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:AP Physics 1

{{Short description|College Board exam}}

{{Primary sources|date=March 2025}}

{{Advanced Placement}}

Advanced Placement (AP) Physics 1: Algebra Based{{Cite web |title=AP Physics 1: Algebra-Based Course – AP Central {{!}} College Board |url=https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-physics-1 |access-date=2024-09-04 |website=apcentral.collegeboard.org |language=en}} (also known as AP Physics 1) is a year-long introductory physics course administered by the College Board as part of its Advanced Placement program. It is intended to proxy a one-semester algebra-based university course in mechanics. Along with AP Physics 2, the first AP Physics 1 exam was administered in 2015.

History

The heavily computational AP Physics B course served as the College Board's algebra-based offering for four decades. As part of the College Board's redesign of science courses, AP Physics B was discontinued; therefore, AP Physics 1 and 2 were created with guidance from the National Research Council and the National Science Foundation.{{Cite web |url=http://advancesinap.collegeboard.org/math-and-science/physics |title=AP Physics 1 and AP Physics 2 {{!}} Advances in AP |access-date=2013-12-15 |archive-date=2014-10-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141018200254/http://advancesinap.collegeboard.org/math-and-science/physics |url-status=dead }} The course covers the material of a first-semester university undergraduate physics course offered at American universities that use best practices of physics pedagogy.{{cite web|last1=Jacobs|first1=Greg|title=What does a 5 on the AP Physics 1 Exam mean? It still means an A, but read on...|url=https://jacobsphysics.blogspot.com/2016/01/what-does-5-on-ap-physics-1-exam-mean.html|website=Jacobs Physics|date=23 January 2016|publisher=Greg Jacobs|access-date=14 June 2017}}{{self-published inline|date=March 2025}} The first AP Physics 1 classes had begun in the 2014–2015 school year, with the first AP exams administered in May 2015.

In its first five years, AP Physics 1 covered forces and motion, conservation laws, waves, and electricity.{{Cite web|url=https://jacobsphysics.blogspot.com/2011/07/ap-physics-1-and-2-redesign-as-it.html|title=Jacobs Physics: AP Physics 1 and 2 Redesign (as it stands now) and Honors Physics I|first=Greg|last=Jacobs|date=25 July 2011|accessdate=16 April 2023}}{{self-published inline|date=March 2025}} As of 2021, AP Physics 1 includes mechanics topics only.{{cite web|title=The Course|url=https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-physics-1/course?course=ap-physics-1-algebra-based|url-status=live|access-date=25 December 2020|website=AP Physics 1: The Course|date = 10 July 2006|publisher=The College Board|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218175633/https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-physics-1/course?course=ap-physics-1-algebra-based |archive-date=2020-12-18 }}

In February 2024, College Board announced that there would be changes in curricula for their AP Physics classes for the 2025 exams. For AP Physics 1, this added fluids to the list of topics covered on the exam, now the last unit of the curriculum. Previously, this topic was covered as the first unit of AP Physics 2. In the revised curriculum, fluids cover 10-15% of the AP Physics 1 exam. College Board made other minor changes to the curriculum, such as providing equations for simple harmonic motion, connections between rotational and translational motion, and learning objectives related to power.{{Cite web |title = AP Physics Revisions for 2024-25|url=https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-physics/revisions-2024-25|access-date=2 May 2024}}

Curriculum

AP Physics 1 is an algebra-based, introductory college-level physics course that includes mechanics topics such as motion, fluids, force, momentum, energy, harmonic motion, and rotation. The College Board published a curriculum framework that includes eight big ideas on which AP Physics 1 is based.{{cite web|url=https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap-physics-1-course-and-exam-description-effective-fall-2024.pdf|access-date=21 May 2024|website=collegeboard.org|title=AP Physics 1: Algebra-Based|date=Winter 2024}}

Questions for the exam are constructed with direct reference to items in the curriculum framework. Student understanding of each topic is tested regarding multiple skills—that is, questions require students to use quantitative, semi-quantitative, qualitative, and experimental reasoning in each content area.

class="wikitable"

!align="center"|Units

!Exam Weighting

align="center"

|Kinematics

|10-15%

align="center"

|Force and Translational Dynamics

|18-23%

align="center"

|Work, Energy and Power

|18-23%

align="center"

|Linear Momentum

|10-15%

align="center"

|Torque and Rotational Dynamics

|10-15%

align="center"

|Energy and Momentum of Rotating Systems

|5-8%

align="center"

|Oscillations

|5-8%

align="center"

|Fluids

|10-15%

The content of AP Physics 1 overlaps significantly with that of AP Physics C: Mechanics. However, AP Physics 1 is algebra-based and lacks calculus-based concepts in AP Physics C: Mechanics. Another difference is that AP Physics C: Mechanics does not cover fluids, while AP Physics 1 does.

Exam

class="wikitable"

|+

!Section

!Questions

!Time

!Exam Weighting

Section I: Multiple Choice

|40 MCQ

|1 hour 20 minutes

|50%

Section II: Free Response

|4 FRQ

|1 hour 40 minutes

|50%

= Science Practices Assessed =

Multiple Choice and Free Response Sections of the AP Physics 1 exam are also assessed on scientific practices. Below are tables representing the practices assessed and their weighting for both parts of the exam

class="wikitable"

|+ Section 1: Multiple Choice

! Science Practice

! Exam Weighting

2. Mathematical Routines

|55-75%

3. Experimental Design and Analysis

|25-35%

class="wikitable"

|+ Section 2: Free Response

! Science Practice

! Exam Weighting

1. Translation Between Representations

|20-35%

2. Mathematical Routines

|30-40%

3. Experimental Design and Analysis

|35-45%

= Score distributions =

The exam score distributions since 2015 are as follows:

class="wikitable"

!Score

!2015"[https://reports.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/Student-Score-Distributions-2015_1.pdf Student Score Distributions]" (PDF). Retrieved June 1, 2024.

!2016"[https://reports.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/Student-Score-Distributions-2016_1.pdf Student Score Distributions]" (PDF). Retrieved June 1, 2024.

!2017"[https://reports.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/Student-Score-Distributions-2017_1.pdf Student Score Distributions]" (PDF). Retrieved June 1, 2024.

!2018{{Cite web|title=STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS|url=https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/digitalServices/pdf/research/2018/Student-Score-Distributions-2018.pdf|access-date=July 23, 2022}}

!2019{{Cite web|title=STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS|url=https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/digitalServices/pdf/research/2019/Student-Score-Distributions-2019.pdf|access-date=July 23, 2022}}

!2020{{Cite web|title=STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS|url=https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/digitalServices/pdf/research/2020/Student-Score-Distributions-2020.pdf|access-date=June 9, 2021}}

!2021{{Cite web|title=STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS|url=https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/digitalServices/pdf/research/2021/2021-ap-student-score-distributions.pdf|access-date=July 23, 2022}}

!2022"[https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap-score-distributions-by-subject-2022.pdf Student Score Distributions]" (PDF). Retrieved June 1, 2024.

!2023"[https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap-score-distributions-by-subject-2023.pdf Student Score Distributions]" (PDF). Retrieved June 1, 2024.

!2024{{Cite web |title=AP Physics 1 - Algebra Based - Compare Score Distributions Across Years |url=https://www.totalregistration.net/AP-Exam-Registration-Service/Compare-Score-Distributions.php?id=50&year=2024 |access-date=2024-07-08 |website=www.totalregistration.net}}

|5

|5.0%

|4.6%

|5.4%

|5.2%

|6.2%

|8.8%

|6.9%

|7.9%

|8.8%

|8.0%

|4

|13.6%

|14.0%

|16.2%

|15%

|17.8%

|17.9%

|16.3%

|17.0%

|18.3%

|18.0%

|3

|20.7%

|21.2%

|20.3%

|19.5%

|20.6%

|24.8%

|18.9%

|18.3%

|18.5%

|20.0%

|2

|29.8%

|30.2%

|29.1%

|29.1%

|29.3%

|26.5%

|26.4%

|27.1%

|28.0%

|27.0%

|1

|31.0%

|30.0%

|29.0%

|31.2%

|26.1%

|21.9%

|31.4%

|29.6%

|26.4%

|27.0%

|% of Scores 3 or Higher

|39.2%

|39.8%

|41.9%

|39.7%

|44.6%

|51.6%

|42.1%

|43.3%

|45.6%

|46.0%

|Mean

|2.32

|2.33

|2.40

|2.34

|2.49

|2.65

|2.41

|2.47

|2.55

|2.53

|Standard Deviation

|1.19

|1.17

|1.21

|1.21

|1.22

|1.25

|1.27

|1.29

|1.29

|1.28

|Number of Students

|171,074

|169,304

|170,447

|170,653

|161,071

|149,488

|136,238

|144,526

|159,582

| -

This AP course has the lowest average score and the lowest proportion of students scoring 5 out of all current AP subjects.{{Cite web|url=https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/digitalServices/pdf/research/2017/Student-Score-Distributions-2017.pdf|title=STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS, AP Exams - May 2017|accessdate=16 April 2023}}

See also

References

{{reflist}}

Category:Advanced Placement

Category:School qualifications

Category:Gifted education

Category:High school course levels

Category:Physics education

Category:Standardized tests