Good AP Tests to Self-Study for?

Test Preparation AP Test Preparation
21

<p>I think that how much you have to study is a matter of if you're studying stuff that isn't on the test that you love, or if you're 100% in it for the test. </p>

<p>I've always been an avid programmer and history lover, so I came into both the AP tests with a strong background. </p>

<p>My advice for AP Computer Science: </p>

<p>-Memorize the intricacies and minute details of Java. They'll be the main focus of the test</p>

<p>-Practice looking at loops and seeing what they do, looking at a for loop should be as natural as seeing it in English/Maths</p>

<p>-Barrons is an extremely good book for this test. Recommend 100%</p>

<p>-Look at old AP Comp Sci tests sold by Collegeboard (or given for free on their site). The questions on the real test don't deviate much from the practice. </p>

<p>-Do lots of practice. There are a bunch of really nasty tricks they'll throw in with casting and so such that seem intuitive, and take skill to avoid. </p>

<p>My advice for World History: </p>

<p>-Don't get a detailed understanding of the whole world. Its not necessary. The multiple choice looks at trends and causes. Reading lots of encyclopedias to get a "big picture" is a good idea. Always think about why things happen and how they compare when studying. </p>

<p>-Don't overestimate Native Americans (North, South America), they come up on the tests EXTREMELY sparingly (maybe one or two questions at max)</p>

<p>-Pick a part of the world and time to concentrate on. Good examples include: Ottoman Empire, Rome, ancient China, World War I. Almost all the free response will let you pick 1 out of 3 areas to work with. For the areas you choose to concentrate on, get a lot of details and facts. </p>

<p>-Get an overview of key events, and know interesting details. Be able to summarize at least one major world revolution, one or two labor systems, one or two empires, etc. </p>

<p>-AP World is a lot like studying for two tests. The multiple choice is all about details, trends, and the big picture. The free response is about being able to pick from 2 or 3 parts of the world, and get in lots of details. </p>

<p>-Wear bug spray. A tick can be very distracting, I know because one was on me while I was doing the World History multiple choice. TICKS CANNOT BE CRUSHED! The best strategy is to bring in a blow-torch while taking the AP exam, to destroy any ticks that get on your leg. While your leg will be so mangled that it will be little more than a charred stump, it will be worth it since the tick will be toast. </p>

<p>Also, if you have a disorder like ADD or ADHD, you can get extra time to take the test, or even a computer on which to type the free response. Read this for more details: </p>

<p><a href="http://www.collegeboard.com/ssd/student/accom.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.collegeboard.com/ssd/student/accom.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Just pointing that out :)</p>

22

<p>Self study AP US History? </p>

<p>I certainly hope that is a joke...</p>

<p>Not that AP US History is super hard, but it takes time... a lot of time...</p>

23

<p>Idk does it take more time than World History? I self-studied for that... </p>

<p>Actually, I already took an AP US class, but hardly learned anything and didn't take the exam. That's actually really my basis for taking it. </p>

<p>To be honest, from what I've seen World History is easier then US, by a lot. US has a lot of details and people, while World History is just trends.</p>

24

<p>al6200: my point is not that AP classes are perfect. My point is that by self-studying for the tests, there is no way that you are getting the quality of education of a college course. In a well-taught AP class or a college class, you have the opportunity to write papers and receive feedback for your writing, engage in intellectual discussions/arguments about the material you are learning, and gain insight on material that is more than memorized facts (i.e. "why is this important", talking about trends in history, etc.) From my experience, the AP tests are extremely formulaic and lacking of any particular intellectual core. The best AP classes I took didn't even bother with review books or college board syllabi. My teachers taught the general curriculum their way and we got a chance to move beyond the AP curriculum and learn other things. If you look at the review books and questions on an AP test, a lot of the questions are heavily based on spitting out memorized facts or ideas on pre-determined "trends" and terminology that the college board likes to define for you. I think the very idea of the essay questions for AP Gov, for example, are ridiculous. They ask students to basically list and explain facts about the government, rather than make an argument or come up with an original, thoughtful insight. </p>

<p>Another thing I dislike about AP tests is that if you buy a review book and study it, then you can pass the test. I'll quote one of the above posts: "I crammed and learned statistics in a week." For "college level material" this should not happen, even if the user is really smart. </p>

<p>Anyway, I just feel like if you are intellectually interested in the material, it seems sort of pointless to review for the test on your own, because you are cheating yourself of actually getting to learn the material in a fun/well-taught way. You would be better suited to taking a community college course or reading well written books about it instead of reading through Barrons the month before the test.</p>

25

<p>I totally agree that a college class covers a lot more. You get discussions, and material that goes way beyond the AP tests, etc. But you have to remember that the AP test is a floor effect. It shows what you know objectively, so its useful to colleges, but clearly the numbers aren't 100% of the picture. </p>

<p>I disagree that AP the AP exams are "memorization" as you say. The AP world test is in no way about memorization. Not a single specific fact ever comes up. The AP World History test makes comparisons and test trends. But its not like someone can just memorize trends, the trends are all comparisons that force the student to abstract the main ideas of history. It forces the student not just to study history, but to interpret history and draw conclusions. </p>

<p>The AP Computer Science test has no memorization questions, and while the emphasis on syntax is a bit too high, its not like that's the emphasis of the test. </p>

<p>If someone can learn all the material for a college class in a week, then why not let them? I don't see how it reduces the validity of the test. But I do agree with a lot of your points about a class, but I wouldn't throw out self-studying entirely. </p>

<p>I learned a whole lot about programming when I self studied for AP Computer Science, but I have taken classes at the community college too, and I think that both are important for a well rounded student.</p>

26

<p>i self-studied for ap world and ap u.s. history this year... i scored a 5 on u.s. and 3 on world -- go figure</p>

<p>i would say u.s. history has more material, though for world, the reading the material was waaaaaaaayyyyy more boring than reading a u.s. hist. book. for </p>

<p>world, there are so many different names that princeton review had bolded (meaning that they were important enough that the reader should know it), and that killed it. the prep book by pr was brief and organized the info well, but i think one would have to read over the prep book twice in order to get an understanding worthy of a 5.</p>

27

<p>Psychology is simple facts and some memorization so ive heard so u could do that. human geography is also along those lines. i donno about the economics ones, but they are probably a bit harder to prepare for if u dont have any previous knowledge. us gov is pretty damn easy, i had 20 minutes at least left over on the mc part of that exam. its all pretty basic, u dont need tha tmuch detail. i donno about comp gov but its proably similar, slightly harder.i think us history u could do, but it has essays that do require a little more thought process and knowing different trends and facts. plus DBQs can be a pain unless u practice them enough.
AP Calculus
AP Physics
AP Chemistry
besides those 3, i dont kno what other classes ure taking. if you are taking non honors for the other classes, id just pick 2, maybe 3 self study APs. think about which ones might be useful to u in college. cause i feel like human geography really wont come in handy. poly sci is always big so gov might. and psych if ure itnerested in it, u could do. as for the others, u might not want to.</p>