An In-Depth Look at the Multiple Choice Questions

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An In-Depth Look at the Multiple Choice Questions

• Preparing for the AP Language and Composition Exam

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Stay in Control

• Dont let the author get away with anything.
• Any time you allow a passage to control, confuse,
  or dominate you, the odds of you getting more
  than 25 of the questions right become very slim.
• Critical reading and annotating are as much about
  maintaining an attitude of dominance as they are
  about getting in touch with the piece and what it
  is trying to say.

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Answering Multiple Choice Questions

• First, remember that the test makers design the
  test to be challenging. You can pass by getting
  roughly 50 of the questions right.
• Second, unlike the SAT, there is not vocabulary
  hit list. The test writers select nonfiction
  prose with a strong argumentative bias.
• They draw across four centuries and do not adjust
  the choices because of vocabulary

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Answering Multiple Choice Questions

• Third, bear in mind that the questions are NOT
  arranged from easiest to hardest.
• They are generally arranged sequentially, moving
  from the beginning of the passage to its end.
• There are often several questions that deal with
  the passage as a whole, and they are frequently
  interspersed (mixed together) within the specific
  line or paragraph questions.

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Why Annotate a Passage?

• The chief reason to annotate is that it keeps
  your mind from drifting.
• If you have read the entire passage and remember
  nothing, or nearly nothing, you have just wasted
  valuable time.
• Annotating helps you keep your concentration.

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Why Annotate a Passage?

• The other reason to annotate is that you work
  through the questions, the notes make it easier
  for your mind and eyes to come back to the
  passage and find your way around.

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How Should I Annotate?

• In nonfiction prose, identify any clear
  statements of the argument or thesis.
• At any and every point, identify the kind of
  argument (pathos, logos, ethos) being made.
• Hi-light vivid language such as metaphors and/or
  analogies

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How Should I Annotate?

• Mark any shifts in tone or point of view.
• Identify any parallel syntax
• Circle words that are outside your vocabulary
  (context clues still is your friend)
• Make a note of any false arguments or bold claims

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Specific Advice About Certain Types of Questions

• The test makers like to ask about pronoun
  antecedents.
• For example, they will ask, It refers to which
  of the following nouns? They will then give you
  a list of five nouns from the passage. Your job
  is to figure out who it is.

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Specific Advice About Certain Types of Questions

• The test makers also like to ask about difficult
  vocabulary, but they especially like to do so
  with words with which we are familiar in another
  context.
• For example
• Our future would be better insured if we
  carefully husband our natural resources. In the
  context of this sentence, husband best means
• A. to use
• B. to marry
• C. to conserve
• D. to waste
• E. to join

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Specific Advice About Certain Types of Questions

• Our future would be better insured if we
  carefully husband our natural resources. In the
  context of this sentence, husband best means
• C. to conserve

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Specific Advice About Certain Types of Questions

• Roman numeral questions are arranged somewhat
  differently as well.
• The easiest way to handle them is to ignore the
  A, B, C, choices first.
• Look only at the Roman numeral answers and decide
  which one, two, or three are correct. Then look
  for the answer that corresponds.

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Specific Advice About Certain Types of Questions

• Another question type evaluates your knowledge of
  figures of speech (especially similes, analogies,
  and metaphors)
• For example
• The new CEO entered the boardroom with the flair
  of a matador. This analogy makes all of the
  following inferences EXCEPT
• A. the new CEO is the center of attention
• B. the new CEO is in a high risk profession
• C. the new CEO faces substantial opposition from
  others
• D. the new CEO exudes power and strategy
• E. the new CEO is an effective delegator of
  responsibility

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Specific Advice About Certain Types of Questions

• The new CEO entered the boardroom with the flair
  of a matador. This analogy makes all of the
  following inferences EXCEPT
• E. the new CEO is an effective delegator of
  responsibility

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Footnotes

• There will be three to five questions about
  footnotes.
• The test expects you to be able to recognize and
  evaluate the information provided in author's
  footnotes.
• Most of the questions will not ask you about
  format but will ask about information.

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Footnotes

• Authors often use footnotes at add information
  that the casual reader may not need or may wish
  to just glance over.
• These footnotes often identify sources, but they
  can also define terms, add facts, clarify
  confusion around certain issues, or set the
  record straight if the discussed issue has been
  controversially argued in other cases.