Weapons of Mass Instruction have been discovered in schools nationwide. Standardization of education is a plague that comes in many forms but none as detrimental as the AP class.

AP, or Advanced Placement, enrollment supposedly signifies that a student is intelligent enough to take college-level courses in high school. In reality, it’s just Academic Pollution. You do not learn the material to become enlightened. You learn to pass a test. You learn so that you can impress admissions officers with your weighted GPA. You learn so that when you enter college as a sophomore, you can fast-track your way to a high-paying job and the “real world.” But signing away your childhood to the College Board is Absolutely Preposterous.

Senior Diane Sellers exclaims, “Honestly, AP classes suck and they are super difficult”. The fundamental rule in AP classes is Avoid People. Who has time for distracting social engagements? The massive homework load, looming deadlines and supplementary study groups slowly suck up your week.

Life doesn’t exist outside of meaningless busywork. Most often this consists of the art of explaining concepts that you don’t understand, care about, or ever really need. The essay is no longer a time for sharing opinions or arguing a case; it’s words thrown on to paper to show off exactly what the teacher/grader/counselor wants to hear.

There are some of us who actually enjoy the mind games AP poses against us. Junior Hannah Lambertson states, “ I think they give a great opportunity to get college credits and experience, and although they are hard, they really help prepare you for what you want to do. I can’t imagine not taking AP and honors courses, because I wouldn’t know what I would want to do later in life”.

When you walk through the halls of RV and ask some one their true feelings about an AP class you may hear words thrown out there such as, “…. extremely time consuming, challenging and you find yourself scratching your head trying to think of when you’ll use this concept in the future, “ Ralston Valley graduate Andy Classen explains.

AP is an obstacle course with never-ending hoops to jump through. AP is being taught exactly what to think and how to think it. At the end of the year, they evaluate on how well you regurgitate. So we sit in our little box, swallowing unquestioningly and vomiting on command, waiting for the sweet freedom that college brings.