Training for AP Comparative Government and Politics as a 10th Grader

The following Advanced Placement (AP) Comparative Government and Politics article was written by Bobby Li, high school class of 2023. Since Bobby was only a 10th grader, he was not eligible to enroll in his high school’s AP course. Instead, he was trained by the faculty at Presidio Education®. With training from both Ryan Young, Founder & CEO (English Teacher), and Martin Nobida, English Teacher, Bobby earned a perfect AP 5 score on the May 2021 College Board AP Comparative Government and Politics exam.

About AP Comparative Government and Politics

The Advanced Placement (AP) Comparative Government and Politics course covers six countries, which are China, Iran, Mexico, Nigeria, Russia and the United Kingdom. The course examines key aspects of each country’s government and politics through five units. The first unit is on political systems, regimes and governments. The second unit is on political institutions, such as government branches. The third unit is on political culture and participation. The fourth unit is on parties, electoral systems and citizen organizations, such as non-government organizations (NGOs). The last unit focuses on the political and economic development of each country, such as Nigeria’s oil and China’s manufacturing sectors. 

College Board wants students to learn about comparative politics so that students can develop their understanding of countries worldwide. Learning about comparative politics can also help students apply their critical thinking skills to real-world political situations. Students should take this AP because the course allows students to become more knowledgeable about how the world actually functions, which is important for life in the future. Students who are serious about their academic careers and interested in global politics should take this course. This is because the AP Comparative Government and Politics exam requires students to have high-level language composition skills and critical-thinking skills. Furthermore, a deep understanding and the ability to apply the complex variety of knowledge concepts covered in the course are required.

Staying Motivated and Disciplined 

The most challenging topics were on political culture. This is because the political cultures of the course countries are so distinct. They really require students to critically analyze the history of the countries to understand the current political decisions and situations. I would advise students to carefully watch out for the phrasing of questions. For example, if a question asks for “two examples from Russia and Nigeria”, then this means that the student will need to provide four examples in total. Oftentimes, students will neglect the details of the questions and simply provide two examples, which is incomplete. The toughest question-types are the argumentative essays because they test students on their problem-solving skills and require a well-planned argument. I had to stay humble and focused to deal with the pressure of taking a 12th grade AP as a 10th grader. I worked hard to avoid complacency in order to continue progressing. This is because I constantly reminded myself of my future and about how bad I wanted to be successful. However, motivation is only half of what is required to succeed. Discipline makes up for the second half. This is because without discipline, nothing will come into practice.

Advice on Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs) and the Content

I would recommend students to not rush the multiple-choice questions (MCQs). I urge students to read all of the possible answer choices before choosing the final answer. In addition, students should use time management skills effectively so that they can review all of the MCQs before submitting the exam. I studied MCQs quite often when I was taking weekly diagnostic tests (DTs) in the second semester. Some tricky topics about the course are about the political structures of each country. This requires students to be familiar with the exact political institutions of each country, which can get confusing sometimes. When given supplementary material, I recommend first reading the questions related to the tables, graphs, or figures. Reading the supplementary material carefully and making connections between questions and answers is really helpful.

Advice on Writing and Thinking Skills

The free-response questions (FRQs) must be answered clearly, concisely and to the point. Students should avoid going off-topic and writing unnecessary information for the responses. Students should start training for the FRQs immediately after they finish learning all of the course content. I would first analyze the question type and question goal before executing the FRQs. This strategy can help deliver focused and well-composed responses. Writing formal, structured paragraphs is extremely important because AP courses require academic writing. Academic writing can also show AP graders that the students are intelligent. The two most important aspects of building the Question #4 essay argument are the thesis and counterargument. The thesis is the backbone of the whole essay and should help students to flow their thoughts into writing. The counterargument needs to be well thought out before writing so that the process can still be smooth under time constraints. Planning before writing and proofreading after writing are crucial for points. 

The Sacrifices

Admittedly, I had poor time management skills in the beginning and I regret starting training late and only having one class in the fall semester. This put me in a very bad situation in the second semester as everything was on a tight schedule, which really increased my stress. Students who are considering taking AP courses should start training as soon as possible. I recommend that students start training in the summer so that the heavy lifting, such as textbook readings, can be out of the way before the school year, which can significantly decrease stress. The problem with rushing free-response question (FRQ) training is that writing takes time to develop and adapt. Rushing writing training will not help students improve their writing skills in the long-term and retention will be weak. AP writing needs a lot of repetition and diagnostic tests (DTs) to truly develop. I learned that self-studying a 12th grade AP as a 10th grader is definitely something that is not for all students. A lot of hard work and determination are required. Furthermore, I learned that as a 10th grader, I had to be as sharp as a 12th grader with critical thinking and writing skills.

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