AP English Language and Composition

2017 Free-Response Questions

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ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION

SECTION II
Total time - 2 hours
2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

Question 1

(Suggested time - 40 minutes. This question counts for one-third of the total essay section score.)

With the advancement of technology, the social media presence in our society has grown. The
majority of users on communication and social programs such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook,
etc., tend to be teenagers

Carefully read the following six sources, including information for each source. Then synthesize
information from at least three of the sources and incorporate it into a coherent, well-developed
argument for your own position on how social media affects contemporary society.

Your argument should be the focus of your essay, Use the sources to develop the argument and
explain the reasoning for it. Avoid merely summarizing the sources. Indicate clearly which
sources you are drawing from, whether through direct quotation, paraphrase, or summary. You
may cite the sources as Source A, Source B, etc., or by using the descriptions in parentheses.

Source A (cartoon)
Source B (Boyd)
Source C (East)
Source D (Wallace)
Source E (Ehmke)
Source F (graph)

Source A

Shafali. "A Toony Pretzels Cartoon Defining

Loneliness." Shafali's Caricatures, Portraits, and
Cartoons. Wordpress.com, 26 Dec. 2011.
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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

The following is a cartoon from an online drawing blog.

www.wordpress.com

Source B
Boyd, Danah M., and Nicole B.
Ellison. Social Network Sites:
Definition, History, and
Scholarship. Journal of
ComputerMediated -3- GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE
Communication, Blackwell
Publishing Inc, 17 Dec. 2007,
2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

This following passage is an excerpted from an online library which discusses the means of social

media.

We define social network sites as web-based services that allow individuals to (1)
construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, (2) articulate a list of other
users with whom they share a connection, and (3) view and traverse their list of connections and
those made by others within the system. The nature and nomenclature of these connections may
vary from site to site.While we use the term social network site to describe this phenomenon,
the term social networking sites also appears in public discourse, and the two terms are often
used interchangeably. We chose not to employ the term networking for two reasons: emphasis
and scope. Networking emphasizes relationship initiation, often between strangers. While
networking is possible on these sites, it is not the primary practice on many of them, nor is it what
differentiates them from other forms of computer-mediated communication (CMC).What makes
social network sites unique is not that they allow individuals to meet strangers, but rather that they
enable users to articulate and make visible their social networks. This can result in connections
between individuals that would not otherwise be made, but that is often not the goal, and these
meetings are frequently between latent ties (Haythornthwaite, 2005) who share some offline
connection. On many of the large SNSs, participants are not necessarily networking or looking
to meet new people; instead, they are primarily communicating with people who are already a part
of their extended social network. To emphasize this articulated social network as a critical
organizing feature of these sites, we label them social network sites.

Source C
East, Susie. How Does Social Media Affect
Your Brain. CNN, Cable News Network, 1
Aug. 2016.

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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

This following passage is an excerpted from an online news source which discusses the means of

social media and how it negatively affects teenagers today.

Social learning

Adolescence is a period that is very important for social learning, which could explain why teens
are often more tuned into what's going on in their respective cultures. With the rise of social
media, Sherman thinks we may even be learning to read likes and shares instead of facial
expressions.

"Before, if you were having a face to face interaction everything is qualitative. You use someone's
gestures or facial expressions, that sort of thing, to see how effective your message is," she says.

"Now if you go online, one of the ways that you gauge the effectiveness of your message is in the
number of likes, favorites or retweets, and this is something that's really different and unique
about online interaction."

However, the study may not be applicable to everyone, according to Dr. Iroise Dumontheil, at
Birkbeck University.

"[The study] only has adolescents and so they can't really claim anything specific about whether
it's adolescents who react to this differently compared to adults."

Source D
Wallace, Kelly. Social Media
Positive for Teens? Maybe! CNN,
Cable News Network, 7 Oct. 2014,

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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

This following passage is an excerpted from an online news source which discusses the positive

effects of social media on teenagers today.

I'll admit it right at the start: When I think about teens and social media, I immediately begin to
tally up the negatives.

What good could possibly come from teens and tweens spending gobs of time on online
networks, posting non stop "selfies," some in rather suggestive poses, and often communicating
with people they don't even know?

A running joke at home: My girls, ages 6 and 7, can't get iPhones until they're 40.

But then I chat with other moms, who always know best, and a picture emerges that social media
is not always the scary enemy some of us might think it is for our tweens and teens.

Eileen Masio, a mom of two in New York, monitors her daughter Amelia's Instagram account
24/7. Yes, most of the posts are "selfies," but it's the comments that make her think there is also a
positive to this nonstop engagement.

"I think just as damaging as social media can be, it can ... help to build self-confidence, too," said
Masio, during a recent interview including her husband, 13-year-old Amelia and 8-year-old son
William.

"When they post selfies, all the comments I usually see are 'You're beautiful,' 'You're so pretty,'
'Oh my God, gorgeous,'" said Masio.

In fact, according to a report last year by the nonprofit child advocacy group Common Sense
Media, one in five teens said social media makes them feel more confident, compared with 4%
who said it makes them feel less so.

In the survey of more than 1,000 13- to 17-year-olds about how they view their digital lives, 28%
said social networking made them feel more outgoing versus 5% who said it made them feel less

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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

so; and 29% said it made them feel less shy versus the 3% who said it made them feel more
introverted.

When it comes to relationships with friends, more than half (52%) of teens said social media has
made them better versus just 4% who said it has negatively affected those relationships.

"On the whole, teens said that they feel that social media has a more positive than negative impact
on their social and emotional lives," said Shira Lee Katz, Common Sense Media's director of
digital media. "They believe that social media helps their friendships, makes them feel more
outgoing and gives them confidence."

Source E

Ehmke, Rachel. "How Using Social

Media Affects Teenagers." Child Mind
Institute. Child Mind Institute, Inc., 12
Dec. 2016.

The following passage is from an online medical website focusing on the negatives of social
media.

Dr. Steiner-Adair agrees that girls are particularly at risk. Girls are socialized more to
compare themselves to other people, girls in particular, to develop their identities, so it makes

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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

them more vulnerable to the downside of all this. She warns that a lack of solid self-esteem is
often to blame. We forget that relational aggression comes from insecurity and feeling awful
about yourself, and wanting to put other people down so you feel better.
Peer acceptance is a big thing for adolescents, and many of them care about their image as
much as a politician running for office, and to them it can feel as serious. Add to that the fact that
kids today are getting actual polling data on how much people like them or their appearance via
things like likes. Its enough to turn anyones head. Who wouldnt want to make herself look
cooler if she can? So kids can spend hours pruning their online identities, trying to project an
idealized image. Teenage girls sort through hundreds of photos, agonizing over which ones to post
online. Boys compete for attention by trying to out-gross one other, pushing the envelope as much
as they can in the already disinhibited atmosphere online. Kids gang up on each other.
Adolescents have always been doing this, but with the advent of social media they are faced with
more opportunitiesand more trapsthan ever before. When kids scroll through their feeds and
see how great everyone seems, it only adds to the pressure. Were used to worrying about the
impractical ideals that photoshopped magazine models give to our kids, but what happens with
the kid next door is photoshopped, too? Even more confusing, what about when your own profile
doesnt really represent the person that you feel like you are on the inside?
Adolescence and the early twenties in particular are the years in which you are acutely
aware of the contrasts between who you appear to be and who you think you are, says Dr. Wick.
Its similar to the imposter syndrome in psychology. As you get older and acquire more
mastery, you begin to realize that you actually are good at some things, and then you feel that gap
hopefully narrow. But imagine having your deepest darkest fear be that you arent as good as you
look, and then imagine needing to look that good all the time! Its exhausting.
As Dr. Steiner-Adair explains, Self-esteem comes from consolidating who you are. The more
identities you have, and the more time you spend pretending to be someone you arent, the harder

its going to be to feel good about yourself.

Source F
The following graphs wereAmanda|Purcell
Lenhart, taken from an online research Aaron|
Kristen|Smith project conducted by the government in
order to see the usage of social
Zickuhr media
Kathryn. throughout
Social Media &different demographics.
Mobile Internet
Use among Teens and Young Adults. Millennials.
Pew Internet & American Life Project, Pew Internet
& American Life Project. 1615 L Street NW Suite
700, Washington, DC 20036. Web
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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

Works Cited

Boyd, Danah M., and Nicole B. Ellison. Social Network Sites: Definition, History, and

Scholarship. Journal of ComputerMediated Communication, Blackwell Publishing Inc, 17

Dec. 2007, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1083-6101.2007.00393.x/full. Accessed 19

Apr. 2017.

Danah m. Boyd Et al in the scholarly journal Social Network Sites: Definition, History and
Scholarship (2008) explains the definition and usage of social media among contemporary society.
Boyd Et al support their assertion by defining social networking through using examples and
colloquial language. The authors purpose is to define social media so that the audience will understand

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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

exactly what they are trying to convey. The author writes in an expository tone for an unbiased
audience.

East, Susie. How Does Social Media Affect Your Brain. CNN, Cable News Network, 1

Aug. 2016.

Susie East in her piece on social media asserts that social media has the power to alter
teens and their brains. East supports her assertion by illustrating the different types of social
media events that can cause a teen to feel different ways. The authors purpose is to warn our
society of social media and its impacts on teenagers so that people are aware of its dangers. East
writes in an aggressive tone for teenagers all over the world.

Ehmke, Rachel. "How Using Social Media Affects Teenagers." Child Mind Institute. Child Mind

Institute, Inc., 12 Dec. 2016.

Rachel Ehmke in the article How Using Social Media Affects Teenagers asserts that
social media can damage an individual's self-worth. Ehmke supports her claim by expanding on
the idea of how social media can make teens lose their confidence. The authors purpose is analyze
how social media damages one's perception of himself in order to show that social media is
damaging for teenagers. The author rights in an informative tone for an audience of parents with
teens on social media.

Lenhart, Amanda|Purcell Kristen|Smith Aaron|Zickuhr Kathryn. Social Media & Mobile Internet Use

among Teens and Young Adults. Millennials. Pew Internet & American Life Project, Pew

Internet & American Life Project. 1615 L Street NW Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036. Web

Site: Http://Pewinternet.org, 3 Feb. 2010, eric.ed.gov/?id=ED525056. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.

Amanda Lenhart Et al in the graph about Social Media , display the graphs through using
evident statistics and bar graphs. Lenhart Et al supports their claim by illustrating the involvement of
each age group in social media. The authors purpose is to show the usage among among age groups in
order to give an expository claim about social media. The authors write in an informative tone for a
research based audience.

Shafali. "A Toony Pretzels Cartoon Defining Loneliness." Shafali's Caricatures, Portraits, and

Cartoons. Wordpress.com, 26 Dec. 2011.

Shafali in the cartoon Defining Loneliness suggests that people may feel sad if they have no

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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

Notifications on their social media accounts. Shafali supports her suggestion by illustrating a sad
looking person with no new messages on any of their accounts. The authors purpose is to show how
social media can lead to one becoming upset in order to prove her claim. The author writes in an
informative tone for an interested audience.

Wallace, Kelly. Social Media Positive for Teens? Maybe! CNN, Cable News Network, 7 Oct.

2014.

Kelly Wallace, in her article on social media contends that social media actually is not as
bad as everyone believes, and it may actually help boost self confidence. Wallace supports her
claim by explaining how likes and comments on social media can make someone feel good about
themselves- and there is nothing wrong with that. Wallaces purpose is to suggest that social
media is actually a safe environment and is good for children, in order to get rid of its naturally
negative stigma. The author writes in a hopeful tone in favor of teenagers.

AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION

2017 SCORING GUIDELINES

Question 1

The essays score should reflect the essays quality as a whole. Remember that students had only
15 minutes to read the sources and 40 minutes to write the essay, and therefore, is not a finished
product and judged by standards appropriate for an out-of-class assignment. Evaluate the essay as
a draft, making certain to reward students for what they do well.

All essays, even those scored 8 or 9, may contain occasional lapses in analysis, prose style, or
mechanics. Such features should enter into your holistics evaluation of an essays overall quality.
In no case should you give a score higher than a 2 to a paper with errors in grammar and
mechanics that persistently interfere with your understanding of meaning.
_____________________________________________________________________________

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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

9 - Essays earning a score of 9 meet the criteria for the score of 8 and , in addition, are
especially sophisticated in their argument , thorough in development, or impressive in their
control of language.

8 - Effective

Essays earning a score of 8 effectively argue a position on how social media affects teenagers.
They develop their argument by effectively synthesizing at least three of the sources. The
evidence and explanations used are appropriate and convincing. Their prose demonstrates a
consistent ability to control a wide range of the elements of effective writing but it is not
necessarily flawless.

7 - Essays earning a score of 7 meet the criteria for the score of 6 but provide more
complete explanation, more thorough development, or a more mature prose style.

6 - Adequate

Essays earning a score of 6 adequately argue a position on how social media affects teenagers.
They develop their argument by adequately synthesizing at least three of the sources. The
evidence and explanations used are appropriate and sufficient. The language may contain lapses
in diction or syntax, but generally the prose is clear.

5 - Essays earning a score of 5 argue a position on how social media affects teenagers. They
develop their argument by adequately synthesizing at least three of the sources, but how they use
and explain the sources may be uneven, inconsistent, or limited. The writers argument is
generally clear, and the sources generally develop the writer's position, but the links between the
sources and the argument may be strained. The writing may contain lapses in diction or syntax,
but it usually conveys the writer's ideas.

4 - Inadequate

Essays earning a score of 4 inadequately argue a position on how social media affects teenagers.
They develop their argument by synthesizing at least two sources, but the evidence or
explanations used may be inappropriate, insufficient, or unconvincing. The sources may dominate
the students attempts at development, the link between the sources and the argument may be
weak, or the student may misunderstand, misrepresent, or oversimplify the sources. The prose
generally conveys the writers ideas but may be inconsistent in controlling elements of effective
writing.

3- Essays earning the score of 3 meet the criteria for the score of 4 but demonstrate less success in
arguing a position on how social media affects teens. They are less perceptive in their
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2017 AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS

understanding of the sources, or their explanation or examples may be particularly limited or

simplistic. The essays may show less maturity in their control of writing.

2- Little Success

Essays earning a score of a 2 demonstrate little success in taking a position on how social media
affects teens. They may merely allude to the knowledge gained while reading rather than citing
the sources themselves. These essays may misread the sources, fail to present an argument or
merely summarize the source. The prose of essays receiving a 2 often demonstrates consistent
weakness in writing, such as lack of development or organization, grammatical issues or lack of
control.

1- Essays earning the score of 1 meet the criteria for the score of 2 but fail to use any sources and
present a weak control of writing.

0- Essays earning a score of (0) are on-topic responses that receive no credit, such as those that
merely repeat the prompt.

Indicates an entirely blank response

For the purposes of scoring, synthesis means using sources to develop a position and citing
them accurately.

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