Advanced Placement
IHS Syllabus: 2011 – 12
Mr. Ames: (978) 356-3137, ext. 133
e-mail: sames@ipswichschools.org
Website: http://www.ipswichschools.org/ihsweb/sames/index.htm
Required Texts:
The
American Pageant (text),
Norton, Mary Beth, In The Devil’s Snare;
The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692.
In addition to these specific texts, you will be working with several
other primary and secondary sources of information for the topics listed below.
Reference Texts: American
History: Review Text,
Gaddis, John Lewis, Strategies of
Containment, and Princeton Review: AP
United States History or a similar AP review workbook.
Course Description:
This course is an intensive look at United States History, from the founding of the Jamestown Colony in 1607 through the administrations of George W. Bush, ending in 2009. The basic curriculum is established by the College Board, and can be found at www.collegeboard.com
Follow the links to AP Central to find a detailed list of topics. This look at American history will examine the ideas and ideals, the dreams, the eras, the practices, the people, and the development of the nation which has developed from them.
Assignments and homework are designed to prepare you for both the AP exam and the college courses that you will take in the future. In addition to content, you will be learning the skills of a trained historian. These include historical research, source verification and analysis, note taking, and historical writing. The textbook provides some very basic information. Primary and secondary source documents, your instructor, and your own research will provide the rest.
We are meeting throughout the year in order to achieve both the variety and depth of coverage necessary for you to succeed on the A.P. test. The class will meet daily during the first semester and once per week during the second semester. The second semester meetings will take place on Fridays during directed study, and for those who can’t make it during that time due to conflicts with music and/or other AP courses, there will likely be a session before school on a day of our mutual choice.
Instruction methods will vary, depending upon the topic at hand. Methods will include lecture, discussion, debates, presentations, field trips, Internet projects, and other types of classroom experiences.
Assessments
The grade you receive for this course has several components. Tests are designed not only to evaluate the knowledge that you have garnered from the unit, but also to help you prepare for the AP Test itself.
In a course such as this one, class participation and preparation are very
important. A significant portion of your grade will be based on your
preparation for class and your participation in classroom discussions and
debates.
In addition, there will be several document, essay, and research assignments throughout the year.
Grading
Your grade for
this course will be broken down as follows:
Daily Homework Assignments*: 20%
Quizzes and Exams: 35%
Document Based Essays: 15%
Required Readings/Research: 20%
Class Participation**: 10%
*Homework: All
assignments are due as scheduled. For a
list of homework assignments, check Mr. Ames’ website, where you can download
any assignment, and/or complete an electronic copy and e-mail it to Mr. Ames.
Another reference point is the white board in the classroom, where assignments
are listed. Late homework will be accepted up to two days late. All homework received late, but within the
two day window, will receive one-half credit (50%). Work received after that will receive a
zero. If you have an excused absence,
homework will be accepted in accordance with the school’s make-up policy as outlined
in the student handbook.
** Class
Participation: includes the following components: Attendance, participation in
class discussions and homework reviews, coming to class prepared (pen, paper,
homework completed and/or printed out, etc.), and proper in-class conduct.
Grade Posting
Grades will be
posted on the school’s on-line grading system within one week (seven days)
under normal circumstances. If there are
any issues getting grades posted on the grade site, there will be a notice on
both Mr. Ames’ website and on the grade website to advise you of the expected
posting date. If you want to know your
course grade at any time, it will be available to you via the web.
The Test
The date for the AP US History exam has been set for Friday, May 11, 2012. (If anyone is taking AP German via VHS, see Mr. Ames ASAP.) This date is not negotiable. We must, therefore, complete the curriculum by then. There is an $87 fee to take the test. (For eligible students, there is a reduced fee program. See the AP website for details.) For those of you expecting to receive AP credit for this course, the exam is not optional. Any of you who wish to opt out of the test must receive permission in advance and in writing from Mr. Cahill.
The test will consist of three sections: eighty multiple-choice questions, two free response essay questions, and a single “document based question,” or DBQ. Each section is explained below.
Multiple Choice: These are not usually the multiple-choice questions that you are familiar with. They require thorough knowledge of the topic in question. The answer choices are generally designed very specifically – meaning that more than one answer may look perfectly acceptable but have a problem that makes it incorrect – or in some cases, more incorrect than another. To succeed on these questions, you MUST read the questions and make sure that you understand what they are asking for, and what the nuances of the question and each answer choice are.
Free Response: There are four “free
response” essay choices on every AP exam. These four options are divided into
two groups of two questions, with you choosing one from each group. Each
question is from a specific era of
Document Based Questions: There is only one of this type of question on the AP exam. It is usually one that asks you to choose a side of a debatable or controversial issue in history, and defend your choice. You are provided with up to twenty documents that help explain and may lend support to your essay, whichever side of the debate you choose. The score given by the AP graders begins with the points mentioned above in the “free response” section. In addition, they are looking for your answer to incorporate both information from the documents provided and from your own inherent knowledge. They are looking for as close to a 50/50 split between the two sources as possible.
Units of Study
Unit 1 The Colonial Era (Including British, French, Dutch, and Spanish Colonies) 1607 – 1775
Pageant: Chapters 1 – 7; In the Devil’s Snare; The
Crucible
Unit 2 Launching the Ship of State 1775 – 1800
Pageant: Chapters 8 – 10; Selections from The Federalist Papers; The Articles of Confederation; The Constitution
Unit 3 Jeffersonian Democracy and the Rise of Nationalism 1800 - 1824
Pageant: Chapters 11 - 12
Unit 4 Jacksonian Democracy 1824 – 1840
Pageant: Chapters 13 - 14
Unit 5 Expansion and Sectionalism 1793 – 1848
Ø Reform Movements
Pageant: Chapters 15, 16, 18
Unit 6 The Civil War 1849 – 1865
Pageant: Chapters 17, 19, 20, 21, 22
Unit 7 Reconstruction 1865 – 1877
Pageant: Chapter 23
Unit 8 The Gilded Age and Industrialization 1877 – 1900
Pageant: Chapters 24 - 28
Unit 9 Imperialism and World War I 1890 – 1918
Pageant: Chapters 29 - 33
Unit 10 The “Modern Age” 1918 – 1941
Ø The Roaring Twenties
Ø The Depression Years
Pageant: Chapters 34 - 36
Unit 11 World War II 1931 – 1946
Pageant: Chapters 37 - 38
Unit 12 The Cold War 1945 – 1980
Pageant: Chapters 39 – 42; American Diplomacy; Strategies of Containment
Unit 13 Toward a New Conservatism; 1979 – 1991
Pageant: Chapter 43
Unit 14 Clinton and Bush; 1992 – 2009