Block 2: A.P. U.S. History

Course Description

The Advanced Placement Program in United States History is offered to qualified high school students. Gateway High School and its social studies department recommend that students electing the AP course should have achieved at least a B in an advanced level World Studies course as a standard prerequisite or an advanced level American Studies course. Essentially the program prepares students for intermediate and advanced college courses by making demands upon them equivalent to those made by introductory survey courses. All students enrolled in this program are expected to take the national Advanced Placement Examination in United States History. If students pass the exam designed by the College Board in May of 2009, then they may apply for as much as one year of college credit within the institution of their choice. Other potential benefits include:

improving chances of acceptance at a prestigious college or university
saving money by graduating from college earlier
acquisition of astute higher order thinking skills and research techniques

Students need to be fully motivated and committed to the course, which can at times be rigorous. One should expect to read one to two chapters per week from the main text in addition to tackling some supplementary primary sources and other outside readings. Furthermore, AP students ought to anticipate spending considerable amounts of time and effort completing projects, studying for tests, and writing essays.

Return to High School Home Page | Return to GRSD HomePage

This page is written and maintained by the Gateway Regional School District.
If you have any comments, complaints, or suggestions, please e-mail us at webmaster@grsd.org