AP  U.S. History 

On-Line for 2011-2012 School Year

We have three sections, a new one taught by Lisa Hawkins and sections taught by our experienced teachers Daniel Burns and Susan Richman, and


Section 1

Teacher: Lisa Hawkins

Email: lisa@questcourses.com

Texts Required:

  • America: A Narrative History, Tindall and Shi.  The newest edition is the 8th edition, and that’s the edition I will be working from.  However, you can buy one of the older editions.  Just make sure that you don’t buy the “Brief” edition.  You want either separate Volumes 1 and 2, or the combined edition. 
  • After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection, Davidson and Lytle.  Any edition of this book is acceptable.   Once again, you can find this book as one combined volume, or separated into Volume 1 and Volume 2.   Many inexpensive copies are available through amazon.com resellers, ebay, half.com, etc.  Furthermore, reselling this item (like all the other texts required for this course) shouldn’t be a problem since they are popular texts in other AP US History courses.
  • Opposing Viewpoints in American History, Volumes 1 and 2, Dudley.  Any edition of these volumes is acceptable, and again, these volumes are readily available used. 
  • United States History: Preparing for the Advanced Placement Exam, Newman.  Any edition is acceptable.

Other primary and secondary sources, lectures, presentations, online videos, etc. will be available online.

NOTE: Much more information about the text choices, as well as every other aspect about the class, can be found at the website www.questcourses.edublogs.org. 

Tech Needs: Full internet access.  High speed would be very helpful, because part of this course will involve viewing and listening to streaming flash-based presentations (and those don’t work well with lower speed access).  Ability to burn audio and listen to lectures off-line, and ability to watch history-related dvds will also be necessary.

Class Fees: $575 until July 1, $600 thereafter.  An audit option is available.  Please contact me for more information about that. 

Who should apply: High school students who understand that much will be required of them, both in terms of quantity and quality.  While I will guide students into mastery of content, I do so in the context of training students to read actively, think critically, and write engagingly about the material they are encountering.  Therefore, both a scholarly attitude and a scholarly set of skills will be necessary for any student to thrive in this course.  In addition, my class will be highly interactive.  This means, of course, that students will be involved in discussing a variety of American history-related issues.  However, it means more than that.  It means that students will be assuming a high degree of responsibility in mutually equipping each other in the learning process during the course of the year.   Please see my website at www.questcourses.edublogs.org for much more detail about how I intend to weave this seminar-style aspect into our APUSH course.

Class Description: This course will cover the development of American history from its colonial beginnings through the end of the twentieth century.  It will prepare students to take the revised AP US History exam in May, 2012.  (Please see the information posted on the PA Homeschoolers’ website about changes being made in the US History exam for the following year.)    However, my goals for this course are more comprehensive than getting students ready to take the exam next May.  I also hope to inspire and increase students’  love and appreciation for history, expand students’ capacity to think creatively and flexibly about critical issues, and communicate powerfully and compellingly.  

The course will be conducted on a series of linked, password-protected websites.  The ‘portal’ website will contain all the necessary documents, announcements, uploads, and links for students to access.   Moodle-based websites will allow students to submit homework and take exams.  Separate ‘discussion’ websites will allow smaller groups of students to engage more personally with one another.  On these more intimate discussion websites, each student will be assigned his or her own ‘ravatar’ – the image of an historical personage.  The student’s ravatar will appear beside his/her name for every post.  In addition, each student will actually assume the identity of his/her ravatar for different projects during the school year, allowing us to have the unique opportunity to have personalities as diverse as Alexander Hamilton, Carrie Nation, and Louis Armstrong share their perspectives on a variety of historical and current issues.

In addition, each student will be assigned his/her own personal blog – all connected to the portal website and all password-protected.   Students will be called upon through the course of the year to use their blogs as a learning site for other students – developing thoughtful questions and leading discussions, posting more substantial work to share with classmates, offering suggestions and reflections to classmates.  Students will have quite a bit of leeway in crafting their blogs to reflect their personalities and interests. 

Students will read primary and secondary source material, watch videos, listen to audio, and participate in (and occasionally lead!) related discussions.   They will have access to my college-level audio-visual presentations, which include both improving thinking, reading, and writing skills and covering the content of American history from the beginning through the end of the nineteenth century,  more than 30 presentations in all.  (Students themselves will be producing, with my guidance, short audio-visual presentations carrying us through the twentieth century.) They will learn how to write historical essays like the ones required by the AP exam, not only by writing their own, but by critiquing actual college essays for strengths and weaknesses.   They will learn how to notice on-going themes in American history and assume responsibility for interpreting historical events through the framework of one or more theme not only for their own sake, but for the sake of their classmates. 

Again, for more information, and a guided audio-visual tour of the course, please visit www.questcourses.edublogs.com.  From there, you will be able to view all the websites, make comments (and see your own ravatar!), ask questions, and submit an application for the course.  Once the course begins, all of these websites will be pasword-protected. 

Instructor Qualifications: I love history, I love teaching, and I love students.  I put a great deal of thought and time into constructing courses that are engaging, challenging, and well-organized.  I also care a great deal about humanizing the on-line experience, and you will see that priority woven into many aspects of my course.  I majored in history at Swarthmore College, where I also earned my high-school teaching certification.  I also did graduate work at Widener University with a focus on English and education.  I worked for four years at an inner-city classical high school, where I taught American History and American Literature and served as Dean of Students.  In 1997, I earned my Masters in History at Temple University, and soon began teaching college courses for Drexel University and Peirce College for adults returning to school.   In 2005, I began teaching online, and to date have independently created eight different online college courses, ranging from survey American History courses, to the History of American Business, Colonial History, Revolutionary History, and Western Humanities surveys.  You can see comments from former students on the website listed above.  Despite all my experiences at the high school and college level, however, I still think my greatest instructional accomplishment was teaching my four homeschooled children to read.

Click here for Comments about Lisa Hawkins teaching


Section 2

Teacher: Daniel Burns

 

Email: swampfox185@gmail.com

 

Texts Required: America: A Narrative History, 7th or 8th edition by Tindall and Shi; Barron’s AP U.S. History Guide, by Kellogg.

 

Tech Needs: High speed internet access, ability to watch history-related videos online.

 

Class Fees: Early bird (before July 1st): $510, regular $535. Costs for texts vary depending on choice of format (ebook or print) and choice of used or new.

 

Who should apply: This course is open to homeschooled students who will be in grades 9 through 12 in the 2011-2012 school year. There are no prerequisites, but a basic understanding of U.S. History will be helpful. Students should also be willing to regularly engage in thoughtful discussions of historical issues and events.

 

This course is ideal for those who have a passion for history and enjoy an academic challenge. There will be large readings required along with primary source documents, two essays each month, and other assignments, so strong reading and writing skills are important. Students should expect to devote an average of 10 hours each week to this course. I will ask for PSAT/SAT/ACT scores or other measures of academic preparation and a writing sample in the application process. Perhaps most importantly, students should have self-motivation and a love of learning.

 

Class Description: As preparation for the AP U.S. History exam in May, the course will cover U.S. history from colonization through the present, including political, social, cultural, and economic themes. The main textbook will be supplemented with a video series, primary source documents, and internet research, and students should seek out their own sources through videos, magazines, novels, or visits to historical sites. There will also be editorial cartoon analyses, interviews, and lively discussions. Students will write two longer research papers, one biography and one analytical report.

 

We like to have fun in APUSH! The course will have a highly interactive website (interactive rating of 3) where students get to know each other, respond to each other’s work, ask questions, etc. It will have a format similar to the demo website and will be password protected. We will also organize (optional) live chat sessions for review, interaction, and history games.

An average month will include about 200 pages of textbook reading, two essays (roughly 500 words each), a number of primary documents, an interview or cartoon analysis, several quizzes, and whatever extra credit or bonus assignments the student chooses to complete.

 

I will post frequent updates on the website as a reminder of assignments. Parents are encouraged to check the website regularly for details about course work and student interaction. I will also send out a midyear progress report and a final progress report to parents (very useful to show evaluators or to include in a portfolio!).

 

Registration: The application is available for download here. Please email me with any questions. Class size is limited and there will be a summer reading assignment, so sign up early.

 

Instructor Qualifications: This will be my eighth year teaching AP U.S. History online for the Pennsylvania Homeschoolers. I have also been a classroom teacher and currently serve as administrator for Puebla Christian School in Puebla, Mexico. Student scores on the AP U.S. History exam in the last seven years of my class have been significantly higher than the national average, particularly in 2010 when all but one student scored a 3 or higher. I am a PHAA graduate and a graduate of Patrick Henry College with a degree in Government/Public Policy. I have always had a voracious appetite for U.S. history, and I look forward to another year of teaching this course as a means of sharing that excitement with homeschooled high school students.

Click here to read class reviews from past participants in Daniel Burns' section of this class

Click here for an application to Daniel Burns’ section of this class


Section 3 (Section filled)

Teacher: Susan Richman

Email: richmans@pahomeschoolers.com or spr1951@gmail.com

Texts required: free Digital History online text at http://www.digitalhistory2.uh.edu OR alternatively the print text (available 2nd hand) America and its Peoples, by Martin, et al; Barron’s AP US History 9th Edition by Kellogg.

Tech Needs: hi-speed internet access; computer capable of viewing online videos and listening to audio lectures; highly recommended: video or DVD player for watching related history videos, or ability to watch DVD’s on computer; program that will download online videos, such as the free RealPlayer; mp3 player or iPod for listening to downloaded audio history lectures.

Class fees:  $575 early bird (until July 1), regular tuition $600. Required texts will cost approximately $16 to $75  (students have a choice of a free online multi-media text OR a standard print text – the print text can often be purchased 2nd hand very reasonably; Barron’s Guide 9th edition can be found 2nd hand).

Who should apply: Class is limited to 35 students max, and I receive lots of applicants, so apply early. Audit option available for strong students after the class has filled ($150), with the option of joining the class and paying balance of tuition if an enrolled student drops the class. This class is for high school students having a strong passion for history, who have advanced writing and reading skills. This is not an easy class, and each student must be willing to put in the required time (roughly 8 to 12 hours of study per week, including watching history video lectures online and other activities besides text reading and essay writing). I will ask for SAT I, PSAT, other AP scores or other achievement test scores when available to help in making decisions on which students to accept into the class, as there has been shown to be a high correlation between verbal abilities and success in AP US History. Students will also be asked to submit a personal essay describing their background in history and their goals for taking part in the class. Ideally a recent US history class has been completed, or at least some demonstration that the student comes into the class with a good background in basics and strong interests in at least some aspects of our country’s history. As important is assurance that the student is ready to take part actively in the class through regular discussion on the website. Highly Interactive, rated 3.

Class Description: This class will cover mainstream US History from early colonization to the present, using an online basic college text (students also have the option of using a standard print text as a supplement to the free online multi-media text--more info on this in application) as well as many original source documents, varied Internet sources, and the archive of material on our class site. Our class archives include all past original history interviews, biography projects, history film reviews, and more, completed by past students--this year I hope to add a section where students can post reviews of ‘real world’ history sites they’ve visited). Students are also encouraged to use other outside sources (websites, videos, history-related novels, magazines, biographies, and visiting historical museums, etc.) for earning bonus points. Students will be required to submit two formal essays per month, similar to AP US History exam essays, as well shorter less formal responses to 'History in the News', Historical Cartoons, summaries of original History Interviews, and Document-Based Question (DBQ) Follow-Up responses. December includes a history film/documentary review project. Students also complete two major Biography projects, with at least one as a website or multi-media project. For those students who can readily keep on top of regular assignments, there are also many optional quick bonus assignments for extra credit-- many students really find these engaging and fascinating.

Further, we hold three simulated 'Dinner Parties' where students take on the role of various historical characters, who meet and discuss issues related to a particular era or theme (Revolutionary War era, Civil War era, Social Reform/Labor/Industry Leaders Theme). A summer history book review project is also part of the class-- I send out a list of possible titles, and students can also suggest books they own that might meet this requirement. Each week students also complete a regular round of requirements: text readings, regular reading in primary documents, readings in the New York Times historical archive, and weekly practice quizzes, while also learning about various effective review techniques. Students will also regularly be using various audio resources online, including podcast interviews with historians, important historical speeches, and more.

The class will again have a lively website with many ways for students to interact with one another, debate issues, react and respond to one another’s essays, post history interviews, take quizzes, view history lectures, listen to history podcasts, and much more. We also have a direct link and full access to our digital text website and to the print text website, and both have many excellent resources that we will use regularly. Our site also has links to many other history sites on the web.

The class website is password protected to insure privacy as the students learn together. The 2011-2012 website will be updated and ready for action by July 20, 2011.

Instructor Qualifications: This will be my 16th year leading this class on-line with homeschool students, and I have also completed three different one-day College Board workshops on teaching AP US History. I am a PA certified teacher, and have a BA from Carnegie Mellon University. My strongest qualification may be that all four of my own children who have taken the class have received high rankings on the AP US exam, and the student scores from this class are in general much higher than the national average- and that my own US history personal library threatens to require yet another bookshelf very soon. I also love learning with and from my students, and each year I am awed by the abilities of so many of the teens taking part in this course. Do read the student reviews of this class to gain a greater feel for the way we learn together in APUSH.

Click here to find a PDF file with an application for Mrs. Richman’s APUSH 2010-2011 class

Click here to read class reviews from past participants in Susan Richman's section of this class


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