Northwood’s AP Physics teachers administered the national F=ma physics exam, an optional qualifying test for the USA Physics Olympiad, at 10 a.m. on Feb. 12, marking a shift from previous years when the test was held after school.
The F=ma test is administered nationally by the American Association of Physics Teachers. The 75-minute exam consists of 25 multiple-choice questions focusing on advanced mechanics, including kinematics, statics, Newton’s laws, momentum and energy, oscillations, orbital mechanics, fluids and elementary data analysis.
The change followed new timing restrictions from the AAPT, which this year narrowed the testing window in response to concerns of leaked exam content before all students had taken it due to time zone differences.
“In the past years, the organization has been pretty upset with cheating issues,” AP Physics teacher Karen Gorospe said. “They decided on restricting the time that we can give the exam.”
Because the exam is administered across multiple time zones, the revised schedule resulted in an earlier time for the schools on the West Coast. Unlike prior administrations overseen primarily by the Physics Olympiad club after school, this year’s exam required coordination during instructional hours with teachers. The testing window overlapped with break, advisement, tutorial and part of third period.
“It was definitely really hectic,” senior Audrey Hong said. “I actually thought I had a team test for [AP Statistics] by period three, but it was actually the individual test, which is weighted a lot more.”
Schools are now required to preregister students earlier and purchase a set number of exam licenses in advance. The exam was also done through a browser-based online platform rather than on paper.
According to Gorospe, they faced logistical challenges such as securing testing space during the school day, coordinating attendance procedures for participating students and limited communication with the organization.
“I felt that the AAPT was very dismissive of our concerns,” Gorospe said. “They thought that it is easy to get someone to proctor for free in the middle of a school day, and they seem to think that any school would be happy to give up the gym or library and have a counselor proctor for free, as if they are not busy.”
The revised timing and online format are expected to continue. The online system was intended to provide faster score reporting, though the exact date has not been announced.
“It makes it a lot easier because now there aren’t many fake scores that are pushing up the curve,” junior Ashray Mahadeva said. “I definitely support it. I don’t support the fact that you have to skip school while I was at school to take the test.”
