Pascale Patterson earns perfect score on AP test

Mary Earp
January 7, 2013

Imagine being only one of six students in the entire world to earn a perfect score on the AP Calculus AB test. For Pascale Patterson, senior, this is a reality.

In 2012, 266,994 students took the AP Calculus AB test, and 15.5 percent of those students received a score of a five. Patterson not only received a five, the highest possible score, but she completed the test without any errors.

This is a very rare occurrence. In fact, only 88 perfect scores, out of 3,700,000 tests, were reported in 2012. Patterson was jubilant when she found out how well she scored.

“[When I found out], I just wanted to tell Ms. (Tina) LaFerriere (math teacher) and my parents,” Patterson said.

LaFerriere found out soon after.

“I was shocked and in awe,” LaFerriere said. “And I was proud―super super proud of her.”

The students at West Linn High School had a similar reaction, according to Mark Paraschuk, senior, who was inspired by her achievement.

“I was overjoyed to find out that a good friend of mine from WLHS got such an amazing reward,” Paraschuk said. “It was inspiring to see how, through her hard work, she achieved the impossible.”

Patterson’s achievement did not come easy. Hours of hard work were spent studying for the test. “I did all of the practice tests online; all 24 of them,” Patterson said.

Along with this, Patterson credits LaFerriere for helping her. “She taught me everything that I needed to know,” Patterson said.

LaFerriere attributes Patterson’s success to her uniqueness in the classroom. “Her questions were always more involved and asked for further meaning,” LaFerriere said. “She paid attention to details and practiced a lot more.”

According to LaFerriere, Patterson always went “above and beyond,” and this is one of the reasons for her success.

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About the Contributor

Mary Earp, Co Editor-in-chief

Perfectionist, outgoing and busy are just three of the many words that describe Mary Earp, senior. Earp heard about Amplifier from her eighth grade English teacher, and has been a part of the staff since her freshman year. Currently, she is one of the three Co-Editors-in-chiefs of the paper. Most people have goals that they would like to pursue in their life, and this is a true statement for Earp as well. “I want to be a doctor, and I know this sounds cheesy, but I would really like to make a difference in the world,” Earp said. After high school, her hopes include attending either Pomona College or University of California, Berkeley. Outside of school, Earp has a very hectic life which includes playing co-ed soccer, being a member of the school Mock Trial team and being the President of National Honor Society. She is traveling to New York in late October for an international Mock Trial Competition, Empire, where she is assigned to present the closing argument and both direct and cross examinations for the trial. Some highlights of Earp’s summer were hanging out with friends and taking a vacation to North Carolina, where she visited family and spent some time at the warm sunny beach. If Earp could visit any place two places in the world, she would choose “Italy and Machu Picchu, Peru, because the scenery is beautiful,” Earp said. Her favorite year in high school so far was junior year. “It challenged me the most and broadened my horizons,” Earp said. So far in her senior year, the class Earp most enjoys is AP Environmental Science, “It’s very interesting, enlightening, and I have a great teacher,” Earp said. Earp’s senior year is packed with AP Environmental Science, AP Calculus BC and AP English, leaving her with a long night of work to complete. The most challenging part of taking these classes “is all of the work involved,” Earp said. So far, her last year in high school has been hectic and full of work, yet she is excited and looking forward to all of the opportunities that lie ahead in her future.