Due to the  COVID-19 outbreak, school districts around the country have faced closure and switched to online learning initiatives. The College Board, which offers Advanced Placement curriculum to high school students, released a modified AP exam schedule and test format for each available exam on Friday. 

Exams will be held between May 11 and May 22, and students have the option to take the 45-minute exam at home or in schools “if they reopen.” Additionally, the free-response exams will be open book and can be completed on any device, including computers, tablets, and smartphones. Students will also have the option to complete the tests by hand and submit photos. 

To address concerns surrounding testing security, the College Board also stated that the new exam format does not award points for online/textbook material, the exam will be administered synchronously worldwide, and that students will be required to confirm their identity and the work submitted as their own. Further, the College Board will employ “a range of digital security tools and techniques, including plagiarism detection software and post-administration analytics,” as well as sending copies of responses to students’ AP teachers “to spot inconsistencies.”

Students will continue to receive scores from one to five on their exams. The College Board is “confident” that higher institutions will continue to honor AP credits as they have in the past, after consulting hundreds of institutions across the U.S.