✍🏽AP English Language Review
AP English Language Self-Study and Homeschool
AP English Language Self-Study and Homeschool
Introduction
What's poppin! 🍿 I was honestly an avid self-studier when I took classes in high school. AP® English Language is another course you can self-study or take while homeschooled, and let's dive right into how you can succeed in AP Lang without a formal teacher!
Pros and Cons of Self-Studying
Let's break down the advantages and disadvantages of self-studying AP Lang!
Pros
- Work at your own pace
- No mandatory reading or projects
- Freedom to work on concepts in the order you want
Cons
- Lack of peers in a traditional classroom
- Lack of a teacher to advise you or give essay criticism
- Lack of extrinsic motivation
- Lack of a syllabus for reading
Ultimately, it's up to you as to whether the pros outweigh the cons or vice versa 🤔 Now that we've looked at the big picture for learning AP Lang without a teacher, let's dig further and look at the course and exam description.
Diving into the Course and Exam Description
The course & exam description is meant to serve like a foundational document for the course, as it outlines units that teachers can use in their classrooms to teach AP courses.
The current AP English Language and Composition Course and Exam Description organizes the course into 9 named units: (1) Rhetorical Situation and Claims, (2) Audience and Thesis Development, (3) Evidence and Line of Reasoning, (4) Purpose and Context, (5) Organization and Style, (6) Style and Evidence, (7) Qualification and Complexity, (8) Syntax and Style, and (9) Advanced Argumentation. Teachers may still organize instruction flexibly, but these official units outline the skills and concepts emphasized in the course.
These units build on one another, but the course spirals key skills throughout the year. Students repeatedly practice analyzing rhetorical situations, evaluating claims and evidence, developing lines of reasoning, and making stylistic choices for purpose and audience.
The course and exam focus on four recurring big ideas: rhetorical situation, claims and evidence, reasoning and organization, and style. As you study, make sure your reading and writing practice addresses all four.
Quick Exam Overview
The AP English Language and Composition Exam is 3 hours and 15 minutes long. Section I is 45 multiple-choice questions in 60 minutes. Section II is 3 free-response questions in 2 hours and 15 minutes (including a 15-minute reading period): Question 1 is Synthesis, Question 2 is Rhetorical Analysis, and Question 3 is Argument.
Speaking of perfection, if you're a perfectionist like many people (couldn't be me), staying organized will be your best friend while prepping for AP Lang. Let's talk about a study schedule.
Making a Study Schedule
The one word that will carry you through AP Lang is practice. Permanent practice makes perfect; you'll need to be scheduling out time to read and write to get a coveted 5️⃣ on the exam.
Whenever you're crafting a study schedule, there are some crucial things that you should include throughout the year:
- Practice AP Lang multiple-choice questions in both reading and writing sets
- Read nonfiction prose and analyze rhetorical situation, claims, evidence, reasoning, and style
- Practice all three essay types: synthesis, rhetorical analysis, and argument
- Review scored samples and the current 6-point rubrics
On top of these four crucial things, you should also try to find time to get your essays reviewed by peers based on the 6-point rubric. In terms of multiple choice, make sure that you're writing down what you're getting wrong and understanding why you make mistakes.
While you're grinding 💪, it can feel exhausting sometimes, and you might be on a path toward burnout. Let's get into how you can stay motivated!
Staying Motivated
AP Lang is often a course taken junior year, and second semester junior year can be a very rough semester for so many students. Self-care is incredibly important, as preserving your mental health should be prioritized over a score on an exam!
Here are some ways you can proactively prevent burnout and stay motivated:
- Have plenty of break days and allocate time for non-schoolwork
- Set up a strong support system where you can vent and let out your stress
- Create a sleep schedule that helps you focus
The thing I always remember when I'm grinding is that every multiple-choice question and every essay I write contributes to my success at the end of the day. You are ALWAYS progressing, and you will succeed with all the hard work you're putting in 🎉
Best Resources to Focus On
There are some great resources that you can use to self-study for AP Lang. To evaluate yourself at any point during the course, you can take a practice test and measure where you are at. Here are some great resources to use as you take AP Lang independently:
- Fiveable's AP Lang Resource Hub - Live reviews, guides, trivia games, and more!
- Course & Exam Description Practice- Official Practice Questions from the College Board
- CrackAP - Unofficial AP Lang practice tests & MC passages
- Khan Academy SAT English - Official SAT English resources that could serve helpful for AP Lang Writing MC practice
- Fiveable's list of past AP Lang prompts dating back to 2008
One of our new initiatives here at Fiveable for the 2020-2021 school year is Fiveable Courses! You can sign up for the AP Lang Fiveable course to get access to a bunch of assistance throughout either the fall or spring semester. This can be super helpful — whether you are self-studying or looking for extra support to supplement your in-class work.
Where to Take the Exam
If you're a student self-studying for AP Lang, contact your school's AP Coordinator about taking exams without a teacher's AP Classroom code. Many schools have different rules about self-studying, so your administration will have the best answers to your questions.
If you're homeschooled and interested in taking AP Lang, the College Board has a great explainer for how to register for AP exams!
To break it down simply, it looks like this:
- Use College Board's AP Course Ledger to find schools that could administer the exam.
- Contact nearby schools ASAP to see if they could accommodate you for testing.
Closing
All in all, AP Lang isn't so bad of a class to self-study. You're going to do great on the exam, especially if you commit to practicing, getting feedback from others, and staying motivated throughout the year!