Putting SHS science classes under the microscope

Graphic by Beverly Xu

The formula for these class breakdowns: part workload, part concepts, part memorization and part AP test pass rate. 

Note: Difficulty statistics were randomly sampled from students who may or may not have voluntarily taken the poll, based on the discretion of the teacher distributing it, and therefore may not be representative of all students. 

With the several science classes students have the option of taking each year, it’s important to know what each course demands in order to make an informed decision for course selection.

The Falcon polled students in all science classes excluding AP Biology (AP Biology teacher Cheryl Lenz declined to distribute the survey) — receiving 254 distinct responses — and these are the breakdowns of all the courses, by median hours spent on homework, memorization and conceptual understanding. Additionally, for AP courses, the SHS AP test pass rates, all recorded in 2019, were noted. 

The breakdown:

AP Environmental Science:

Homework (hours per class): 0.625

Memorization (hours per class): 0.375

Conceptual learning (hours per class): 0.24

Number of lectures understood on first exposure (of 10): 10

AP Test Pass Rate: 77%

Pro tip: “APES is really just memorization, and it has a few labs and daily notes which can be done during tutorial” — senior Ameya Saund.

Earth Science:

There were not enough responses to create a four-quartile distribution, or any valuably reliable average.

Pro tip: “There were a lot of misconceptions I had with certain earth systems like the difference between hurricanes and typhoons and tornadoes and twisters … But if I had a choice, I’d take bio in freshman year because apparently I can learn all of this in APES [AP Environmental Science]. I’d be doing the exact same labs in Earth Science — I remember Mrs. Thompson [the APES teacher] coming in to take labs from Mrs. Cochrum’s [the Earth Science teacher] room and Mrs. Cochrum would explain to the class that ‘she takes labs from me,’” — sophomore Ashwin Kotti.

Regular Chemistry:

Homework (hours per class): 1

Memorization (hours per class): 1

Conceptual learning (hours per class): 1

Number of lectures understood on first exposure (of 10): 6.5

Pro tip: “The workload is reasonable and the curriculum is slowly paced, so you just need to stay on top of your work,” — junior Vera Fung. 

Regular Biology:

Homework (hours per class): 1

Memorization (hours per class): 1

Conceptual learning (hours per class): 1

Number of lectures understood on first exposure (of 10): 5

Note: “Freshman biology isn’t that hard in comparison to AP courses, but it is a pretty big jump from middle school. Definitely feels more like an Honors biology class if you have Cochrum,” — junior Grace Liu.

Regular Physics:

Homework (hours per class): 0.35

Memorization (hours per class): 0.4

Conceptual learning (hours per class): 0.5

Number of lectures understood on first exposure (of ten): 8

Pro tip: “Even though it’s a regular class, don’t think of it as easy and push it to the side. Stay on top of the units and also don’t forget to apply the basics when you’re learning harder concepts,” — junior Shreya Raghuvanshi.

AP Physics C:

Homework (hours per class): 0.35

Memorization (hours per class): 0.4

Conceptual learning (hours per class): 0.5

Number of lectures understood on first exposure (of 10): 8

AP Test Pass Rate: not offered in 2019

Pro tip: “The class format reflects the Physics 1 & 2 class format, and homework doesn’t take very long unless you take more time to study using the MIT workbook problems,” — senior Kyleen Liao. 

Chemistry Honors:

Homework (hours per class): 0.3

Memorization (hours per class): 0.5

Conceptual learning (hours per class): 0.5

Number of lectures understood on first exposure (of ten): 6

Pro tip: “Ms. Nak was a very interactive teacher, and she utilized a lot of cold calling, which kept me focused during class, which made me retain the information better and prevented me from falling asleep during the lectures,” — junior Claire Zheng.

Note: Due to limited sample size for this case, there is a sampling error of 35%. 

AP Chemistry:

Homework (hours per class): 0.25

Memorization (hours per class): 0.7

Conceptual learning (hours per class): 0.75

Number of lectures understood on first exposure (of ten): 8

AP Test Pass Rate: 100%

Pro tip: “Ms. Cahatol explains Chemistry really well so concepts are easy to understand but you need to do the Zumdahl [textbook homework problems] to pass tests,” — senior Ameya Saund. 

Another student’s take: “The Zumdahl homework is all due at the end of the unit, so if you space it out throughout the unit it doesn’t take long,” — junior Sarah Lim.

AP Biology:

AP Biology teacher Cheryl Lenz declined the Falcon’s request to poll her students. 

AP Test Pass Rate: 98%

Note: “AP Bio’s material is all very very similar to what we learned in freshman biology, so the information we retain is not as difficult as other AP classes may be. One big difference however, is that we do a lot more lab and lab reports, so we can have a more hands-on experience,” — junior Claire Zheng.

AP Physics 1 & 2:

Homework (hours per class): 0.225

Memorization (hours per class): 1

Conceptual learning (hours per class): 1

Number of lectures understood on first exposure (of 10): 5

AP Test Pass Rate: 93%

Pro tip: “For physics you have a lot of conceptual and application problems, so it’s helpful to have the questions sheet, but when taking tests you will have to solve problems you’ve never seen before based on what you learned in class. Also, the curve in physics is huge” — senior Ameya Saund.