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History/Geography 9:
World History I
The Ancient and Medieval Worlds
World History I introduces students to the dynamics of early societies with an eye towards helping them understand the diverse cultures of today's global world. Students come to appreciate the impact of geography, the variety of economic, political and technological responses to environmental challenges, the growth of cities and trade, and the evolution of law. Studies of the roots of democracy, patterns of empire in Europe and Asia, the rise and spread of Islam, and the social and economic changes that characterize the medieval period, encourage comparative analysis. Examination of the concept of renaissance in various regions fuels discussion and builds understanding of multiple perspectives. Students consider positive and negative models of leadership and the role of women in these societies. Links to primary sources, literature, art, and film enliven the course and build interpretive skills. Coursework emphasizes rigorous skill building in writing, evaluative reading and thinking, presentation of evidence, public speaking, and research. Students develop computer skills through the laptop program. These efforts culminate in the popular year-end debate project, for which students research in depth, prepare position papers and work in teams to present oral arguments about controversial issues in a formal debate setting.
History/Geography 10: World History II
In this course, students explore the interactions that have taken place among peoples of the world from the fifteenth-century Age of Exploration to the present day. The course emphasizes the impact various cultures have had on one another through trade, technology, intellectual exchange, exploration, diplomatic relations, and war. Students study such major developments as the emergence of trading empires; the growth of the Muslim empires; imperialism and colonialism; the Industrial Revolution; the formation of national consciousness in Europe, Asia, the Americas and Africa; and the Cold War. In addition, they examine such events as the Reformation and the French, Russian, and Chinese Revolutions with an eye toward understanding how these events have impacted political and economic developments. Through close reading of primary documents students gain insight into how individual decisions can profoundly influence a nations destiny. By analyzing evidence and constructing historical arguments, students begin to recognize the fluidity of historical interpretation on how the historians or politicians stance shapes his or her view of events. The fall current events project challenges students to employ analytical skills to research and report on how globalization and national interests shape political and economic trends. During the spring semester, students research a theme, an event, or a figure of historical significance, which culminates in a thesis-driven analytical essay.
History 10: Advanced Placement Modern European History
This course is open to students in grades ten and twelve. Surveying modern European history from approximately 1450 to the present, the course provides a knowledge and an understanding of the principal events and circumstances that have given shape and direction to European politics, culture, and society. Using the course text, primary documents, representative works of art and architecture, and selections from key works of European literature and music, students acquire an understanding of European history as the struggle for military and political mastery in Europe, the emergence of representative forms of government, the rise of nationalism, the growth of the nation-state, and the ideological conflicts of the twentieth century. In addition, they discover the ways in which political events and ideas have affected cultural developments, for example, the influence of the French Revolution on the poetry of Wordsworth, or the impact of Italian nationalism on the operas of Verdi. Although the course emphasizes political and intellectual history, much attention is given to social and economic developments to prepare students for the Advanced Placement Examination.
History 11: United States History
This course develops and enhances students' understanding of the major events, individuals, movements, and ideas that have contributed to the development of the nation. Students are encouraged to focus on major thematic categories that serve as the principal touchstones to which the course repeatedly returns: the American character and the ideals of liberty and equality, American political and governmental development, minorities' struggle for equality and civil rights, social movements and reform traditions, major economic developments and cycles, immigration and ethnicity, the causes and effects of wars and the responsibilities of global leadership, and cultural and intellectual developments. The course emphasizes the following skills: making logical inferences, establishing cause and effect, analyzing and synthesizing historical data, interpreting documentary material, and supporting logical arguments. The junior-year research paper aims to develop skills in critical reading and thinking, as well as in expository writing.
History 11: Honors United States History
This course is an advanced introduction to the history and culture of the United States from the early seventeenth century to the present. The aim of this accelerated course is to help students achieve a deeper and more nuanced understanding of the complexities of American history without the constraints imposed by preparation for a standardized exam. To that end, students trace some of the most significant recurring themes in American history, including the problem of race, the idea of American Exceptionalism, the role of women, the balance of power between the states and the federal government, and the definition of citizenship. Students also study historiography - in other words the different ways in which historians and Americans in general have understood that history. The course emphasizes the use of primary sources, including maps, diaries, fiction, images, and film. During the course of the year, students will be required to master a substantial amount of historical information; to analyze and synthesize historical data; to interpret documentary material in a thoughtful and historically responsible manner; and to construct and support logical arguments. In the process students will work to refine the skills that are necessary to engage in historical inquiry.
History 11: Advanced Placement United States History
This course prepares students for intermediate and advanced college courses by making demands upon them similar to those made by full-year introductory college courses. Students learn to assess primary documents, their relevance to a given interpretive problem, their reliability, and their importance, and to weigh the evidence and interpretations presented in historical scholarship. The course prepares students to take the Advanced Placement Examination in American History. Among the enduring themes of American history to which the course is especially attentive are the following: the establishment of, and the challenges to, democratic institutions; westward expansion and the American Dream; the experience of slavery and its legacies; states' rights versus federal authority; conflicting notions of equality; and the multifaceted tradition of liberty.
History 12: United States Government and Politics
This course aims to enliven the study of government by providing students with an understanding of the dynamic aspects of American government and politics. Students become familiar with governmental institutions such as Congress, the presidency, and the courts as well as with the intricacies of the political process, such as campaigning, lobbying, and using the media. The course relies on current events to shape and inform our work. For example, if the newspapers are filled with articles about an ongoing political controversy over a presidential nominee to the Supreme Court, we aim to understand what the fight is all about. Who are the relevant political actors, what are the stakes, why do those involved care so passionately, what difference does it all make? In short, we use current events to show the relevance of the course material and to make students more informed observers of their political universe. By the time the course is over, students have a better understanding of the myriad ways in which American government affects their daily lives and how people with different beliefs use political processes to shape what the government does.
Economics
Students gain the basic skills needed to find their way through the economic world. They learn the fundamentals of how market economies work, including the relationships between supply and demand, prices and production, consumption and investment. They examine macroeconomic problems such as unemployment and inflation, and governmental use of fiscal and monetary policies to affect those problems. Students become actively involved in learning about the stock market by creating their own investment portfolios and tracking results throughout the year. Finally, they learn through the study of current periodicals how to read and understand the news and how to interpret the impact of economic developments on the larger society.
History 12: Advanced Placement Comparative Government
This course introduces students to core political systems and concepts through examination of six case countries: Britain; Nigeria; Russia; China; Mexico; and Iran. Students study the evolution of each country's political systems, political culture, and the key turning points and challenges that shape the countries' current politics. The course makes active use of online sources through exploration of global newspapers (including those for each country studied), political websites, and blogs. Guest speakers as well as online and hard copy video bring political times and characters to life as students navigate their way through the often turbulent and always exciting course of contemporary politics. Throughout the course students reinforce their understanding of key political concepts and examples through discussions and written work that compare and contrast elements of the countries different political systems and culture.
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History 12: Advanced Placement
Modern European History
This course is open to students in grades ten and twelve. Surveying modern European history from approximately 1450 to the present, the course provides a knowledge and an understanding of the principal events and circumstances that have given shape and direction to European politics, culture, and society. Using the course text, primary documents, representative works of art and architecture, and selections from key works of European literature and music, students acquire an understanding of European history as the struggle for military and political mastery in Europe, the emergence of representative forms of government, the rise of nationalism, the growth of the nation-state, and the ideological conflicts of the twentieth century. In addition, they discover the ways in which political events and ideas have affected cultural developments, for example, of the influence of the French Revolution on the poetry of Wordsworth, or the impact of Italian nationalism on the operas of Verdi.
Although the course emphasizes political and intellectual history, much attention is given to social and economic developments in preparation for the Advanced Placement Examination.
History 12: Advanced Placement United States Government and Politics
This course provides students with the analytical skills and factual knowledge necessary for a critical understanding of American government and politics. The course prepares students to take the Advanced Placement exam in U.S. Government and Politics and also prepares them for college courses beyond the introductory level. The course examines the founding, structure, and operation of American national government; the government's constitutional basis and its major institutions such as Congress, the presidency, executive agencies, and the courts; the role of political parties and elections, interest groups, public opinion, and the media; the relationship of government to the American economy and culture; and the ways in which the political dynamics of the policymaking process vary from one area of public policy to another. The overall goal of the course is to prepare students to be informed and critical observers of past and contemporary developments in government and politics.
Art History
This course provides students with a knowledge of the principal styles and developments of Western art set against a broad background of intellectual, political, and social history. The course examines the great traditions and major innovations in painting, sculpture, and architecture from Bronze Age Greece through the Modernist period of the early twentieth century. Among the areas covered are the art of Classical Antiquity, Romanesque and Gothic architecture, the Renaissance, the Baroque period, Neo-classicism, Romanticism, Realism, Impressionism, and Modernism. Students visit the Boston Museum of Fine Arts frequently throughout the year to view specific works of art and to gather material for their looking papers.
Art History II: Twentieth Century Art
This course offers a hands-on approach to the art of our time. After studying major art movements that include Impressionism and Surrealism, students create art works that reflect their knowledge of these styles. The class visits museums and studios of Boston artists. Using notebooks, sketches, and paintings, students study the works of an artist whose work has evolved from Realism to Surrealism and Abstract Expressionism.
Current World Issues/Debate
In this dynamic interactive course, students explore current topics and build understanding through research, discussion, written and oral presentation, and debate. The course is organized around the theme of human rights, recognizing that rights have often been clearly defined in the ideal but rarely achieved in reality. Building on student interest and pressing world events, students gain self-confidence through researching specific case studies in depth, culling information from various media sources, analyzing events, and presenting information to their classmates and sometimes to the larger school community. There will be the opportunity for intramural debates on controversial topics. Field trips encourage students to reflect on the dual aims of the course - knowledge about meaningful world events and a desire to make the world a better place.