Gunn high school is known for its stressed-out overachievers. It is no wonder that Advanced Placement (AP) classes are generally fuller than the corresponding non-AP classes. As more students decide to take AP courses, their peers feel pressured to follow suit; yet this pressure is insignificant compared to the daunting effects of the college admissions process that come into play. As students sign up for so many AP courses, teachers feel it is their duty to scare the kids to their senses. But a warm, informative welcome could be just as effective in getting the message across.

AP classes are meant to be taken when a student has significant interest in a topic, not simply when he or she is taking the “next logical step” to a higher course. In college, a schedule will normally contain about four classes a semester. If a high school student were to take seven classes, five of which are AP courses, this is not only a suicide attempt in high school; it is ridiculous even on the college level. Students should know the amount of work for each AP course before they sell themselves to the devil. AP teachers try to give students words of advice as many students’ ambitions do override logical boundaries, but scare tactics are not as effective as informative warnings.

“Consider dropping out now,” they suggest. “This is going to be an incredibly difficult course,” or “you had better be incredibly interested in the subject—otherwise you should leave,” they insist. It is rather insulting to the student to be told they will not be able to handle the amount of work and should not be able to challenge themselves in a range of different subjects. Students know what AP stands for, and it should therefore be safe to assume that students know that an AP class demands more work than a regular class. They may not know exactly how demanding each class is, but there is a difference between being informative and being scary.

Honesty is important, and AP teachers should not let you off with a “this class is a piece of cake, surely you can handle this and five other APs, no big.” However, a warm, encouraging welcome would definitely be more inspiring than a spiel on how difficult the AP test is going to be or what periods of the lower level class are available so students can drop down.

AP teachers should inform giddy students ahead of time that they will prove nothing by strangling themselves under the tremendous weight of five APs. There are many other things students can do to shine on college applications; five APs are not the only way. On the first day of class, AP teachers should let people know what fun and interesting topics they will be exploring, what bright and intelligent young students they are bound to become and how successful they can be if they are devoted and interested in the subject matter. That way, students can know there will be high expectations but that the results will pay off.

AP classes can be great and they can be painful—it all depends on how you look at it. If a teacher introduces a class as fun and exciting, it is bound to have a better chance of being meaningful than a class that is introduced as a death sentence. The mentality students develop coming into a class definitely lingers in the back of their minds throughout the course, so it is important for teachers to help students develop a positive outlook early on.