Consider the following original claim: “Those closest to a problem often see what distant planners miss, but proximity alone does not settle the solution.” Write an essay that argues your position on the extent to which this claim is valid. Support your reasoning with evidence from reading, observation, or experience.
What the evaluator is looking for
AP readers look for a defensible thesis, relevant specific evidence, commentary that establishes a line of reasoning, and sophistication through qualification, broader context, or recognition of tensions.
Planning approach
Value proximity for observation while requiring broader data and comparison, using flood planning and school reform as complementary cases.
Model response
People closest to a problem often possess details that distant planners overlook, but proximity does not grant a complete view or automatic authority over the solution. Good decisions combine lived knowledge with comparative evidence, technical analysis, and attention to people whose local power is weaker.
Flood planning illustrates the value of residents' experience. A neighborhood may know which underpass fills first, which elderly households lack transportation, and how water actually moves after a storm. A regional model that ignores those observations can produce an elegant but useless evacuation plan. Yet one homeowner's memory cannot estimate the probability of future rainfall or determine how an upstream project affects another town.
School reform presents a similar tension. Teachers understand classroom routines and unintended administrative burdens better than a consultant visiting for two days. Students and families, however, may see harms that staff have normalized. Research across districts can reveal whether a favored local practice works elsewhere. Planners should therefore involve multiple local groups early, publish how their evidence changed the proposal, and explain when larger-scale findings point elsewhere. The choice is not between experts and residents. It is between narrow certainty and an inquiry capable of joining different scales of knowledge. Proximity earns a hearing; sound reasoning determines the final weight.
Structural breakdown
Flood response separates granular observation from probabilistic modeling. School reform adds power differences among local actors, leading to a process that documents how evidence affects decisions.
- Name details only nearby people may observe.
- Identify questions requiring broader expertise.
- Include less powerful local perspectives.
- Explain how conflicting evidence will be weighed.
Format reference: College Board: AP English Language Past Exam Questions. This model is original and is not an official or accepted submission.