Culture Composition: Content - College Board...Culture Composition Overview This task tests the...

AP® ITALIAN LANGUAGE AND CULTURE 2006 SCORING GUIDELINES

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Culture Composition: Content 9 EXCELLENT Demonstrates excellence in cultural knowledge

• Composition fully accomplishes all requirements of the prompt. • Cultural information is accurate and relevant with few and

insignificant errors. • Coherent and cohesive synthesis of cultural information;

considerable interpretation that goes beyond factual knowledge.

7–8 VERY GOOD Demonstrates competence in cultural knowledge • Composition clearly addresses all requirements of the prompt; if

composition does not cite at least one cultural work but does fully satisfy all other requirements of this category it may receive a 7 or an 8.

• Cultural information is accurate and relevant with few substantive errors.

• Coherent synthesis of cultural information; some interpretation that goes beyond factual knowledge.

5–6 GOOD Suggests competence in cultural knowledge

• Composition addresses most requirements of the prompt; may describe only one aspect of example chosen.

• Cultural information has some substantial inaccuracies and may be unrelated to the prompt.

• Presentation of cultural information is undeveloped; may be presented as a list or as several items in isolation.

3–4 WEAK Suggests lack of competence in cultural knowledge

• Composition addresses requirements of the prompt partially or inadequately.

• Cultural information is frequently inaccurate or irrelevant. • Presentation of cultural information is minimal, sporadic, and

undeveloped.

1–2 VERY WEAK Demonstrates lack of competence in cultural knowledge • Composition fails to address almost all aspects required by the

prompt. • Cultural information is almost entirely lacking or in all cases is

inaccurate or irrelevant.

0 UNACCEPTABLE Contains nothing that earns credit • Mere restatement of the prompt. • Completely irrelevant to the topic. • Not in Italian. • Blank

AP® ITALIAN LANGUAGE AND CULTURE 2006 SCORING GUIDELINES


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Culture Composition: Language 9 EXCELLENT Demonstrates excellence in written expression

• Rich vocabulary and idioms. • Excellent use of transitional elements, grammar, and syntax, with

minimal errors in complex structures. • Excellent use of orthography, accents, punctuation, and paragraphs. • Very appropriate style and register.

7–8 VERY GOOD Demonstrates competence in written expression • Appropriate vocabulary and idioms. • Very good use of transitional elements, grammar, and syntax, with

occasional errors in complex structures. • Very good use of orthography, accents, punctuation, and paragraphs. • Appropriate style and register.

5–6 GOOD Suggests competence in written expression • Mostly appropriate vocabulary and idioms, with occasional

interference from another language. • Some use of transitional elements; occasional errors in basic grammar

and syntax, which interfere minimally with comprehension. • Occasional errors in orthography, accents, punctuation, and

paragraphs. • Mostly appropriate style and register.

3–4 WEAK Suggests lack of competence in written expression • Limited vocabulary and idioms, with frequent interference from

another language. • Minimal or no use of transitional elements; numerous errors in basic

grammar and syntax, which interfere with comprehension. • Faulty use of orthography, accents, punctuation, and paragraphs. • Lack of appropriate style and register.

1–2 VERY WEAK Demonstrates lack of competence in written expression • Insufficient, inappropriate vocabulary and idioms; constant

interference from another language. • Little or no control of grammar and syntax, which interferes

significantly with comprehension. • Pervasive errors in orthography, accents, punctuation, and paragraphs.

0 UNACCEPTABLE Contains nothing that earns credit • Mere restatement of the prompt. • Completely irrelevant to the topic. • Not in Italian. • Blank

AP® ITALIAN LANGUAGE AND CULTURE 2006 SCORING COMMENTARY


Culture Composition Overview This task tests the ability to write a formal composition on a cultural topic. It comprises a single prompt, which identifies a cultural topic; directs the student to select an example of that topic and explain what makes it significant; and specifies that the response should be justified with references to specific cultural information. The student is allotted 30 minutes to write a composition of about 150 words. The response receives two holistic scores, one for content (i.e., cultural knowledge) and one for language usage, based on the criteria outlined in the task directions. In calculating the total score, content is weighted 80 percent and language, 20 percent. The student must write a well-organized and coherent composition, as if he or she were submitting it to an Italian writing contest. The work is evaluated for knowledge of Italian culture, as well as organization and clarity, range and appropriateness of vocabulary, grammatical accuracy, and spelling. The AP Language and Culture Course Description lists five general areas from which the composition’s specific topic may be taken. This year students had to choose an Italian industry, describe at least two different aspects that make it important, and explain why. Furthermore, students had to justify their opinions with at least one cultural reference, but they could also cite personal experiences and class discussions. Finally, the prompt included examples of industries, aspects of industries, and types of cultural references; students could choose from these examples or use their own. Sample: AAA Content Score: 9 Language Score: 8 Content: The composition received a score of 9 because it completely answers the questions in the prompt. It conveys a clear understanding that fashion is an important Italian industry (“Se non ci fosse la moda, millioni di persone non avrebbero un lavoro”) and that it has a positive economic impact (“I personaggi rappresentativi della moda sono persone molto ricche”). The entire composition offers interesting interpretations that go beyond factual knowledge. The second paragraph gives a clear vision of the difference between the meaning of fashion and that of clothing, implying the passage from clothing/necessity (“con il solo scopo di coprire dal freddo”) to fashion/beauty. The student suggests (without stating directly ) the reason why this is not surprising is that Italian fashion is, on the one hand, among the best in the world, and on the other hand, extremely expensive: “ . . . un industria che può cambiare completamente quattro volte all’anno,” “Nonostante l’industria della moda italiana esce sempre fuori con prodotti estraordinari.” Factual knowledge (“Prada,” “Milano”) is lightly incorporated into a reference to a personal experience so that the reader is never overwhelmed. The overall impression is one of detailed and personal knowledge that is not derived solely from the reading of fashion magazines. Language: This composition demonstrates a very good command of the language used to convey its message. There are numerous very advanced structures, like the use of hypothetical clauses (“Se non ci fosse la moda, millioni di persone non avrebbero un lavoro”), the passive form in the indicativo trapassato (“un disegno che era stato fatto”), the si impersonale (“si vedeva che le persone”), and the passage from direct to indirect discourse (“‘È bellissimo, ma è molto difficile lavorare in un industria che può cambiare completamente quattro volte all’anno,’ mi diceva”). The student presents some transitional elements, almost always used appropriately (“Una volta,” “Nonostante,” “In conclusione”). However, there are occasional grammatical mistakes, like the use of the wrong indefinite article (“un industria” for



Culture Composition (continued)

un’industria); capitalization of adjectives of nationality (“Italiana” for italiana); “che,” instead of degli, when making a comparison; some spelling errors (“millioni” for milioni, “addossi” for indossi); and some interference from another language (“estraordinari” for straordinari, “spendono . . . sulla moda” for spendere per la) that do not interfere with comprehension. Sample: FF Content Score: 5 Language Score: 3 Content: This composition received a score of 5 because it addresses most of the requirements in the prompt. It considers two specific characteristics of Italian fashion, e.g., the city of Milan as the world capital of fashion (“‘La Moda Capitale Del Mondo’”) and the Italian designers (“Gucci, Armani, Versace, Valentino, ecc.”), though the presentation of cultural elements is undeveloped. The reasons offered for the importance of fashion are very simplistic and often do not go beyond a generic adjective such as “popolare,” repeated numerous time in this composition. However, it is possible to point out some passages where one can see a possible attempt at interpretation: in the second paragraph, if we make the probable correction of “svegliate” to sfilate, the focus switches to how fashion shows contribute to the success of these designers. There is also an attempt to make a connection between fashion and cinema, showing that, thanks to the movie industry, fashion finds another good way to advertise itself. Language: This composition suggests lack of competence in written expression. The vocabulary is limited and often repeated throughout the composition (“popolare”), and there are numerous errors in basic grammar, such as noun/adjective agreement (“altri parti” for altre parti; “informazioni sono molto interessante” for informazioni sono molto interessanti), wrong articles (“un influenza” for un’influenza), use of an infinitive in place of the present tense (“le persone si preoccupare” for le persone si preoccupano), incorrect use of accents and apostrophes (“in’Italia,” “perche”), and interference from another language (“un influenza” for un influsso). In at least two sentences, syntax is so convoluted that it is almost impossible to understand the meaning (“Questi film fa la gente voglia di sapere la moda più nuova,” and “Quindi, i film società sono popolari, anche”). Paragraphs are organized appropriately, and there is some good use of transitional elements (“Altre volte,” “Per esempio,” “Quindi”). Sample: RR Content Score: 2 Language Score: 2 Content: This composition demonstrates lack of cultural knowledge and is almost off topic. In fact, the student focuses mainly on the world car industry rather than on the Italian one. For this reason cultural information is almost entirely lacking and for the most part irrelevant. Because Ferrari is mentioned as an Italian car factory and because there is mention of another car manufacturer, Lamborghini, which has been sold to Germany, the composition did not score a zero. The only description given of a Ferrari is that it is a fast car (“svelto”). After this statement, and a quick reference to car racing, the composition gives a simple list of Japanese cars that the student does not like. The student concludes with a reference to a personal experience that is once again totally irrelevant to the questions raised by the prompt: Ferrari and Lamborghini have been forgotten, and two German cars are mentioned, Audi and BMW, the previous and the present car of the student.



Culture Composition (continued) Language: This composition demonstrates lack of competence in written expression. Numerous spelling mistakes (“diferente” for differente, “Ferarri” for Ferrari, “piacce” for piace, “poui” for puoi, “qualitia” for qualità, “Uropa” for Europa); absence of accents (“perche,” “piu”); the third person singular of essere in the present indicative; noun–adjective agreement and adjective position (“il mio preferito macchina”); and incorrect subject–verb agreement (”tutti sei macchine” for tutte sono macchine, “Ma Audi hanno comprato” for Ma l’Audi l’ha comprata, “le macchine che venga” for le machine che vengono). Vocabulary is insufficient with many repetitions (“macchine”), and there is interference from English (“Germany” and “Japan”). Additionally, there is only one paragraph no use of transitional elements.

Culture Composition: Content - College Board...Culture Composition Overview This task tests the...

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