Title: English Language and Composition
1AP TEST REVIEW
- English Language and Composition
2To prepare for the test
- Study your AP rhetorical flash cards
- Quiz yourself
- Remember, you need to know these words to answer
multiple choice questions AND to write the
rhetorical analysis essay. - Look at the prompts I have given you that we have
not written in class. Think about how you would
write those essays. - Review the MLA format to prepare for those
questions on the multiple choice section - Look at essays I have graded and returned to you.
What did you do well? What could you have done
better?
3Test Day
- Several pencils 2
- Several black pensno white out allowed
- YOU MUST USE A PEN ON THE ESSAY PORTION OF THE
EXAM - Eat Breakfast!
- BE HERE! BE EARLY!
4. Multiple Choice Section About 55 questions1
hour2. EssaysSelf-paced (40 minutes each 15
minute reading period)
Test Reminders 3 Hours and 15 minutes
5 6Types of Multiple Choice Questions
- 1. The straightforward question
- 2. The question that refers you to specific lines
and asks you to draw a conclusion or to interpret - 3. The ALL EXCEPT question
- 4. The question that asks you to make an
inference or to abstract a concept not directly
stated in the passage - 5. The killer Roman numeral question
- 6. The footnote question
7Specific Techniques
- Anticipate the right answer
- Figure out the answer BEFORE looking at the
possible choices - Eliminate obviously wrong answers
- Remember, you can write on the test
- Rhetorical strategy questions are usually
straightforward - Look for key words that make an answer wrong
cross it out - Watch for answers that are too narrow or too
broad be wary of absolutes - Be an ACTIVE READER you know what this means!
- Annotating is not optional!
- Try to visualize the info as you read it dont
try memorizing facts
8Specific Techniques (continued)
- Every 10 questions, check to make sure you are
bubbling the right answer - Watch your time dont leave any unanswered
- Mentally paraphrase sections as you read
- Skip hard questions and come back to them
- Go back before moving on to the next passage
- Skim the questions before reading the passage
- Skip ones that have specific line numbers
9- Rhetorical Analysis Essay
10Rhetorical Analysis
- This essay ask you to analyze another authors
use of - 1.structure
- 2. purpose
- 3. style
- Remember, you are writing about HOW they
construct their argument, not merely what their
argument is. Do not summarize!
11Organizing Your Essay
- When writing your introduction paragraph, get to
the point quickly. Dont use information from the
prompt to pad your intro - Your body paragraphs should be all about what the
writer said, how he said it, and why he said it
the way he did for his purpose.
12SAMPLE Analysis Questions
- Analyze an authors view on a specific subject
- Analyze rhetorical devices used by an author to
achieve his or her purpose - Analyze stylistic elements in a passage and their
effects - Analyze the authors tone and how the author
conveys this tone - Discuss the intended and/or probable effect of a
passage
13SAMPLE Analysis Questions Cont.
- Compare and/or contrast two passages with regard
to style, purpose, or tone - Analyze the authors purpose and how he or she
achieves it - Analyze some of the ways an author recreates a
real or imagined experience - Analyze how an author presents him or herself in
the passage
14Elements of Style (Rhetorical Devices)
- 1. subject matter
- 2. selection of detail
- 3. organization
- 4. point of view
- 5. diction
- 6. figures of speech
- 7. tone
15Reading the Prompt
- Plan to spend a couple minutes carefully reading
and deconstructing the question - Circle or underline the essential terms and
elements in the prompt - If the prompt requires more than one element, you
must use more than one! - A.P. Address the Prompt
16While Reading the Passage
17WARNINGS
- Avoid paraphrasing the material
- Use TEXTUAL evidence Be specific
- Analyze the textual evidence dont just
summarize/paraphrase it say something about it
and how it relates. - Use transitions
- Vary your syntax
- Make SPECIFIC analysis! (Avoid The authors
diction good syntax keeps your attention)
18IMPORTANT
- Connect every strategy to the authors idea or
main point. - e.g. Dillard uses violent imagery such as
crunching, bites, and splitting in order to
foreshadow her point at the end that people
should shed their lackadaisical ways and live
with passion. - or e.g. Words such as bites, killing, and
splitting, foreshadow the intensity of her
purpose.
19- ARGUMENTATIVE/
- OPEN-ENDED ESSAY
20The Basics
- 2 Possibilities A given text to support,
qualify, or refute or a broad issue upon which
you must take a side - If you are responding to a text, be sure you
understand the position taken by the author - Take a specific stand you may qualify the
claim, but be specific in what you support and
what you dont. You may also support or refute
the prompt - When supporting a prompt, you must include your
own original ideas dont just parrot the prompt.
21The Basics (cont.)
- Clearly and logically support your claim
- Argue your point(s) rationally despite how you
may personally feel - Remember, this is an essay not a diatribe
- Relevant anecdotal and/or outside information is
good - Connecting your experience to broader, more
objective evidence is better - Good to develop an authorial voice, but be
mindful of your audience (triangle!) - As always, be sure you ADDRESS THE PROMPT!
22EXAMPLES OF GOOD EVIDENCE FOR YOU TO USE IN YOUR
RESPONSE
- Facts/ statistics
- Details
- Quotations
- Dialogue
- Needed definitions
- Recognition of the opposition
- Examples
- Anecdotes
- Contrasts and comparisons
- Cause and effect
- Appeal to authority
23Classical Argumentative Scheme
- Part 1 Introductory Paragraph
- -catch interest
- -present the issue or topic with concrete image
or anecdote - -provide any relevant background information
- -define pertinent terms
- -state claim
24Classical Argumentative Scheme Cont..
- Part 2 Concession and Refutation
- -ignoring the other side is dangerous
- -find weaknesses within the opposing reasons,
facts, testimonies, etc. - -yes, is the concession but is the
refutation - -you still must demonstrate that your claims are
more valid - -you may concede or refute in the introductory
paragraph or through the body paragraphs as you
bring up additional points
25Classical Argumentative Scheme Cont.
- Part 3 Confirmation Paragraphs
- -the most important and longest section of the
argument - -provides the reasons and the evidence of a
writers claim - -shows the logical development of the argument
- -should include both logical reasons and evidence
but also emotional appeals to human needs or
values - -incorporate other modes of discourse to further
develop your writing
26Classical Argumentative Scheme Cont.
- Part 4 Concluding Paragraph
- -wrap up the argument
- -restate the claim
- -provide a new appeal to needs or values
- -enrich with additional commentary
- -voice a final plea for readers to take action or
to change thinking - -refrain from repeating any information
27 28What is the Purpose?
- The College Board wants to determine that you
can - -Read critically
- -Understand texts
- -Analyze texts
- -Develop a position on a given topic
- -Support a position with appropriate evidence
from outside sources - -Incorporate outside sources into the text of the
essay - -Cite sources used
- -And most importantly, THINK for yourself
29Source Possibilities
- Six or seven documents
- Short works
- At least one visual, non textual (charts,
cartoons, tables, etc.) - Black and white print
- Opposing views
- You are invited to join the conversation
30Points to Remember
- YOU are choosing your view and using the sources
to support that view - Weaker writers have a tendency to paraphrase and
list - dont do that - Use at least three sources
- Use them naturally
- Cite/ attribute sources
- Have a conversation with the texts dont merely
report what they have to say - Like in the open-ended prompt, you are welcome to
support, qualify, and refute the sources!
31Points to Remember (continued)
- Judge the validity of the sources
- Essays starting with an anecdote tend to score
higher if possible, refer back to it later in
the essay - You are welcome to add examples of real life
scenarios and facts if they help prove your
argument - The vast majority of the essay needs to be YOUR
thoughts - As always, make sure you are answering the prompt
32- The test is 3 hrs and 15 minutes long. You have
one hour for the first section, multiple choice.
This section consists of 52-58 multiple choice
questions over 4 or 5 passages, mostly
nonfiction. (45 of score) - Your have a fifteen minute reading period and
then 2 hours to complete the 3 essays. The essays
are prose analysis, argumentation, and synthesis.
Sometimes a double passage requires you to
compare and contrast 2 pieces based on rhetorical
strategies. (55 of score)
33- Pay close attention to the connotation of words
- Pace yourself
- Annotate
- Remember HOW not plot summary