A new incentive for taking the APs

Doing well on Advanced Placement tests is paying off - literally.

The Advanced Placement Training and Incentive Programs is rewarding students at participating high schools with $250 for receiving a three or higher on AP exams in math, science and English.

Ten high schools in Dallas, Texas, are currently participating, and officials expect more schools from across the country to join in.

Schools can apply to participate if they have "a previous track record of helping to implement education programs in their state," said Tom Luce, CEO of the National Math and Science Initiative.

NMSI, which spearheaded this move, was launched earlier this month with the help of a $125 million grant from ExxonMobil.

NMSI was launched in response to a 2005 report, Rising Above the Gathering Storm, that said that American students lag behind other countries in math and science proficiency, and that the best way to improve their performance is by giving them more challenging coursework, said Dave Gardner, spokesman for ExxonMobil.

The report was published by the National Academy of Sciences, a Washington, D.C.-based organization that promotes scientific and engineering research.

Some say that the program will succeed in encouraging more students to take APs.

"There are a number of programs out there that have proven that students and their families respond to monetary incentives," said Diana Slaughter-Defoe, a professor at the Graduate School of Education. "Material incentives in a materialistic culture work very well."

The money "would absolutely motivate me to take more APs," said Allison Bayani, a senior at Hunter College High School in New York City. She added that the money would help cover the exam's $83 cost.

But not everyone agrees that the ends justify the means.

"I don't support it any more than I would parents giving students an allowance solely based on academic performance," said Penn Dean of Admissions Lee Stetson.

He added that the motivation to do well academically should come from within.

Martin Willner, a Bellevue High School senior who will attend Columbia in the fall, agreed.

"I already take a lot [of APs] simply for the challenging course load and edge it gave me in the admissions process," he said. "I don't think a monetary gain would be worth a year's worth of extra work if a person wasn't up to the challenge."

ExxonMobil employs 14,000 scientists, 2,000 of whom hold Ph.D.s, and, Gardner said, "we rely very heavily on having the ability to replace those people with very qualified scientists and engineers."

Students will receive compensation for English exams in addition to math and science because "we think it's important that people who major in math and science be able to communicate with the rest of the world," Luce added.

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