English Language Discussion

Test Preparation AP Test Preparation
41

<p>my school has "honors" english I, II, and III (for freshman, sophomore, and junior year, respectively). senior year, the "honors" class is vaguely labeled "AP English IV." out of sixty kids, i was the only student in either class to take either of the AP tests. i actually took them both. very few kids ever take the test(s) from year to year at my school.</p>

<p>we spent the first semester on "how" to write (e.g., argumentative, research, expository, etc.). we spent the second semester reading various literature (e.g., shakespeare, tolstoy, etc.). so i guess the year was sort of divided into Language and Composition (first semester) and Literature and Composition (second semester). for really no reason at all, i decided to challenge myself and take both tests because i felt that i was a good enough writer to be able to handle such a level of difficulty.</p>

<p>well, i guess the AP graders agreed. i didn't leave any MC blank; i thought they weren't too difficult. the essays weren't bad either; i thought all of my essays were well-constructed and convincing. i got 5's on both tests.</p>

<p>i really didn't prepare for either test. well, actually, i read sparknotes on The Brothers Karamazov to refresh my memory (i read the book a year ago). my friend from another school who took the literature test told me to have a novel fresh in your mind because the last question on the english literature exam was about a novel of your choice. i picked The Brothers Karamazov because it covered a wide range of concepts/ideas. and it worked out great this year because i used it in a very creative way (talking about Russia as the perfect setting for the philosophical/ideological conflict throughout the book between the main characters).</p>

<p>ultimately, i think both of the AP English exams basically just test how well you can read and write (more the latter, though).</p>

42

<p>got a 2 and am not ashamed to say so!!</p>

43

<p>Hey, noday! That's SO funny! I actually directed a play this past semester, and our last showing was the day before the first AP exam!</p>

<p>Haha!</p>

<p>I am SOOOO with you on the whole, "I was soooo tired" thing. I had to direct, make costumes, and paint sets, all while studying for five AP exams!</p>

<p>What play did y'all do? We did this amazing audience interactive melodrama called "The Clumsy Custard Horror Show." I still miss it. :)</p>

44

<p>I know im gonna sound retarded since im taking 2 AP classes this year ( English Lang being one of them)....but im curious as to how the AP exam is set up....i understand that there is a section of MC...but the essays are what i dont get...what exactly do they ask you to do??</p>

45

<p>Well, J, it depends on whether you take the Lang or Lit test.</p>

<p>Lang has two normal essays based on passages and an open ended question.</p>

<p>Lit has one or two essays based on poems or literary prose and an essay based on a book/play that you've read.</p>

<p>You can check out old essay questions and sample essays by going to <a href="http://apcentral.collegeboard.com%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://apcentral.collegeboard.com&lt;/a> and registering as a teacher. You don't have to fill out all of the information that they give you.</p>

<p>They post all of the free response questions for all of the tests.</p>

<p>Hope this helps!</p>

46

<p>hey galofdasouth, my school put on that exact same play, I was going to do it but I was playing soccer at the same time, so I couldn't, too much conflict. It's a really funny play!</p>

47

<p>or don't go to AP Central and register as a teacher and just go here: <a href="http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/english_lang/samp.html?englang%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/english_lang/samp.html?englang&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>typically, you will find three different types of essays</p>

<p>the first will ask you to analyze rhetorical devices and strategies
the second will ask for the point the author is trying to get across and how the author formulates his/ her argument
and finally, the third (and most fun, if i may say) is a openended and persuasive essay which will require examples from society, history, or literature</p>

48

<p>damn i feel cheated i thought i did better, but w/e i passed so who cares????</p>

49

<p>shopaholic234 u feel cheated, i feel u didn't study hard enough</p>

50

<p>What changes are being made to Eng Lang? AHHH Im being lazy, I'll just look at apcentral :P</p>

51

<p>What's this Form B thing?: <a href="http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_downloads/ap/students/english/ap06_frq_english_lang_b.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_downloads/ap/students/english/ap06_frq_english_lang_b.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>I thought it referred to the make-up available for the late test date, but it's not the test I took in May.</p>

<p>Incidentally, anyone else take or want to discuss the make-up exam? T_T</p>

52

<p>on another post, a member reported that only 7 percent of all students who take this exam get 5s</p>

53

<p>I was somewhat tired, though probably not as much as noday42. I was self-studying Human Geography (same day as Lang) and had decided to wait until the last day to study for it. So I was at Barnes and Noble for a few hours, then came home and TRIED staying up all night to finish my Barron's book, and, uh, that didn't happen. So I was freaking out about HumGeo during all of AP Lang. I could've sworn that one of my essays was totally off topic cause I misinterpreted the question or something. So, in the end, I got 0 studying done for Lang. But I ended up 5's on both Lang and HumGeo, so I'm happy. :)</p>

54

<p>that's complete bullsh1t, theoneo.. for real, not even funny.</p>

55

<p>I got a 5 even though in one of the essays I spelled ignoramus wrong, maybe they thought I was trying to be ironic.</p>

56

<p>Well, we did a lot of practice MC sections in my class, plus practice essays. I just mean I didn't do any supplemental prep on my own.</p>

57

<p>i didn't do any prep on my own either- i mean, what is there really to do because you never really know what to expect....</p>

<p>i got a 5 even though i misspelled allusion several times in my flamingo essay- i spelled it illusion, which has a completely different denotation</p>