McCallie students took 534 Advance Placements exams in 20 different subjects, earning 159 maximum scores of 5 in those tests. The 30 percent rate of top scores for McCallie is more than double the state average of 12 percent and national average of 13 percent.
“Our students continue to prove that the AP curriculum, instruction and preparation at McCallie are among the best in the nation,” Headmaster Lee Burns ‘87 said. “In addition, these young men have shown outstanding scholarship and dedication to putting in the work needed to be successful in what is a very rigorous course of study at the high school level.”
For the second consecutive year, 120 McCallie students earned distinction as AP Scholars at various levels for high performance on multiple AP exams:
Ten boys were named National AP Scholars for earning scores of 4 or higher on eight or more AP exams and having an average score of at least 4 on all AP exams.
Those 10 National Scholars were joined by another 58 McCallie students as AP Scholars with Distinction for having scores of 3 or higher on five or more AP exams and averaging at least 3.5 on all exams.
Twenty-three students were named AP Scholars with Honor for scoring 3 or higher on four or more AP exams and averaging 3.25 on all exams.
And 29 McCallie students were named AP Scholars for earning scores of 3 or higher on three or more AP exams.
Ninety-one percent (486) of the AP exams taken by McCallie students received a 3 or higher, with 68 percent earning a score of 4 or higher. This again exceeded the state and national averages, which had 59 percent of Tennessee students and 57 percent of all students in the United States scoring 3 or better, and 32 percent of both the state and national student populations scoring 4 or higher.
“We encourage our boys to strive for more at McCallie, and therefore these students achieve amazing academic success, year in and year out,” Assistant Headmaster Kenny Sholl said. “To see so many of these young men being successful in not just one, but multiple AP Exams across a variety of subjects shows that our students are pushing themselves and their peers to greater academic heights every day. This year’s AP scores are just further proof of how impressive McCallie’s students are and the great things they are capable of accomplishing.”
AP US History was the most popular AP test at McCallie in 2015, with 58 students taking the AP Exam and averaging 4.05, ahead of the Tennessee (2.85) and national (2.74) averages.
McCallie’s other individual test score averages of note in AP Exams:
AP Spanish — average score of 4.71
AP Physics C: Mechanics — average score of 4.51
AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism — average score of 4.36
AP Chemistry — average score of 4
"The scores demonstrate that our teachers are finding tremendous success in covering the vast AP curriculum in ways that motivate and inspire student excellence,” Academic Dean Sumner McCallie said. “Their knowledge of content is clearly evident, but equally obvious is their ability to teach the skills and habits necessary for absorbing, analyzing, and articulating college-level work. We see this success continue as our students move on to the fantastic spectrum of colleges where our students matriculate."