APWORLDHISTORY
COURSEDESCRIPTION
APWorldHistoryisatwo‐semester,academiccourseemphasizingnon‐Westernhistory.Inadditiontothe
college‐leveltexts,primarysourcedocumentsandadditionaloutsidereadingsarethebasisforthecourse’s
content.Itisanexpectationthatstudentswillcompleteallreadingforthecourseaswellasparticipatein
classdiscussion,cooperative‐learninggroups,andallprojects.AswithanyAPhistorycourse,thereisa
specialemphasisonhistoricalessaycompositionderivingfrombothessaypromptsanddocument‐based
questions.Studentswillbeassessedontheirabilitytomasterthethemesandhabitsofmindandskillswithin
theAPWorldHistorycurriculumthroughtheuseofessaycomposition,objectiveexams,simulations,
projects,andvariousotherlearningexperiencesspecifictothecourseandthelearningneedsofthestudents.
Collegeworldhistorycoursesvaryconsiderablyintheapproachused,thechronologicalframeworkchosen,
thecontentcovered,thethemesselected,andtheanalyticalskillsemphasized.Thematerialthatfollows
describesthechoicestheAPWorldHistoryDevelopmentCommitteehasmadetocreatethecourseandexam.
Thesechoicesthemselvesarecompatiblewithavarietyofcollege‐levelcurricularapproaches.
COURSECURRICULUMCONTENT
Worldhistory,inonewayoranother,isthestoryofconnectionswithinthehumancommunity.Itrangesin
scopefromtalesofindividualfamiliestonarrativesofallhumanity.Ateverylevel,theworkofthestudentof
worldhistoryistoseekoutthecrossingsofboundariesandthelinkagesofsystemsinthehumanpast—
connectionsacrossregionsoftheworld,amongthemesinhistory,andacrossperiodsoftime.Worldhistory,
ratherthanthesumtotalofallhistory,providesafocusontheconnectionsamonglocalitiesandthemesin
history.
Worldhistoryinvolvesthinkingaboutpatternsovertime.Thegreatdebatesinworldhistoryfocusfor
exampleontheconnectionsintradeamongregions,theconnectionsbetweenfreeandslavelaborinthe
Atlanticworld,theoccasionaloutburstsofepidemicdiseaseoverhugeregions,andtheinterchangesthatled
totheriseofnationalstatesthroughouttheworld.Thepatternsofworldhistoryincludecontinuitiesaswell
aschanges.Thoughhumanlifespansarenowlongeronaveragethaninearliertimes,manyaspectsof
humansocietyhavenotchangedorhavechangedverylittleforinstance.
Muchofworldhistoryisdepictedintermsofcontinentsandothermajorregions—SouthAsiaandAfricaor
thePacificOceanandEurope.Yetthereismoretoworldhistorythanthehistoryofregionafterregion:The
exchangeofsilverandgoldhaslinkeddistantsites,andthehistoriesifChristianityandIslamtouchonevery
continent.Thestoryofindustrializationcentersonthedevelopmentoffactorysystemsinafewnations,but
thestorycannotbecompletedwithouttheintercontinentalmovementsofrawmaterials,finishedgoods,and
workers.WorldhistoryincludesthehistoryoftheUnitedStatesandoftheEuropeanregionsthatarestudied
aspartofWesternCivilization,butworldhistorygoesfurther,addressingallworldregionsaspartofalong‐
termandincreasinglyinterconnectedsetofhumansocieties.
Worldhistoryisachallengingandexhilaratingfieldofstudy.Itisconceptuallyandmethodologically
complex.Asstudentsdevelopproficiencyindefiningandsolvinghistoricalproblems,theydevelopimportant
organizationalskillswhichtheywillpracticeinunderstandingdifficultissuestheywillfaceinmanyaspects
oflifeoutsidetheclassroom.Onebenefitofstudyingworldhistoryisclearerthinkingaboutpastandpresent.
HistoricalPeriodization
TheAPWorldHistorycoursecontentisstructuredaroundtheinvestigationofcoursethemesandkey
conceptsinsixchronologicalperiods.Thesixhistoricalperiods,fromapproximately8000B.C.E.tothe
present,provideatemporalframeworkforthecourse.Theinstructionalimportanceandassessment
weightingforeachperiodvariesbyperiod.
tleDateRangeWeighting
1.TechnologicalandEnvironmentalTransformations
toc.600B.C.E. 5%
2.OrganizationandReorganizationofHumanSocieties c.600B.C.E.toc.600C.E.
15%
3.RegionalandTransregionalInteractions
c.600C.E.toc.1450
20%
4.GlobalInteractions c.1450toc.1750
20%
5.IndustrializationandGlobalIntegration
c.1750toc.1900
20%
6.AcceleratingGlobalChangeandRealignmentsc.1900tothepresent 20%
NoteonGlobalCoverage
TheAPWorldHistoryCurriculumFrameworkemphasizesglobalconnectionsand
processesthroughoutthecourse.Teachersshouldhighlightfeaturesofparticularregions
aswellasprocessesthatspantheglobe.Toachievethisbalance,APWorldHistory
coursesshouldprovidebalancedglobalcoverage,withAfrica,theAmericas,Asia,Europe,
OceaniaandAustraliaallrepresented.Nomorethan25percentofcoursetimeshouldbe
devotedtoEuropeanHistory.Atthesametime,itisimportantthatdifferentregionsnot
bestudiedseparatelyfromeachother,butwithinabroadglobalperspective.
CourseThemes
Thefivecoursethemesbelowpresentareasofhistoricalinquirythatshouldbeinvestigatedatvariouspoints
throughoutthecourseandrevisitedasmanifestedinparticularhistoricaldevelopmentsovertime.These
themesarticulateatabroadlevelthemainideasthataredevelopedthroughouttheentirespanofthecourse.
Eachthemeincludesalistofrelatedkeytopicsaswellasadescription.Thekeyconceptswerederivedfrom
anexplicitconsiderationofthesethemes,withthegoalofmakingthethemesmoreconcreteforthecourse
contentwithineachhistoricalperiod.Thisclearconnectionbetweenthemesandkeyconceptsmeans
studentscanputwhatisparticularaboutonehistoricalperiodintoalargerframework.Inthisway,the
themesfacilitatecross‐periodquestionsandhelpstudentsrecognizebroadtrendsandprocessesthathave
developedovercenturiesinvariousregionsoftheworld.
Theme1:InteractionBetweenHumansandtheEnvironment
Theme2:DevelopmentandInteractionofCultures
Theme3:State‐Building,ExpansionandConflict
Theme4:Creation,ExpansionandInteractionofEconomicSystems
Theme5:DevelopmentandTransformationofSocialStructures
INSTRUCTIONALMATERIALSANDSUPPLIES
PublishedMaterials
CourseText:
Bentley,J.&Ziegler,F.H.(2006).Traditionsor
Encounters:AGlobalPerspectiveofthePast(3rded.).
McGraw‐Hill,NewYork.
Adams,Langer,Hwa,Stearns&Wiesner‐Hanks
InstructionalSupplies
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
PensandPencils
Paper
Notebook
Highlighters
USBStorage/Flashdrive
(2000).ExperiencingWorldHistory.NewYork
UniversityPress,NewYork.
SupplementalReading:
Christian,D.,(2008).ThisFleetingWorld:AShort
HistoryofHumanity.Berkshire
Publishing.GreatBarington,MA.
Pomeranz,K.&Topik,S.(2006).TheWorldthat
TradeCreated:Society,Culture,and
theWorldEconomy.M.E.Sharpe.Armonk,NY.
Standage,T.(2005).AHistoryoftheWorldinSix
Glasses.WalkerPublishing.New
York,NY.
Recommended:
Grupe,D.J.&Reynolds,S.(2007).APAchiever:World
History.McGraw‐Hill,NewYork.
EVALUATIONANDGRADING
Assignments
Classwork&Homework
GradeWeights
ClassAssessments35%
Homework(5%)
Classwork(10%)
Quizzes(20%)
Projects
Essays
WeeklyQuizzes
UnitTests
InterimExams
FinalExam
SummativeAssessment40%
InterimAssessment5%
GradingScale
A:
90andabove
B:
80–89
C:
74–79
D:
70–73
F:
69orbelow
FinalExam20%
OTHERINFORMATION
ExpectationsforAcademicSuccess
1) Read&takenotesdaily.
2) Ask&respondtoquestionsinclass.
3) Participate&contributetoclassactivities
&groupwork.
4) Remediateassessmentswhennecessary.
AdditionalRequirements/Resources
 Tutoringavailable(seehoursabove).
 Supplementalreadings(seeabove).
 SuggestedResource:
Grupe,D.J.&Reynolds,S.(2007).APAchiever:World
5) Seekassistancewhenrequired.
6) Committocontinuousquality
improvement.
History.McGraw‐Hill,NewYork.
 ElectronicResource:
Traditions&EncountersOnlineLearningCenter. http://highered.mcgraw‐
hill.com/sites/0072957549/student_view0/index.html
 Barron’sAPWorldHistoryFlashcards