The elusive sophistication point--earned by only a small percentage of AP test-takers--may not be achievable by all students, but all the same, it's worth striving for. These methods MAY help. I cannot guarantee that theyWILL. That said, it gives students a framework with which they can start demonstrating the qualities that the AP is looking for.
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The 2018 scoring guidelines for the synthesis essay available in the AP's Course and Exam Description through College Board include helpful material about decision rules and scoring notes for the sophistication point. Among other qualities, the College Board looks for the following traits summarized here:
Note: I have not included all traits listed in the CED for the sophistication point, but confined this page to the two traits above for the time being. |
Students in my class are typically given this basic template to use in designing their body paragraphs for the synthesis essay. This template allows them to address two sources per paragraph AND ALSO make sure that they are genuinely synthesizing them.
Synthesis Essay Template
Topic Sentence // While [X argument has merit because], still, [Y argument] is more persuasive because___.
Examples for Some Key Sentences
Template // Your Proposal
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