Background
I am a Social Studies teacher and regularly find on my teaching schedule classes like Advanced Placement United States History, Advanced Placement American Government and Politics, and United States History. This unit will be for my AP US History class though I am positive that it could be used with honors students and perhaps reconfigured in a way that will make it possible to do with standard level students.
In North Carolina, students who take US History, no matter the achievement level, are required to take an end of year exam formulated by the state. This is in addition to the AP exam that students of that class will take in early May. There is approximately one month between the two exams and that puts me in a bit of a strange position. My AP students by virtue of the need to be prepared for the College Board exam have completed the entire survey course in US History. And though it is true that we must do well on the state test, it has never been much of a challenge to AP caliber students. Here is where this unit fits (I say this only because if it were not for this scheduling phenomenon, I do not think I would have time to pull this off). Teachers should be forewarned that unless you are free of curricular restrictions, this project is not likely the best choice. I think it will take a great deal of class time and probably have to take place over the course of several weeks. I also think that it will require having available library time and space so that students can do adequate research.
My high school will be brand new next year and will be about 1500 students strong, including only grades 9-11. The students at this school will not necessarily represent a diverse population. It is in a wealthy suburban area and is already being considered, with no evidence yet, as one of the best schools in the district. Early registration numbers show that I will have at least 4 sections of AP US History and that each section will be comprised of 30 or more students. This presents a potential logistical problem but one I will address in the strategies section of this unit. Suffice it to say that I think for the project described in this unit I will have the proper level of student to be successful.
Comments: