CHS Offers New AP Puppetry Test

B.T. Dubbs

For two weeks in May, students suffer through the most stressful time of the year: AP tests. Countless hours of studying culminate in a three hour test covering all aspects of a certain subject. Most tests fall into the core curriculum categories such as math, science, language and history, but CHS plans to offer the Advanced Placement Puppetry test this year as well.

“We, at the guidance office, thought the AP Puppetry test would be a great opportunity for students,” Guidance Technician Mary DeLuca said. “Puppetry is an integral part of student life at CHS, and it would be an outright shame for us to not offer this test.”

Despite CHS not offering any actual puppetry classes, some students are choosing to take the test anyway. These honorable students feel confident in their abilities as puppeteers in spite of not having any formal training.

“Ever since I was three, I have loved puppets. They don’t judge you,” Senior Chase Totoris said. “My personal hero is Jim Henson. He’s given so much back to the puppet community. I’m more of a self-taught puppet master, but I hope my skills will pull through on the AP test.”

Above: Student practices for her AP
Puppetry exam using a home-made sock puppet.

On Jan. 3, College Board released exam content to the public. The test begins with a 90 minute multiple choice portion covering all from the history and science of puppetry to the language and rhetoric of ventriloquism, and everything in between. This part consists of 63 questions. Beginning this year for all AP tests, there is no penalty for incorrect answers.

After the multiple choice, testers begin a 45 minute writing section, where they are asked to analyze the impact of a certain puppet on the world. Sample analysis provided by the College Board is as follows:

“The existential undertone conveyed in Kermit’s obsidian, arching pupils overshadows his otherwise superfluous disposition. Similarly, Kermit’s strained singing voice in ‘It’s Not Easy Being Green’ unearths the plight of the environmentally conscience individual and his misanthropic perception of mankind.”

The analysis will be graded on a scale from one to nine.

The final portion of the test includes a 45 minute puppet performance by each tester in front of a panel of seven AP-certified proctors. The proctors assess

the tester’s ventriloquism ability, the puppet’s character development and the overall comedic effect of the performance.

“The puppetry test should not be taken lightly,” College Board representative Sharon Moore said. “It’s as tough, if not tougher, than other Advanced Placement tests such as Chemistry or English Literature and Composition.”

Although the test is said to be difficult, there is some skepticism to whether colleges will accept the AP credits of a student passing the puppetry test with a score of 3, 4 or 5.

“At the University of Southern California, we absolutely do not accept AP Puppetry credits,” USC representative Judy Hughes said. “We completely acknowledge the tough curriculum of the exam; however, we do not think awarding credits for puppet mastery is appropriate. We believe puppetry encourages antisocial behavior. The puppeteer grows too fond of talking to fictional beings. Really it’s a matter of unhealthy behavior. Last year, we even shut down the USC Ventriloquism Club for similar reasons.”

Other schools gladly accept the credits such as University of Phoenix, ITT Technical Institute, Maric College and Yale University.

“We gladly accept any AP credits at ITT Technical Institute. We would be so happy to get an AP-level student at our institute. Heck, we would be thrilled just to get any students at all!” ITT Tech ”professor” Ron Delhi said.

At the current time, approximately 7.3% of all higher-level educational institutions accept the AP Puppetry credits according to a survey done by the National Ventriloquist and Puppeteer Foundation for the Mission of Spreading Puppet News All Around the Globe (NVPFMSPNAAG). The acceptance percent has risen 6.1% in the last two years.

Unfortunately for some CHS students, a simple misreading of the AP testing forms have caused a terrible mishap.

“I thought I checked the box for AP Psychology, but I accidentally marked AP Puppetry instead,” Senior Ashlee Hanson said. “Now, I have to learn all of this sock puppet nonsense. Like who cares about the development of felt as a fabric and its impact on marionettes? I only know that phrase, ‘The Development of Felt as a Fabric and Its Impact on Marionettes,’ because it’s the title of Chapter 1 in the Princeton Review’s study guide for puppetry. Buying that book is my only chance at passing this stupid test.”

For some students like Chase Totoris, the AP Puppetry test is a way to show a lifetime of passion in the art of puppetry. For others like Ashlee Hanson, it’s the frightening consequence of being careless. Any way you slice it, certain students will take the AP Puppetry test for the first time ever at Carlsbad High School. And it’s a BIG deal.