Describe one specific technological or artistic achievement of an ancient African society such as the Nok, Great Zimbabwe, or Aksum.
B.
Describe one way that the trans-Saharan trade networks influenced the political or economic expansion of the empire of Ghana, Mali, or Songhai.
C.
Explain how a specific cultural practice or tradition from ancient West African societies influenced the development of African American culture in the nineteenth or twentieth century.
What the No-Source SAQ asks
The no-source short-answer question is Question 3 in Section II of the AP African American Studies exam. There is no source to read, and each part asks for a specific example or explanation tied to a theme that runs across the course.
A specific example or development, with a supporting detail
1 pt
B
Part B: Describe
A second specific example tied to the same theme
1 pt
C
Part C: Explain
How or why something happened, using a specific example
1 pt
How No-Source SAQ practice works
Each question follows the exam’s format, from the full prompt to a score on every part.
1
Read the full question
All three parts, A through C, laid out the way the exam shows them.
2
Write on a 13-minute timer
About the time each SAQ gets on exam day. Pause it or turn it off, and your response saves as you go.
3
Submit for a score out of 3
Your response is scored against the scoring guidelines written for that question. Your first score is included.
Feedback on every part
A summary at the top tells you what to work on next. Below it, each part shows whether you earned the point and what the scoring guidelines were looking for.
Earned the point. You correctly described causes of the Great Migration by identifying both the push factor of escaping Southern oppression and the pull factor of finding job opportunities in Northern cities.
Part B: 1/1 point
Earned the point. You successfully described how the Great Migration concentrated Black populations in Harlem, which brought together Black cultural traditions like jazz and blues to fuel the Harlem Renaissance.
Part C: 0/1 point
Did not earn the point. You were on the right track by noting that moving North provided economic stability that aided activism, but you did not provide a specific historical example to explain how the Great Migration impacted political power or social activism. To earn the point, you needed to explain a specific example, such as how migrating to Northern states allowed African Americans to form voting blocs that elected Black politicians, or how concentrated urban populations helped grow organizations like the NAACP or Marcus Garvey's UNIA. Briefly listing movements at the end of the response without explaining how the migration specifically fostered them is not enough.
Detailed feedback on a practice No-Source SAQ
Questions about the No-Source SAQ
How many responses can I get scored?
You can read every question without a plan. Your first scored response is included. A plan unlocks unlimited scoring.
How is Question 3 different from the other two SAQs?
Questions 1 and 2 each come with a source, one visual and one text. Question 3 has no source, so every example comes from what you know about the course.
How long should each answer be?
A few sentences per part. You don’t need a thesis, an introduction, or a conclusion.
Is each part scored on its own?
Yes. Each part is worth 1 point and is scored separately, so a strong answer to part A still counts if part C misses.
Can I write my answer by hand?
Yes. The exam is typed, so typing is the closest practice. You can also switch the editor to handwrite, write on paper, and add a photo of your page.
More AP African American Studies practice
DBQ practice
Document-Based Questions with the full prompt and all five sources.
