AP Scoring Rubric: Fiat Homo
The 9-point scoring rubric for the Brother Francis and the old pilgrim essay.
| Score | What the essay shows |
|---|---|
| 9–8 | These essays clearly and specifically identify Br. Francis’s evolving attitudes and select supporting details that cogently explain how the diction, setting, actions, and imagery within the passage convey Br. Francis’s attitude. Well conceived, well developed, and well organized, these papers are marked by frequent and accurate references to the passage. They also exhibit an admirable ability to synthesize thought into a persuasive response and a mature control over the elements of composition. Though not perfect, they clearly indicate the student’s ability to use analysis of the passage to respond to the prompt in fluent and cogent fashion. |
| 7–6 | These essays may identify Br. Francis’s evolving attitudes and select appropriate details of dialogue, setting, actions, and symbolism that convey the evolving attitudes, but they are less adept at showing how those details develop that change. This lesser effectiveness may be due to a failure to fully delineate the connection between the details and the change, to less significant or less frequent use of details, or to less control over the elements of effective composition. Though these essays reflect the writers’ abilities to convey their points clearly, they feature less fluency, cogency, or development than the 9-8 papers. |
| 5 | These essays respond to the prompt in superficial, formulaic, inconsistent, or insufficiently supported ways. The papers are generally written in a satisfactory manner, with occasional errors in composition or mechanics that do not impede the reader’s understanding. Nevertheless, these essays lack the organization, persuasiveness, and development of upper-half papers. |
| 4–3 | These lower-half essays many times select only partially appropriate examples. Often they do not suggest full comprehension of the prompt or are marked by a failure to provide supporting references and/or an insufficient control over the elements of composition. In some instances they may feature problems in organization, clarity, fluency, or development. |
| 2–1 | These essays are typically marked by an egregious misunderstanding of the prompt or by the selection of a totally ineffectual text. Many contain serious and distracting errors in grammar and mechanics, or are marked by an oversimplification that precludes any successful response to the question. Though some of these essays may attempt to address the themes of carelessness and irresponsibility, they are severely limited by gross deficiencies in organization, clarity, fluency, or development. |
AP grade conversion chart
| Essay score | Grade |
|---|---|
| 9 | A |
| 8 | A- |
| 7 | B |
| 6 | B- |
| 5 | C |
| 4 | C- |
| 3 | D+ |
| 2 | D |
| 1 | D- |