Your route to a high score on the AP English Literature and Composition Exam depends a lot on how you plan to use this book. Respond to the following questions.
1. Rate your level of confidence about your knowledge of the content tested by the AP English Literature and Composition Exam:
A. Very confident—I know it all
B. I’m pretty confident, but there are topics for which I could use help
C. Not confident—I need quite a bit of support
D. I’m not sure
2. Circle your goal score for the Exam:
5 4 3 2 1 I’m not sure yet
3. What do you expect to learn from this book? Circle all that apply to you.
A. A general overview of the test and what to expect
B. Strategies for how to approach the test
C. The content tested by this exam
D. I’m not sure yet
This book is organized to provide as much—or as little—support as you need, so you can use this book in whatever way will be most helpful to improving your score on the AP English Literature and Composition Exam.
The remainder of Part I will provide guidance on how to use this book and help you determine your strengths and weaknesses.
Part II of this book contains Practice Test 1, along with its answers and explanations. (Bubble sheets can be found in the very back of the book for easy tear-out.) We strongly recommend that you take this test before going any further, in order to realistically determine
your starting point right now
which question types you’re ready for and which you might need to practice
which content topics you are familiar with and which you should carefully review
Once you have nailed down your strengths and weaknesses with regard to this exam, you can focus your preparation, build a study plan, and be efficient with your time.
Part III of this book will
provide information about the structure, scoring, and content of the exam, including the latest updates that were recently announced by the College Board
help you to make a study plan
point you toward additional resources
Part IV of this book will explore various strategies, such as
how to attack multiple-choice questions
how to write effective essays
how to manage your time to maximize the number of points available to you
Part V of this book covers the content you need to review and practice for the AP English Literature and Composition Exam.
Part VI of this book contains Practice Tests 2 and 3 and their respective answers and explanations. We recommend that you take advantage of all 3 Practice Tests (but not in a row). Take Practice Test 1 (in the front of the book) first to see where you are and what areas you should focus on. Midway through your prep, take Practice Test 2. Then closer to your real test day, take Practice Test 3.
The final section of the book, Part VII, is a glossary covering all the literary terms you need to know for the exam.
You may choose to use some parts of this book over others, or you may work through the entire book. Your approach will depend on your needs and how much time you have. Let’s take a look at how you will make this determination.
1. Take a Test
Before you can decide how to use this book, you need to take a practice test. Doing so will give you insight into your strengths and weaknesses, and the test will also help you make an effective study plan. If you’re feeling test-phobic, remind yourself that a practice test is a tool for diagnosing yourself—it’s not how well you do that matters, but how you use the information gleaned from your performance to guide your preparation.
So, before you read further, take Practice Test 1, which is found in Part II of this book. Be sure to do so in one sitting, following the instructions that appear before the test.
2. Check Your Answers
Using the answer key on this page, count the number of multiple-choice questions you got right and the number you missed. Don’t worry about the explanations for now, and don’t worry about why you missed questions. We’ll get to that soon.
3. Reflect on the Test
After you take your first test, respond to the following questions:
How much time did you spend on the multiple-choice questions?
How much time did you spend on each essay?
How many multiple-choice questions did you miss?
Do you feel you had the knowledge to address the subject matter of the essays?
Do you feel you wrote well-organized, thoughtful essays?
4. Read Part III of this Book and Complete the Self-Evaluation
Part III provides information on test content areas, structure, and scoring.
As you read Part III, reevaluate your answers to the questions above. At the end of Part III, you will revisit and refine the questions. You will then be able to make a study plan, based on your needs and time available, that allows you to use this book most effectively.
5. Engage with Parts IV and V as Needed
Notice the word engage. You’ll get more out of this book if you use it intentionally than if you read it passively and hope for an improved score through osmosis.
The strategy chapters in Part IV will help you think about your approach to the question types on this exam. This part opens with a reminder to think about how you approach questions now and closes with a reflection section asking you to think about how/whether you will change your approach in the future.
The content chapters in Part V provide a review of the content tested on the AP English Literature and Composition Test, including the level of detail you need to know and how the content is tested.
6. Take Practice Tests 2 and later, 3, and Assess Your Performance
Once you feel you have developed the strategies you need and gained the knowledge you lacked, you should take Practice Test 2, which is found in Part VI of this book. You should do so in one sitting, following the instructions at the beginning of the test.
When you are done, check your answers to the multiple-choice questions. See whether a teacher will read your responses to the free-response questions and provide feedback.
Once you have taken the test, reflect on what areas you still need to work on, and revisit the chapters in this book that address those deficiencies. Through this type of reflection and engagement, you will continue to improve.
Repeat this for Practice Test 3.
7. Keep Working
There are other resources available to you, including a wealth of information on APStudents.org. You can continue to explore areas that can stand to improve and engage in those areas right up to the day of the test. Visit the following page for exam practice and information: https://apstudent.collegeboard.org/apcourse/ap-english-literature-and-composition