Advanced Placement European History Calabasas High School 2018-2019 Mr. Edsall

Purpose Provide a brief introduction of expectations for the AP European History Course Provide a brief overview of the AP European History Course. Address FAQ’s regarding the AP course and test.

Instructor’s Background CHS social studies teacher since 2004-2005 school year. Former Varsity baseball coach College Board Summer Institute 2014 & 2015 (AP Euro) M.A. in Education in Curriculum and Instruction. Concordia University, Irvine B.A. in History. California Lutheran University

Tonight vs. Back-to-School Night Back-to-school will be more about why I teach personally. I will not be going over the course in detail again.

Results by Year CHS Students’ Pass Rate 89.2% 81.6% 85.4% 79% 2015 2016* 2017 2018 Score of 5 11 19 12 36 Score of 4 15 30 49 Score of 3 32 22 45 33 Score of 2 4 18 29 Score of 1 3 1 2 CHS Students’ Pass Rate 89.2% 81.6% 85.4% 79% National Pass Rate 61% 53.6% 57% 57.6%

AP Euro: Pro’s & Con’s College level class (NOT a college prep class). Students primarily demonstrate their learning and earn grade through traditional multiple choice testing and essay writing. Time prohibits lengthy simulations and oral presentations before the AP Test. Course is challenging in terms of work load and caliber of intellectual thought.

College Board Curriculum The College Board uses an auditing process to authorize the AP designation on a student transcript. LVUSD uses a weighted 5-point scale for this course. The AP European Exam is on May 8, 2018.

Four Periods: 1450 to the Present Date Range 1 c. 1450-c.1648 2 c. 1648–c.1815 3 c. 1815–c.1914 4 c. 1914-present The course covers the same chronological timeframe as before the revision, c. 1450 to the present. Each of the four course periods is given equal weight on the exam. Keep in mind that the themes provide a means for teachers and students to trace developments in one part of the course that have emerged over centuries.

Six Themes Interaction of Europe and the world Poverty and Prosperity Objective Knowledge and Subjective Visions States and other Institutes of Power Individual and Society National and European Identity

Historical Thinking Skills Foster Critical Analysis and Interpretation Skill Type Historical Thinking Skill Chronological Reasoning Historical Causation Patterns of Continuity and Change over Time Comparison and Contextualization Comparison Contextualization The skills chronological reasoning and comparison and contextualization pertain to “thinking historically,” or the habits of mind that historians use when they approach the past in a critical way. The skills crafting historical arguments from historical evidence and historical interpretation and synthesis pertain to the tools used by historians when they construct and test historical arguments about the past. Crafting Historical Arguments from Historical Evidence Historical Argumentation Appropriate Use of Relevant Historical Evidence Historical Interpretation and Synthesis Interpretation

The Exam The instructor is assuming all students plan on taking the AP Test, and has adjusted instruction accordingly. Students ARE NOT required to take the test. The exam is 3 hours and 15 minutes long. Multiple choice portion is 55 stimulus-based questions answered in 55 minutes (40% of exam score). 3 Short Answer questions answered in 40 minutes (20% of Exam Score) One DBQ (25 %) and one LEQ (15%) will be answered in a 100 minute portion of the written test. 15 minute mandatory reading section Covers European history from High Renaissance to Present.

Getting a “5” A score of “3” is considered passing. A “5” is considered equivalent to a college-level “A” A “4” is considered equivalent to a college-level “B” Many colleges recognize a “3”-”5” as college credit. Depending on school, this could be thousands of dollars.

Final Exams The final exam at the end of the 1st semester will be a comprehensive test of all the material to date. It will include a full short answer, DBQ and LEQ. (No MC) A second semester final will be administered on a Saturday prior to the AP Test. It will be a mock AP Exam. The instructor will conduct a number of review sessions outside of school leading up to May 8th (date TBD). The class will work on a major project on “Life Skills” after the May 8th test date.

The Course Website edsall.weebly.com The website will contain a “reading guide” for each unit, which students are expected to read and keep track of throughout each unit. Reading guides must be handwritten I plan ahead to help students budget their time. I have all test dates for the year posted in my classroom. ALL STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO USE THE @STUDENT.LVUSD.ORG EMAIL ADDRESS!!!!

Essay writing We will cover strategies that will help students Write a strong thesis Outline intellectual thought Write using academic language I will use the College Board’s grading rubric. These skills transcend the AP Course.

Pace and Course Materials We crawl before we walk, we walk before we run… We have started by building skills that will be used repeatedly. The amount of content covered and pacing will increase dramatically in the next few weeks. We will primarily use Spielvogel’s Western Civilization. We will use an abundance of outside materials as well.

Grading System Each quiz, test, assignment is worth a certain number of points, and the course grade is determined by the percentage of total points accumulated. 55% of the course grade will be assessments 30% of the course grade will be writing 15% of the course grade will be practice & discussion *These percentages are a guideline and not intended to be exact.

Reading Guides and Tests The reading guides will be provided for each unit covered. Each reading guide will include enduring understandings, vocab terms, essential questions to guide the reading, all applicable “HUB” dates, and a reading guide/calendar for the unit. Students are responsible to complete all HW and reading before class. There will be periodic SAQ’s in the form of reading checks.

Attendance Students are required to send an email when absent. Students will not be permitted to use absences as an extension for the test.* Make-up tests may be different than the original test. All tests are curved for all four periods. Students that are absent will not be eligible for the curve.

Grading scale I do not round up grades. While there will be curved tests, there will not be a curve in the class. The grading scale is as follows: 93%-100%=A 80%-82.9%=B- 67%-69.9%=D+ 90%-92.9%=A- 77%-79.9%=C+ 63%-66.9%=D 87%-89.9%=B+ 73%-76.9%=C 60%-62.9%=D- 83%-86.9%=B 70%-72.9%=C- 59.9%-0%=F

Academic Honesty Parents and students have been asked to fully review the LVUSD “Academic Dishonesty” documentation that is included with the course syllabus. Homework is to be handwritten to discourage “cut and paste” practices, as well as practice physical task of writing. Quiz and/or test information must not be shared with students in other sections. I am encouraging students to improve their skills and content knowledge throughout this course. Cheating, encouraging cheating, or defending any form of academic dishonesty will only hinder the students’ academic pursuits and growth.

Study Aids I work with students to try to develop note-taking and study skills that will help them succeed. Others are available for purchase. Baron’s, Princeton Review, Kaplan, REA.. These are intended to help students prepare for the test. Many previous students recommend the “Crash Course” AP Review book. If you choose one of those, make sure you purchase one that has been written for the 2016-2017 rewrite.

My Philosophy/Approach Everyone can pass the test. Everyone WILL pass the test. Scores are not everything but they do provide a clear goal to strive towards. Focus is on learning history and analyzing documents, method will be based on College Board’s requirements. All students are capable of performing at a high level. I will do everything I can to help them succeed Email, Thesis Thursdays, Lunch meetings, before zero period, support, after school etc. Students will be held accountable all year. History should be engaging and fun. I will work my tail off for your students, I expect them to work their tail off for themselves.

Contact Information Please check the website regularly ESPECIALLY at the beginning of a new unit. Please use email to communicate with me: eedsall@lvusd.org

Thank you! Thank you for coming. Are there any questions?