Transcript The 1997 AP Spanish Language Exam

The A.P. Exam
Tuesday, May 5th
2009 at 8:00 a.m.
1
Overview of the Exam
Multiple Choice
50% Total
Listening
Dialogues and
Narratives
30-35 questions
20%
30-35 mins.
Reading
Reading
Comprehension
35-40 questions
30%
50-60 mins.
Free Response
Writing
50% Total
Informal Writing
1 prompt (15%)
10 minutes
Presentational Writing
1 prompt (20%)
55 minutes
Interpsersonal
Speaking
Speaking
Presentational Speaking
5-6 response
prompts (10%)
20 seconds to
respond to each
30%
65 mins.
20%
Approx. 20 mins.
1 prompt (10%)
2 minutes to respond
2

In the first listening section students will hear a series of several brief
dialogues or narratives, after which they hear questions, in Spanish, and
will select the best choice among the answers printed in their exam
booklets. The short dialogues and narratives do not include the printed
questions, while the long narratives do include the questions. Students will
be able to view the answers in their booklets, but will hear the questions
only one time.
Back to Overview
3

Informal Writing: Students will have 10 minutes to read a prompt and write
their responses. Examples may include writing an email message, a letter,
a journal entry, or a postcard.
What's Different?
Informal/interpersonal writing will be added. There will be more writing
tasks that will evaluate how well you write in a real-life situation.
Example:
Directions: For the following question, you will write a
message of about 60 words in length. You have 10 minutes to
read the question and to write your response.
Instrucciones: Para la pregunta siguiente, escribirás un mensaje
con una extensión de unas 60 palabras. Tienes 10 minutos para
leer la pregunta y escribir tu respuesta.
Imagínate que tuviste que salir de casa por un par de horas. Escríbele a tu hijo una carta.
Explícale por qué te fuiste y cuando resgresarás Estipula todo lo que quieres que haga antes
de que regreses Incluye los quehaceres Menciona sus responsabilidades personales
Menciona lo que harás con tu hijo cuando regreses.
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4

Presentational Writing: The fourth part of the writing section will reflect an
integration of the following skills: listening, reading, and writing (an example
of the interpretive and presentational modes). Students will be required to
read two documents, listen to a related source/recording, and respond to a
written prompt. All sources, both written and aural, will be authentic -- either
in their original format or re-recorded. Students will be encouraged to make
reference to and cite all of the sources. Students will have 7 minutes to read
the printed sources and then will listen to a stimulus of approximately 3
minutes. After listening to the prompt, students will have 5 minutes to plan
their responses and 40 minutes to write their essays. The total time allotted
for this section will be approximately 55 minutes.
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5

The reading component will be comprised of journalistic and/or
literary selections followed by multiple-choice questions. In addition,
some of the written texts may include a visual component or a Web
page. As in the past, students will be asked to identify the main
points and significant details and make inferences and predictions
from the written texts. Some questions may require making cultural
inferences or inserting an additional sentence in the appropriate
place in the reading passage.
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6

Interpersonal Speaking: The first part of the speaking
section will include a task that measures speaking skills
in an informal setting. There will be a conversation roleplay situation (an example of the interpersonal mode).
Students will be asked to interact with a recorded
conversation. There will be five or six opportunities for
the students to answer. Each response will be 20
seconds in length. Students will have time to read an
outline of the simulated conversation and the
instructions before participating in the simulated
conversation.
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7

Presentational Speaking: The second part of the speaking section will be an
example of the interpretive and presentational mode. It integrates three
skills: reading, listening, and speaking. Students need to give an oral
presentation in a formal or academic setting. They will be asked to read one
document and listen to a recording, after which they will have two minutes
to prepare for the presentation and two minutes to answer the question
related to the sources. Students will be encouraged to make reference to
and cite all sources.
Back to Overview
8