Advanced
Placement Modern European History is a college-level course offered in high
school. This course is open to
qualified sophomores in lieu of World History, and to juniors and seniors as an
academic elective.
AP
European History requires both a greater volume of reading and a more
challenging content of reading and writing than regular high school
courses. It also requires learning how
to do historical interpretive analysis and understand the importance of historical
themes.
One
of the major purposes of the course is to prepare students to take and pass the
AP exam (with a score of 3-5) that is given in May. Students who pass the exam generally receive both high school and
college credit for taking the course.
Another
major reason that students take AP European History is because it is recognized
as an extremely challenging course and additional credit is awarded in
computing high school grade point averages.
The grade point average for this class is computed as A=5, B=4, and C=3
points respectively. A grade of D is
only worth one point. This grading
system is standard for all honors courses.
It is very difficult to earn an A in this class, and only those who put
in great effort and are very determined succeed.
Course Textbook: McKay, Hill,
Buckler, A History of Western
Society, Houghton Mifflin Company 2006 (Eighth Edition).
DESCRIPTION OF
THE COURSE
The
AP European History Course has three major foci: 1) to develop an understanding of some of the principal themes in
modern European History; 2) to develop an ability to analyze historical
evidence; and 3) to develop an ability to express your understanding and
analysis in writing.
Major Themes: The themes of the course are divided
into three major areas and are as follows:
1. Intellectual and Cultural History
The secularization of learning and culture
Changes in religious thought and organization
Scientific and technological developments and their
consequences
Major trends in literature and the arts
Intellectual and cultural
developments and their relationship to social values and political events
Developments in social, economic, and political
thought
Developments in literacy and communication
The diffusion of new intellectual concepts among
different social groups
Changes in popular culture,
such as the development of new attitudes toward religion, toward the family and
toward work
2. Political and Diplomatic History
The rise and functioning of the modern state in its
various forms
The evolution of political elites and the
development of political parties and ideologies
The extension and limitation
of rights and liberties (personal, civic, economic, and political)
The development and growth of nationalism
Forms of political protest, reform, and revolution
Colonialism, imperialism, and
decolonization; relations between Europe and other parts of the world
Relationship between domestic and foreign policies
Efforts to restrain
interstate conflict; treaties, balance-of-power diplomacy, and international organizations
War and military conflict: origins, developments, technology, and consequences
3. Social and Economic History
The role of urbanization in transforming cultural
values and social relationships
The shift in social structures from hierarchical orders
to modern social classes
Hygienic practices, disease, and medicine, and their
effects on society
The development of commercial practices and their
economic and social impact
The origins, development, and consequences of
industrialization
Changes in the demographic structure of Europe and
their consequences
Change and continuity in the European family
structure and in gender roles
The growth of competition and interdependence in
national and world markets
The relationship between
private and state contributions to economic growth; the development of a mixed
economy.
Analytical
Skills: Development of the ability to analyze historical evidence will
require the use of the following skills:
·
Interpret
what is read by drawing inferences
·
Detect
cause and effect relationships
·
Recognize
author bias
·
Interpret
visual reflections of history (e.g., art)
·
Read
for a variety of purposes: to evaluate,
to analyze, to answer a question, to form an opinion, and to skim for facts
·
Read
various forms of printed material
·
Recognize
and understand an increasing number of social studies terms
·
Evaluate
sources of information
·
Interpret
map symbols and visualize what they mean
·
Interpret
social and political messages in cartoons
·
Place
in proper sequence: a) order of
occurrence; b) order of importance
·
View
events from several perspectives
·
Form
a simple organization of key ideas related to topic
·
Restate
major ideas of a complex topic in concise form
·
Communicate
orally and in writing
·
Recognized
the values implicit in the situation and the issues that flow from them
·
Write
well organized and well developed essays
·
Recognize
instances in which more than one interpretation of factual material is valid
·
Combine
critical concepts into a statement of conclusions based on information
·
State
relationships between categories of information
·
Group
data in categories according to appropriate criteria
·
Develop
a thesis
The AP Examination:
The AP Examination for which this course prepares you is three hours and
five minutes in length. It consists of
a 55 minute multiple choice section, a one hour document based essay, and two
35 minute thematic essay questions.
Section I:
Objective: The multiple choice
exam contains 80 questions designed to measure the student’s knowledge of
European history from the High Renaissance to 1995. Approximately one-half of the questions deal with the period from
1450 to the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic era, and one-half cover from
the French Revolution to 1995. About
20-30 percent of the questions focus on cultural-intellectual themes, 35-45
percent on political-diplomatic themes, and 30-40 percent on social-economic
themes. Many questions draw on
knowledge of more than one chronological period or theme.
Section II: Free-response: The one hour document based question begins with a mandatory 15
minute reading period where the student is presented with a set of 10 to 15
documents to read and analyze. Students
then have 45 minutes to write an essay incorporating information and issues
contained in the documents in response to a question.
In the last seventy minutes of the exam, students
choose one essay from each of two groups of three essays which are designed to
ensure that students consider a range of historical periods and approaches.
Scoring: Fifty percent of the total examination score
is based on student performance on Section I, and fifty percent from Section
II. In Section II, the document based
question will have a weight of 45 percent of the total score given to Section
II and the two 35 minute thematic questions will have a weight of 55 percent.
STUDENT
RESPONSIBILITIES
Daily Responsibilities: You will need to bring a course notebook (three ring
binder) to class every day.
Prior
to each class you will have a reading assignment which must be completed. Keeping up with the assigned reading will be
essential to your success in the course.
Learning to read critically will be an essential skill upon which we
will focus. Class discussions,
Lectures, and Bell assignments will often be based on assigned reading.
Most
class sessions will begin with a “Bell” assignment that is a question that will
require an essay answer. You should
expect to write in class nearly every day, and to be held to high standards. You must be present and on time to get credit
for the Bell assignments.
The
second part of each class session will be a Discussion, Lecture, or Activiy
that will require your active involvement.
Your job will be to take a complete set of class notes, actively engage
in class discussions, and ask questions about the material.
Weekly Responsibility: At the end of every week you will hand in your
vocabulary and identification lists.
The vocabulary list will require that you use a good college level
dictionary to look up and write out the meaning of assigned words. The terms on the identification list will
require more extensive answers that get at the “who”, “what”, “where”, “when”,
and significance of each term.
Special Assignments: Two book reports will be required for this
course. The first will be assigned over
Thanksgiving vacation and will involve a social analysis of a work by Charles
Dickens (or another teacher suggested work) that you may select from a list
provided. The second report will be assigned
over the Winter Break and must be a college level biography of an important
European figure. You may select the
biography subject to my approval.
The A.P. Exam: Taking the AP Modern European History exam is a
requirement of this course. If for any
reason a student does not take the exam, the semester grade will be lowered one
full grade.
ATTENDANCE
POLICIES
Regular and timely attendance is required to be
successful in this class. Poor
attendance (tardies and absences) will result in disciplinary action and lower
your grade.
Tardies: Students are expected to be
in their seat when the bell rings. If you are not in your seat when the bell
rings, you are tardy. Consequences
for tardies are as follows:
First and second
tardies will result in warnings.
Third and fourth
tardies may result in classroom
detentions and parent notification
Fifth tardy results
in office referral and automatic Saturday School
Tardies will hurt your grade. Students
who are tardy will automatically receive a 0 on the first assignment of the
day. (i.e., The “Bell” assignment which is worth 5 points)
Absences:
·
Students
whose absences are not "excused" will receive a 0 on all assignments
missed because of the absence. The California Education Code (Sect. 49067.
(b) and District policy (6270.4) authorizes teachers to assign a failing grade
to any student with seven (7) or more unexcused absences from a class during
any grading period. This policy will be employed.
·
Students
whose absences are "excused" may make up work except for assignments that are part of the ongoing class activity
work (e.g., bell assignments, class participation, etc.). This means that excessive absences of any type will lower your grade.
Students are responsible for getting the information
necessary for making up work missed due to absences. I strongly recommend that you identify three reliable students in
your class who can provide you with copies of class notes, and reviews of class
discussions, etc. These students might
also be a part of your own cooperative student study team. As a minimum get at least three names and
phone numbers:
1._________________________________________________________________________
2._________________________________________________________________________
3._________________________________________________________________________
CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR
There are five
basic rules that are important to follow in this class.
1. RESPECT PEOPLE. Everyone
has the right to express their opinions in an appropriate manner. One of the critical goals of this class is
to learn to be respectful of different opinions even if you disagree with them.
2. RESPECT PROPERTY. Do not
touch or take things that do not belong to you. This includes school property.
If you need to borrow something, please ask permission.
3. COME TO CLASS PREPARED TO WORK.
Always bring your pen, pencil, notebook, and textbook unless told
otherwise. DON'T come to class
expecting to be given a pass to your locker for missing materials or to go to
the bathroom.
4. DO NOT DISTURB THE LEARNING PROCESS. Take off your hats when you enter the room. Settle down and go to work when the bell
rings. Do not talk or disrupt when I am
giving instruction. Do not play with
your Walkman, Hacky-sac, make-up, etc.
If you have these items out during class they will be taken and given to
administration, and your parents will have to come to school to pick them up.
5. NO FOOD OR DRINK IN CLASS.
Finish your eating and drinking, candy sales, etc., before you come into the classroom. If I see it in the classroom, it gets thrown
away.
GRADING
Your grade will
be based on a point system. Successful
students will attend regularly, come to class on time, participate in class,
and do all assigned work. Points are awarded almost every day of
class.
Bell assignments (first
assignment at beginning of the period)
Classwork assignments
Classroom
participation/discussion
Homework
Exams and quizzes
Everything receives points. Grades
are based on a cumulative point total throughout the entire semester. This means that quarter and final exam grades are not averaged to determine a
semester grade. At every grading period
(D/F notice, quarter grade, semester grade) all the points you have earned to
that point in time are added and divided by the total number of points possible
to calculate a percentage score. You
will then receive your grade based on the percentage score you attained:
Late Work: Routine written work (e.g., homework, current events, and
notebooks) may be handed in one day late without penalty with an excused
absence. Other “late” assignments will
have points taken off. The later the
assignment, the more points will be subtracted. Work which is more than
one week late will not be accepted unless there are special extenuating circumstances. However, if a student misses work
because of a field trip/early “out” etc., that assignment must be handed in
before the event. If a student will miss an exam or essay,
that student must make arrangements to take the exam/essay before the event.
CONTACTING ME:
Daniel Gruber Room C-107
Email: dgruber@aptoshs.net
Voicemail: 688-6565 ext. 626
Email is the best, checked
daily; telephone checked once weekly