Advanced Placement United States Government and Politics
Course Description and Summer Assignment 2017
Mr. McGee
E-mail:
I. Course Overview
The AP U.S. Government and Politics course is designed to present to you the foundations of the American system of government and their practical applications in our current society. You will study numerous topics and for each one you will be able to discuss its historical foundations, but more importantly, its connection to the reality of current U.S. politics.
AP GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS IS NOT SIMPLY ABOUT PREPARING FOR THE AP EXAM IN MAY. OUR MISSION IS FAR MORE IMPORTANT. WE ARE PREPARING YOU TO BECOME KNOWLEDGEABLE, THOUGHTFUL, AND PARTICIPATORY CITIZENS AS WELL AS PART OF AN EDUCATED ELECTORATE. AS A RESULT, THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST PERSONALLY REWARDING COURSES YOU WILL TAKE AND ITS MATERIALS WILL FOLLOW YOU ALWAYS.
During this academic year you will come to understand the primary goals of the course:
A. The Constitutional Underpinnings of the United States
B. Political Theory and Beliefs and Political Behaviors
C. The Development of Political Parties, Interest Groups, and Mass Media
D. Institutions of National Government: The Branches of Government, the Bureaucracy, and the Development of Public Policy
E. Past and Current Public Policy
F. Civil Liberties and Civil Rights
II. Political Awareness
A. You should have access to a reliable daily news source. Reliable means a respected journalistic source such as the New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, or one of the 3 major networks’ (CBS – channel 2, NBC – channel 4, or ABC- channel 7) national evening news that airs at 6:30 p.m. You can view these sources online, in print, or on TV. This will help you develop a political vocabulary that will become part of your daily lives as opposed to words to study for a test. It is essential that you use this vocabulary freely and with a full understanding of its meaning(s) as I will be using it in class and you will need to use it in your writing. You are welcome and encouraged to view MSNBC and FOX News if you watch both. MSNBC airs liberal views and FOX airs conservative views.
B. I also suggest that you watch Sunday morning political discussion programs at 8:00 a.m., such as Face the Nation on CBS (channel 2) and Meet the Press on NBC (channel 4), to improve your political vocabulary and familiarize yourself with key people.
Please be aware that this is a college-level course that involves a large amount of independent reading and examinations that consist of challenging multiple-choice and free response questions! Most of class time will be devoted to clarification of the readings, individual and group projects, discussion and preparation for the AP Government exam in May. Do not hesitate to contact me via email or in person if you need any assistance!
III. Summer Assignment
A. There are 2 parts to your assignment.
B. Both parts are due on our first class meeting for AP Gov (most likely the second day of school); you will be tested on the assignment on the first class meeting.
C. You may type or handwrite your assignment.
D. Please note that I do not accept late work (except in the case of a verified medical emergency). All work must be turned in (via email or a hard copy submission) on or before the start of the class period it is due or it receives a score of 0. Any work that is plagiarized or directly copied from the Internet or a classmate will also receive a score of 0. I do this in each of my classes to ensure that all of my students are treated equally.
PART I- THE THEORY OF MODERN GOVERNMENT AND THE JUDICIARY READING AND NOTES
Please read and take notes on Chapters 1 (The Theory of Modern Government) and 9 (The Judiciary) in Barron's AP U.S. Government and Politics, 9th edition (ISBN # 978-1438007441) by Curt Lader. Do not hesitate to email me with any questions you have. You will be tested on this material on the first day of class.
PART II- SUPREME COURT CASES (15 Total; 12 Historical and 3 Recent)
The United States Supreme Court is the nation’s highest court and interprets the Constitution of the United States – the “law of the land.” The nine justices on the Supreme Court often rule on controversial issues in society, and their decisions frequently cause disagreements between liberals and conservatives. Research the following Supreme Court cases that involve significant issues in American society in your Barron’s textbook (use the index at the back of the book to look up the page number of each case) for an overview. Oyez.org can be a helpful website for additional information. Take notes on the following cases (focus on the issue involved and the decision / ruling of the Supreme Court; example: District of Columbia v. Heller (2008): issue: 2nd amendment / right to bear arms / a Washington, D.C. gun control law that banned guns in the District and required any legal guns to be unloaded; decision: the Supreme Court ruled that the law was unconstitutional and that the Second Amendment protected an individual’s right to bear arms (Barron’s page 99). You will be tested on these cases on the first day of class; please feel free to email me with any questions that you have.
Significant Historical Supreme Court Cases:
1. Marbury v. Madison (1803)
2. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
3. Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
4. Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
5. Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
6. Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
7. Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
8. Roe v. Wade (1973)
9. Gregg v. Georgia (1976)
10. Regents of University of California v. Bakke (1978)
11. Texas v. Johnson (1989)
12. Smith v. Oregon (1990)
Significant Recent Supreme Court Cases:
1. Citizen’s United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)
2. McDonald v. Chicago (2010)
3. Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)