Naomi Tsuang
News Editor
Mira Costa English and Philosophy teacher Stacy Cabrera introduced the new Advanced Placement Capstone program to Costa at the beginning of the 2017-18 school year, intended to give students the opportunity to develop skills in research and critical thinking.
AP Capstone is a College Board approved course comprised of two year-long courses: AP Seminar, which students take during junior year, and AP Research, which students take during senior year. The College Board created the course in 2014 to complement other AP courses and give students research opportunities to improve argument-based writing skills, Cabrera said.
“The cool thing about this class is that it uniquely places emphasis on skills of academic scholarship rather than on content, so students have the ability to pursue their passions in the same way they will when selecting a college major,” Cabrera said.
The approximately 30 students enrolled in the course attend one mandatory workshop and one seminar after school each school week. Biweekly meetings ensure that students have the proper foundation to master the critical thinking and writing skills necessary to successfully complete the required course tasks for AP College Board credit, Cabrera said.
“I’m really excited to have a class that is not entirely content based and allows me to focus on a subject that I am more interested in,” junior Ally Kennedy said. “I think this class will help me with writing research papers especially and getting to know about more topics.”
In AP Seminar, the first year of AP Capstone, students are required to create a team project and presentation, an individual research paper and presentation, and take the AP Exam in May. This year, the class will focus on the theme of Disagreement and Partisanship, which allows students to analyze disagreements in society regarding topics such as politics and science.
“My hope is that students will see [that] all subjects and intelligences are of vast importance in and of themselves and in conjunction with each other,” Cabrera said. “I cannot wait to see what students will do. I have seen what ignited passion can do in my own classes and in the so many inspirational classes on this campus, [and] I really hope to help students realize those potentialities.”
In AP Research, students will use the skills gained in AP Seminar to choose topics of study and conduct research and interviews. Students are encouraged to ask questions and create solutions using critical thinking and reflection, Cabrera said. Students will also be able to choose a mentor, such as a teacher or professional that specializes in students’ topics of study, in order to help them with their research assignments.
“AP Research gives students a place to take all of the interesting things they’ve learned in all of their classes and find their own unique way to find a passion [and] look into how it manifests in a variety of different ways,” Cabrera said.
Students who complete both years of the AP Capstone Program with passing AP scores for both AP Seminar and AP Research will receive an AP Seminar and Research Certificate. Students who receive the certificate and pass four other AP exams in any subject will qualify for the AP Capstone diploma, signifying academic achievement and college readiness. The diploma may qualify them for special programs and internships in their undergraduate years of college, Cabrera said.
“I am incredibly excited about this program and plan to do what is necessary to give students a unique learning experience that gives them a chance to do some real high-quality, professional-level academic scholarship,” Cabrera said. “I find that even if it is hard work, it’s incredibly rewarding and students want to do the hard work when it’s something they care about.”
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