Meaningful Access to Advanced Placement Programs

Abstract

Rigorous academic preparation in high school is a strong predictor of postsecondary success. The College Board's Advanced Placement (AP) program allows students to earn college credit while in high school; however, disparities in equitable participation remain a persistent concern. This qualitative multiple-case study explored equity-focused AP program implementation in two urban school districts in the Midwest. From interviews with 29 school leaders, the study examined participants’ beliefs, leadership practices, and reflections on equitable AP access. Findings highlight examples of community-engaged, social justice leadership that promote inclusive participation in AP coursework.

Keywords

Advanced Placement educational equity school leadership traditionally underrepresented students access

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Anderson

(2018, June 18). Several well-known private schools in the D.C. area scrap Advanced Placement classes. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2018/06/18/several-well-known-private-schools-in-the-d-c-area-are-scrapping-advanced-placement-classes/

Annamma

S. A.

Anyon

Joseph

N. M.

Farrar

Greer

Downing

Simmons

(2019). Black girls and school discipline: The complexities of being overrepresented and understudied. Urban Education, 54(2), 211–242. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0042085916646610. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042085916646610

Archibald

M. M.

Ambagtsheer

R. C.

Casey

M. G.

Lawless

(2019). Using Zoom videoconferencing for qualitative data collection: Perceptions and experiences of researchers and participants. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 18, 1–8. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1609406919874596. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406919874596

Card

Giuliano

(2016). Can tracking raise the test scores of high-ability minority students? American Economic Review, 106(10), 2783–2816. https://www.nber.org/papers/w22104. https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.20150484

Cartagena

Slater

C. L.

(2022). A district’s journey of transformative leadership: Moving beyond open access to the improvement, inclusion, and success of students of color in advanced placement. Journal of School Leadership, 32(2), 126–147. https://doi.org/10.1177/1052684621994474

Cherng

(2017). If they think I can: Teacher bias and youth of color expectations and achievement. Social Science Research, 66, 170–186. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2017.04.001

Creswell

J. W.

(2013). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. Sage.

Creswell

J. W.

(2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (4th ed.). Sage.

Dantley

M. E.

Green

T. L.

(2015). Problematizing notions of leadership for social justice: Reclaiming social justice through a discourse of accountability and a radical, prophetic, and historical imagination. Journal of School Leadership, 25(5), 820–837. https://doi.org/10.1177/105268461502500502

10.

DeMatthews

D. E.

(2018). Community-engaged leadership for social justice: A critical approach in urban schools. Routledge.

11.

DeMatthews

D. E.

Mungal

A. S.

Carrola

P. A.

(2015). Despite best intentions: A critical analysis of social justice leadership and decision making. Administrative Issues Journal, 5(2), 3. https://dc.swosu.edu/aij/vol5/iss2/3. https://doi.org/10.5929/2015.5.2.4

12.

Flores

Gomez

M. O.

(2011). Strategies for increasing advanced placement participation for underrepresented students: Barriers, practices, and positive outcomes. NASSP Bulletin, 95(1), 65–79. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192636511406529

13.

Frattura

E. M.

Capper

C. A.

(2007). Leading for social justice: Transforming schools for all learners. Corwin Press.

14.

Godfrey

K. E.

Wyatt

J. N.

Beard

J. J.

(2016). Exploring college outcomes for low-income AP® exam takers with fee reductions. College Board. Retrieved January 3, 2024, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED565726.pdf

15.

Graeber

A. M.

Wieczorek

Prince

A. T.

(2024). Social justice leadership: Creating equity-driven advanced placement programs. Leadership and Policy in Schools, 1–3. https://doi.org/10.1080/15700763.2024.2409313

16.

Green

T. L.

(2015). Leading for urban school reform and community development. Educational Administration Quarterly, 51(5), 679–711. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013161X15577694

17.

Gregory

Huang

F. L.

Anyon

Greer

Downing

(2018). An examination of restorative interventions and racial equity in out-of-school suspensions. School Psychology Review, 47(2), 167–182. https://doi.org/10.17105/SPR-2017-0073.V47-2

18.

Hallett

Venegas

(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. https://doi.org/10.1177/016235321103400305

19.

Harris

(2003). Teacher leadership as distributed leadership: Heresy, fantasy, or possibility? School Leadership & Management, 23(3), 313–324. https://doi.org/10.1080/1363243032000112801

20.

Khalifa

(2012). A re-new-ed paradigm in successful urban school leadership: Principal as community leader. Educational Administration Quarterly, 48(3), 424–467. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013161X11432922

21.

Klopfenstein

Thomas

M. K.

(2010). Advanced placement participation: Evaluating the policies of states and colleges. In Sadler

P. M.

Sonnert

Tai

R. H.

Klopfenstein

(Eds.), AP: A critical examination of the Advanced Placement program (pp. 167–188). Harvard Education Press.

22.

Kose

B. W.

(2007). Principal leadership for social justice: Uncovering the content of teacher professional development. Journal of School Leadership, 17(3), 276–312. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.v15n5.2007

23.

Kozol

(2012). Savage inequalities: Children in America's schools. Broadway Books.

24.

Leithwood

(2012). The Ontario Leadership Framework 2012. Institute for Education Leadership. http://iel.immix.ca/storage/6/1345688978/Final_Research_Report_-_EN.pdf

25.

Pender

Welch

(2016). Education pays 2016: The benefits of higher education for individuals and society. Trends in Higher Education Series. College Board.

26.

Mathews

(2018, October 23). The triumph of Advanced Placement. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/magazine/wp/2018/10/23/feature/meet-the-man-who-made-advanced-placement-the-most-influential-tool-in-american-education/?utm_term=.86fcab053fd9

27.

Mehan

(2015). Detracking: A promising strategy to increase social mobility for underserved youth. In Opening the doors to opportunity for all: Setting a research agenda for the future (pp. 75–82). American Institutes for Research.

28.

Moll

Amanti

Neff

Gonzalez

(2006). Funds of knowledge for teaching: Using a qualitative approach to connect homes and classrooms. In Funds of knowledge (pp. 71–87). Routledge.

29.

Mumphrey

Lurye

(2023, February 1). Black history class revised by the College Board amid criticism. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/black-history-ap-african-american-studies-class-722fb29dbaa13dd5c42d70c5129df48e

30.

Naff

Parry

Ferguson

Palencia

Lenhardt

Tedona

Stroter

Stripling

Baber

(2021). Analyzing advanced placement (AP): Making the nation's most prominent college preparatory program more equitable. https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/merc_pubs/121/

31.

National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) . (2022). DataLab United States Department of Education. Retrieved February 6, 2025, from https://nces.ed.gov/

32.

Ndura

Robinson

Ochs

(2003). Minority students in high school Advanced Placement courses: Opportunity and equity denied. American Secondary Education, 32(1), 21–38. https://www.jstor.org/stable/41064502?seq=1

33.

Oakes

(1992). Can tracking research inform practice? Technical, normative, and political considerations. Educational Researcher, 21(4), 12–21. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X021004012

34.

Ohrt

J. H.

Lambie

G. W.

Ieva

(2009). Supporting Latino and African-American students in Advanced Placement courses: A school counseling program’s approach. Professional School Counseling, 13(1), 59–63. https://doi.org/10.1177/2156759X0901300104

35.

Patton

M. Q.

(2015). Qualitative research and evaluation methods: Integrating theory and practice. Sage.

36.

Roegman

Allen

Hatch

(2019). Dismantling roadblocks to equity? The impact of Advanced Placement initiatives on Black and Latinx students’ access and performance. Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education, 121(5), 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1177/016146811912100505

37.

Roegman

Hatch

(2016). The AP lever for boosting access, success, and equity. Phi Delta Kappan, 97(5), 20–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/0031721716629653

38.

Sadler

P. M.

Sonnert

Tai

R. H.

Klopfenstein

(2010). AP: A critical examination of the Advanced Placement program. Harvard Education Press.

39.

Saldaña

(2016). The coding manual for qualitative researchers (3rd ed.). Sage.

40.

Schneider

(2009). Privilege, equity, and the Advanced Placement program: Tug of war. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 41(6), 813–831. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220270802713613

41.

Shaw

E. J.

Marini

Mattern

K. D.

(2014). Considering practical uses of Advanced Placement® information in college admission. Research Note 2014-1. College Board.

42.

Skrla

Scheurich

J. J.

Garcia

Nolly

(2004). Equity audits: A practical leadership tool for developing equitable and excellent schools. Educational Administration Quarterly, 40(1), 133–161. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013161X03259148

43.

Strauss

(2015, June 11). Historians blast Advanced Placement U.S. History framework. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2015/06/11/historians-blast-advanced-placement-u-s-history-framework/

44.

The College Board . (2015). College board’s equity and access policy statement. https://professionals.collegeboard.com/k-12/assessment/ap/equity

45.

The College Board . (2023a). AP Program participation and performance data 2022. https://reports.collegeboard.org/ap-program-results/class-of-2022

46.

The College Board . (2023b). Discover AP. https://ap.collegeboard.org/

47.

The College Board . (2024). AP Availability. https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/about-ap/ap-data-research/national-state-data

48.

Theoharis

(2009). The school leaders our children deserve: Seven keys to equity, social justice, and school reform. Teachers College Press .

49.

Theoharis

(2024). The school leaders our children deserve: Seven keys to equity, social justice, and school reform. Teachers College Press.

50.

Valencia

R. R.

Solórzano

D. G.

(2012). Contemporary deficit thinking. In The evolution of deficit thinking (pp. 160–210). Routledge.

51.

Walker

S. A.

Pearsall

L. D.

(2012). Barriers to advanced placement for Latino students at the high-school level. Roeper Review, 34(1), 12–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/02783193.2012.627549

52.

Warne

R. T.

(2017). Research on the academic benefits of the Advanced Placement program: Taking stock and looking forward. SAGE Open, 7(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244016682996

53.

Yin

R. K.

(2018). Case study research: Design and methods (6th ed.). Sage.

54.

Yosso

T. J.

(2005). Whose culture has capital? A critical race theory discussion of community cultural wealth. Race Ethnicity and Education, 8(1), 69–91. https://doi.org/10.1080/1361332052000341006

55.

Zohar

Degani

Vaaknin

(2001). Teachers’ beliefs about low-achieving students and higher order thinking. Teaching and Teacher Education, 17(4), 469–485. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0742-051X(01)00007-5