In previous posts, like “AP Exam Info Release” & “Big Changes to May 2020 AP Exams,” we explain the new May 2020 45-minute online AP exam format. Since the College Board released the exam formatting, we’ve fielded lots of questions and want to provide you with a helpful study resource.
Let’s break down what you need to know (and what you don’t) for the Most Popular AP Courses in San Diego.
AP Humanities Courses
AP English Language & Composition
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What to Focus On--The entire 2020 exam will be a Rhetorical Analysis of a nonfiction passage. Study recent years’ FRQ #2 (Rhetorical Analysis); practice describing rhetorical situations, strategies, devices, and appeals. Click here for link to Previous Years’ AP Lang Tests.
AP English Literature & Composition
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What to Focus On--The entire 2020 exam will be a Prose Fiction Analysis. Study recent years’ FRQ #2 (Prose Fiction Analysis); practice describing literary devices and supporting reasoning with textual evidence. Click here for link to Previous Years’ AP Lit Tests.
AP US, World, and European History
Each AP History course has the same 2020 AP format: a modified 5-document DBQ. Practice analyzing historical documents because you will be given 5 documents to analyze, attribute context to, and use to support your thesis. Study recent years’ FRQ #1 (DBQ Essay).
AP United States History
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What You Don’t Need to Know--You will NOT be tested on any material prior to 1754 or after 1945. Focus studying content between 1754 & 1945. Click here for link to Previous Years’ AP US FRQs.
AP World History
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What You Don’t Need to Know--You will NOT be tested on any material after 1900. Focus on studying content between 1200 & 1900. Click here for link to Previous Years’ AP World FRQs.
AP European History
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What You Don’t Need to Know--You will NOT be tested on 20th Century Global Conflicts or the Cold War and Contemporary Europe. Click here for link to Previous Years’ AP Euro FRQs.
AP Art History
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What to Focus On--Study recent years’ FRQ #1 (Comparison Essay) & FRQ #6 (Continuity & Change Essay) because these are the 2 free response questions of the 2020 exam. Click here for link to Previous Years’ AP Art History FRQs.
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What You Don’t Need to Know--You will NOT be tested on art from West, Central, South, East, or Southeast Asia, from the Pacific, or from the Global Contemporary units.
AP Government & Politics: United States
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What to Focus On--Study recent years’ FRQ #1 (Concept Application) & FRQ #4 (Argument Essay) because these are the 2 free response questions of the 2020 exam. Focus on American democracy’s foundations, interactions among branches of government, civil liberties and civil rights. Click here for link to Previous Years’ AP Gov FRQs.
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What You Don’t Need to Know--You will NOT be tested on material from the units on American political ideologies and beliefs or political participation.
AP Psychology
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What to Focus On--Study recent years’ concept application and research methods questions. Click here for link to Previous Years’ AP Psych FRQs.
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What You Don’t Need to Know--You will NOT be tested on material concerning clinical psychology or social psychology (Units 8 & 9).
AP Math & Science Courses
AP Calculus AB
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What You Don’t Need to Know-- You will NOT be tested on applications of integration: no areas under the curve, between two curves, or volumes. Click here for link to previous years’ FRQs.
AP Calculus BC
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What You Don’t Need to Know--You will NOT be tested on the units covering Parametric, Polar, and Vector Coordinates, and Taylor & Maclaurin Series. Click here for link to previous years’ FRQs.
AP Statistics
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What You Don’t Need to Know-- You will NOT be tested on the Chi-Square Test or Regression Modeling. Click here for link to previous years’ FRQs.
AP Biology
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What to Focus On-- Study recent years’ FRQ #1 and FRQ #4 because these will be the two questions for the 2020 online AP Exam. Click here for link to previous years’ FRQs.
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What You Don’t Need to Know--Evolution and ecology units will NOT be tested on the exam.
AP Chemistry
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What You Don’t Need to Know-- You will NOT be tested on acids and bases, thermodynamics, or electrochemistry. Click here for link to previous years’ FRQs.
AP Physics
For both AP Physics courses, practice recent years’ FRQ questions, with a focus on short answer argument questions where students must qualitatively explain physic’s phenomena. Click here for link to previous years’ FRQs: Physics 1 & Physics 2.
AP Physics 1
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What You Don’t Need to Know-- You will NOT be tested on electrostatics, circuits, or waves.
AP Physics 2
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What You Don’t Need to Know-- You will NOT be tested on optics or nuclear physics.
AP Environmental Science
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What to Focus On--The 2020 AP Exam format will be FRQ #1, which involves designing an investigation of an authentic environmental scenario, and FRQ #2, which involves analyzing an authentic environmental problem and proposing a solution. Click here for link to previous years’ FRQs.
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What You Don’t Need to Know-- You will NOT need to know the units covering aquatics and terrestrial pollution and global change.
Past FRQs, student sample responses to past FRQs, and scoring rubrics are available on each AP course at the College Board’s AP Central website. Links are embedded above.
If you have additional questions or would like study support, please contact us. We’re here to help!