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AP WORLD HISTORY West

Course Syllabus
Instructor: Emily West
Email address: ewest@uplifteducation.org
Website: https://sites.google.com/site/mrswestapworldhistory/

MESSAGE FROM YOUR INSTRUCTOR:


Welcome to AP World History! I am excited to embark on this years journey with you as we learn
about history and ourselves.
As an AP student, you will read texts that will challenge you, and at times frustrate you, but if you
persevere and ask for help, you could earn college credit! It is an expectation that you take the AP exam at
the end of the year, and I am committed to getting you prepared for that test. Most importantly, I am
committed to helping you become a better reader and writer.

COURSE DECRIPTION:
We will spend our year looking at history from about 3,000 BCE to present day. That is a lot of
history to fit into 1 year, so strap on your time machine helmet and hold on tight! We will learn about the
history of the world through reading primary and secondary documents, participating in Socratic seminars,
class debates, lectures, gallery walks, role plays and much more!

SUPPLIES:
It is important that you come to class with all materials and prepared to learn. You will not be
allowed out of class to retrieve anything for the first ten minutes of class. For this class you will
need to bring the following materials with you every day:
Planner
One 3-ring binder (1 inch or bigger)
A set of 5 dividers
Lined notebook paper (College-ruled only!)
One 2-pocket folder
Highlighters
Pens
Pencils

IB LEARNER PROFILE TRAITS:


In every class at Williams, you are expected to embody the 10 IB learner profile traits. Embodying these
traits will lead you to becoming an engaged and successful college student and global citizen.
Principled, Knowledgeable, Risk-taker, Caring, Inquirer, Balanced, Thinker, Communicator, Open
minded, Reflective
AP WORLD HISTORY West

Grading Policy
Grading Scale
Categories Weights

Summative (Tests, Projects) 50%

Formative (Quizzes, Exit Tickets, 30%


Checkpoints, etc.)

Classwork (Do Nows, 10%


Independent practice, Group
work, etc.)

Homework 10%

Semester grades are determined by the


following equation:
Q1 = 40% Q2=40% Final
Exam=20%
(.40 + .40 + .20)/3 = S1 Grade

Failing to master essential content and skills is NOT an option. If a scholar is failing, the teacher should
assign tutorials and contact the parent (keep documentation of both). If more than 10% of your scholars fail a
quarter, you will meet with your admin coach to show your documentation. Scholars who fail to attend mandatory
teacher tutorials will be required to attend Thursday Night Lights.
Common Assessment Curve: All teachers must use the common assessment curve; for quarter two, this must be
the grade entered into the gradebook as your final exam grade. These curves are made using data to reflect the
needs and progress of scholars.
Late Work Policy:
Summative-When a scholar does not turn in a summative assessment by the original deadline, teachers must notify
scholar of late penalty policy, as well as notify parents in writing and/or via phone. Summative assessments that are
handed in late will not earn a grade higher than the maximum grade of 80 allowed under the reassessment policy.
Two weeks will be allowed to make up any late summative assignments (no less).
Homework/Classwork-Two weeks will be allowed to make up any late homework or classwork assignments for a
maximum of an 80.
Absent Work Policy
Scholars who have missed work due to excused absences will have the opportunity to conference with the teacher
during the next class period. Missed assignments need to be turned within one week of the absence date. For
example, if a scholar misses Monday, they have until the following Monday to turn in the work. If absent work is
not given to the teacher following this timeline, it will immediately revert to the late work policy.
AP WORLD HISTORY West

If a scholar misses a quiz or test due to an excused absence, the teacher and scholar will make an arrangement when
they conference with the teacher as to when they will make the quiz/test up.
Retake Opportunities
Scholars will have the opportunity to retake any quiz, project, or test for which they make less than an 80.
Scholars will have one week from the date that they receive a test/quiz/project back from the teacher to re-take it.
The teacher must communicate at least one re-take opportunity (keep documentation); if the scholar cannot attend,
they must talk to the teacher about it personally. The most they can make on a retake is an 80. For example, a 100%
retake = 80%, an 87% retake = 80%, a 74% retake = 74%, a 65% retake = 65%. If for some reason, the retake
grade is lower than the original grade, scholar receives original grade.
Extra Credit
Per Uplift policy, extra credit should not be given. Students should utilize retake opportunities.

Uplifts Policy on Zeroes


Grades of 0 assigned for work not completed may be changed upon the completion and
submission of such assignments by the scholar. The teacher will have discretion over the grade
assigned within the parameters of the campus or department grading procedures. Scholars with
grades of 0 for missing work may be assigned mandatory tutorial session(s) until the
assignments are completed. A system of interventions with the scholar should be such that
receiving a 0 for work not completed will be a rare occurrence and involve a great deal of time
and effort on the part of the scholar.
Furthermore, it is the position of Uplift Education that giving a grade of a zero for incomplete or
late work is not a best practice and runs counter to our grading philosophy. The first tenet of
our grading philosophy is that grades reflect mastery of content. Teachers shall deeply
consider whether assigning a zero for an assignment based off of behavior (not turning in work,
not attending class, etc.) results in an overall course grade that reflects mastery of content.
Additionally, research has shown that a grade of zero for a short term failure is a key
contributing factor for long term failure in demotivating students. A zero
disproportionately skews the overall grade downward compared to failures for other reasons,
such as not adequately grasping the concepts presented. Finally, it should be noted that the
effectiveness of giving grades of zero as a disciplinary tool has been roundly rejected by
academic research into the matter. A best practice is, if after every effort has been made to
intervene with the scholar to complete the course work and the scholar still does not complete
the work, that the scholar receives a minimum grade of 50%-60% to avoid sabotaging the
scholars overall chances at passing the course, thus maintaining an incentive to remain engaged
in the classroom.

Grade Books
Gradebooks must be updated at a minimum of once a week. When gradebooks are updated, 1-2 new grades must be
entered. Progress reports will be distributed to scholars every three weeks, starting the third week of school. The advisory
teacher will be responsible for distributing progress reports to their advisory scholars. They must have scholars sign that
they received their report card.
AP WORLD HISTORY West

Categories Weights

Summative 50%
Within a quarter, teachers must assign at least 3
summative grades (not including the CA or final)

Formative 30%
Within a quarter, teachers must assign at least 3 formative
grades

Classwork 10%
Within a quarter, teachers must assign at least 4 classwork
grades

Homework 10%
Within a quarter, teachers must assign at least 3
homework grades

13 grades minimum

Quarter grades in the gradebook need to be no less than a 60% in order to allow the scholar an opportunity to come
back from his or her poor academic and behavior decisions. This is in accordance with Uplift Policy.

ORGANIZATION:
You will keep all class work and returned homework in a 3 ring binder, which I will periodically ask you to
leave in the classroom. When I ask you to leave it, I will do a binder check which will count as a classwork
grade. Part of being successful in life is being organized. This syllabus must remain in the front of the
binder.

TUTORING:
If you are in need of extra help, you can come for tutoring during my office hours. There might be points
throughout the year where I assign you mandatory tutoring, but you may always come for more help, even if
I have not assigned you mandatory tutoring. My office hours are as follows:
Monday afternoon: 4:15-5:15
Wednesday morning: 7:15-7:45
Thursday afternoon: 4:15-5:45
Other days: By appointment only (must schedule 48 hours in advance)

COURSE OUTLINE
AP WORLD HISTORY West

Migration during the Paleolithic Period


Influence of technological advances such as fire and a wider range of tools
on adaptation and spread/growth of humans
Neolithic Revolution
Development of urban societies about 5,000 years ago
Unit 1 (Q1):
Comparisons among core and foundational civilizations, including:
Technological and Environmental geography, environment, agriculture, religion, government, and
Transformations accumulation of wealth
Location of core and foundational civilizations
How and why the first states emerged
Role of culture in unifying states

How conquests of Jewish states contributed to the growth of Jewish


diaspora communities around the Mediterranean and Middle East
New belief systems and their contributions to new cultural traditions and
gender roles, including: Daoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity,
Greco-Roman philosophy, Shamanism, Animism
Growth of key states and empires through imposition of political unity
New techniques of imperial administration
Techniques of imperial governments to project military power
How promotion of trade and economic integration influenced empires
Unit 2 (Q1): success
Social and economic dimensions of imperial societies in Agro-Eurasia and
Organization and Reorganization of
the Americas
Human Societies Causes of the decline, collapse, and transformation of empires, including:
Roman, Han, Persian, Mauryan, Gupta
How and why land and water routes became the basis for trans-regional
trade, communication, and exchange in the Eastern Hemisphere
Distinctive features of trade routes, including: Eurasian Silk Roads,
Mediterranean sea lanes
How the exchange of people, technology, religious and cultural beliefs, food
crops, domesticated animals, and disease pathogens developed across far-
flung networks of communication and exchange

Impact of improved transportation technologies and commercial practices


on volume and geographical range of existing and newly active trade
networks
How the expansion of empires facilitated trans-Eurasian trade and
communication, including: China, Byzantine Empire, Caliphates, Mongols
How the movement of peoples caused environmental and linguistic effects
How cross-cultural exchanges were fostered by existing or new networks of
Unit 3 (Q2): trade and communication
Regional and Trans-regional How empires collapsed and were reconstituted
Interactions Influence of interregional contacts and conflicts on technological and
cultural transfers
Multiple factors that contributed to the decline of urban areas
Multiple factors that contributed to urban revival
Significant continuities AND changes in labor management and effects of
religious conversion on gender relations and family life
Diffusion of Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, and Neoconfucianism
AP WORLD HISTORY West

Causes and effects of the intensification of all existing regional trade


networks of the Indian Ocean, Mediterranean, Sahara, and overland Eurasia
How technological developments in cartography and navigation made
transoceanic travel and trade possible
Transoceanic maritime reconnaissance
New global circulation of goods facilitated by royal chartered European
monopoly companies
Goods traded on and effects of the Columbian Exchange
Influence of interactions between newly connected hemispheres on
expansion of spread/reform of religions and creation of syncretic belief
systems/practices
Unit 4 (Q2 and Q3):
How an expanded economy led to increased funding for the arts
Global Interactions Influence of global demand for raw materials and finished products on
peasant agriculture, plantations, and demand for labor
Causes of increased demand for slaves in the Americas
How ethnic, racial, and gender hierarchies were reconstructed as new social
and political elites changed
How rulers used a variety of methods to legitimatize and consolidate their
power
Impact of increased use of gunpowder, cannons, and armed trade on
establishing large empires in both hemispheres
How competition over trade routes, state rivalries, and local resistance all
provided significant challenges to state consolidation and expansion
Factors that led to the rise of industrialization
Impact of being able to exploit vast new resources of energy stored in coal
and oil
Impact of the factory system
Developments of the Second industrial Revolution
Examples of major developments in transportation and communication
How new organizations of societies formed as a result of industrialization
and expansion of the global economy
Transoceanic empires that were created by industrializing powers
How imperialism influenced state formation and contraction around the
world
Unit 5 (Q3): Rise of nationalism
Industrialization and Global How imperialism was justified by new racial ideologies, especially Social
Integration Darwinism
The Enlightenment as an antecedent to change
Documents that were revolutionary and embodied Enlightenment
principles
How national communities were linked through a new sense of commonality
based on language, religion, social customs, and territories
American Revolution; French Revolution; Haitian Revolution; Latin American
independence movements; the Boxer Rebellion; Taiping Rebellion
Various responses to the development and spread of global capitalism,
including
Effects of the global spread of European political and social thought,
including
Positive effects of medical innovations, including: polio vaccine and
Unit 6 (Q3 and Q4): antibiotics
Accelerating Global Change and Negative effects humans have had on the environment as a result of
Realignments population increases and scientific advances
How disease, scientific innovations, and conflict led to demographic shifts
AP WORLD HISTORY West

How the shift from European dominance to new forms of transregional


political organization occurred by the end of the 20th century
How emerging ideologies of anti-imperialism contributed to the dissolution
of empires and the restructuring of states
How political changes were accompanied by major demographic and social
consequences, including: redrawing of old colonial boundaries
How global conflict led to an unprecedented amount of military conflicts,
including
Comparisons of how different groups intensified the trend towards global
violence while others opposed it
Comparisons between the ways states responded to the economic
challenges of the 20th century
How and why states, communities, and individuals became increasingly
interdependent, including
Examples of how popular and consumer culture became global
Unit 7 (Q4): Review of key material and skills
Review and AP Prep

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