Top Mistakes to Avoid in AP Lang Synthesis Essays

Hey everybody, welcome back to Coach All Writes. In today's video, we're going to be talking about common mistakes that

students make on AP Lang synthesis essays. Before we get started, let's be sure to stay in touch. Make sure that

you subscribe and turn those notifications on. That way, you don't miss any upcoming AP Lang content. Also,

be sure to check out the description box below for some useful links. This first mistake is arguably the most severe

mistake that a student can make on an AP lang synthesis essay, and that is not using three sources. I've seen it happen

where a student wrote a pretty decent essay, but they only had two sources, not three. And so, because of that, they

could only earn a score of a one out of four in row B. So, here are a couple quick fixes to avoid this happening.

Quick fix number one is going to be to plan your main ideas and which sources you will use before you write. I

encourage my students to make a pretty simple outline before they actually start their essay. So, they'll put their

thesis, main idea one, and they'll say what main idea one is. Then, underneath that, they'll put the sources they

intend to use. Some students do a little bit more. They might put their evidence and commentary, but on the exam, you

don't have a ton of time. Then they'll do main idea 2 and they'll put the sources they intend to use for that one.

This allows them to make sure that they have three total sources and it becomes a bit of a checklist. Double check that

you have three sources before moving on to your next essay on the AP Lang exam or if it's an in-class assignment, make

sure that you double check that you've included three sources before you turn your assignment in. Quick fix number two

is going to be for a situation where you realize that time is running out and you've only got two sources so far. So,

here's what you can do. While it might not be the best solution, you can squeeze in another source. I've seen

students do this where they added it to their intro. Maybe they used a source that defined what the topic was. Or I've

even seen students include a source in their conclusion. Now, of course, the execution of this matters. Preferably,

you're not just going to haphazardly drop in a source, but technically this could be a way to get that third source

in if the clock is ticking and you have like next to no time left. So, quick fix number two is more of a failsafe

strategy if you are legitimately out of time and you got to squeeze in that third source. Probably the most common

mistake that I see students making on their AP lang synthesis essays is limited commentary. So many of the

essays that score a one 120, they just simply need more developed commentary. Their thesis is fine. They have decent

main ideas. They've selected appropriate evidence. It's just that the commentary is not driving the essay forward to

break into those upper scores on the rubric. So, here are some quick tips for you. Ask yourself why, how, or so what.

So, think about it this way. Why did I choose this evidence? What does it show? Now, you want to use a different word

besides shows if possible. So, you could do demonstrates, underscores, illustrates, highlights. There are

several other verbs you could use. You can also add a because clause because when you say the word because, you're

adding on why. And commentary is essentially why. It's why the evidence is significant and how it proves your

thesis. Sometimes though, students add a because clause and it's still a little bit superficial. So sometimes you almost

need to do a double because meaning you need to keep asking yourself why and developing that commentary more. So if

you add the word because you want to make sure that your answer after that is detailed and specific. Be thorough and

encourage yourself to think big picture too like why is this actually important? It also helps if you include linking

language. This could be words like consequently, thus, therefore. Those words help you

transition between your ideas and can help you potentially develop your commentary more. They also help with

effective transitions, which can sometimes help your line of reasoning. Another common mistake that I see

students making is improper citations. On the AP Lang exam, students can site using the author's last name or the

source letter. So, like source A. In my experience, most students do the latter. And for me as a teacher, I teach my

students to do the source letter. And that's simply because for me, that's how I remember the sources. And so it's

easier for me to grade when students say source A as opposed to the author's last name. Now, when you're in college,

you're going to use the author's last name for MLA or APA citations. So, it's good to know both methods. The source

letter thing is just personally my preference. Whichever method you choose though, you want to be consistent at the

AP reading. In my experience, readers are typically encouraged to count the source if it is clear which source the

student is referring to, even if there isn't a citation. Now, personally, I would not leave this to chance. I would

double check that I had not only three sources, but that all of my evidence had a proper citation. I can tell you as a

teacher and a reader, it is really frustrating when students don't site their evidence because then I have to go

back and figure out which source it came from. And then on top of that, I have to figure out was it a third source or was

it the same as their first or second source because that means I'm trying to figure out if the student has three

sources since that affects their evidence and commentary score. Now, while I will do this, I will go back and

check and see if I can figure out which source the student is talking about. It is a little bit frustrating. I'm not

going to lie. And that problem can be solved by you, the student, including a proper citation in the first place. So,

please make sure that you are citing your evidence. If you need help with your citations, I do have two different

videos about synthesis citations. One is admittedly shorter, whereas the other one is longer and more detailed. I'll

include links to both of them in the description box below. That way, you can choose which video is more useful to

you. Also, as an added tip, I personally encourage my students to avoid saying according to source A. This does count

as a citation, and it's better than nothing, but personally, I like to have them use the original source material.

So, let's say that the original source was a research study from Pew Research in 2017. Instead of saying according to

source A, I would have them say according to a 2017 Pew research study. I personally feel like that sounds

better. It's a way to weave in the evidence more naturally and more smoothly. It's also less jarring to the

reader because it's giving credit to where the source came from. Therefore, it's helping to explain why you would

include that evidence. In some sense, it adds credibility to the source. So, you could state where the source came from,

the author's name. And there's different ways to do it. I go over this more in those videos that I mentioned. But then

when you're done with that sentence, at the end you can include a parenthetical citation. That's when you would put

source A in parenthesis and the period would go outside the parenthesis. Another common mistake on AP lang

synthesis essays is when students summarize the sources rather than actually analyzing. So it's okay to give

a bit of context to introduce the evidence. Doing so helps the evidence seem less jarring. But at the same time,

we want to avoid summarizing the sources because summary is not analysis. So, please don't write your whole essay

saying source A says this and then giving us a summary and then source B says this and then another summary. Your

job is not to tell us what the sources say, but rather your job is to use evidence from the sources to support

your argument. We want your voice to shine through. So instead of telling what the source is about, you want to

explain how the quote you've chosen proves your thesis. So less summary, more

analysis. Another common mistake is underdeveloped broader context. I tend to see this for students who are trying

to earn the sophistication point. And so I'm glad to see students attempting it, but let me tell you how to fix it.

Broader context is when you include information beyond what is provided in the sources. This can include personal

experience, historical knowledge, just general outside knowledge. So for example, for the historical preservation

prompt, which was one of the prompts from 2024, simply mentioning historical locations is not enough. So for

instance, if students said something like historical places like the Alamo or the Eiffel Tower, just named dropping

those places is not broader context. However, if a student were to select a historical site that connects to the

main idea they're trying to prove and analyze the value of this place by providing details, that could

potentially be broader context. So, for example, one of the sources in that packet brought up the idea that some

people are in favor of modernizing historical buildings, especially historical homes, like for instance,

adding solar panels, but then those who are opposed to it feel like it's ruining the aesthetic. So, let's say that your

town has a historical building, like maybe there's a historic downtown in your area. You could potentially tell an

anecdote about that depending on which side you're on. Talking about how no, it doesn't ruin the aesthetic. You can keep

the charm on the outside and have modern interior. Or if you're on the opposite side, you could talk about, yeah, it

totally does ruin the aesthetic and here's why. Here's what it looked like and that kind of thing. So by providing

those extra details and connecting some outside knowledge to what the source says, you can develop that broader

context. Another example that some of my students like to use is when we cover the library synthesis prompt. There is

one source in there that is essentially a library schedule and it talks about different classes offered at the

library. Now, in my opinion, there's plenty to say about that source alone, but some of my students like to connect

that source to their own experience in a library. So, they talk about their experience with the different library

programs during the summer. And by going into detail and explaining its significance, they're going beyond the

source. And so if executed well and consistently, it can potentially lead to broader context. So the way to avoid

this common mistake is to really develop your broader context. Add in specific details and make sure it's clear why

you're including that outside information rather than just named dropping. Another common mistake is a

lack of conversation. So, you might have heard of a synthesis essay being called a conversation of sources. If you think

about a conversation, there are at least two voices. A good conversation isn't

one-sided. And so, in a synthesis essay, in my opinion at least, if an essay has three body paragraphs, each of the body

paragraphs has only one source. The essay can feel more like a summary than an argument. And oftentimes the

paragraphs can seem disjointed. The essay can have a weak line of reasoning. One way to fix this would be to include

two sources in at least one body paragraph. These two sources can agree, disagree, or just simply highlight

different perspectives of the main idea of the paragraph. By including two voices in a body paragraph, it's

starting that conversation. You can continue the conversation by having strong transitions between your

paragraphs. It also helps if you think about which main idea should be first versus second. I've heard it termed an

irreversible line of reasoning. Meaning, there should be a reason why your first body paragraph has the main idea that it

does. And the same for the second and third if you have a third. Thinking about the order of your body paragraphs

can also help that conversation because like I said, it helps with those transitions. When you include two

sources in one of your body paragraphs, be sure to use linking language, whether it's similarly or conversely or other

types of transitional phrases to help smooth out that conversation. All right, there you have it. Those are the most

common mistakes that I have seen in AP Lang synthesis essays. If you found this video helpful, please give it a thumbs

up and also don't forget to subscribe. That way you don't miss any upcoming videos as you are preparing for the AP

Lang exam. Thank you so much for watching and until next time, happy writing.