AP Biology Updates with Earliest Possible Implementation for 2025-26
To give teachers more clarity about course content and help students engage with the concepts, we’re planning updates to the AP Biology course framework.
The earliest implementation of these updates will be the 2025-26 school year.
What’s Changing
We're making updates to the AP Biology framework, including:
- Unit 1 was reorganized to reflect a more logical sequence of the biological macromolecules.
- Essential knowledge language was clarified for more transparency in depth and breadth at which content needs to be taught.
- Some topics were merged or moved to provide a more logical organization of content.
- Updates were made in the science practices to provide a more clear set of skills students will need in order to be prepared for sequent college science courses.
- Content related to the components of Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration was reorganized in Units 2 and 3 to help students better engage in the concepts.
- The biogeochemical cycles were added to topic 8.2 Energy Flow Through Ecosystems; other content was reduced due to redundancy to offset this addition.
What’s Not Changing
The sections, numbers and types of questions, timing, and percentages of units and skills assessed on the AP Biology Exam remain the same.
AP Classroom Updates
To support teacher planning and student learning, we will update the following free AP Biology resources in AP Classroom in alignment with the updated framework starting in the summer prior to the implementation of the updated framework:
- Updated AP Daily topic videos.
- Question bank items recoded to match the updated framework coding.
Send Us Your Questions
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FAQ
Will AP Biology teachers need to resubmit in the AP Course Audit?
No. Since the framework is only being updated, AP Biology teachers are not required to resubmit in the AP Course Audit.
Why did College Board make these updates?
We’re updating the course framework to provide a more complete and accurate description of the essential knowledge students must demonstrate on the AP Biology Exam.
Who was involved in updating the course framework?
As with all AP courses, the development committee, which includes experienced high school educators and college faculty, made the AP Biology course updates. The AP Biology Development Committee also worked with higher education faculty reviewers and consultants.
When will the updated CED be available?
The updated Biology CED will be available in the spring prior to implementation of the updated course framework.
Will there be AP Classroom resources for the updated course?
Yes. We’ll begin launching the following updates in AP Classroom in the summer prior to implementation of the updated course framework:
- Adding new AP Daily videos aligned to the new framework.
- Recoded question bank items to match the updated framework coding.
What will happen to the questions and quizzes that teachers created in AP Classroom?
Questions and quizzes created by teachers will stay in AP Classroom. We’ll contact AP Biology teachers with more information about how to retag their questions and quizzes to the updated course framework.
Will the textbooks we previously used work with the updated course?
Yes. Textbooks published within the last 10 years adequately address the material needed for the updated course, as the course scope has not changed.