EMILY VALAITIS: Hi, everyone, it's only the latest.
And in this video, we'll go over how to break down
this synthesis prompt.
If you want to work through the question itself that
we're going to be using today.
You can click on the link you see over the video now.
And you can download a PDF of the question
that we'll be studying.
When it comes to the synthesis prompt,
I think there are three key steps you want to take.
First, make sure you understand the task you've identified it
within the prompt itself.
Then look through the prompt to identify the various positions
that exist on the topic.
And then lastly, see if the product
is going to give you any clues as to what areas
are being impacted, which might guide your work moving forward.
I'll spend a little bit of time going over each of these.
The first is to understand the task.
I think that this is probably the most important piece.
And that students tend to approach it and do
a quick skim of the task.
Instead, we encourage you to slow down and read
each part of the prompt very carefully
to make sure you know exactly what you're expected to do.
In the task itself, not always but, usually, it
will be at the end of the second paragraph.
It will say, now, take a position where
you synthesize the resources.
Look for any key words or coordinating conjunctions
that the task might have because sometimes,
there are two parts to the task itself.
Then turn the task into a question to be answered.
That ensures that you are aligned to what
you've been tasked with.
Make sure that you are focused on answering that task
and that question itself.
The next thing to look for in the prompt
is when you see the various positions that exist.
Typically, the prompt will give you some context of the issue.
And they'll say, some people agree with it.
Some people disagree with it.
So they'll give you the yes and the no.
What I want to encourage you to do
is to go beyond that binary approach of a yes or no.
And instead, identify them within the prompt itself.
But start thinking more of like, how do they impact each other
or play off of each other?
And that will help you get to what's ideal,
which is a maybe position.
Now, you won't see the maybe position in the prompt itself.
You'll just see the yes and the no.
But approach the prompt identifying the yes
and no to help you think through what
your maybe position would be.
Then when you get your sources, that
will just be further developed.
The last thing that you'll be asked to do
is to look at the prompt and determine what areas are being
impacted by the issue itself.
On your screen, you'll see a series of commonly seen areas
impacted through the prompts and the topics explored on the AP
exam.
What I want you to think about is
once you identify what that issue or topic is.
Ask yourself, how does it impact this particular area
or what does it suggest about this particular area?
This is nice because, A, I think it
helps you think through how to approach your sources.
But it's also good because it's giving
you to think about the broader context
and how this issue doesn't just exist in a bubble,
but there are larger impacts at play because of this topic
itself.
All right, so now it's your turn to apply those steps
to a prompt.
I want you to pause the recording
and take five, maybe, seven minutes
to read through and annotate this prompt.
Remembering, that you have three things to do.
First, read through the prompt identifying the task at hand.
Noticing, are there any coordinating conjunctions?
Are there multiple parts to the task?
And then take it and turn it into a question
that you have to answer in your essay.
The next thing is to read through the context that's
provided and identify any pro and con positions.
Any yes positions, no positions that the prompt provides.
And then lastly, is the prompt giving you
any nudge towards certain areas that are being impacted?
Again, that will help you to understand the broader context.
All right, now let me share some insights
that I had on the prompt that might
mimic what you had as well.
The first, think about, where is the task?
As expected, it's going to be at the end of the second paragraph
here.
But what's interesting is it has two parts to it.
It says to develop a position on the value,
if any of initiatives to improve STEM education
and to increase the number of students
interested in STEM disciplines.
It's really important that you recognize both parts.
If you were to write this essay and only address one,
I don't think it's the end of the world by any means.
But you're probably not going to get as high of a score
as someone who's going to recognize both parts of it.
If you were to turn it into a question,
it might be something like, to what extent
do initiatives improve STEM education?
And to what extent do these initiatives increase the number
of students interested in STEM?
Maybe, since there are two parts,
you could even combine them into one question
with something like, to what extent
do initiatives improve STEM education?
And does this improvement lead to more students
interested in STEM disciplines?
That's a nice one because it's including both parts
and thinking about how they are related to one another.
All right, the second thing I asked
you to do when looking at the prompt
was to consider the different positions that
are provided in the context.
So the positive and the negative.
In this case, the prompt tells us
that one positive to adopt in STEM
initiatives is that students in the United States
are less proficient in these STEM areas
than in other countries.
So we should have more STEM initiatives.
There's also a second reason because it's now
essential to join a highly technical and specialized
workforce.
So there are two reasons provided.
Why yes, we should have more STEM education initiatives.
While it's a little vague, there is a negative position
provided as well that some are not
convinced that a STEM-focused curriculum is necessary
and/or effective.
So we see both sides.
Remember, that you've seen both.
Start thinking about how they play off of each other.
And so when you are looking at the sources,
you can determine a maybe perspective
that it's true, but only in this way or only to this extent.
The last thing I wanted you to think about
is, what areas are being impacted by STEM education
initiatives?
The prompt is going to give us three nudges.
One, that the students are less proficient in these areas
than students in other countries.
That's speaking to more of this global awareness
or political implication of us at a larger more global scale.
If United States students are less proficient than others,
then what is the larger ramification
of that down the line?
We also see that word, workforce.
So the prompt is leading us to think about,
how would a STEM initiative impact us
for the economy for a larger workforce?
And then lastly, we have that word, curriculum.
So it's going to also have us thinking about,
what is the larger impact on education
if we have more increased initiatives for STEM fields?
What's nice about this is it's kind
of give me almost like a guide on how to read my sources.
Because I'm going to be thinking about how
these things influence each other.
It's giving me some guidelines for how
to approach this topic itself.
Thinking about how one of these areas impact another.
All right, so some final reminders.
Start by looking just the prompt.
And I would encourage you to take
again around five to seven minutes just
studying the prompt itself.
I think a lot of students find this prompting more accessible.
And so as a result, they skim through the prompt
and, ultimately, end up missing what their task is.
So start by understanding the task.
Identify it in that second paragraph.
Underline it.
Turn it into a question to make sure you know exactly
what you're being tasked with.
Then go back and spend some time with the context.
What are the various positions being provided to you
in the prompt?
And what way is it a positive or a negative?
Now remember, I'm hoping you don't
adopt a positive or negative perspective.
That you're using it to help shape
your maybe perspective of it's true, but only to this extent
or only in this way.
And then lastly, start thinking about the areas that
are impacted.
The prompt will most likely reference
one or two or, in this case, three areas that are impacted.
But feel free to go beyond and think in general, where
do I see this topic having a bigger, larger significance?
The more you take time to read the prompt,
you set yourself up for more success with the sources
and developing your own complex position.
I think it also helps to ensure that your essay is more focused
and aligned to the task itself.
So when you take the exam in May,
try not to just rush through the prompt,
making sure that you take time to break it down and understand
exactly what you're being able to do.
And that's going to lead to a ton of success for you
in a few weeks on the exam.
Best of luck.