ADVANCED PLACEMENT (A.P.) WORLD HISTORY Ms. McDugall

Back to School Night

Email and voicemail: Ext. 2318

COURSE DESCRIPTION and GOALS:

The AP World History is a rigorous, college-level course designed to explore human history from 8,000 B.C.E. to the present. The course provides geographical coverage of the five regions of the world: Africa, the Americas, Asia,Europe, and Oceania. The content is structured around the investigation of five course themes and key concepts in six chronological periods. In addition to providing a survey of world history, the goals of the AP World History program are to help students develop proficiency in the four historical thinking skills. The AP World History course develops students’ capacityand ability to think and reason in a deeper, more systematic way, better preparing them for subsequent college courses.

GRADING POLICY:

Marking periods will be based on the following and will be weighted accordingly:

1. Tests, Essays and DBQs (40%) – In class tests may include multiple choice, essays, and/or DBQs (document based essay questions). Occasionally, some tests may include take home DBQs. The 4th marking period research paper and other smaller research projects will also be included under this category. Makeup tests will consist of a different format than the original test, usually written identifications and essays.

2. Homework (40%) – Students are responsible for completing all readings and assignments on time. Due to the vast amount of material covered in this course, not all of the reading will be discussed in class. Evaluation of completion of homework will typically take the form of a closed note quiz, however, other formats will be used as well. Students should be prepared for a possible quiz on any reading assignment on the day that the reading is due, or any day thereafter during that unit.

3. Class Participation (20%) – Class participation is essential for ensuring a student’s grasp of the material, and for challenging students to hone their analysis, synthesis, and oratory skills. For that reason, class participation will count toward a significant part of your grade. Please read the attached rubric on class participation, so that you will understand my expectations. Everyone's voice is important in my class; your contributions will be appreciated and expected. We will all contribute to each other's education. No one may rely on another person to think for him or her. Studies have shown that regular class participation actively involves a student in the learning process and improves grades. We will all be offering opinions, speculating, giving information, and asking questions. If you want to assess how you are doing mid-marking period, schedule a conference with me.

CLASS WEBSITE:

Please check the school wires website for class announcements and important handouts. I will try and regularly post the current homework assignment sheet so you and your parents/guardians can have access to them at home.

TEXTBOOK WEBSITE:

The students should use the textbook web-site to help prepare. It has quizzes and extra activities.

COPING WITH THE STRESS AND THE WORK:

AP World History requires a great deal of time and work. It can be overwhelming to try to complete all of the readings, while being able to comprehend what you have read and to synthesize it into good essay answers. Here are a few suggestions to consider that may help you to cope.

1. Look at the work on a weekly basis and plan accordingly. Don’t wait until the last minute or allow large assignments to sneak up on you, because that can lead to disaster and affect your other coursework as well.

2. If you find that this course is overwhelming you and hurting your other coursework, please come see me. We need to talk about this as soon as possible.

3. Schedule a set time every day (i.e. 7pm to 7:45pm) to do AP homework, and stick to that schedule! It is rare that you will have a day without reading or homework to do.

4. You can not know everything. Trying to do so will take years off of your life. I do not know every detail about World history, because I am human, just like you. The important thing in a survey course is to understand major events and concepts, and to learn how to use related, key details to back up your position in an essay. This is a skill that we will work on throughout the year.

5. Your grade will improve if you work at it…keep working, keep trying, and keep asking.

6. Do fun things every now and then to take your mind off of the work. Remember to enjoy the full high school experience. You only experience it once.