L15: Big Idea 5-Team, Transform, Transmit-Performance Assessment Task-The Academic Paper

Lesson 15: Learning Goals Identify specific components of the academic paper portion of the assessment task associated with the rubric to evaluate your current level of performance. Learning Objective 5.1A[R]: Planning and producing a cohesive academic paper, considering audience, context, and purpose. Learning Objective 5.1C: Communicating information through appropriate media using effective techniques of design.

Lesson 15: Focus Take a moment to look at the academic paper task description and the rubric that your teacher will provide you. You can also find the academic paper task description at the link below on pp. 56-57: https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/digitalServices/pdf/ap/ap-research-course-and-exam-description.pdf Review the Academic Paper rubric that your teacher will provide to you.

Lesson 15: Focus Contemplate your strengths and weaknesses as a student researcher/writer and ask yourself these questions: How well have I been performing on lessons/tasks throughout the year to be successful on the AP Research Academic Paper? For which required elements of the Academic Paper am I still struggling?

L15: Teach

The AP Research Student Experience Identify a research question/project goal of your own choosing in an area of personal interest. Gather initial information for background and context on your research question/ project goal. Choose or design a research method and identify resources to develop your research proposal. Submit a proposal form to receive approval prior to starting your inquiry. Gather additional information, data, and evidence through a carefully chosen and aligned research method. Engage in the inquiry process and writing of Academic Paper with expert advisor/teacher guidance if warranted. Document and reflect upon the research process and communication with their teacher and any outside expert adviser(s) using a process and reflection portfolio (PREP).

AP Capstone Research Assessment Components Academic Paper: (75% of AP Grade) 4,000-5,000 word paper Addressing the student’s inquiry topic/process/findings Containing the required elements (see next slide) Graphs, data tables, images, appendices, and the bibliography are not part of the total word count for the academic paper. Students must adhere to the AP Capstone Policy on Plagiarism and Falsification or Fabrication of Information Students must also observe ethical practices when gathering information through such vehicles as interviews or discussions (obtain IRB approval where necessary), and be prepared to sign agreements with individuals, institutions, or organizations that provide primary and private data. Students are required to keep a PREP throughout their involvement with the course.

Elements of the Academic Paper 75% of students’ AP Research grade consists of a 4000-5000 word academic paper containing the elements listed in the table. These elements should be presented in a style and structure appropriate to the discipline in which the topic resides (e.g., psychology, science, music). These elements are not necessarily “sections” of the paper (that depends on style of the discipline and student’s choice).

The Academic Paper Rubric The Academic Paper rubric is in the style of what we call a holistic rubric. What that means is, a single score will be given to the paper as a whole instead of adding up sub-scores that are given for individual criteria (like is done with an analytical rubric). [animation 1] For the Academic Paper, the student can either receive a score of 1,2,3,4, or 5. [Animations 2-7] And even though there are 6 bullets used to describe the finer points of each of these score points or levels of achievement, you are not making a score decision about how many more bullets are reached under one score point versus another. You are making a score decision based on the balance of the strengths and weaknesses of the paper [Animation 8] in relationship to the holistic description of each score point.

The Academic Paper Rubric and Required Elements If you recall, on the previous slide, I stated that you will be making a holistic decision about the balance between the strengths and weaknesses a paper demonstrates with respect to the bullets under each score point. To make it easer for you to find these strengths and weaknesses, here are general descriptions of each of the 6 bullets under each score point: [Animations 1-2] The first bullet pertains to the focus and scope of the topic of inquiry/research question or project goal presented in the paper. [Animations 3-4] The second bullet assesses how well the paper situates their inquiry in the knowledge of the field by putting it in conversation with other studies of multiple perspectives and identifying a reasonable gap in the current field of understanding on the topic. [Animations 5-6] The third bullet addresses the extent to which the paper provides a replicable capital R Research method aligned to the purpose of the inquiry. [Animations 7-8] The fourth bullet focuses on whether or not the paper presents a well-supported new understanding using evidence generated by the student’s research method. [Animations 9-10] The fifth bullet pertains to the quality of the writing in terms of style, design choice, word precision, and frequency of errors that can distract or confuse the reader. [Animations 11-12] And finally, the sixth bullet refers to the way the paper handles the citation and attribution of sources. We are not going to go into much more detail with the rubric than this because there will be an optional training module on the rubric for you to take in December.

Pay Attention to the Verbs and Conjunctions As your instructor goes through every score point of the rubric, pay attention to the difference in verbs for the different bullets in each column (connects, defends, justifies). As your instructor goes through every score point of the rubric, pay attention to the difference in conjunctions for the different bullets in each column (or, and, and/or, and…and). What point level does your writing currently reflect?

L15: Practice I

Let’s focus on Research Method (third bullet) Walk the participants through each level of this bullet and describe the differences between each.

Evaluating One Component 1. Review the Academic Paper rubric components that pertain to the student’s chosen method or research design. 2. In your assigned sample paper, find the elements that pertain to the student’s chosen method or research design. 3. Discuss with your group where the student would be in the achievement level pertaining to this element of the rubric. 4. Discuss what strategy this student could use to move up an achievement level (if warranted). You should use the samples on AP Central for this exercise. This is just one of the samples. https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-research/exam?course=ap-research However, there are three L15 papers provided for you in the DropBox: Disney Stereotypes Macrotermes Expensive Colleges The annotated scores for these papers in evaluating Research Design and the overall score are also provided for you in a word doc

For the Macroterme Paper 5 The response provides a detailed and logically aligned research method, while acknowledging that there are limitations to the conclusions one can make based on the inquiry method chosen. The paper clearly aligns the student's method with the larger project goals and research question, first by noting that while "...the utilization of a full size building..." might be a preferable means of conducting this experiment, that approach would be "...completely impractical given the scope of this project. So instead, a small scale model will suffice as a basis to conclude upon whether or not the design is deserving of further testing or if it requires modifications" (page 3, right column, paragraph 1). Further, the student then goes on to account for the alignment of the temperature recording and analysis of the model, stating that: "This is one of the methods used by Turner in his study of termite mounds in the article ‘On the Mound of Macrotermes michaelseni as an Organ of Respiratory Gas Exchange'" (page 3, right column, paragraph 2).

L15: Practice II

Evaluating the Paper Overall 1. Use the Academic Paper rubric to work with your table group to evaluate the level of overall performance of another student sample. 2. Highlight the evidence in your assigned paper that meets one of the performance levels (points) using the language of the rubric. 3. Discuss what performance level the student paper is demonstrating using the language of the rubric. Come to a consensus on the overall level of performance and document the decision rules your group used to do so. 4. When prompted, you and your group will join forces with all another table to compare notes associated with assigned levels of performance for each paper. 5. If disagreement persists, remind each other to review the task description for the Academic Paper. 6. Once a consensus is reached, discuss what strategies you would use to move this student up an achievement level (if warranted). 7. Be prepared to share your score, decisions for assigning the score, and strategies for improvement with the whole group, when prompted. You should use the samples on AP Central for this exercise. This is just one of the samples. https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-research/exam?course=ap-research However, there are three L15 papers provided for you in the DropBox: Disney Stereotypes Macrotermes Expensive Colleges The annotated scores for these papers in evaluating Research Design and the overall score are also provided for you in a word doc

For the Macroterme Paper 5 Overall this sample elegantly executes every required piece of the AP Research paper. It establishes a clear and narrow focus on at the bottom of the first column of page 3 that it carries through the remainder of the paper. The value of the study to architecture and energy usage is laid out in the same section. The introduction on pages 2 and 3 outlines the existing research on thermoregulation with a particular emphasis on the usage of macroterme building techniques. The paper explicitly identifies its gap by not only justifying its connection to the scholarly literature, but also the relative scarcity of directly relevant academic work. The paper’s method section is detailed and replicable. Its major inquiry choices are critically defended both within the context of the validity of the experiment and the constraints the student is working within, clearly explaining its alignment with the research question. Hiccups in the research process are identified and explained.

For the Macroterme Paper 5 Evidence generated by the research method is analyzed in detail, with logical explanations for deviations. This evidence leads to a critically examined new understanding that is clearly limited within the paper, as its implications and consequences are identified. The paper is written in an accessible and discipline-specific style that enhances the communication of the argument. The few errors in citation (example no full citation of “Plaskolite” in the bibliography) do not sufficiently detract from the paper’s other accomplishments. As a result, the paper earns a score of 5.

L15: Reflect

Reflection-Include your response in your workbook. Now that you have had the opportunity to review three sample papers produced by students who took the AP Research course, contemplate your strengths and weaknesses and ask yourself this question What necessary skills/tasks have I engaged in throughout the year to be successful on the academic paper?