APES FRQ Tips

1
APES FRQ Tips

• Secrets to earn the points you deserve on the
  written portion of the APES exam

2
Types of questions

• One of the four questions will involve the
  Analysis of a Data Set (Calculators not allowed)
• One of the questions will be a Document-Based
  question. You will have to read a document and
  answer questions based on that information as
  well as your general knowledge. This is often
  where you can add sustainable examples or Env.
  Laws to support your argument
• Two questions will be Synthesis and Evaluation.
  One of these questions will require you to set up
  an experiment to show some particular effect.

3
Structure of the exam

• You have 90 minutes to write 4 essays.
• Plan to use 20 minutes per essay. Leaving 8
  minutes to read over your answers and breath a
  little.
• Each essay is graded on a 10-point scale.
  Usually the grading rubric is set up to contain
  slightly more than 10 points (e.g., 11-13).
  However, you can only earn a maximum of 10 points
  on any one question. This means that extra
  points can be earned to some parts of questions,
  especially in listing things. (list ones you know
  to be true first, and only list extras if you are
  100 positive they are correct)

4
Calculation Based FRQ

• Possible Calculation-Based FRQ Topics
• Municipal Solid Waste amounts generated, placed
  in landfills, recycled, incinerated
  waste-to-energy plants (e.g., methane production)
• Agriculture/Arable Land amounts of fertilizers
  used, water used, carrying capacity, feeding more
  people, overpopulation
• Ecological Pyramids trophic structure, energy
  transfer
• Biodiversity listed endangered and threatened
  species
• Water use, requirements, population size, sewage
  treatment

5
Look for the points

• Each question will have parts labeled a,b,c,d.
  Each of these parts have assigned points. You may
  only earn points for what is asked.
• For example What are 2 colors of the rainbow?
• Red and blue are colors of the rainbow. Rainbows
  are often seen on a sunny day.

6
Key words for points

• Describe
• Explain, list and explain
• Compare
• Give evidence for
• Graph
• Calculate
• Underline these words as you read the question.

7
Writing your answer

• Use a ballpoint pen with blue or black ink.
• Label all parts of the question
• Spelling, grammar, and sentence structure are
  important, but you will not lose points as long
  as you get your ideas across.
• Write neatly. If the grader cant read what you
  wrote, you will receive no credit.
• Use phonetic spelling or explain the concept if
  you dont remember the term to describe it.
• Leave nothing blank. There is no penalty for
  incorrect answers.
• Show your work and units for all mathematical
  calculations.

8
Have confidence

• You will be prepared for this exam.
• If you feel panicked, take a deep breath and try
  to associate the question to something that you
  have learned in the class.
• Success comes to the prepared mind.

9
Experimental Design FRQs

• Think 4 points
• (1) hypothesis
• (2-3) variable being tested and controls,
  remember to allow a long time for data collection
• (1-2) analysis

10
Hypothesis

• Must include the cause and effect specific to the
  question asked
• Must be a specific, testable statement
• Example
• Lake trout will no longer survive above a pH of
  8.0 and will reach 90 survival at a pH of 7.2.

11
Controls

• Control group required
• Experimental group required
• Detailed requirements such as time, space,
  materials, sample size
• Example
• The positive control will be trout living in
  neutral (7.0) water, the negative control will be
  trout living in water at a pH of 8.0. The
  experimental groups will be 7.3 and 7.7. I will
  use 10 fish per group for three weeks.

12
Analysis

• Measurement of time
• Elaboration
• Repeated experiments
• Correlation to other experiments
• Relate or discuss additional research

13
Example

• Each day I will observe the fish for general
  health such as feeding behavior. A fish will be
  considered dead when it floats to the surface. By
  plotting the percentage of fish living at each
  pH, I will estimate the pH that yields 90
  survival. This experiment should be repeated for
  accuracy and could also be tested with other
  types of fish.