Should high school students bother taking AP classes?

School starts Tuesday for LA public schools. High school students who hope to get into a selective college have probably signed up for AP classes. With the bump they provide to GPAs, they’re pretty much a necessity for many students. But when school ended in June, seven of the top private schools in Washington DC announced that they were dropping AP classes, saying the classes aren’t necessary, and they put too much emphasis on memorization. Some education experts are not surprised by this decision.