Welcome to Advanced Placement Language and Composition at the University of California, Granite Hills Extension.

1. Welcome to Advanced Placement Language and Composition at the University of California, Granite Hills Extension.

2. What is the Advanced Placement Language and Literature Exam? The AP Language and Literature Exam is a three hour test: Section 1 is usually composed of four reading passages, one each from the 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries. Students have sixty minutes to read these passages and answer approximately fifty-five multiple-choice questions. In Section 2, students are given two hours to read three different passages and write an essay based on each passage. In two essays, students will be asked to analyze both the passage’s content and writer’s style and tone. For the third essay, students will be directed to defend, qualify, or challenge the writer’s contentions, as developed in the passage. For this third essay, students are encouraged to draw upon personal experience.

3. Why were the AP exams developed? In the 1950s, The College Board developed Advanced Placement exams to help highly motivated high school students earn college credit.

4. What is the difference between the AP Language and Composition AP Literature and Composition ? The language exam asks more questions about nonfiction, and there is no poetry on the exam. The language test also places more emphasis on rhetorical analysis and the ability to write and analyze persuasive arguments.

5. Why are there two English exams? Not all colleges offer the same curriculum for their freshman year. The two separate exams permit each college to designate the exam that best reflects its curriculum.

6. Why should a student take an AP exam? • In a letter to Judy Curtis, an AVID coordinator from San Bernadino • County, Rae Lee Siporin, Director of Undergraduate Admissions for • UCLA, stated the importance of AP exams: • “A student who has completed college level work by the end of • the junior year of high school is, in our minds, exceptionally • well prepared.” • “Students who complete AP courses and pass the test with a 3-5 • are not only outstanding, but also the norm at UCLA.” • 380 incoming freshmen entered as full sophomores because of their • AP units. By the winter quarter, 18% of the freshmen were • considered sophomores. • “The next most critical piece of information about students taking • AP is that they have taken the AP test, even if they receive • a 1 or 2 score.

7. Must all GHHS students enrolled in English Language and Composition take the AP English exam? • Each student must take the exam to receive the weighted GPA: • A 5 points • B 4 points

8. How many students take the AP Language and Composition Exam each year? In 2000, more than 115,000 students took the AP English Language Exam.

9. Do all students receive college credit for freshman English if they score a three or above? The University of California and California State University systems will give credit for AP scores of 3 or above. Some private universities will only accept scores of 4 or above. Some, like the University of Pennsylvania, will only accept a 5 score. Students should always check with the admissions department at perspective universities.

10. What is an average score on the AP Language and Composition Exam? To earn an average score of 3, students must answer about 50% to 60% of the questions correctly on the multiple-choice section and also write three adequate essays. At a typical test administration, two-thirds of all test takers receive a grade of 3 or higher.

11. When is the English Language and Composition Exam given? The Advanced Placement exams are given each year in May.

12. Who scores the AP Language and Composition Exam and when do the students receive their scores? The AP Language exam is scored in June at Daytona Beach, Florida. The scoring committee is composed of approximately sixty percent college English instructors and forty percent high school AP English teachers. Students and colleges receive the AP scores in July.

13. How is the test scored? The total score on the exam is 150 points. Essay 55% 82.5 points Raw essay score 0-9 multiplied by 3.055 9 x 3=27 x3.005=82.5 Multiple-choice 45% 67.5 points 1 point for each correct answer. ¼ deducted for each incorrect answer. If 55 multiple-choice questions, each raw point multiplied by 1.227 equals 67.5 100-150 scores a 5 86-99 scores a 4 67-85 scores a 3

14. How can the students prepare for the AP Language and Composition Exam? • Read the classics. • Develop vocabulary. • Understand fundamentals of English grammar. • Learn to write concisely. • Understand rhetorical devices and how they are effectively utilized in • writing. • Take practice exams and employ successful test taking strategies.

15. Why is Granite Hills using APEX and the Class Toolsprogram? Paul Allen, cofounder of Microsoft, developed APEX to help students gain access to rigorous AP curricula. With the goal of bringing AP courses to more high schools in the San Joaquin Valley, UC Santa Cruz is encouraging schools to utilize the APEXprogram. Class Tools will form the core of the GHHS AP Language and Composition class.

16. How will students be graded in AP Language and Composition? • GradeMachine Weighted Grades • Unit tests 40% • Timed essays 20% • Unit compositions 20% • Coursework 10% • Reading* 10% • First Semester Grades • First quarter grade 30% • Second quarter grade 40% • 3 hour semester final 30% • *Reading • Consult the recommended reading list

17. 2002 GHHS Advanced Placement English Language and Composition exam results: 12 out of 13 students passed with a 3 or better: 92% pass rate AP ScoreNumber of StudentsPercentage of Class 5 1 8% 4 4 31% 3 7 54% 2 1 8% 1 0 0% 0 0 0% Grades for both semesters will be increased one letter grade for students that pass the AP exam with a 3 or better.