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Welcome to Advanced Placement World History This class is going to be one of the most interesting and challenging courses you have ever had. You read the course description before filling out your scheduling cards. You came to the informational meeting where we discussed how much work would be expected of you. You had a teacher who thought highly of you sign your card and then you scheduled your way into this room. Congratulations! You have jumped through the hoops required to learn more about the history of the world than most other in the world. I look forward to helping you on your journey. This course is designed by the College Board to allow colleges to compare you with others from across the nation and the world. The materials are similar from one school to the next. The teachers all go to training that prepares us the same ways. Our assignments are often identical to those being completed by students quite a distance from here. You are not being picked on by me when I give you assignment after assignment; I am trying to give you the same benefits that those in other classrooms across the country are having. Please keep in mind that you are in a competition here. This class is your practice for the AP Exam on May 15. During that exam you are competing for a grade. The passing requirements change each time the test is given due to the level of performance of the students taking the test. You must beat them! We are going to be examining the history of the world from six major themes. The Six World History Themes 1. The dynamics of change and continuity from 8,000 B.C.E. to the present.2. Patterns and effects of interaction among societies and regions: trade, war, diplomacy, and international organizations.3. The effects of technology, economics, and demography on people and the environment (population growth and decline, disease, labor systems, manufacturing, migrations, agriculture, weaponry).4. Systems of social structure and gender structure (comparing major features within and among societies, and assessing change and continuity).5. Cultural, intellectual, and religious developments, including interactions among and within societies.6. Changes in functions and structures of states and in attitudes toward states and political identities (political culture), including the emergence of the nation-state (types of political organization).These themes organize our views of history. We will be analyzing source materials and interpreting the information through the lenses of the time periods the events occurred in. This class is going to go very quickly. There are a few class rules or guidelines that we must go over to give you the best chances for success.
I give you that information if you would like to purchase your own copy. This is not a requirement, we have plenty of copies. However, this class is designed to get you ready for college. One of the skills you will be using in college is highlighting your textbooks as you read them. It is a good idea to learn that skill now, as opposed to your first year in college.
Grading This course will be the most difficult course in the Social Studies offerings this year at Blissfield. It will not be an easy A. That is not to say you will not be able to earn an A, but it is a warning that there will be no room for coasting. We will have tests and essays, both in class and as take home works, which are similar to the AP Exam for most of the chapters. This will account for a large portion of your grade. They are not easy. You will also have your notes graded, not only the notes on your reading, but also on our classroom discussions. Classroom participation and preparation are going to be essential. You have to be prepared. If you do not do your reading and prepare for discussion, every week, you will rapidly fall behind and there really is no slow time for you to catch up. Therefore, classroom preparation and participation will have a major impact to your grade. The grade you receive should work out to roughly a third for each of the above areas. You will also have a semester exam for each semester. It will be similar to the AP exam and will be both an assessment tool and a practice tool for the actual AP World History Exam on May 15.
This will roughly work out to: Unit One Foundations, 8000 BCE to 600 CE (5 weeks) Unit Two 600-1450 (8 weeks) Unit Three 1450-1750 (8 weeks) Unit Four 1750-1914 (6 weeks) Unit Five 1914-2000 (8 weeks)
I know this is a lot to digest in only a short period. Please keep in mind, above all else, that I want you to learn about the history of our world. When you read and do not understand something, tell me. When I go over something and you do not get it you have to let me know! I want you to learn. I want you to do well. You have to understand this material in order to use it on your tests, essays and the AP Exam. There are so many resources available to you that you should be able to find something that works for you. In addition to talking to me during our class time together there is also e-mail (sphillip@mail.blissfield.k12.mi.us), before school, VIP and even occasionally after school. There are other teacher websites, university websites, historical websites, and even student websites out there. There are books available for sale about the test that will help you. There are books are libraries on the test and on the material that will be helpful. There are whole channels on TV dedicated to history that have tons of programs on the very stuff we are going to be talking about. The only thing that may cause you problems is that all of these sources require you to put forth a lot of effort.
Together we can learn. Will you put forth the effort? Yes:_____________________________________________________ Notice there is no choice for No. You made this decision already when you signed up. Parents Your student has committed to putting forth a lot of effort, but they will need your help to truly succeed. They will need you to push them to keep them working as the year goes by. They will need you to ask what they are doing. They will need you to check their notes and see that they are caught up. When they confess to you that they are unsure about something or that they are falling behind you need to have them contact me, or even do so yourself. I promise to work with them as hard as I can to get them to succeed. Will you also promise to support, encourage, coerce, and push them to keep them working? Will you also promise to take an active role in educating them by asking and prodding them to stay on task? Yes:___________________________________________________________________ Thank you, together we will see to it that they are provided the best chance for their success. Sean Phillips sphillip@mail.blissfield.k12.mi.us 517-486-21489 ext. 1028
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