Juniors at Ballard Highschool enrolled in AP Language and Compositon (APLANG) all know about the infamous research paper assigned in Mr.Crocker and Ms. Gray’s classes. It is a four month long process to develop an AP level insightful 5 page minimum essay.
Prior to winter break, each student begins by choosing a book to base their research on. When students are back in school, to develop a deeper understanding of the book, students form a dialectical journal. When working in the journal, students create a personal relationship with the book by writing down their thoughts, questions, insights and ideas while reading. It is their responsibility to make it unique and original, any plagiarism and use of AI will result in a zero.
Many students, when asked what helped them the most when writing their research paper, responded with their work in their dialectical journals. The journals included quotes, analysis, information about the author, themes and ideas that were essential in the writing process. All students were assigned to create a dialectical journal, however this experience wasn’t universal for AP LANG students. For example, while Mr. Crocker’s 2nd period class received their dialectical journal about a week into the writing process, his 6th and 7th period class didn’t receive theirs back until up to 3 weeks into the writing process. Ajla Hamzic, a student in Mr.Crocker’s 6th period, voiced that if she could change anything about how the assignment was taught she would change the possibilty “ to have dialectal journals to refer back to during the entire process of creating the outline, sourcing, and writing because it would make the process more efficient.” Many students felt that others had an easier time writing because they received their dialectical journals back sooner than other students. Nevertheless, fter interviewing many students, this was the only complaint made about the project. Students feel that this project drastically improved their writing skills. Both Mr.Crocker and Ms. Gray did well to respond to challenges students faced while writing. When students were assigned to work on practicing MLA citation, they were given numerous opportunities to practice and complete practice cards until mastery.
When asked about the amount of time given for this paper, a collective of students all agreed that their teachers gave them more than enough time. Sam Evans, one of Mr. Crocker’s 4th period students answered, “Plenty of time!” While he did face challenges, particularly with strengthening his thesis and claims, he emphsized that his teacher, Mr. Crocker provided helpful guidance and expertise throughout the process. However, Sam suggested that one improvement could be more in depth instruction on developing a strong line of reasoning. One of Ajla’s main challenges was sourcing, but she explained that Mr. Crocker addressed this by providing repeated practice opportunities and consistent feedback through mastery and progression assignments. If she could change one aspect of this assignment, she would suggest incorporating their dialectical journals throughout the entire research paper writing process. From outlining to sourcing, she claims it would have made the process flow more smoothly.
For upcoming juniors interested in taking AP LANG, there is a lot of advice that current juniors would give. Ajla Hamzic would say “make sure to do all your work for each day”. The class is fast paced, making it easy to fall behind, so it is important to not procrastinate with your assignments. Reflecting on the overall experience, Sam Evans advised future students to choose a book they are genuinely interested in, as it makes the process more engaging and enjoyable. Adhithi Shankar advised students to not be afraid to ask questions and “don’t make assumptions especially when this project is new to us all.” Lastly, Breanna Allen warns students to pay close attention to detail, especially when creating citations, and following all directions.
