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Advanced Placement Human Geography (APHG) test rates are up 49% over 2005 levels. In 2006, 20,003 students completed the exam that measures performance in college-level APHG courses offered in high schools. The APHG course is structured around a syllabus that meets college standards and follows an outline that parallels college course content, including themes and models such as globalization, cultural diffusion, and central place theory. If students score sufficiently well on the AP exam, they may receive college credit for a comparable introductory human or cultural geography course. Recent world events combined with the development of geographic technologies turned around a decline in geography in the United States during the latter half of the twentieth century. A holdover from this decline was difficulty in recruiting majors due to the lack of geography knowledge of incoming freshmen. Students whose interest in a course begins in high school are more likely to explore it further in more advanced courses in college. Increased interest in geography can be seen in the increasing numbers and expanding locations of the colleges and universities that receive test scores from APHG students. In 2003, 2790 scores were sent to 635 institutions. Preliminary figures for 2006 show that 7423 scores were sent to 984 colleges and universities. This increase has also led to an increased number of schools that allow credit or placement for geography scores of 3 or higher on the AP exam. Also, consistently from 2001 through 2006, more than 20% of the students taking the APHG exam indicated in their background questions that they would consider geography as a major field in college. The AP Human Geography course has opened up a new world for more than 50,000 students in the last six years and the trend is expected to continue as more schools offer the program to increasing numbers of students. Members of the geography community can support this growth by applying to be readers for the exam or volunteering to write multiple-choice questions. For more information about the course, visit the College Board’s Advanced Placement website (www.apcentral.collegeboard.com). You will need to register for access to this page but the registration is free of charge.
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