A teacher from Montgomery Catholic was selected to lead a team of scorers for Advanced Placement (AP) tests by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). Mindy Walski, a teacher at the Montgomery Catholic High School campus, has worked as an AP Reader for ETS since 2017 and was selected to be a Scoring Leader for the AP Computer Science Principles exam this year.
Mrs. Walski traveled to Kansas City, MO in June and supervised a team of 8 readers to ensure that tests were scored quickly and that all scores were consistent with the rigorous scoring rubric. The AP Computer Science Principles exam consists of performance tasks that students complete throughout the academic year and an end-of-course exam. The Readers are responsible for evaluating the performance tasks which students can create in a variety of formats, ranging from programming languages like C++ and Java to app-development platforms like Snap! and Firebase. Many colleges and universities accept high AP test scores as college credit and often enable students to place into higher-level classes in that field of study.
Mrs. Walski has worked at Montgomery Catholic since 2012. In addition to being the Media Specialist, she teaches AP Computer Science A, AP Computer Science Principles, and Honors Statistics. She is also the coach for the CyberPatriot team. Montgomery Catholic is extremely proud to have great educators like Mrs. Walski on our faculty.
The College Board released the following press release to announce Mrs. Walski's participation in AP test scoring:
NEW YORK – Mindy Walski was selected to participate in the College Board’s Annual AP Reading in Computer Science Principles. Each June, AP teachers and college faculty members from around the world gather in the United States to evaluate and score the free-response sections of the AP Exams.
AP Readers are high school and college educators who represent many of the world’s leading academic institutions. The AP Reading is a unique forum in which an academic dialogue between educators is both fostered and encouraged. “The Reading draws upon the talents of some of the finest teachers and professors that the world has to offer,” said Trevor Packer, Senior Vice President, AP and Instruction at the College Board. “It fosters professionalism, allows for the exchange of ideas, and strengthens the commitment to students and to teaching. We are very grateful for the contributions of talented educators like Mindy Walski.”
The Advanced Placement Program® (AP®) enables willing and academically prepared students to pursue college-level studies – with the opportunity to earn college credit, advanced placement or both – while still in high school. Through AP courses in 38 subjects, each culminating in a rigorous exam, students learn to analyze complex problems, construct solid arguments, and see many sides of an issue – skills that prepare them for college and beyond. Research indicates that students who score a 3 or higher on an AP Exam typically experience greater academic success in college and are more likely to earn a college degree than non-AP students.
