courtney,

I missed your response. The entry level courses I took were required courses. I challenged them so I could get the credit without wasting my time and frustration in class. AP (Advanced Placement) courses are similar. They allow the student to forgo the prerequisite courses and get to the meatier courses. Some of these course are college level but many are no more than the Honors courses of decades ago. At least now an A in an Honors (AP) course gets a bit more Grade Point value. In my day, an A in an Honors course was no different than an A in a general level course.

All three of my kids graduated or qualified to graduate high school early. They started taking college courses at 16 or so. One dual enrolled rather than graduating because she wanted to continue playing high school sports.

My point was that just because a course was labeled AP, it was not necessarily a high level and difficult course. Some students tend to psych themselves out by the label on a course. Students carry a big load of stress put on them by labels.