwan and McEwan (2003) stated that good qualitative research requires the
researcher to constantly present reasons why the reader should find the explanations believable
because a qualitative study has no “built in” controls.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 108
Appendix C: Ethics
Conducting research that involves human subjects can yield a lot of information,
however, there are a lot of ethical considerations that need to be adhered to. The first and most
important consideration is the ethical practices and beliefs of the researcher. Merriam and
Tisdell (2016) stated that the validity and reliability of a study is highly dependent on the ethics
of the researcher. Rubin and Rubin (2012) asserted that the interviewees need to be assured that
they will not be harmed due to being involved in the research study. I made sure that I asked the
teachers for their consent and informed them that their participation is voluntary. A core
requirement of the International Review Board (IRB) is informed consent, which ensures that the
participants have clear knowledge of the research, the risks involved, and are not forced to
participate (Rubin and Rubin, 2012). I shared this information verbally as well as in writing to
ensure that they have the proper and specific information necessary regarding the research study.
I made sure that I was very clear and transparent with all of the AP teachers throughout the entire
process. The AP teachers received an information sheet attached to an email that detailed the
study and purpose. The AP teachers were told that all of the records and data that I collected are
stored digitally off campus so that they did not get lost and end up in the possession of students,
parents, or other non-participant staff members.
I currently serve as the principal of Baxter High School, which is where the primary
aspects of the research study are being conducted. I wanted to study the topic of the various
influences on AP exam pass rates because it is complex, and the school has not been able to
understand why the performance levels are low compared to how other students perform in the
state, nationally, and globally. My role of principal can pose a concern because the teachers are
subordinates at my work location. I had another researcher take various steps to ensure that they
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 109
did not feel coerced, pressured, or impacted negatively due to their participation in the research
study. Rubin and Rubin (2012) stated that a researcher should not pressure interviewees to
participate or answer questions if they are not comfortable. The researcher also made sure that
the AP teachers know they can drop out or not participate if they are not comfortable with the
study. Researchers need to convey that participants can drop out at any time during the study
and can also refuse to answer questions (Rubin & Rubin, 2012). I informed the AP teachers that
I would not manage the various components of the AP program during the study, and that
responsibility was delegated to an assistant principal to ensure that I did not serve in dual roles.
This included AP trainings, AP data presentations, AP teacher meetings, and enrollment of AP
students. I informed the AP teachers that I would not be their evaluator during any of the time
that the study is being conducted. Finally, I informed the teachers that I would not be
interviewing them and that another Collaborative IRB Training Initiative (CITI) trained,
University of Southern California (USC) Organizational Change and Leadership (OCL) student
researcher will be conducting the interviews. The AP teachers were told that the interviews
would be recorded, transcribed, and scrubbed of personal identifying information before being
shared with me to analyze. The interviewer did not share the identity of the teachers verbally or
through notes, and that all of the documents will not have the names of the teachers or other
identifying characteristics.
As the principal, I have an in-depth knowledge and certain perceptions regarding the AP
program. I suspected that there might be a lack of curriculum alignment within our courses to
the AP curriculum, which has led to the low exam results. This assumption might be accurate or
inaccurate which I could possibly find out during the study. I also might have a bias towards the
ability of low income and immigrant students being able to achieve high performance levels
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 110
academically. I was a low-income/immigrant student and I successfully navigated high school
and college. I believe that other students with similar backgrounds have the same potential if
presented with a strong educational experience. This assumption might be inaccurate and not
fair to the AP teachers as I might view them in a negative perspective based on my abilities and
background rather than the actual students that they are currently working with. I have to ensure
that I’m impartial and do not blame them for the AP exam performance of the students based on
the fact that I was able to achieve as a low income/immigrant student. I believe I can overcome
this bias because I am very committed to gaining knowledge to help our staff and students to
understand the problem of practice of this study, which could hopefully lead to strategies that
will support positive student achievement. I made every attempt to coordinate all aspects using
proper research practices. Merriam and Tisdell (2016) summarized that the trustworthiness of a
study is dependent on the researcher being able to carry out the study in an ethical manner.
The second group that was interviewed was the AP teachers from two other high schools.
I shared all of the above safe guards with them before I conducted the interviews. They were
treated with the same level of ethics and respect throughout the entire process. I asked to record
them, which was different than the AP teachers at Baxter High School. Finally, I ensured them
that I would not share any of their interviews with any of their supervisors or colleagues.
Because Apple Unified School District does not want their teachers or schools to be directly
identified, the data presented does not specifically identify the location of the teachers work
location including school district or individual schools.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 111
Appendix D: Review of the Literature Topic Sentence Outline
This topic sentence outline of the literature examined various causes of the performance
gap of Hispanic/Latino students successfully passing AP exams. The topic sentence outline
begins with the general research regarding the background and origins of the Advanced
Placement program including how local, state and federal governments became involved through
funding, legislation, and judicial decisions. The College Board philosophy was examined to
provide a foundational understanding of the program and its intent and philosophy. As the
College Board and various governments achieved higher levels of student participation,
marginalized students achieved at lower rates on the AP exams compared to White and Asian
students. To gain a deeper understanding of the AP achievement gap for Hispanic/Latino
students, theoretical and empirical literature was reviewed to gain a comprehensive
understanding regarding access, enrollment, and pass rates in relation to the AP program. This
led to the examination of how AP courses positively impacted students throughout their
educational experience and post college graduation. The Hispanic/Latino population has been
and continues to grow rapidly in America, which has various ramifications on individuals and
society. The empirical data clearly validates the attainment of a college degree in financial and
non-financial measures compared to a high school degree, which has many ramifications on
individuals and society. The topic sentence outline of the literature presented below provides a
general, foundational view of the AP program and how it impacts Hispanic/Latino students
currently and in the future as they are a highly growing population and will impact many aspects
of American society. Finally the review will focus on the Clark and Estes gap analysis model to
examine the motivation, knowledge, and organizational influences on the stakeholders’ ability to
increase AP participation rates and exam pass rates
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 112
Historical Origins of the AP Program
The Advanced Placement (AP) program was started in the 1950s to give students an
opportunity to complete rigorous level course while still enrolled in high school. During the
subsequent decades and up to recent years, the program has evolved and various structures and
initiatives were implemented to attempt to achieve various goals.
• The AP program began by two projects that were funded by the Ford foundation
and Carnegie Corporation.
• One goal was to ensure that high achieving students had the opportunity to access
and complete college level courses while attending high school.
• In 1952, the College Board was invited to takeover the program and to be the lead
organization responsible for the AP program.
• The AP program started out on a small scale and has grown into the main path for
students to attempt rigorous courses while attending high school.
• The first exam administration was 1956 and 1229 students took a total of 2199
exams.
• In 2017, 2,826,068 million students took a total of 5,129,304 AP exams globally.
• During this AP participation growth, Hispanic/Latino students lacked access and
currently display an achievement gap compared to White and Asian students.
• Hispanic/Latino students have a 2.84 mean score compared to 3.25 for Asian
students and 3.02 for White students
Government Involvement in the AP Program
The federal government has been involved in various aspects of the educational system as
early as 1893. Politicians viewed education as a structure that can improve various qualities for
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 113
all citizens and provide a mechanism for a competitive advantage globally. The AP program was
viewed by the government as one of several programs that can provide a rigorous experience for
students, and promote an educated citizenry. As the AP program evolved and its importance
became known, the federal and state governments began to get involved to encourage more
students to participate in the program and for more schools to offer the program. The
government at the local, state, and federal levels provided funding, enacted laws, and issued
court rulings to promote a great level of participation in the AP program.
• In 1893, the Committee of Ten proposed a college preparatory track for all
students.
• A nation at risk articulated America’s needed to increase the rigor of the
educational system to compete globally as a nation.
• National education goals were created by George H.W. Bush and the state
governors
• The No Child Left Behind law was introduced to ensure that all students had
access to a quality and equitable educational experience.
• The United States Department of Education allocated millions of dollars to
support student participation in AP programs.
• Students from low-income families received government subsidies to promote a
level playing field.
• California assembly bill 2216 created a grant that supported AP students (Cal Ed
Code 52240)
• Several lawsuits were filed in California that led to changes to support access for
marginalized students.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 114
College Board Organization, Structures, and Student Achievement
The College Board in a not-for profit organization that facilitates various programs
including the PSAT and AP program. The College Board attempts to prepare high school
students for college through rigorous courses in multiple subjects. Millions of students
participate in AP courses and take AP assessments annually and over twenty-two thousand high
schools participating in the AP program. The College Board has a mission to grow the AP
program globally and to increase access for minority students. The course offerings are
throughout various subjects, which provide a wide range of options for students to attempt a
college level course while attending a high school.
• The College Board has created a philosophy and commitment to college level
courses and had detailed the information to schools, students, parents, and
colleges.
• The College Board establishes structures for schools to coordinate the AP courses
and assessments to ensure that there is calibration throughout the program.
• The College Board encourages schools to provide equitable access and to
eliminate barriers for students.
• The College Board focused on professional development for teachers to ensure
quality for the AP program.
• Student achievement and participation in America and California on the various
AP exams has been expanding annually through the support of the College Board.
• The College Board offers currently offers 38 courses in 7 subject areas for
students throughout the world.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 115
• A committee of experienced AP teachers and college faculty creates the AP
courses and exams.
• In 2017, AP exams cost $94 per exam and low-income students have access to
fee waivers.
• The College Board offers a course description that clarifies content guidelines for
teachers and schools to ensure alignment.
• The AP courses culminate with an end of course exam with a scale from 1-5. A
student typically needs to earn a score of 3 or greater in order to earn college
credit.
Hispanic/Latino Students’ Access, Enrollment, and Achievement in the AP Program
The AP program has expanded for many years and helped millions of students during
high school and at the college level. Hispanic/Latino students remain behind their classmates in
access to AP classes, enrollment, and exam achievement. The educational focus in previous
decades was to reduce dropout, however, the global dynamics have shifted and the current
educational focus is to ensure that students graduate college and career ready so that they can
compete in a global marketplace.
• Many Hispanic/Latino students do not have equal access to AP courses because
they often attend schools that offer fewer AP courses than White and Asian
students because they.
• Hispanic/Latino students have a 36% under representation gap in AP classes as
compared to their population rate.
• Hispanic/Latino students lack much of the nuance information that is necessary to
successfully navigate the educational system.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 116
• A Hispanic/Latino pass rate on the 2017 exam administration was 42%, which is
drastically, lower that 62% for White students and 69% for Asian students.
Implications of Advanced Placement Courses on Students
High school students who participate in AP courses gain various advantages that support
their academic experience during high school, in college, and throughout their adult lives.
Colleges use various criteria to make acceptance decisions for future students and AP
participation ranks highly in many college admission criteria. Students who participate in the AP
program while in high school benefit from the experience while enrolled in college in a variety
of ways.
• High school students enrolled in AP classes benefit by being exposed to a
standardized, college based rigorous curriculum.
• Students’ benefit by receiving a weighted GPA for enrolling in AP courses during
high school, which increases the odds of college acceptance because GPA is one
of the acceptance criteria.
• Students can bypass college courses by passing an AP class with a score of 3 or
higher.
• AP fees are relatively low compared to college tuition, students’ benefit
tremendously by earning college credits at reduced costs. Students earn dual high
school and college credits.
• AP courses lower the barriers for students from marginalized backgrounds and
help them compete with students who have more resources.
• Students are in homogenous classrooms with students who are typically motivated
and capable.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 117
• Students get more “points” in the admissions process for taking AP courses which
enhances their acceptance rates.
• Colleges do not consider a students lack of access in their acceptance process
which typically impacts minority students because they typically have lower
access than their White and Asian counterparts.
• Students who pass AP exams in high school are more likely to earn higher GPAs
while in college.
• Students who pass AP exams in high school are more likely to graduate in a
shorter duration, five or less years.
• Students who pass AP exams in high school are more likely to have higher
retention rates in college completion.
Hispanic/Latino Population and the Impacts of Educational Achievement
Hispanic/Latinos are a growing group of the population within America and will be the
majority group by 2060. The educational success of Hispanics/Latinos will be a crucial social
dynamic in the future decades as they grow in population compared to other racial groups. The
shifting dynamics of the population growth forecast has implications for individuals and society,
which can last for many generations.
• The Hispanic/Latino population was 17.4% of the population in 2014 and is
projected to grow to 28.6% of the population by 2060.
• In California, the Hispanic/Latino population has been the largest ethnic group in
K-12 education for the past two decades.
• Hispanic/Latino students are less likely to be represented in college prep classes
and overrepresented in special education classes.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 118
• Hispanic/Latino students typically begin AP courses with less preparation than
their White peers.
• Hispanic/Latino students typically attend school with under qualified teachers.
• Hispanic/Latino students have gained college access but they graduate at lower
rates compared to White students.
Social, Financial, and Health Impacts on Individuals and Society
There are many implications for students and society when students do not earn a higher
degree from a college or university. There are various financial and non-financial implication
for individuals and society that pose many challenges in the short term and in many years in the
future. The financial data is abundantly clear that earning a college degree is tremendously
advantages. The non-financial data is not as obvious, however, there is a body of empirical data
that clearly identify various non-financial benefits to earning a college degree compared to a high
school degree.
• College graduates earn a higher annual income and lifetime earnings compared to
high school graduates.
• College graduates have better overall health including lower obesity rates and less
likelihood to smoke.
• College graduates have lower divorce rates and higher engagement levels with
their children.
• College graduates rely less on government assistance compared to high school
graduates.
• College graduates are more likely to engage civically in their community by
volunteering and voting at higher rates compared to high school graduates.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 119
Appendix E: Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan
The model that will be used to guide the integrated implementation and evaluation plan is
the New World Kirkpatrick Model (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). Training programs are in
a state of “crisis” and they are often eliminated first when an organization encounters financial
difficulties (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). The stakeholders at Baxter High School have
encountered various training programs that have not always met their standards based on their
feedback, thus it will be crucial to use an evaluation framework that will analyze the training
program through several timeframes. Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick cited three reasons to evaluate a
training program including 1) to improve the program, 2) to maximize transfer and learning, and
3) to demonstrate value to the organization. All three of these aspects are important in
addressing the knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences at Baxter High School as it
relates to having an effective training program that supports the stakeholder needs. The New
Kirkpatrick New World Model (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016) utilizes four levels, reaction,
learning, behavior, and results. These four levels will be coordinated beginning with level 4,
results and will progress to level 1, reaction. The descending order implementation will keep the
focus on what is most crucial, the training programs outcomes, which will be accomplished
through the various aspects of the training and implementation phases (Kirkpatrick &
Kirkpatrick, 2016).
Organizational Purpose, Need and Expectations
Baxter High School is a 9-12 grade school that provides access to a comprehensive
educational experience. The vision is to prepare for a successful future by being college and
career ready. Baxter High School has 21 AP teachers and they are the stakeholder group that
was examined throughout this study. The stakeholder goal is to achieve 100% alignment on their
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 120
course curriculum with the College Board course description by July, 2019. This goal is
connected to the organizational goal of raising the AP exam pass rates from 39% to 50% by July
2020 because the alignment of what occurs within the classrooms at Baxter High School and
what is outlined in the AP course description is crucial to how the students perform on the AP
exams. The students will have the opportunity to complete the courses they are enrolled in with
the knowledge that they are being exposed to what the College Board course description has
outlined for all students throughout the world. The proposed solution is to provide the AP
teachers with a structured professional development plan, a structured PLC team and meeting
times, and additional time to support the students outside of the school day. This comprehensive
approach should increase their knowledge, and motivation to align their curriculum and provide
each student with an educational experience that is parallel to what is outlined by the College
Board.
Level 4: Results and Leading Indicators
Table 15 reflects the proposed Level 4 outcomes, metrics, and methods that align with the
leading indicators that can produce a change as it relates to the organizational goal of Baxter
High School. If the internal outcomes of the plan are supported and achieved, then the external
outcomes should be present as a result.
Table 15
Outcomes, Metrics, and Methods for External and Internal Outcomes
Outcome Metric(s) Method(s)
External Outcomes
1. Increase the number of
students passing the AP with a
score of 3 from 39% to 50%.
Annual College Board exam
reports released in the month
of July.
Analyze the data, meet with
the teachers, provide reports,
and identify trends and next
steps.
Internal Outcomes
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 121
2. AP teachers increase
alignment of the course
curriculum in each course to
the AP course description.
2a. Number of curriculum
guides that are aligned to the
College Board course
description for each AP
course offered.
Annually analyze each AP
course curriculum guide and
create a plan to ensure
alignment with the College
Board course description.
3. AP teachers increase the
levels of improved
instructional strategies with
rigor and relevance to the AP
framework.
Weekly classroom visits and
observations.
Analyze the observations data
and discuss strategies with AP
teachers.
4. AP teachers increase their
confidence in curriculum
alignment through the ongoing
structure of professional
development.
Organize a document that
documents the various
trainings, dates, and AP
teachers attending each year.
Review and analyze the
training data and make
adjustments to ensure that each
AP teacher is adequately
trained.
5. AP teachers meet and
collaborate regarding research
based instructional practices.
PLC meeting sign in sheet
and protocol form.
Review and analyze the data
and create an agenda for future
meetings.
6. AP teachers experience
increased morale in supporting
their students.
Weekly calendar and time
cards.
Review and analyze the data
and adjust the structures based
on feedback.
Level 3: Behavior
Critical behaviors. The stakeholders of focus are the AP teachers at Baxter High
School. They will be engaged in various initiatives to increase student achievement on AP
exams. The first critical behavior is that AP teachers obtain a copy of the AP course description
for their class. The second critical behavior is for the AP teachers to analyze the AP course
description and to begin to compare it to what occurs in their classroom. The third critical
behavior is to create an AP pacing guide. The fourth critical behavior is to align the course
assessments. The fifth critical behavior is to begin using rigorous instructional strategies as
outlined in the AP course description. The specific metrics, methods, and timing for each of
these outcome behaviors appear in Table 16.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 122
Table 16
Critical Behaviors, Metrics, Methods, and Timing for Evaluation
Critical Behavior Metric(s)
Method(s)
Timing
1. AP teachers obtain a
copy of their course AP
description
The number of AP
teachers who download
their College Board
course descriptions.
Attendance to the
meeting by all AP
teachers.
Conducted
during the spring
semester prior to
the end of the
school year.
2. AP teachers analyze
the course description to
locate the curriculum,
assessments, and
instructional guidelines
for their course.
The number of AP
teachers who analyze the
College Board course
description to align the
curriculum pacing,
instruction, and
assessments.
AP teachers review
the AP course
description and begin
to create a plan for
the upcoming year.
Conducted
during the spring
semester prior to
the end of the
school year.
3. AP teachers create
curriculum pacing
guides.
The number of AP
teachers who create an
aligned syllabus,
curriculum pacing
alignment.
AP teachers use a
release day to
analyze the AP
course description to
create a pacing guide.
Conducted
during the spring
semester prior to
the end of the
school year.
4. AP teachers create
course exams that are
aligned to the AP course
description.
The number of course
exams completed.
AP teachers use a
release day to create
course exams.
Conducted
during the spring
semester prior to
the end of the
school year.
5. AP teachers begin to
use rigorous
instructional strategies
as outlined in their AP
course description.
One classroom
observation per week.
AP teachers discuss
instructional
strategies with other
AP teachers during
the monthly PLC
meetings.
Beginning from
the first week of
school and
continuing until
the AP exams.
Required drivers. The AP teachers at Baxter High School require ongoing support from
school administration and a variety of resources from the organization to improve various
practices that they learned through training. Baxter High School has a vision that encompasses
having structures to encourage the AP teachers to apply what they learn to achieve the
organizational goal. Rewards and incentives should also be implemented to encourage and
maintain the AP teachers resolve as they are implementing what they learned through the
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 123
trainings. Table 17 details the recommended drivers to support critical behaviors of the AP
teachers.
Table 17
Required Drivers to Support Critical Behaviors
Method(s) Timing
Critical
Behaviors
Supported
1, 2, 3 Etc.
Reinforcing
Job aid including a checklist of specific activities and timeliness
to aid implementation.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3
Provide materials including the AP course description, books,
computers, and various forms.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3
AP teacher PLC team meetings monthly to discuss specifics of
how the training has been implemented.
Monthly 1, 2, 3
Provide the AP teachers with a Google folder in which they
share best practices, lesson plans, curriculum guides, and
assessments.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3
Encouraging
Sharing success at the beginning of the AP teachers PLC
meetings.
Monthly 1, 2, 3
Feedback and coaching from the administrators as they visit the
AP teacher’s classrooms.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3
Rewarding
Feedback emails when administrators visit classrooms and
notice the training strategies are being implemented.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3
Performance incentive such as a staff BBQ at the end of the year
when the team achieves its goal of 50% pass rate on the AP
exams.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3
Monitoring
AP teachers will begin each of the PLC meetings by sharing
how the implementation is progressing.
Monthly 1, 2, 3
Administrators visit classrooms to assess performance. Weekly 1, 2, 3
Meeting with the administration to discuss success, areas of
growth, and possible organizational supports.
Quarterly 1, 2, 3
Organizational support. Baxter High School is committed to achieving the
organizational goal of improving the AP pass rate to 50%. To achieve that goal, Baxter High
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 124
School will provide a variety of supports to the AP teachers. This support is critical to ensure
that the AP teachers have all of the necessary tools to be successful. A professional development
plan has many components that need to be coordinated in order for the organization to reach
optimal levels of success. The first step is for Baxter High School to plan a budget with the
school district. Once the funds are allocated, the administration team will coordinate a budget
based on the dollars available and the number of AP teachers. The budget will include
registration fees, travel expenses, hotel accommodations, meal reimbursement, books and
materials. Baxter High School will also build a cultural expectation with the AP teachers that
ongoing, annual training is an aspect of teaching AP classes. The AP teachers can be supported
for their time during the summer by being given a per diem stipend to acknowledge their
attendance during their vacation time. Baxter High School will also support any AP teacher who
makes a request to attend training during the academic year by paying for their expenses and by
providing a substitute teacher to cover their class.
The AP teachers do not currently meet in a structured way to discuss instruction,
curriculum, assessments, and interventions. Baxter High School will create a system of PLCs to
enable the teachers to meet regularly. Every Monday is dedicated to meetings for the staff from
7:30AM until 8:15AM. The AP teachers will be given the opportunity to meet once a month on
these days to collaborate and support each other. Once the time has been set aside, the AP
teachers will be sent to a PLC training to understand how the process works and to ensure
implementation with fidelity. The administration will meet with the team monthly to assess the
progress of the team and to offer support and encouragement. Baxter High School is confident
that the supports outlined above will provide the AP teachers with the necessary basics to
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 125
coordinate the essential components of their jobs and meet their goal and the organizational
goal.
Level 2: Learning
Learning goals. Following completion of the recommended solutions, the stakeholders
will be able to:
1. Describe the significance of aligning the course curriculum, instructional strategies, and
assessments to the College Board course description, (C)
2. Articulate where to access the College Board course description, (P)
3. Analyze and articulate the College Board course description, (P)
4. Describe how to align course curriculum with the College Board course description, (P)
5. Align instructional practices with the College Board course description, (P)
6. Align assessments with the College Board course description, (P)
7. Implement the PLC process and the various components within the model, (C)
8. Implement strategies of how to successfully conduct a PLC meeting with the proper
protocols and materials to ensure fidelity, (P)
9. Articulate the importance of self-reflection regarding how to support students who are
struggling at mastering the AP curriculum, (M)
10. Feel that student success on AP exams is directly determined by their (teacher) efforts
rather than uncontrollable factors, (A)
11. Feel confident about their ability to support student performance on AP exams, (SE)
Program
The learning goals outlined above will be achieved through a comprehensive professional
development program that is dynamic and meets the specific needs of the AP teachers at Baxter
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 126
High School. The program will address the specifics of the advanced placement program and
how the AP teachers can collaborate as a team to grow as professionals. The program will
consist of attending an AP training in the summer, a PLC institute during the school year, and
online research consisting of analysis of various documents from the College Board
website. The duration for completion of the program is approximately seven days (56 Hours).
After considering many alternatives to support the AP teachers, I’m proposing a model that relies
heavily of external professional development programs outside of Baxter High School. There
are several reasons for this decision. First, the teachers at Baxter High School typically have not
been receptive to internal professional development programs. They prefer being trained by
experts in their specific subject and not a local administrator. Second, Baxter High School does
not have the internal expertise that can match the training programs that have been chosen for the
AP teachers. The Solutions Tree institutes are valuable for training teachers regarding the PLC
process, and the “AP by the Sea” training program is well known by many administrators to be
one of the best training programs in the country. Finally, it is beneficial for the AP teachers at
Baxter High School to attend training programs externally as it provides them with the
opportunity to network and exchange ideas with teachers from around the nation who are sharing
the same experience as they are.
Evaluation of the components of learning. Declarative knowledge is an essential
foundation to solving complex problems. Thus, it is imperative to evaluate the learning of the
AP teachers to determine their levels of knowledge and possible gaps in learning. It is also
crucial for the AP teachers to find value in the training program for several reasons including
having the motivation to implement the learning and continuing with their new learning when
they face obstacles that are inevitable. Finally, the AP teachers need to be committed to
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 127
implement their learning with fidelity and also feel confident that their learning will lead to
performance improvement for them and their students. As such, Table 18 delineates the
evaluation methods and the timing of these components of learning.
Table 18
Evaluation of the Components of Learning for the Program
Method(s) or Activity(ies) Timing
Declarative Knowledge “I know it.”
Knowledge checks using Google forms surveys Prior to the training program and
after the training program
Knowledge checks during the monthly PLC meetings Monthly
Discussion between the AP teachers on their use of
instructional strategies
Monthly
Procedural Skills “I can do it right now.”
Discussions during the PLC and AP trainings regarding what
the teachers currently know
During the PLC Institute and the
AP by the Sea training
Small breakout groups to discuss next steps in the process During the monthly PLC
meetings
AP teachers demonstrate the beginning work of creating
aligned curriculum guides for their course
At the beginning of the school
year
AP teachers demonstrate the beginning work of creating
aligned assessments for their courses
At the beginning of the school
year
Observe AP teachers conducting a PLC meeting using the
proper protocols
During monthly PLC meeting
Attitude “I believe this is worthwhile.”
Observation of the AP teachers during the PLC and AP
trainings
During the PLC Institute and the
AP by the Sea trainings
Closely listening to the AP teachers during the PLC and AP
trainings
During the PLC Institute and the
AP by the Sea trainings
Hold a debrief session and gage the level of the AP teachers
opinions regarding if they view the training as worthwhile
During the PLC Institute and the
AP by the Sea trainings
Confidence “I think I can do it on the job.”
Discussion after the trainings have concluded First PLC meeting of the year
Google forms survey After the trainings
Google forms survey Halfway during the year
Debrief at the end of the year Final PLC meeting of the year
Commitment “I will do it on the job.”
Discussion with all of the AP teachers to cover all aspects of
the training
Immediately after the training
Each teacher creates a goal and various benchmarks to assess
the goal throughout the year
At the beginning of the school
year
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 128
“Fist to five” strategy to gain a commitment from every AP
teacher
Immediately after the training
Level 1: Reaction
How the AP teachers react to the training is a crucial aspect of the solution to the
performance gap. The subject matter is extensive and being able to view and understand their
reactions will be important to determine various aspects of their interest and engagement. The
administration at Baxter High School can use the AP teachers reactions to determine whether to
continue with these trainings or if it is necessary to search for other trainings. The table below
lists the methods that will be used to determine how the participants react to the trainings.
Table 19
Components to Measure Reactions to the Program
Method(s) or Tool(s) Timing
Engagement
Analysis of all of the Google form surveys that were
assigned to the AP teachers
Various times throughout the process
Observations of the AP teachers during the trainings During the PLC Institute and AP by the
Sea training
Attendance for all sessions of the PLC and AP
trainings
During the PLC Institute and AP by the
Sea training
Relevance
Training evaluation After the PLC Institute and AP by the
Sea training
Google forms survey After the PLC Institute and AP by the
Sea training
Customer Satisfaction
Google forms survey with open ended response to
gain a deeper level of knowledge from the AP
teachers
After the PLC Institute and AP by the
Sea training
Conversations with the AP teacher and
administration
After the PLC Institute and AP by the
Sea training and throughout the school
year
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 129
Evaluation Tools
Immediately following the program implementation. The AP teachers at Baxter High
School will be engaging in two critical training programs to support their practice and to move
towards improving their capacity to align the course curriculum, instructional strategies, and
assessments and ultimately, supporting students in passing the AP exams at higher rates. Data
regarding these training programs will be collected prior, during, and after the teacher attend the
sessions. The instrument used will provide the administration team with valuable feedback to
make ongoing adjustments through formative assessments. The instrument will also provide
summative data to evaluate the overall effectiveness of the program, which will have various
implications including whether it should be continued or other options should be considered.
Finally, since the AP teachers will attend two training programs, the feedback through the first
instrument will provide data to analyze the overall feeling of the teachers prior to the next
training program. The instrument is intended to target level 1 and level 2 of the AP teacher’s
engagement, relevance, satisfaction levels and their declarative and procedural knowledge. The
instrument will also measure the AP teacher’s attitudes, confidence, and commitment. The
instrument is available in Appendix F.
Delayed for a period after the program implementation. The administration at Baxter
High School will present a survey to the participating AP teachers five weeks after the training
and their implementation of the program elements. To gather feedback data, the Kirkpatrick
Blended Evaluation approach (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016) will be utilized to assess the AP
teacher’s current status. The survey will aim to examine all of the four levels of the Kirkpatrick
Model. It will be crucial to examine the AP teacher’s reaction and if they were satisfied with the
program (Level), their learning comprised of the knowledge, skills, and attitudes (Level 2), their
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 130
behavior and how they applied the training (Level 3), and the results and the extent to the levels
of implementation (Level 4). The Delayed Evaluation tool is attached in appendix G.
Data Analysis and Reporting
Reporting the findings to the AP teachers at Baxter High School is an important element
of this program. The initial step will be to email the results to all of the teachers, which will give
them the opportunity to analyze and process the data. The next step will be to conduct a team
meeting in which the AP teachers engage in a data protocol process to discuss the data and the
ramifications. Through this process, the team will attempt to identify areas of strengths, areas of
growth, and possible next steps to enhance the strength areas and elevate the areas of growth.
Each team member will also have the opportunity to actively participate in determining the
future steps in other training programs.
Summary
This section provided information regarding how to address the performance gap related
to the AP program at Baxter High School. The Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick New World Model
(2016) was used to coordinate, implement, and evaluate the recommendations for the AP
performance gap at Baxter High School. The process was comprehensive and contained research
regarding the topic, examination of data, and various interviews and training programs to assess
what the performance gap was and consider possible options to address the deficiencies. The
four levels of the Kirkpatrick New World Model provided a lens that examined the AP teacher
reactions, learning, behavior and results. The administration team at Baxter High School expects
to gain a clear understanding of the needs of the AP teachers, which will guide and support the
implementation of the training program. Baxter High School does not currently have a system to
evaluate training program, the Kirkpatrick New World Model is expected to present a structured
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 131
process that will be beneficial for all the stakeholders involved in the process of closing this
specific achievement gap.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 132
Appendix F: Immediate Evaluation Tool
Please rate your answers using the following scales provided:
I learned how to align my curriculum to the AP course description
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I learned how to align my assessment to the AP course description
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I learned how to align my instructional strategies to the course description
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
The presenters modeled to me in a relevant way how to apply the subject matter to my own
professional practice
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I found the content of the training relevant to my professional practice
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I am able to create a pacing guide that is aligned to the AP course description
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I believe teachers collaborating in a structured way is beneficial for my practice
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I think I can collaborate with my colleagues to discuss best practices
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I am fully committed to implementing the various structures that I learned in the AP training
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
I was engaged and attentive during the AP training
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
The AP training and various topic regarding curriculum, assessments, and instructional
strategies were relevant to my practice
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 133
I’m satisfied with the support I received to help me grow as a professional
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
Overall, I would recommend this training to my colleagues
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
The three most effective aspects of my training were:
The three areas of growth that I will need to implement from the training are:
ADVANCED PLACEMENT 134
Appendix G: Delayed Evaluation Tool
Based on the training program, please provide a rating for each question:
I currently use the information that I learned in the training program within my classroom
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
During the last month, I have applied at least one element of the training program within my
classroom
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
The curriculum that I currently use is now aligned to the College Board course description
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
The assessments that I currently use are now aligned to the College Board course description
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
My instructional strategies have evolved through the training program
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
My PLC team has had effective meetings centered on the main elements of the PLC process
1 2 3 4
Strongly Disagree Disagree Agree Strongly Agree
To continue to elevate my practice, I plan to implement the following:
Please share any relevant information to guide the administration in supporting you.
Abstract (if available)
Abstract
College admission is a crucial determinant in a student’s future outcomes. There are many life-long implications for individuals and society that evolve based on student academic achievement. The implications include financial, health, social, and academic factors. Advanced Placement (AP) participation and success results have been used for many years to assess prospective student’s college readiness and admissions eligibility. Nationally, Hispanic/Latino students have underperformed their majority classmates on AP exams. The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the performance gap that exists for the Hispanic/Latino student AP exam achievement at an urban high school, serving primarily Hispanic/Latino students and to evaluate the AP teachers’ knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences in their impact to effectively provide the students with an aligned curriculum and instructional strategies to succeeded on AP exams. The study utilized qualitative methods for data gathering and analysis to understand the assumed performance dynamics. Nine interviews and a document analysis of five syllabi were conducted. The findings highlight several areas to address for the AP teachers and for the high school. Based on the findings and literature review, the study recommends several possible solutions that can guide the AP teachers and the high school to achieve the stakeholder goal and the organizational goal.
Linked assets
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
Conceptually similar
PDF
Trending upward: an evaluation study of teacher practices in serving special needs students in a public high school
PDF
The advanced placement program: a case study of one urban high school
PDF
Good governance: the role and impact of school boards in setting student outcome goals
PDF
Explicit instruction’s impact on the student achievement gap in K-12 English language learners
PDF
Teachers’ role in improving advanced placement exam scores: a gap analysis
PDF
The knowledge, motivation, and organization influences affecting the frequency of empathetic teaching practice used in the classroom: an evaluation study
PDF
Closing the achievement gap for marginalized students using the college-going culture: a promising practices study
PDF
Job placement outcomes for graduates of a southwestern university school of business: an evaluation study
PDF
Advisor impact on student veterans at a post-secondary institution: an evaluation study
PDF
IEP stakeholder communication and collaboration and its effects on student placement
PDF
Dual-enrollment program implementation to address the problem of college affordability as a barrier to student access and a contributing factor toward student debt
PDF
The intersection of teacher knowledge and motivation with organizational culture on implementing positive psychology interventions through a character education curriculum
PDF
Disability, race, and educational attainment - (re)leveling the playing field through best disability counseling practices in higher education: an executive dissertation
PDF
Understanding the factors that contribute to successful school reconstitution: A promising practice
PDF
Principals’ impact on the effective enactment of instructional coaching that promotes equity: an evaluation study
PDF
Identifying dyslexia in elementary classrooms: a professional development curriculum
PDF
Assessing the meaning and value of traditional grading systems: teacher practices and perspectives
PDF
Exploration of STEM teachers’ knowledge, motivation, and the organizational influences of culturally inclusive teaching practices
PDF
Institutional advancement in higher education: managing gift officer performance and turnover
PDF
Calibrating the college preparation bridgeway for independent study program students at Amazing Independent High School District: a multisite evaluation study through the teachers' lens
Asset Metadata
Creator
Nasouf, Yousef
(author)
Core Title
Curriculum and assessment alignment, instructional practices, and the impact on Hispanic/Latino students advanced placement exam achievement
School
Rossier School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Education
Degree Program
Organizational Change and Leadership (On Line)
Publication Date
02/12/2019
Defense Date
12/05/2018
Publisher
University of Southern California
(original),
University of Southern California. Libraries
(digital)
Tag
advanced placement,OAI-PMH Harvest
Format
application/pdf
(imt)
Language
English
Contributor
Electronically uploaded by the author
(provenance)
Advisor
Seli, Helena (
committee chair
), Cash, David (
committee member
), Robles, Darlene (
committee member
)
Creator Email
Nasouf@usc.edu,ucbruin99@yahoo.com
Permanent Link (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-118068
Unique identifier
UC11676764
Identifier
etd-NasoufYous-7051.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-118068 (legacy record id)
Legacy Identifier
etd-NasoufYous-7051.pdf
Dmrecord
118068
Document Type
Dissertation
Format
application/pdf (imt)
Rights
Nasouf, Yousef
Type
texts
Source
University of Southern California
(contributing entity),
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
(collection)
Access Conditions
The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...
Repository Name
University of Southern California Digital Library
Repository Location
USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA
Tags
advanced placement