Individual Project

Overview

• Completed over 3 weeks minimum (15 class periods)
• 12 points from teacher scoring + 2 points from exam day validation
• Makes up 10% of your total exam score
• Components: Selected Sources Template (2 pts), 5-minute presentation (7 pts), 3-minute oral defense (3 pts), exam validation (2 pts)
• Due date: Teacher must submit scores by May 31

The Individual Student Project stands apart from traditional AP assessments. Instead of responding to prompts, you're creating original scholarship - selecting a topic, finding sources, developing an argument, and defending your analysis. Think of yourself as an emerging scholar in African American Studies, contributing your own insights to the field.

This project rewards genuine curiosity and deep engagement. Unlike timed exams where speed matters, here depth wins. You have three weeks to explore something that genuinely interests you, whether it's a historical figure who intrigues you, a cultural movement you want to understand better, or a contemporary issue with historical roots. The project becomes what you make it - a chance to become a mini-expert on your chosen topic.

Strategy Deep Dive

Success with the Individual Student Project requires understanding its unique nature. This isn't a traditional research paper or a simple presentation - it's a structured demonstration of college-level research and analytical skills.

Choosing Your Topic: The Foundation of Success

Topic selection might be the most critical decision you make. The perfect topic sits at the intersection of three criteria: genuine interest, available sources, and appropriate scope.

Genuine interest sustains you through three weeks of research. Choose something you actually want to know more about. If you're forcing yourself to care about your topic on day one, imagine how you'll feel by week three. The best presentations come from students who are genuinely excited to share what they've discovered.

Available sources determine project feasibility. Before committing to a topic, do preliminary searches. Can you find four substantial sources that offer different perspectives or information? Local history topics might fascinate you but prove challenging if only one newspaper article exists. Conversely, topics like "civil rights" drown you in sources without focus.

Appropriate scope requires careful calibration. "African American history" is impossibly broad. "The role of African American women in the Montgomery Bus Boycott" might be perfect. "The specific conversation between Rosa Parks and the bus driver on December 1, 1955" is too narrow unless you're connecting it to broader patterns. Think about what you can meaningfully explore with four sources in a 5-minute presentation.

Source Selection: Building Your Foundation

The project requires exactly four sources - not three, not five. This constraint forces strategic selection. Your sources should:

Offer diverse perspectives: Four sources saying the same thing create a weak project. Look for sources that complement, complicate, or even contradict each other. Maybe a participant's memoir, a historian's analysis, a government document, and a piece of art or music that captures the cultural moment.

Span different source types: Mix primary and secondary sources. Primary sources (created during the time period) provide immediacy and authentic voice. Secondary sources (scholarly analysis) offer context and interpretation. The strongest projects balance both, showing you can work with raw historical evidence and engage with scholarly conversations.

Enable comparison: The rubric specifically rewards comparison between sources. As you search, ask: How do these sources speak to each other? Do they represent different time periods showing change? Different regions showing variation? Different social positions showing perspective? Sources that enable rich comparison strengthen your presentation.

Connect to course themes: While you can explore topics beyond the curriculum, connecting to course concepts shows deep understanding. How does your topic illuminate themes of resistance, community formation, cultural retention, or freedom struggle? These connections enrich analysis.

Developing Your Argument

The presentation requires a clear argument or claim - not just information delivery. This transforms your project from a report into scholarship.

Strong arguments often follow patterns like:

• "X demonstrates Y because..." (analytical argument)
• "X changed from Y to Z due to..." (change over time argument)
• "While commonly understood as X, studies show Y..." (revisionist argument)
• "X influenced Y through mechanisms of..." (causal argument)

Your argument should emerge from source analysis, not precede it. Let evidence guide your conclusions rather than cherry-picking evidence for predetermined conclusions. The best arguments often surprise even the researcher - "I expected to find X but discovered Y" can lead to compelling presentations.

The Three-Week Timeline

Week 1 focuses on exploration. Cast a wide net, create a longlist of 8+ potential sources, then narrow strategically. Don't rush to select your final four - time spent finding the right sources pays dividends later.

Week 2 shifts to analysis. This isn't just reading - it's active engagement. Annotate sources, create comparison charts, identify patterns and tensions. Build your argument from evidence patterns you discover.

Week 3 prepares presentation and defense. Transform analysis into clear, engaging presentation. Practice until you can deliver smoothly within time limits. Anticipate defense questions and prepare specific examples from sources.

Rubric Mastery

Understanding exactly how you'll be scored transforms preparation. Each rubric row has specific requirements:

Row A: Selected Sources Template (2 points)

First point requires completing source type, citation, and summary for four sources. Citations must include title/type and date at minimum, plus author and publication when available. Summaries should be concise but specific - not "discusses civil rights" but "analyzes how Mississippi Freedom Schools created alternative education models that challenged segregated curriculum and empowered student activists."

Second point requires explaining each source's relevance to your topic. This isn't repeating the summary - it's explaining WHY this source matters for your investigation. "This source reveals how education served as both a tool of oppression and liberation, demonstrating agency within constrained circumstances" shows clear relevance.

Row B: Presentation Claim (1 point)

Your claim must anchor the entire presentation. Weak claims state facts: "The Harlem Renaissance produced art." Strong claims make arguments: "The Harlem Renaissance deliberately constructed new visual representations of Black life that challenged scientific racism while asserting cultural sophistication comparable to any world civilization."

Row C: Evidence from Sources (4 points)

One point per source for accurately presenting specific evidence and explaining its connection to your argument. General references don't count - you need specific details. "According to Langston Hughes..." isn't enough. "In 'The Negro Speaks of Rivers,' Hughes connects Black American identity to ancient African civilizations through the metaphor of rivers, specifically citing the Euphrates, Congo, Nile, and Mississippi to span human history" demonstrates specific evidence use.

Row D: Source Comparison (2 points)

Explicit comparison means directly stating similarities or differences. "Source A shows X while Source B shows Y" demonstrates explicit comparison. Two distinct comparisons required - they can involve the same sources but must address different aspects. Comparing both sources' view on resistance and their intended audiences would earn both points.

Row E: Oral Defense (3 points)

One point per successful response to three teacher questions. Success means directly answering with specific reference to your research. If asked why you chose a source, explain your selection process and what unique perspective it offered. If asked about source reliability, discuss specific credibility indicators you evaluated.

Presentation Excellence

The 5-minute presentation isn't just information delivery - it's scholarly communication. Understanding presentation dynamics helps you excel:

Structure for Impact

Open with your claim clearly stated. Don't build suspense - academic presentations front-load arguments. "Today I'll show how the Chicago Defender newspaper served as both information source and active agent in the Great Migration, deliberately constructing narratives that inspired movement while providing practical resources for migrants."

Organize by argument logic, not source order. If arguing that the Defender played multiple roles, perhaps section one addresses information dissemination, section two explores inspiration/motivation, section three examines practical assistance. Sources support each section rather than determining structure.

Build to significance. Why does your argument matter? How does it change understanding? What patterns does it reveal? The strongest presentations connect specific findings to broader understanding of African American experiences.

Visual Aids Strategy

You can use PowerPoint, posters, or other visual aids. Use them strategically:

• Display key quotes or images from sources while discussing them
• Show comparison charts that make relationships visual
• Timeline graphics can clarify chronological arguments
• Maps illustrate geographic patterns

But remember: visuals support your oral argument, not replace it. Don't read slides aloud or let visuals dominate. The rubric scores your oral presentation, not your graphic design skills.

Delivery Techniques

Practice until you can present smoothly without reading verbatim. Note cards with key points and source references help maintain flow while ensuring accuracy. Make eye contact with audience members - you're sharing discoveries, not reciting memorized text.

Time management requires discipline. Practice with a timer until 5 minutes feels natural. Most students talk faster when nervous, so practicing at a deliberate pace helps. Build in brief pauses after major points - they feel long to you but give audiences processing time.

Oral Defense Preparation

The 3-minute defense tests depth of understanding through three teacher questions. Preparation transforms potential anxiety into confidence:

Anticipate Question Categories

Teachers select from provided questions falling into predictable categories:

Source selection rationale: Why these four sources? What did you reject and why? How did each contribute uniquely? Prepare specific explanations for inclusion and exclusion decisions.

Analytical depth: How do sources complicate each other? What contradictions emerged? How did you reconcile different perspectives? Show you grappled with complexity rather than seeking simple answers.

Broader connections: How does your research connect to course themes? What new questions emerged? How does this change your understanding? show learning beyond your specific topic.

Response Strategies

Each response has 1-minute maximum, but most don't require that full time. Structure responses with:

• Direct answer to question asked
• Specific example or evidence from research
• Brief explanation of significance

Avoid rambling to fill time. Clear, concise responses demonstrating deep knowledge score better than lengthy, unfocused answers.

Common Pitfalls and Solutions

Learning from common mistakes helps ensure success:

Encyclopedia Dependence While Wikipedia helps initial exploration, your four sources must be primary or secondary sources, not encyclopedias. The rubric explicitly states this. Move beyond encyclopedias to find actual historical documents, scholarly articles, or authentic cultural productions.

Source Imbalance Four sources on the same aspect create shallow projects. If studying Malcolm X, don't use four biographies. Mix autobiography, speeches, scholarly analysis, and perhaps FBI documents or contemporary news coverage for richer perspective.

Presentation Reading Reading directly from script kills engagement and suggests shallow understanding. Practice until you can maintain eye contact while speaking naturally about your discoveries. Passion for your topic should shine through.

Vague Comparisons "Sources A and B are different" doesn't earn comparison points. "While Source A presents student protests as spontaneous youth rebellion, Source B reveals careful planning and adult mentorship, demonstrating how contemporary media misrepresented strategic organizing as emotional outburst" shows explicit, meaningful comparison.

Time Management Across Three Weeks

Success requires using all three weeks strategically:

Week 1: Foundation Building

• Days 1-2: Explore topics, narrow focus, develop research questions
• Days 3-4: Search broadly, evaluate source credibility and relevance
• Day 5: Select final sources, complete initial template sections

Don't rush source selection. Time invested here prevents week two frustration with inadequate sources.

Week 2: Deep Analysis

• Days 6-7: Close reading/viewing, detailed annotation, source comparison charts
• Day 8: Develop argument through peer review and revision
• Days 9-10: Create presentation structure, draft content

This week transforms research into argument. Let evidence patterns guide your conclusions.

Week 3: Performance Preparation

• Days 11-12: Finalize presentation materials, practice delivery
• Days 13-14: Peer practice sessions, refine based on feedback
• Day 15+: Presentations and defenses

Multiple practice runs ensure smooth delivery. Time yourself, adjust pacing, prepare for questions.

Final Thoughts

The Individual Student Project offers something unique in AP assessment - the opportunity to become an expert on something you choose. Unlike responding to prompts others create, you're driving the entire scholarly process from curiosity to conclusion.

This project mirrors real academic research. Scholars identify questions, find sources, develop arguments, and defend interpretations. You're not just learning about African American Studies - you're doing African American Studies. The skills developed - source evaluation, argument construction, public presentation, intellectual defense - serve you far beyond any exam.

Embrace the freedom this project offers. Choose something that genuinely excites you. Dive deep into sources that reveal new perspectives. Develop arguments that surprise even you. Share discoveries with authentic enthusiasm. When you care about your topic, that passion communicates itself.

The 10% of your score from this project is entirely in your hands. No surprises await. You control topic selection, source choice, argument development, and presentation quality. The rubric clearly states expectations. Teachers want you to succeed and will support your journey.

Walk into your presentation knowing you've become a mini-expert on your topic. You've found sources others might miss, noticed patterns others might overlook, developed insights others might not see. For five minutes, you're the teacher, sharing specialized knowledge with your classroom community. Own that expertise. You've earned it through three weeks of genuine scholarly work.