DeKALB | DeKalb and Sycamore High School administrators are pleased with students’ performances on advanced placement exams.

As more Illinois students participate in advanced placement classes, more are failing the exams. Responding to quality issues, The College Board announced Feb. 6 that schools will start sending each instructor’s syllabus to them for approval this summer. If the curriculum does not meet certain standards, a school cannot offer the class to students. Classes will also be given basic standards to be met during class.

A common complaint voiced by colleges is the quality of AP classes, a problem Sycamore principal Mark Leffler and his staff are working to avoid.

Describing a typical AP class, Leffler said, “It should be the equivalent of a freshman class at NIU, so quite rigorous.”

At NIU, credit for AP exams is determined at the departmental level. Each department reviews the test and determines what score is necessary to grant credit to incoming students, said Greg Barker, NIU’s acting director of testing services.

Explaining Sycamore students’ high scores, Leffler said students wishing to participate in AP classes must meet with guidance counselors who will talk to both the student and teachers from the student’s previous classes.

“Two years ago, we had excellent scores,” Leffler said about the school’s U.S. history class.

This year, too few students were judged to be ready for the same class.

“We may have 14 students in a class,” Leffler said. “Our numbers to pull from are much smaller. Our junior class is 288 people.”

DHS students had a particularly strong showing. All students in English, biology and calculus classes earned a three or better. Most colleges require a four or better to award credit.