The+AP+Test

=Date of the 2011 exam: Friday, May 6, Morning=

=Taking the AP Exam= =In Class Preparation and Review= =Individual Preparation and Review= =Test Format= //from the AP US History Course Description// __**Multiple Choice Section**__**:** 80 Questions in 55 minutes. __**Essay Sections**__: =Test Taking Strategies= __**Free Response**__: =AP Scores= //from the AP US History Teacher's Guide// > 5 (Extremely well qualified) 4 (Well qualified) 3 (Qualified) 2 (Possibly qualified) 1 (No recommendation) =College Credit for AP Scores= //from the AP US History Teacher's Guide//
 * Taking the AP exam in May is expected, and required in order to earn AP credit for the course.
 * Test scores in the class are fairly indicative of the score you can expect to earn on the AP Exam. Other predictive indicators are the PSSA and PSAT tests (reading/verbal/writing).
 * Test fee is $87 (latest info...subject to change). Students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch can get a fee waiver. See Mr. Yearsley in the Couseling office. You will sign up to take the test in class in the spring.
 * One to two weeks prior to the test is set aside for review.
 * Students will produce and present review podcasts on their themes.
 * All unit exams are practice exams: cumulative and timed as in real test conditions.
 * Students are encouraged to review outside class throughout the school year...it works better than cramming.
 * Putting forth genuine effort in reading homework, writing essays, studying for tests, and engaging in class are critical for your success.
 * Many students find AP review guides and forming study groups with peers very helpful.
 * Some tips from test prep company REA: [[file:APPointers.pdf]]
 * The exam is 3 hours and 5 minutes in length and consists of two sections: a 55-minute multiple-choice section and a 130-minute free-response section.
 * Both the multiple-choice and the free-response sections cover the period from the first European explorations of the Americas to the present, although a majority of questions are on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
 * Accounts for 50% of the overall grade.
 * **Periods Covered** and Emphasis (Multiple Choice):
 * Pre-Columbian to 1789 (20%); 1790 to 1914 (45%); 1915 to the present (35%); Whereas the multiple-choice section may include a few questions from the period since 1980, neither the DBQ nor any of the four essay questions in Parts B and C will deal exclusively with this period.
 * **Topics Covered** and Emphasis (Multiple Choice): Political institutions, behavior, and public policy (35%); Social change, and cultural and intellectual developments(40%); Diplomacy and international relations (15%); Economic developments (10%)
 * The free-response section begins with a mandatory 15-minute reading period. Students are advised to spend most of the 15 minutes analyzing the documents and planning their answer to the document-based essay question (DBQ) in Part A. Suggested writing time for the DBQ is 45 minutes.
 * Parts B and C each include two standard essay questions that, with the DBQ, cover the period from the first European explorations of the Americas to the present. Students are required to answer one essay question in each part in a total of 70 minutes. For each of the essay questions students choose to answer in Parts B and C, it is suggested they spend 5 minutes planning and 30 minutes writing.
 * __Multiple Choice__**:
 * You must answer 60% of questions correctly to be on track for a score of 3.
 * There is no deduction (starting in 2011) for wrong answers, so it makes sense to answer all questions.
 * Essays account for 50% of Exam grade; DBQ= 45% of the Free Response Section; 22 ½% of composite score; FRQs= 55% of Free Response Section; 13 ¾ % of composite score each.
 * Your teacher will instruct you intensively throughout the course on the successful strategies for writing these essays.
 * The DBQ and the two free-response questions are scored on a 0–9 scale and are evaluated on the basis of thesis, argument, and supporting evidence (including documents in the case of the DBQ).
 * The multiple- choice section accounts for 50 percent of the student’s grade on the exam and the essays for the other 50 percent.
 * Of the essay component of the final score, the DBQ has a weight of 45 percent and the other two essays 27.5 percent each. For additional information on the exam scoring and to view scoring guidelines from past exams, visit the AP U.S. History Exam Page on AP Central.
 * Raw scores are converted to a composite score on AP’s 5-point scale.
 * A 3 or better is considered a passing score
 * The decision about whether to grant college credit or placement in upper-level courses, or both, is made by each college and university. Students should check the Web sites of the colleges in which they are interested to find more information.
 * The College Board’s Web site also contains a database of information about institution and department policies regarding credit for AP Exams; see http://www.collegeboard.com/ap/ creditpolicy/.
 * Students who earn a grade of less than a 3 on the exam most likely will not earn college credit, but evidence shows that these students are likely to perform well in U.S. history college survey courses. College credit aside, the experiences of taking the course and the exam prepare students very well for the rigor of college courses.