<p>I’m what you would call a “native speaker,” I guess.
My parents both speak Spanish, and it is usually the language spoken at home.</p>
<p>I decided to take the Spanish track at my school instead of the French track because I wanted to have formal education in the language. I knew little grammar, and written accents were painful for me. Also, I wanted to be able to speak, read, and write WELL in my “native” tongue. Living in the United States, I sometimes feel isolated from my Mexican family, and I used my spanish classes as a way to connect and increase communication with family members.</p>
<p>In my spanish classes, I’ve often found that native speakers are often struggling the most. Sometimes, I feel that learning something new is easier than trying to fix what you’ve been using in practice for 15-18 years.</p>
<p>Breaking bad grammar habits has been very difficult for many native speakers. Though native speakers often do have a leg up in basic vocabulary, they lack grooming and formal training. Learning the rules is often hard to do after you’ve been saying things incorrectly for years.</p>
<p>To differentiate between native speakers (or those who studied abroad in an applicable country) and non-native speakers, I am pretty sure there is a box on the AP answer sheet that is bubbled in. I have never and will never take an AP foreign language test, but that box is there for all AP tests (you just ignore it if you are taking something else…)</p>
<p>and you realize that 4 years of Spanish in school cAn get you a 5, just like 4 years of immersion at a young age. You actually put in less time to learning the language than the native speaker.</p>
<p>Who cares about the curve? i didn’t even know about curves until my physics teacher started using them. I think you just can’t get a good score without relying on curves. Its not like if you would get less points if all the native speakers got a 5.</p>
<p>my D is French, she was born in France and my husband and I are french. But we came in the US when my D was 5, she never went back to France (only one time she was 9 ) and she just speaks and understands but she doesn’t know how to write and she reads very bad… she is 100% American! However she took AP French in sophomore HS, and she got only an 4, not even an 5 ! She is going to take AP English Wednesday and I am pretty sure she will get an 5 ! Amazing ? Good luck to All !!!</p>
<p>Well maybe they don’t do the work studying for the AP, but learning English when they move. And if someone speaks two languages, then it should be an advantage to them in an application, whether they show it with an AP or not. Also realize they native speakers generally havn’t been exposed to high school (and especially not college) level writing in there native language, because they would have moved before this. I had to study tons of grammer when I took French AP even though when I go to France no one can tell I don’t live in France. Also, when you take the Ap test they make you check a box if you’re exposed to the language at home and also if you’ve been in the language-speaking country for more than 3 months. This way they adjust the curb.</p>
yeah, it’s dumb, and honestly colleges disregard your score if you are a native speaker. so what’s the point? altho many people are naive and think that “it’s an easy 800”–think again, not all tests are weighted the same!</p>
<p>i’m also a native speaker of Chinese, and I can speak as well as one who grew up in say Taiwan or China…almost. But I can’t write and can barely read, lol, so the AP exam for me would probably almost be useless :p</p>
<p>no. all those native speakers mess up the curve & make it harder for the non-natives to score better …but maybe im just bitter because the only language im fluent in is english</p>
<p>I think they should be able to take them. It’s a way to show their proficiency in a second or third language. It’d also be very hard to define “native speaker.” Do you include people who have lived in the ____-speaking country? If so, how many years? It’s just very hard to define and enforce it.</p>
<p>Taking the class helps sharpens one’s vocabulary and grammar skills in their native language, demonstrated by one’s score on the AP exam. Personally, I took AP Spanish Language to learn the language in a way I could never learn at home by just speaking in Spanish with my family.</p>
<p>Would it be fair to judge a person raised with English being his or her first language as someone who shouldn’t take the English Language exam?</p>
<p>Additionally, AP Spanish Literature is no cake-walk for any student, native speaker or non-native speaker. Why should native speakers be prohibited from taking such exam?</p>
<p>Clearly, as a native English speaker, you have an advantage over a non native speaker, which is my point, just as a native Spanish speaker has an advantage over a non native speaker. So if the latter is unfair, why if the former not?</p>