AP© Human Geography
Parent/Guardian & Student Overview
Instructors:
Colleen Schmidt Jane Schulz cschmid1@houstonisd.org jschulz1@houstonisd.org
Course website: http://www.houstonisd.org//Domain/26269
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Website typically has a copy of in-class lectures, handouts for the day, schedule, unit syllabus, and resources. Please consult regularly or when in doubt regarding assignments.
AP © Human Geography is the equivalent of a one-semester college-level course and is designed to provide the student with an in-depth understanding of the earth’s regions, religions, languages, recent regional histories, governments, economic systems, and physical features. Assignments and assessments will prepare them for the AP Exam on May 13th as well as deepen the students’ understanding of the issues. The Human
Geography teachers work closely to ensure homogeneity of the curriculum; however, we reserve the right to give alternate assignments and/or grades (differentiate) where appropriate.
Please feel free to visit the College Board website for more insight into the objectives of this course.
 https://apstudent.collegeboard.org/apcourse/ap-human-geography
Expectations:
This is an AP course, which simply means it is not like a college class, it IS a college class. There is an expectations that all students act accordingly. During this academic year we will be dealing with important world issues and each student is expected to handle this material, including video clips, with the maturity commensurate with the level of the course. It should go without saying that each person, the teacher included, should treat others with dignity and respect. Please do not interrupt others when they are talking, get up and walk around, or use a cell phone ( if present during ANY assessment it is an automatic zero ).
Grading Policies:
Grading scale for AP Human Geography
35% Unit Free Response Questions (Short Answer)
35% Unit Multiple Choice Questions
10% Unit Projects
10% Vocabulary/Map Quizzes
A =
B=
C=
D=
F =
90 - 100
80 - 89
75 - 79
70 - 74
69 BELOW
Each Friday with no unit exam that week
5% Stuff
Daily work/class activities
Notecards
5% Reading Quizzes
Each Tuesday and Thursday (5 MC Questions)
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Course Schedule:
* We reserve the right to adjust schedule, as needed, based on class needs.
Unit 1 -Geography: Its Nature and Perspectives
August 24 – October 1
Unit Project Friday, September 18
FRQs Monday, September 28
MCQs
Unit 2 -Population
Tuesday, September 29
October 2- November 4
Unit Project Friday, October 16
FRQs
MCQs
Monday, October 19 and Monday, November 2
Tuesday, October 20 and Tuesday, November 3
Unit 3 -Cultural Patterns and Processes
November 5 – December 11
Unit Project Map Quizzes: FOUR parts: November 6, November 13, November, 24,
December 4
FRQs Wednesday, December 9
MCQs Thursday, December 10
Review for Mid-Term Exam Monday December 14 th
(1 class day)
Your mid-term will be questions taken from old Unit tests.
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It is the STUDENTS responsibility to maintain old copies of old Unit tests, duplicates will not be provided.
Mid-Term/Final Exams Tuesday December 15 th
– Friday December 18 th
Unit 4 -Political Organization of Space
January 5 – January 29
Unit Project Friday, January 22
FRQs
MCQs
Thursday, January 28
Friday, January 29
Unit 5 – Agricultural and Rural Land Use
February 1 – February 19
Unit Project Monday, February 15
FRQs Wednesday, February 17
MCQs Thursday, February 18
Unit 6 -Industrialization and Economic Development
February 22 – March 11
Unit Project
FRQs
MCQs
Thursday, March 10
Friday, March 11
Unit 7 -Cities and Urban Land Use & the Environment
March 21 – April 15
Unit Project Monday, April 11
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Unit 8--
FRQs
MCQs
Wednesday, April 13
Thursday, April 14
Comprehensive Unit
April 15 – May 12
No Unit Project
FRQs
MCQ
Friday, April 29
FIVE Unit Review Tests: April 20, April 25, April 28, May 6, May 10
ALL FRESHMAN STUDENTS SIT FOR AP TEST FRIDAY, MAY 13 th (Morning)
Review for Final Exam: May 16 – May 19
Final Exams: Friday May 20 – Wednesday May 25
Class Procedures:
In this class we have a limited amount of time to pursue a subject rich and in-depth content area. In an effort to create and maintain the best possible learning environment, the teacher has established certain classroom procedures. These guidelines are in direct conformity with the philosophy of Carnegie Vanguard.
 All assignments are due at the beginning of the class on assigned dates. Unit projects are due by
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8:30 a.m. on their due date.
The student is required to register for the website www.turnitin.com and will be provided additional instructions prior to the due date of the first assignment utilizing TurnIt In.
Late Policy:
All assignments are due ON TIME. Late work will be accepted up to seven days late and no later. The highest possible grade on late work is 50%. If a student is on campus the day an assignment is due, then the student is required to turn it in, even if he/she missed the geography period. It is the students’ responsibility to come and turn in work even if arriving late or early to school. Assignments due to www.turnitin.com (Unit Projects) are due by 8:30 a.m. of the day they are due.
Absences:
You are expected to attend class every day. If you are absent it is your responsibility to promptly gather the assignments that you missed. I will not remind you of missed assignments; you must take the initiative to find out what you missed. The assignments and lesson discussion are all available on the webpage. If you miss a test
YOU must schedule a make-up on the day you return to campus. Please keep in mind that the format of the retest is at the teacher’s discretion. It is your responsibility to reschedule your missed test in a timely manner. Any assignments not made up from an absence will result in a zero. Tests and projects are scheduled far enough in advance that absenteeism the day before a test will not allow for a postponement of your test. A tentative course schedule has been provided for the entire academic year, so please take this into consideration when considering family obligations as well as off-campus commitments.
Retakes:
Retakes are available under the CVHS re-take policy. You may retake a vocabulary quiz or test for a grade no higher than 70. You must notify the teacher via the website form at: http://www.houstonisd.org/Page/115778 no later than 24 hours after receipt of the grade. All MCT retakes require test corrections completed and submitted prior to the retake date and time.
Academic Integrity: All students are held accountable to the CVHS Academic Honor Code as well as HISD policies regarding academic integrity/cheating. The CVHS Academic Honor Code may be found in full in the
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CVHS Student Handbook/Planner and CVHS Website. To supplement these policies, we would like to remind students that cheating, copying, talking during assessments, and plagiarizing will not be tolerated in this course.
All assignments, handouts, notecards, homework, etc. are expected to be completed INDIVDUALLY by the student unless EXPLICITEDLY stated in the assignment instructions. It should be noted that academic dishonesty extends to any student aiding another student by providing test answers, quiz answers, assignment answers, or any disclosure of in-class activities prior to the other student having received the activity/information directly from the teacher. Having unauthorized materials (papers, phones, etc.) in sight – or with the potential to be viewed - during an assessment is considered academic dishonesty. Any student displaying academic dishonesty will face the full consequences of their actions. In like manner, the student will receive a “P” in conduct and a zero on the assignment. There will not be an opportunity to make up the assignment. Academic Integrity applies to ALL parties involved, not simply the individual receiving assistance.
Extra Help :
Please note this course is fast paced and requires a significant amount of college level reading. The first question that will always be asked of students seeking help is: “Have you read?” Vocabulary quizzes and reading quizzes are typically good indicators of whether or not a student has read. In addition, we have found that reading on a college level is different than reading at the middle school level and often requires the additional steps of re-reading and outlining.
If you experience unusual difficulty in the assignments, either in general or consistently in a specific area, this is a signal to seek extra help. For best results, attend extra help sessions as needed, rather than only the day before a test or major assignment. Bring in your notebook and homework to help identify troublesome areas. A teacher is ALWAYS available and willing to help, but sometimes the student needs to take the initiative to communicate this issue. Communicate with your instructor about when you would like to seek help and it will be scheduled accordingly. E-mail is checked multiple times a day or you may call the school and leave a message.
Books:
Your student has been provided the following:
Fouberg, E., Murphy, A., de Blij, H. (2009). Human Geography. 9 th
edition. John Wiley & Sons. Inc.
Getis, A., Getis, J., & Fellman, J. (2009). Introduction to Geography. 13 th Edition. McGraw Hill. (On-Disc)
If you prefer to have your student have a hard copy of Getis et al. (2011), it is recommended that you utilize
Amazon used books, where a 13 th edition (the edition is very important) can typically be found for under
$10.00. If having the textbook on-disc provides a hardship for your student due to limited technology at home, they may ask either instructor for a Getis et al. (2011) textbook.
Your student will need to obtain the book below on their own. Some copies are available in the Carnegie
Library and at Houston Libraries.
Johnson, Steven. The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic--and How It Changed
Science, Cities, and the Modern World . New York: Riverhead, 2006. Print.
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(Please note, this form is available online for future reference, or a 2 nd
copy can be provided for your records)
During this course we will be showing the movie Detropia and Pruitt Igoe , these are unrated documentaries. They both contain some strong language for roughly 20-30 words through the course of the film.
Please Check One:
___ I give my student permission to view the film Detropia and Pruitt Igoe
___ I do NOT give permission for my student to view the film Detropia and Pruitt Igoe
I also understand my student will need to obtain the following, either purchased or through the library :
Johnson, Steven. The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic--and How It Changed
Science, Cities, and the Modern World . New York: Riverhead, 2006. Print.
The following supplies are also requested for this course by the start of the 2 nd week of class:
One box of Kleenex/Tissues
One ream of white printer paper
By signing this form I acknowledge I have read the course policies for AP © Human Geography.
_________________________ _________________________
Printed Student’s Name Student’s Signature
By signing this form I acknowledge that I have read the class procedures for Human Geography
_______________________ __________________________
Parent/Guardian Printed Name Parents/Guardian Signature & Date
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