AP testing update
An e-newsletter from Mounds View Public Schools
May 1, 2020
This email is being sent to students and families that have students registered to take an Advanced Placement (AP) exam this May 2020.
Preparing for the exam
College Board has released many new resources to help guide students through their AP exams. We have provided them for you to review below. Students can also expect an email from College Board on May 4 and then again two days before their exam. Remember to use the instructions for updating information in your College Board Account to ensure that you receive these communications.
AP 2020 exam walkthrough video
We encourage all students to view this short four-minute introductory video that walks students through the AP 2020 Exams process and gives tips.
Students should read the detailed information in this guide to understand more about the AP exam e-ticket, five steps to take before test day, understanding the test day experience, exam scores, credit and placement.
NOTE: College Board reminds students that this AP Testing Guide lists what is required when taking the AP Exams. If your question is not answered in this test guide, then it is not required for the AP exam.
Example: Students have asked if they can listen to music while they take the AP Exam. College Board (on page 38) recommends students:
- Do your best to test by yourself in a quiet room.
- Remove distractions.
- Enable the do not disturb or quiet setting on your device.
- Let your parents, guardians, siblings, and friends know when you’ll be testing so they don’t disturb you.
College Board has not indicated listening to music is not allowed. Students could make themselves comfortable and listening to their favorite music during the exam should be okay.
AP has put together a checklist of tasks that students should complete before, during and after the AP Exam to ensure success. Students are asked to fill in the information at the top of the checklist before the exam begins and have the checklist available either in paper form or electronically while testing.
On this page, students will find documents they will need on exam day. Students may print or download them to have available while testing.
AP students should use the click-through exam demo to practice the different ways to submit their exam responses. IT IS IMPORTANT that ALL students COMPLETE this preparation step. The demo will help students confirm that their testing device will be able to access and run the online exam. If students can’t access the demo or have trouble submitting, page 51 of the Testing Guide can help them troubleshoot.
Technical issues
If students have technical issues with the exam demo and need device support, contact:
- Mounds View High School: Ms. Weinhagen, nancy.weinhagen@moundsviewschools.org
- Irondale High School: studenttechhelp@moundsviewschools.org
- Unable to send an email? Please call the Technology Help Desk at 651-621-7387
AP online classes and review sessions prep week
The week before exams, online AP classes will focus on the exam day experience and sample exam questions.
AP Exam dates and times
Students in the Mounds View School District taking their AP exam(s) in Minnesota will test on the date(s) and time(s) below based on the Central Standard Time zone.
PLEASE NOTE: All times listed in communications from College Board are in Eastern Standard Time. The times that students will test in Minnesota are 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Students are asked to click their ticket to open the exam 30 minutes prior to the start of the exam in order to complete pre-test information.
Additional exam-specific information
AP Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish Language and Culture exams
These exams will be administered using a new dedicated app, the AP World Languages Exam App. Students taking these exams must use this app on smartphones or tablets. This free app will be available for download from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store the week of May 11. College Board will email students and their teachers to let them know when the app is available to download. Visit the College Board AP World Language website for more details. A video walk-through of the test-taking experience will be available the week of May 4.
Information for AP Music Theory exams
Before exam day, students will need to print or hand-copy the 2020 Music Theory Answer Sheet and gain access to an audio recording app or software before exam day. Please see more information on the website.
Information for AP Studio Arts and Computer Science Principles
The deadline for digital submission of Artwork or Performance Questions in the Digital Portfolio is May 26, 10:59 p.m.
Family information
Family members may view the Helping your Student Prepare for AP Exams webinar to learn more ideas for supporting students. Two ideas presented in the webinar are:
- Find the day and time of your student's AP Exam (see above). If the exam is on Tuesday at 3 p.m., then perhaps at 3 p.m. on a few days in the coming weeks, encourage your child to create an environment for themselves similar to exam day and ask them to reflect on the AP test content. Consider using the Sample Exam Questions Resource.
- Talk to your student about the content of the courses. The more often you can engage your student in talking about the themes and connections they have learned, the more confident they will be when taking the exam.
More information can be found at Mounds View AP Testing webpage. If you have any questions, please contact your AP teacher, Dean or aptesting@moundsviewschools.org.