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Important Updates

Preparing Students for the Exam

Starting August 1, students and teachers will have access to a new system called AP Classroom designed and tested in collaboration with AP teachers. It includes an AP question bank that you can use in your classroom throughout the year.

Learn more about AP Classroom.

Assessment Overview

The AP Computer Science Principles assessment consists of two parts: performance tasks and the end-of-course AP Exam. Both measure student achievement of the course learning objectives. For more information on exam weighting, download the AP Computer Science Principles course and exam description.

Encourage your students to visit the AP Computer Science Principles student page for assessment information and practice.

 
  • Event
    • Thu, Apr 30, 2020

    Deadline to Submit AP Computer Science Principles Performance Tasks

    • 11:59 p.m.
  • Event
    • Fri, May 15, 2020

    AP Computer Science Principles Exam Day

    • 8 a.m. | 2 hrs

Assessment Format

Performance Tasks: The format, weighting, and scoring guidelines for the two through-course performance tasks will not change for 2019-20. However, there will be updates for the following school year, in 2020-21.

End-of-Course Exam: The AP Computer Science Principles Exam will continue to have consistent question types, weighting, and scoring guidelines every year, so you and your students know what to expect on exam day. The overall format of the exam—including the weighting, timing, types of questions, and types of stimulus materials—won’t change.

Section I: Performance Tasks

2 Tasks | 40% of Score

  • Performance Task 1: Create—Applications from Ideas. Students will develop a computer program of their choice.
  • Performance Task 2: Explore—Impact of Computing Innovations. Students will identify a computing innovation, explore its impact, and create a related digital artifact

Section II: End-of-Course Exam

~74 Multiple-Choice Questions | 2 Hours | 60% of Score

  • Single-select multiple-choice: Select 1 answer from among 4 options
  • Multiple-select multiple-choice: Select 2 answers from among 4 options

Scoring Guidelines and Notes for the 2019 Exam Administration

For scoring guidelines and notes from the 2019 exam, check out the table below.

Be sure to review the Chief Reader Report. In this invaluable resource, the chief reader of the AP Exam compiles feedback from members of the AP Reading leadership to explain how students performed on the through-course performance tasks, summarize typical student errors, and address specific concepts and content with which students have struggled the most that year.

New Exam Resources

Beginning in August 2019, you’ll have access an online library of AP questions relevant to your course in AP Classroom.

Scoring Guidelines and Notes for the 2019 Exam Administration

Explore – Sample Responses

Create – Sample Responses

Scoring Guidelines and Notes

Commentary

Coming Fall of 2019

Coming Fall of 2019

Explore: Scoring Guidelines and Notes

 

Create: Scoring Guidelines and Notes

Coming Fall of 2019

Score Reporting

Policies