Last month we looked at the availability of physics in U.S. high schools. This month we will examine the number of students enrolled in physics courses in U.S. high schools.
U.S. high school physics enrollment increased 12% since the previous survey was conducted in 2013, outpacing the 6% growth of high school seniors. More than 1.5 million students were enrolled in a wide variety of physics courses from Physics First through AP Physics C and other second-year physics courses. In future months we will consider enrollments by type of class. This survey marks the first round we have conducted since AP Physics 1 and 2 replaced AP Physics B in the AP curriculum. AP Physics 1 was specifically designed to be a first-year physics course, while the College Board recommended students complete a physics course prior to enrolling in AP Physics B. This change contributed to the increase in the...