AP® World History: Modern - Question 3 - Long Essay Question 3 - Economic Rivalries and Imperialism Scoring Guidelines

Sep 29, 2026

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AP® World History: Modern 2025 Scoring Guidelines for Long Essay Question 3 on “Economic Rivalries and Imperialism” evaluate how well student essays address the prompt about the extent to which economic rivalries were the primary motivation for European imperial expansion, c. 1450–1750. The document provides general scoring notes on independent point earning, historically defensible accuracy, and clarity, and details scoring criteria for the thesis/claim and contextualization components, including decision rules and example responses that do or do not earn points.

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Long Essay Question 3: Scoring Guidelines

General Scoring Notes

Reporting Category: Thesis/Claim (0–1 points)

Reporting Category: Contextualization (0–1 points)

2025 AP® World History: Modern Sample Student Responsesand Scoring Commentary Set 1 Inside: Long Essay Question 3 ☑ Scoring Guidelines ☑ Student Samples ☑ Scoring Commentary © 2025 College Board. College Board, Advanced Placement, AP, AP Central, and the acorn logo are registered trademarks of [College Board. Visit College Board on the web: collegeboard.org](College Board. Visit College Board on the web: collegeboard.org). AP Central is the official online home for [the AP Program: apcentral.collegeboard.org](the AP Program: apcentral.collegeboard.org). AP® World History: Modern 2025 Scoring Guidelines Question 3: Long Essay Question, Economic Rivalries and Imperialism 6 points General Scoring Notes • Except where otherwise noted, each point of these rubrics is earned independently; for example, a student could earn a point for evidence without earning a point for thesis/claim. • Accuracy: The components of these rubrics require that students demonstrate historically defensible content knowledge. Given the timed nature of the exam, essays may contain errors that do not detract from their overall quality, as long as the historical content used to advance the argument is accurate. • Clarity: Exam essays should be considered first drafts and thus may contain grammatical errors. Those errors will not be counted against a student unless they obscure the successful demonstration of the content knowledge, skills, and practices described below. In the period circa 1450 to 1750, economic, political, and religious rivalries led many imperial states around the world to expand their territories and influence. Develop an argument that evaluates the extent to which economic rivalries were the primary motivation for the expansion of European empires during this period. © 2025 College Board AP® World History: Modern 2025 Scoring Guidelines | Reporting Category | Scoring Criteria | | | --- | --- | --- | | Row A
Thesis/Claim
(0–1 points) | 0 points
Does not meet the criteria for one point. | 1 point
Responds to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis/claim that establishes a line of reasoning. | | | Decision Rules and Scoring Notes | | | | Responses that do not earn this point:
• Are not historically defensible.
• Only restate or rephrase the prompt.
• Do not respond to the prompt.
• Do not establish a line of reasoning.
• Are overgeneralized. | Responses that earn this point:
• Provide a historically defensible thesis or claim about the extent to which economic rivalries were the primary motivation for the expansion of European empires during the period circa 1450 to 1750. The thesis or claim must either provide some indication of the reason for making that claim OR establish categories of the argument. | | | Examples that do not earn this point:
Provide a restatement of the prompt
• “Economic rivalries were a major factor behind the expansion of European empires in the period circa 1450 to 1750.”
Provide a historically defensible claim, but do not establish a line of reasoning
• “The Spaniards established a maritime empire after Christopher Columbus landed in the Americas.”
Provide a statement that is not historically defensible
• “Europeans established large settler colonies in the Indian Ocean in the period circa 1450 to 1750.” | Examples that earn this point:
Establish a line of reasoning that evaluates the topic of the prompt
• “Global exploration and imperial expansion in the period circa 1450 to 1750 was primarily motivated by economic rivalries because the empires competed over control of not only precious metals and other raw materials, but also labor and land resources.”
Establish a line of reasoning that evaluates the topic of the prompt with analytic categories
• “Chartered and joint-stock companies were an important tool of European imperial expansion, because they combined the economic interests of private merchants an

FAQs

What prompt does Long Essay Question 3 address?

It asks students to develop an argument evaluating the extent to which economic rivalries were the primary motivation for European imperial expansion during c. 1450–1750.

How is the thesis/claim point earned for Question 3?

A thesis/claim earns 1 point when it is historically defensible and establishes a line of reasoning that evaluates the prompt; it may include categories of the argument.

What does contextualization require for Question 3?

Contextualization earns 1 point when the response accurately describes broader historical context relevant to economic rivalries or imperial expansion during c. 1450–1750.

Sep 29, 2026

Upload by Rizky