You can "AP out" of a bunch of freshman level college courses, thus saving a good deal of time and money, especially if you're at a state school where you pay by the course hour. You can graduate a year early if you're so inclined. Alternatively, you can spend more time taking courses in your major.
So the kids who had a good chance on the APs were already taking them.
The marginal kids, who may have decided that it wasn't worth their while to take the test and just get a 1 or a 2, are the ones who are signing on to get the money.
That's why the test scores went down. It ain't rocket science.
More liberal foolishness, due to their stubborn refusal to recognize the very existence of differences in intelligence/motivation.
The exact opposite is true. High school should be made more selective, more expensive, and less available to average or below average students.
It seems cruel, but very simply, if an education is not valued, then offering it is useless.
Remember when the “financial incentive” to attend school and pass tests was called “You’ll Get A Job and Be Able To Eat”?