AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Texas says the number of its public school students taking Advanced Placement tests increased by 4 percent last year.
Education Commissioner Michael Williams said Tuesday that College Board data shows 194,391 Texas public school students took 350,766 AP exams during the 2011-2012 school year.
He said performance increased for all students by 9.1 percent, with African-Americans gaining 12 percent and Hispanics nearly 14 percent.
AP tests are graded on a 1-to-5 scale and many colleges award course credit for scores of 3 or above. Texas students earned a 3 or above on 162,959 exams last year.
The most-taken AP test statewide was English Language, followed by U.S. History and World History.
Since 2009, the number of AP tests taken by Texans has increased by 81,412 exams or 30.2 percent.
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