AP Scoring, Day 1
I am on AP English Literature, Question 3, the Open Question. At first I was concerned because I'm NOT as well- or as widely-read as would really be ideal and I was concerned that the mental shifts from text to text based on which text the kids choose to write on would be a bit of a struggle. It's going quite well, though, AND it's a VERY cool question this year:
Palestinian American literary theorist and cultural critic Edward Said has written that "Exile is strangely compelling to think about but terrible to experience. It is the unhealable rift forced between a human being and a native place, between the self and its true home: its essential sadness can never be surmounted." Yet Said has also said that exile can become "a potent, even enriching" experience.
Select a novel, play, or epic in which a character experiences such a rift and becomes cut off from "home," whether that home is the character’s birthplace, family, homeland, or other special place. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the character’s experience with exile is both alienating and enriching, and how this experience illuminates the meaning of the work as a whole. You may choose a work from the list below or one of comparable literary merit. Do not merely summarize the plot.
Apparently some districts complained that identifying Said as Palestinian American was controversial and "pushed" students into a "political" response. This has not in ANY way been the case in anything any of us have seen so far. And...if they're going to identify him at all, why should they hide his background? And since they typically DO identify the background of authors to give the students context, why should this man's background be obscured because it is still part of a dispute?
We did 20 range-finders today...so we scored 20 pre-scored essays that are now our "use these as samples" and discussed them to synch our room's scoring.
After lunch we got to work on live folders of student work, and I scored 60 essays. I had a run of EXCELLENT essays from the same school--they must have a good set of students AND and really amazing teacher. These essays were truly phenomenal (like 9-9-8-8-9)
My personal goal this week is 1000 essays, up 200 and change from last year. I'm moving fairly quickly and I feel VERY accurate, very confident in what I'm doing.
I'm working on eating healthy and not dozing off as badly. It's a real joy NOT to have so much back pain like last year.
After the reading I skipped dinner (I hoarded nuts and fruit and a piece of coffee cake to bring back to my room) and went and worked out--jogging-elliptical thing and weights and stretching--then rinsed down. I am still shaky. And ready for bed! I'm planning to go to do yoga the next five days, so I'm wanting to try to get up for morning workouts. We'll see how THAT goes...
L'ville is, of course, muggy. I am avoiding anything that smacks of this fabled "fresh air" business. Fortunately, there is an enclosed pedway to the convention center place. AND they gave us a fuzzy blankie and a backpack this year.
Palestinian American literary theorist and cultural critic Edward Said has written that "Exile is strangely compelling to think about but terrible to experience. It is the unhealable rift forced between a human being and a native place, between the self and its true home: its essential sadness can never be surmounted." Yet Said has also said that exile can become "a potent, even enriching" experience.
Select a novel, play, or epic in which a character experiences such a rift and becomes cut off from "home," whether that home is the character’s birthplace, family, homeland, or other special place. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the character’s experience with exile is both alienating and enriching, and how this experience illuminates the meaning of the work as a whole. You may choose a work from the list below or one of comparable literary merit. Do not merely summarize the plot.
Apparently some districts complained that identifying Said as Palestinian American was controversial and "pushed" students into a "political" response. This has not in ANY way been the case in anything any of us have seen so far. And...if they're going to identify him at all, why should they hide his background? And since they typically DO identify the background of authors to give the students context, why should this man's background be obscured because it is still part of a dispute?
We did 20 range-finders today...so we scored 20 pre-scored essays that are now our "use these as samples" and discussed them to synch our room's scoring.
After lunch we got to work on live folders of student work, and I scored 60 essays. I had a run of EXCELLENT essays from the same school--they must have a good set of students AND and really amazing teacher. These essays were truly phenomenal (like 9-9-8-8-9)
My personal goal this week is 1000 essays, up 200 and change from last year. I'm moving fairly quickly and I feel VERY accurate, very confident in what I'm doing.
I'm working on eating healthy and not dozing off as badly. It's a real joy NOT to have so much back pain like last year.
After the reading I skipped dinner (I hoarded nuts and fruit and a piece of coffee cake to bring back to my room) and went and worked out--jogging-elliptical thing and weights and stretching--then rinsed down. I am still shaky. And ready for bed! I'm planning to go to do yoga the next five days, so I'm wanting to try to get up for morning workouts. We'll see how THAT goes...
L'ville is, of course, muggy. I am avoiding anything that smacks of this fabled "fresh air" business. Fortunately, there is an enclosed pedway to the convention center place. AND they gave us a fuzzy blankie and a backpack this year.