The new Advanced Placement (AP) Chemistry Curriculum
Framework places greater emphasis on concept development
and understanding rather than the traditional rote quantitative
calculation.1 The Introduction to the AP Curriculum Framework
notes that students are expected to “spend less time on
factual recall and more time on inquiry-based learning of
essential concepts.”1 This is a needed change and is supported
by a great volume of research demonstrating that students can
perform such rote calculations while fundamentally misunderstanding
the conceptual basis for those calculations.2−8 By
placing more focus on the concepts themselves and less on
applications of those concepts, which require only rote
memorization, the new curriculum and exam will push students
to a deeper understanding of chemistry. As noted in the
Curriculum Framework, this new focus will help students
“develop the reasoning skills necessary to engage in the science
practices.”