Blog Post #2: Practice Multiple Choice Exam- A Reflection

After taking the Practice AP Literature Multiple Choice Exam in class and evaluating my performance on it, I have realized that there is a lot I have to improve on before the AP Exam in May. But first, I will assess my strengths in literary analysis. Most of these come from taking the AP Language and Composition class and exam last year, which has a similar test format. Consequently, I am stronger in prose analysis than poetry analysis, as prose was the primary type of passages we studied. Also, I am slightly more familiar with literary terms, such as alliteration or foreshadowing, than the average English student, though I do need a bit of refreshing. In AP Language and Composition, I was drilled to always search for and then keep in mind the purpose of the piece while I was reading. This skill helped me answer several of the multiple choice questions correctly. I am also quite good at reading and retaining the information of passages at a decent rapid pace, which is necessary to fulfill the strict time limit on these tests. All the basic skills that are needed to take an AP multiple choice skills I have a basic mastery of; these include focus, timing, process of elimination, the educated guess.

This leaves me with the elements of the AP Exam specific to AP English Literature that I am not familiar with or am anywhere close to mastering yet. My weaknesses were revealed to me one by one with each question I missed on the practice exam. First, even though I mentioned keeping the purpose in mind was one of my skills, I sometimes still lose this mindset when I am reading complex passages, especially if the questions ask of me specific details or lines of the passage. It is always important to keep in mind the big picture when answering inferential questions and not be muddled by particulars. Secondly, I need more practice with analyzing passages of poetry. Even though they seem to be easier to read, and take less time to read, the fact is poems need to be read with even more cautiousness than prose. The language used in poetry is much more intricate and each line has a complex meaning and purpose behind it. This requires a metaphorical way of thinking, which I found myself lacking while answering questions. Thirdly, I also had some trouble answering the "except" questions on the test. I would often be stuck between two answers, so I need to work on my elimination skills.

Now to construct a magnificent plan of improvement. I think the best way for me to improve is to take more practice exams just to get used to analyzing and interpreting passages correctly in such a short time period. Also, I want to bring these methods that I use to break down multiple choice passages into my classroom reading. Along with that, I will aim to ask of the literature we study in class the same types of questions that are asked on the AP exam so I will be familiar with the way of thinking the test-writers want me to have in order to do well. Furthermore, I will pay particular attention to analyzing poetry passages as I have not as much experience with them as I do with prose. In 5 Steps to a 5, there was a list of eminent poets that may show up on the AP Exam, so before May I will be sure to take a look at some of their poems as preparation. Another thing I have planned is I need to either review literary terms I already know or learn new literary terms that I don't know already; and not only that but be able to apply them to actual pieces of literature. On one question particularly, #47, it asked of me what meter the poem was in and I, who did not know anything about such a topic, was bewildered. So terms like that I need to learn what they are and how to use them.

The key to achieving what you want is to set good goals. My goals for this year are:
1. Practice the AP English Literature Multiple Choice exam. And by practice I mean taking practice exams and reading passages that would appear on the AP Multiple Choice exam and answering questions that would appear on the AP Multiple Choice exam. If I do this often enough with a wide a variety of passages and questions, this will be very good preparation. I plan to do one passage and its corresponding questions per week until spring, which is when I would practice full exams more often, timing myself of course.
2. Learn the literary terms I need to be successful on the exam. I assume we will learn these in class as the year goes on, but if I do encounter terms which I do not know or need a review on, I will be sure to look those up and keep track of them so I will be prepared next time it shows up in a question. Having a good grasp on the language of the test is key to achieving a good score on the test.
3. Take the skills I learned from taking the Multiple Choice exam into the classroom. The capabilities of comprehension and extension need for the multiple choice exam can be used in studying literature outside of the exam. Doing this regularly will not only help me analyze texts in class, but help develop these skills so I will be even more ready to take the AP exam. These skills include: going beyond the literal and finding the deeper meaning, keeping in mind the author's purpose and determine how the author develops it, reading carefully and closely to get a full understanding, etc.

Sources: http://topachievement.com/smart.html
5 Steps to a 5 AP English Literature
AP Literature and Composition textbook