How to do an AP Euro DBQ AP Euro 2015

The AP Test and the DBQ DBQ is worth 25% of your total nat’l exam score. You will have a 15 minute “reading period” to look over the essay questions and plan. Most of this time will be used on the DBQ, since you have to read all the documents Although you can do the essays in any order, start with the DBQ You can do well with minimal outside information Use more than the suggested 45 minutes if needed

DBQ Rubric This power point follows what is mandated by the College Board for the new national exam. This power point breaks down that rubric for you. NOTE: the rubric for this essay and all essays are the same for AP Euro and AP US. Next year, they will be the same for AP World History.

FIRST Answer the question before looking at the documents. Draw up an outline as to how the dbq answers the question before looking at the documents. You must include outside information in your dbq and this is the only way that you can do so independently of the documents. You will need THREE pieces of outside evidence. They must be included in your body paragraphs. Introduce these pieces of evidence with “Evidence outside of the documents appears with…”

The Introduction Provide context for the essay by describing relevant events or developments (at least a couple of sentences). Create a clear THESIS STATEMENT that answers ALL parts of the question and does not just restate the prompt. Worth another point. Be blunt. Pretend that the reader is stupid.

Body Paragraphs… 3 body paragraphs is standard, though you can do more to fit the question 7-10 sentences per body paragraph Hunker down—there’s a lot to accomplish in these paragraphs

Deciding On What Goes in Body Paragraphs While reading the documents, take notes beside each document as to how each one answers the question. When documents have similar answers, then put them in the same paragraph. You can reuse a document more than once. Again, look for similar answers.

Body Paragraphs… Clear topic sentences that directly ties the paragraph to the thesis statement. Use transitional terms to improve clarity. Use all of the documents as evidence to support your thesis. Use each individually. The exam only makes you use all but one but that is too risky. Incorporate sourcing on at least five documents. Exam makes you use four but that is too risky. See later slides for more info on sourcing.

Outside Evidence Use THREE pieces of specific evidence from outside the documents to support your thesis This is different from the contextualization in your introduction, which has to do with setting the scene for your essay and is focused on broad developments. Again, you will need THREE pieces of outside evidence. They must be included in your body paragraphs. Introduce these pieces of evidence with “Evidence outside of the documents appears with…”

Conclusion Restate your thesis statement using different words. You might do a better job in writing your thesis in the conclusion than you did in the intro, and readers will look here as well. Do it in both places. Impact your essay with synthesis. Make a connection to another geographic area or time period Explain the connection: you can’t just drop a reference and hope the reader knows what you’re talking about. Write five sentences.

Sourcing Sourcing is like “looking under the hood” of the document, what is going on “behind the scenes”, what is “below the surface.” In other words, you have to go beyond what the document actually says and do the kind of thinking that a historian does about the kind of document it is and how to judge its usefulness regarding how it answers the question. Explain WHY.

Sourcing In addition to reading the documents for content, look carefully at…. What type of document is it? Who wrote it and why did they write it? When and where was it written? The above must be relevant factors for how the document answers the question of the dbq. Note: documents are usually in chronological order

Sourcing Pay special attention to the position of the author and how this might influence the document (point-of-view) as it answers the question. Class, Occupation, Religion, Nationality, Gender, Education, Political Affiliation Can also look at author’s intended audience or purpose Write a two sentence explanation. Start with “He/She said this because….”

Examples Per Type of Sourcing P.O.V.: Balthasar Rusow was critical of Catholic priests. He said this because Lutherans were at odds with Catholics and he was a Lutheran minister at a time of continuing disputes between Catholics and Lutherans in the Holy Roman Empire. Type of document: William Clowes was writing to the queen, Since he would not want to anger her and endanger himself, it’s not surprising that he would utter positive remarks about how she carried out her duties.

Attribution Always introduce documents appropriately when using them in an essay Baldasare Castiglione, in The Handbook of the Courtier, said, “…….” (doc 4) Erasmus of Rotterdam, a northern Christian humanist, agreed with….. (doc 7) The 19th century historian, Jacob Burkhardt, wrote that ……… (doc 3)

Things NOT to do Do Not… Summarize each document. Instead, look for how each provides an answer to the question. Use the 1st or 2nd person Exaggerate what a document says (readers know the documents inside and out) Use more than a few quoted words (if any at all) Simple restate the prompt in your thesis Worry about writing style—get to the point

In Short… 1. Introduction: Contextualization (2-3 sentences) and Thesis statement (in three parts). 2-4. Body Paragraphs. Seven docs with P.O.V in five documents. Outside info with THREE specific examples that work with your body paragraphs and are in your body paragraphs. 5. Conclusion: Restated Thesis and five sentence synthesis.

If you do all of these things, congratulations, you have written a top-notch AP DBQ essay!!!!