How to Write a Perfect Synthesis Essay for the AP Language Exam (2023)

If you plan to take thisAP Language (or AP Lang) exam, you may already know that 55% of your total score on the exam is based on three essays. The first of the three essays you must write for the AP Language exam is called a "synthesis essay." If you want to earn a full grade on this part of the AP Lang exam, you need to know what a synthesis essay is and what skills are assessed in the AP Lang synthesis essay.

In this article, we explain the different aspects of AP Lang's synthesis paper.including the skills you need to demonstrate in your synthesis essay response to get a good score.We also provide you with a complete overview of a real AP-Lang synthesis essay prompt, an analysis of a sample AP-Lang synthesis essay, and give you four tips for writing a synthesis essay.

First, let's take a closer look at how AP Lang's synthesis attachment works!

Synthesis attachment AP Lang: what it is and how it works

The Synthesis Essay by AP Langis the first of three essays in the Free Answer section of the AP Lang exam.

The AP Long Synthesis Essay portion of the Free Response section takes a total of one hour. This lesson consists of a recommended reading time of 15 minutes and a writing time of 40 minutes. Please note that these time allocations are recommendations only and examinees are free to use the 60 minutes allotted to complete the summative essay as they see fit.

Now here is what the structure of AP Lang's synthesis essay looks like.The exam presents six to seven sources revolving around a particular topic(such as alternative energy or significant area, both of which are topics of previous synthesis exams).

Of these six to seven sources, at least two are of a visual nature, including at least one quantitative source (such as a graph or pie chart). The remaining four to five sources are based on printed texts and contain about 500 words each.

In addition to six to seven sources, the AP Lang exam provides a three-section writing prompt.The question briefly explains the topic of the essay and then presents a claim to which students respond in an essay summarizing material from at least three of the sources listed.

Here is an example of the college board's prompt:

As mentioned earlier, this prompt gives you a topic, explains it briefly, and then asks you to comment. In this case, decide whether television has influenced the American election positively or negatively. You will also be given six sources to evaluate and use in your answer. Now that you have everything you need, your task is to write a great summary essay.

But what exactly does "synthesize" mean? According to CollegeBoard, when an essay prompt asks you to synthesize, it means that your writing must "combine diverse perspectives from sources to support a coherent position." In other words,A summary essay asks you to state your claim about a topic and then to highlight the relationship between multiple sources that support your claim on that issue.Derudover skal du citere konkrete beviser fra dine kilder for at understøtte din pointe.

The synthesis task counts for six of the total points for the AP-Lang exam. Students may receive 0-1 points for writing a concluding essay statement, 0-4 points for incorporating evidence and commentary, and 0-1 points for maturity of thought and demonstrated complex understanding of the topic.

You will be graded on how effectively you do the following in your AP Long Synthesis Essay:

• Write a thesis that answers the exam question with a sound attitude

• Provide concrete evidence supporting all claims in your argument from at least three of the sources cited, and clearly and consistently explain how the evidence you present supports your argument

• Demonstrate the maturity of your thinking by either making a reasoned argument, placing the argument in a wider context, or explaining the limitations of an argument

• Make rhetorical choices that strengthen your argument and/or use a lively and persuasive style in your essay.

  (Video) How to Ace the AP Language Synthesis Essay

If your synthesis attachment meets the above criteria,Then there is a good chance that you will do well in this part of the AP Lang exam!

If you're still looking for more information about the assessment, the College Board has published the AP Lang Free Response assessment section on its website. (You can find it here.) Since we recommend a closer look at itIt provides additional details for evaluating the synthesis essay.

Don't be intimidated…we'll show you how to break down even the toughest AP Synthesis essay prompts.

Full breakdown of a real AP Lang Synthesis essay prompt

In this episode,We'll show you how to analyze and respond to a synthesis essay prompt in five easy steps.including recommended timeframes for each step of the process.

Trin 1: Analyser prompten

The very first thing you need to do when the clock starts ticking isRead and analyze the prompt.To demonstrate how to do this, let's look at the sample prompt for an AP Long Synthesis Essay below. This prompt is directly from the 2018 AP Lang exam:

At first reading, you may be nervous about how to answer this question...especially if you don't know what an eminent domain is! But if you break the prompt into sections, you can quickly figure out what the prompt is asking you to do.

To get a comprehensive understanding of what to do with this command prompt,You must identify the most important details in this prompt paragraph by paragraph.Each section asks you to:

So basicallyYou must agree, disagree or qualify the statement in the prompt. You must then back up your answer with at least three sources.Since you probably don't know much about Eminent Domains, you probably decide your positionafterYou read the sources.

To use your exam time wisely,You should spend about 2 minutes reading the promptand note what you have to do. This gives you enough time to read the sources provided, which is the next step in writing a synthesis paper.

Step 2: Read the sources carefully

After you have carefully read the request and noted the most important details,you must readonof the disclosed sources.It's tempting to skip a source or two to save time, but we recommend that you don't. That's because you need a thorough understanding of the topic before you can answer the prompt correctly!

Six sources are listed for the sample exam prompt above. We won't include all sources in this article, but you canSee the six sources for this 2018 AP Lang exam question here. The sources include five printed text sources and one visual source which is a cartoon.

If you read the sourcesIt is important to read quickly and carefully.Don't rush! Keep your pencil in hand to quickly mark important passages that you may want to use as evidence for your synthesis. As you read the sources and highlight passages, you will want to think about how the information you read affects your attitude towards the topic (the important area in this case).

When you finish reading,Take a few seconds to summarize in one sentence or sentence whether the source defends, challenges or qualifies an important area(this is the claim in the prompt).Although you may not have time, it is important to make these notes on each source so you know what is happeningHowYou can use any of them as evidence in your essay.

Here's what we mean: Suppose you want to challenge the idea that an eminent domain is useful. Once you have made notes about each source and what they say, it will be easier for you to incorporate the relevant information into your outline and essay.

So how much time should you spend reading the sources listed?For the AP-Lang exam, it is recommended to spend 15 minutes reading the sources. If you spend about two of those minutes reading and breaking down the essay prompt,It makes sense to spend the remaining 13 minutes reading and commenting on the sources.

If you finish reading and commenting early, you can always start writing your summary essay. But take your time and read carefully! It is better to spend a little more time reading and understanding the sources now so that you don't have to read the sources again later.

A strong thesis will do a lot of work in your essay. (See what we did there?)

Step 3: Write a persuasive thesis

After analyzing the prompt and reading the sources carefully, here's what you should do next to write a good summary essay:Write a strong thesis.

The good news about writing a final statement for this synthesis essay is that you have all the tools you need to do so.All you have to do to write your thesis is decide whatFROMThe position is related to the specified subject.

In the sample prompt given earlier, you have three main ways to formulate your thesis:You can either defend, dispute or qualify a claim made in the prompt.TheA substantial domain is productive and useful. This means the following for each option:

• If you choose to reject the claim, it is your job to prove that the claim is correct. In this case, you need to show that a significant domain is a good thing.

• If you choose to dispute the claim, argue that the claim is false.In other words, they will argue that a star domain is not productiveoradvantageous.

  (Video) AP English Language Rubric Walkthrough: How to ACE the Synthesis Essay

• Choosing to qualify means that you agree with part of the claim but disagree with another part of the claim.For example, you could argue that eminent domain can be a productive tool for governments, but not beneficial to property owners. Or maybe you're arguing that eminent domain is useful in some circumstances but not in others.

When deciding whether your summary essay will defend, challenge, or qualify this claim, state this clearly in your concluding statement. They want to avoid simply repeating the claim in the call, summarizing the problem without making a coherent claim, or writing a thesis that does not respond to the call.

Here is an example of a thesis that received full credit for the Outstanding Domain Synthesis Essay:

Although eminent domain can be abused to benefit private interests at the expense of citizens, it is an important tool for any government seeking to exert influence over the lands it governs beyond the bounds of the law.

This thesis received full marks due toIt represents a defensible position and establishes an argument on the issue of eminent domain.It states the author's position (that some parts of a significant area are good but others are bad) and then explainsWhyThe author thinks so (it's good because it allows the government to do its job, but it's bad because the government can abuse its power.)

As this exemplary thesis sets out a defensible point of view and establishes a line of argument, it can be further elucidated in the body of the book through sub-claims, supporting evidence and commentary. And a solid argument is the key to getting a D on your synthesis essay for AP Lang!

Step 4: Create a simple essay outline

Once you've written your concluding statement, you'll have the foundation you need to develop a rough outline for your synthesis essay. However, developing an outline can seem like a waste of your precious timePreparing your outline well will actually save you time when you start writing your essay.

In this sense,We recommend spending 5 to 10 minutes outlining your synthesis attachment. If you use a simple outline like the one below and label each piece of content that you need to include in your draft essay, you should be able to develop the most important parts of the synthesis before you even draft the essay itself.

So that you can see how this can work on test day, we have created an example sketch for you. You can even remember this outline to help you on exam day!The outline below provides places to fill in a thesis statement, topic sentences for main paragraphs, supporting evidence from the sources listed, and comments:

If you take the time to develop these crucial parts of the synthesis into a simple outline, you will have a map to your thesis. Once you have a map, writing the essay will be much easier.

Step 5: Write your essay response

The great thing about spending a few minutes developing an outline is that you can turn it into your draft essay. After spending about 5 to 10 minutes outlining your synthesis essay,You can use the remaining 30 to 35 minutes to write and review your essay.

Since you will be outlining your essay before you start writing it, writing the essay should be fairly easy. You already know how many paragraphs you will write, what topic each paragraph will have, and what quotes, paraphrases, or summaries you will include in each paragraph from the sources provided. You only need to fill in one of the most important parts of your synthesis - your comment.

Comments are your explanation of why your evidence supports the argument you made in your thesis.In your comment, you actually make your arguments for why it is such an important part of your synthesis paper.

As you consider what to say in your comment, remember one thing in AP Lang's synthesis essay prompt: Don't summarize the sources. If you instead comment on the evidence you include,You must explain how this evidence supports or undermines your thesis. You should add comments that provide a thoughtful or new perspective on the evidence from your sources to further develop your argument.

A very important thing to remember while writing your essay is to cite your sources. The AP Lang Exam Synthesis Essay prompt indicates that you can use generic names for the sources listed (eg, “Source 1,” “Source 2,” “Source 3,” etc.). The verification prompt indicates which label belongs to which source. So you have to be careful to pay attention and cite the sources correctly. You can cite your sources in the sentence where you introduce a quote, summary, or paraphrase, or you can use a parenthetical citation.Citing your sources affects your synthesis essay score, so it's important to keep that in mind.

Read on for a real example of a great AP synthesis essay answer!

Example and Analysis of a Real Life Essay on AP Synthesis

If you're still wondering how to write a summary essay, examples of real essays from past AP Lang exams can make things clearer. These real-life AP synthesis answers can help you understand how to write a synthesis essay that will blow reviewers' minds.

Although there are several essay examples online, we chose one to take a closer look. Below we provide you with a brief analysis of one of these exemplary student synthesis essays from the 2019 AP Lang exam!

Sample synthesis essay AP Long answer

First, let's see the official 2019 synthesis essay prompt:

Now that you know exactly what students should do in the AP Long Synthesis Essay 2019 prompt,Here is an example of an AP Lang synthesis essay written by a real 2019 AP Lang exam student:

And this is a complete example of an AP Lang synthesis essay written in response to a real AP Lang exam prompt! It is important to remember that the AP Lang exam essay synthesis prompts are always structured and worded similarly, and students often respond in roughly the same number of paragraphs as you see in the sample essay response above.

Next,Let's analyze this sample essay and talk about what it does effectively, where it could be improved, and what previous examiners' scores gave it.

Analyze

To begin analyzing the sample synthesis essay,Let's look at the College Board's review:

This means that the final grade for this sample essay was 5 out of 6 possible points. Let's take a closer look at the content of the sample essay to find out why it received this point allocation.

development of thesis

The thesis statement is one of the three main categories consideredif you get points for that part of the exam. This sample essay received 1 out of 1 total points.

Here's why: The position paper clearly and concisely conveys a position on the issue in the call - alternative energy and wind power - and defines the key factors that energy companies should consider when deciding whether to build a wind farm.

Evidence and comments

The other key category considered when evaluating synthesis exams isInclusion of evidence and comments.This example received 4 out of 4 possible points for this part of the synthesis task. This sample essay meets at least the requirement stated in the prompt that the author include evidence from at least three of the sources listed.

In addition, the author does a good job of linking the included evidence to the claim in the thesis statement through effective comments. The commentary in this sample essay is effective because it goes beyond simply summarizing what the sources provided say. Instead, the evidence in the selected sources is explained and analyzed and linked to the supporting arguments presented by the author in each main section.

Finally, the author of the essay also received points for evidence and comments due toThe author developed and supported a consistent line of thought throughout the paper. This rationale is summarized in the fourth paragraph in the following sentence: "One thing that utilities should consider is working with turbine manufacturers to make the machines less aesthetically pleasing in order to gain more public support."

Because the author did a good job of consistently developing his argument and including evidence, he received full marks in this category. So far so good!

sophisticated thinking

Now we know that this essay received an overall score of 5 out of 6 and that the author lost a point due to refinement of thought, for which the author received 0 out of 1. It is because of this sample essaymakes numerous generalizations and vague claims when it could have made specific claims insteadsupports a more balanced argument.

For example, the following sentence from the 5th paragraph of the sample essay says:The author misses the opportunity to present concrete options that energy suppliers should consider for wind energy. Instead, the author is ambiguous and noncommittal, saying: "As with most things, there is no easy answer for wind power. It is the responsibility of the companies that build them to weigh the benefits and consequences."

If the writer of this essay was interested in reaching this sixth point in the answer to the synthesis essay, he could consider making more specific claims. For example, you can specify:SpecificBenefits and consequences that energy suppliers should consider when deciding to build a wind farm. This can include things like environmental impact, economic impact or even population density!

Although this sample essay lost a point in the last category, it is strong. It is well developed, thoughtfully written and provides a rationale for the exam topic, using supporting evidence and supporting evidence throughout.

4 tips for writing a synthesis essay

AP Long is a timed test. So you have to choose what you want to focus on in the limited time you have to write the synthesis paper. Read on for our expert advice on what to focus on in your exam.

Tip 1: Read the prompt first

It may sound obvious, but when you're pressed for time, it's easy to get nervous. Remember:When it's time to write the synthesis essay, read the prompt first!

Why is it so important to read the prompt before reading the sources? Because if you know what kind of question you want to answer, you can read the sources more strategically.The question will give you a sense of what claim, point, fact or opinion to look for when reading the sources.

Reading the sources without first reading the prompt is a bit like trying to drive blindfolded: you can probably do it, but it probably won't end well!

Tip 2: Take notes as you read

During the 15-minute reading period at the beginning of the synthesis task, read through the sources as quickly as possible. After all, you're probably dying to start writing!

Although it is certainly important to use time wisely,It is also important to read thoroughly enough so that you understand your sources.By reading carefully, you can identify parts of the sources that will also help you in your essay to support your thesis.

As you read the sources, consider marking useful passages in the margin of the exam with a star or a tickThis way, you will know which parts of the text to quickly read again when creating your synthesis essay. You might also consider summarizing the main points or position of each source in a sentence or a few words after you finish reading each source in the reading phase. That way, you know where each source stands on the given topic, and you can choose the three (or more!) that support your synthesis argument.

Tip 3: Start with the thesis statement

If you don't start your synthesis essay with a compelling thesis, it will be difficult to write an effective synthesis essay.After you finish reading and annotating the sources provided, your next step is to write a strong thesis.

According to the CollegeBoard's guidelines for grading the AP Lang's Synthesis Essay, a meaningful closing statement will respond to the prompt:does notRephrase or rephrase the prompt. A good thesis takes a clear and defensible position on the topic presented in the call and the sources.

In other words, to create a solid thesis to guide the rest of your synthesis paper,you have to think about itFROMPosition yourself on the topic at hand and then make a statement on the topic based on your position.This stance will either be defending, challenging or qualifying the claim in the essay prompt.

The defensible position you present in your thesis will guide your argument in the rest of the essay, so it is important to do thisFirst.Once you have a strong thesis, you can start outlining your essay.

Tip 4: Focus on your comment

It is important to write a thoughtful, original comment that explains your argument and your sources. If you do well, you actually get four points (out of a total of six)!

AP Lang gives you six to seven sources for the examYou are expected to include quotations, paraphrases or summaries from at least three of these sourcesInclude it in your synthesis paper and interpret this evidence for the reader.

Although the inclusion of evidence is very important, it is important to spend more time thinking to get the extra credit for "intellectual sophistication" in the synthesis essayFROMComment on the evidence you want to include. Comments are your chance to show original thinking, strong rhetorical skills, and clear explanationsHowThe documentation you have provided supports the point you made in your thesis.

To get the 6th possible point in the synthesis essay,Make sure your commentary shows a nuanced understanding of the source material.explains this differentiated understanding and brings the evidence from the sources into conversation. Be careful to avoid vague wording. Be specific if you can and always tie your comment to your thesis!

What's next?

The AP Language exam is about much more than just the synthesis task. Be sure to check out our expert guide to the entire exam, then learn more about itthe difficult multiple choice section.

Is the AP Lang exam hard... or is it easy?See how it compares to other AP testsOur list of the toughest AP exams.

Did you know that there are technically two AP English exams?Learn more about the second AP English test.AP literature review in this article. And if yesNot sure if you should take the AP Long or AP Lit test, we can also help you with that decision.