Synthesis Formative

Note: This assessment is slightly different from what you will be doing on the day of the AP exam, but the prompt is in the AP style and it will encourage you to exercise all of the same skills that are demanded of you when writing a synthesis essay.

Prompt:

John Dewey, an American philosopher and proponent of progressive education, laid out the foundations of his philosophy of education in the 1897 text “My Pedagogic Creed.” He wrote the following in the essay: “I believe that the individual who is to be educated is a social individual and that society is an organic union of individuals. If we eliminate the social factor from the child we are left only with an abstraction; if we eliminate the individual factor from society, we are left only with an inert and lifeless mass.” He also went on to say the following: “I believe that education… is a process of living and not a preparation for future living.”

While some argue the purpose of education is to prepare students for the workforce, others, like Dewey, maintain that education is “a process of living” that socializes students in their communities. Consider your position on the purpose of education and write an essay that synthesizes information from at least three sources to develop your argument.

In your response you should do the following:

· Respond to the prompt with a thesis that presents a defensible position

· Select and use evidence from at least three sources (you may research your own sources, but please use at least two of the sources below)

· Indicate clearly the sources used through direct quotation, paraphrase, or summary. Sources may be cited as Source A, Source B, etc. or by using the description in parentheses

· Explain how the evidence supports your line of reasoning

· Use appropriate grammar and punctuation in communicating your argument

Sources:

Source A: Why We Desperately Need To Bring Back Vocational Training In Schools

Source B: Preparing American Students for the Workforce of the Future

Source C: School is For Social Mobility

Source D: Ghosts in the Schoolyard (Chapter 4)

Source E: “High School Doesn’t Have to Be Boring.”

Source F: What is Steiner Waldorf Education?

Source G: School Is for Making Citizens

Source H: Why Is Early Childhood Education So Important?

Please write your essay in the space below: