SYLLABUS – AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY



SYLLABUS – AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

2014-2015

Mr. Guilherme Strougo

Guilherme.Strougo@cherokee.k12.ga.us

Room 118

Google Voice: 770.835.5352

Website:

Course

AP Human Geography is a year-long course at Etowah High School intended to meet or exceed the introductory one-semester human geography course offered at colleges and universities. The purpose of the course is to introduce students to the orderly study of the spatial analysis of the human population, their cultures, activities, and landscapes. The goals of the course follow the National Geography Standards developed in 1994 enabling students, upon successful completion of the course, to:

1. Use and think about maps and spatial data sets.

2. Understand the spatial perspective and be able to make associations among phenomena in specific places.

3. Recognize and interpret the relationship among patterns and processes at different scales.

4. Define regions and evaluate the regionalization process.

5. Characterize and analyze changing interconnections among places.

Curricular Objectives

The AP Human Geography curricular objectives follow the most recent AP Human Geography Course Description found on the AP Human Geography Course Home Page. Throughout the remainder of this syllabus, the Curricular Objectives will be abbreviated to CO followed by the number of the objective.

1. The course provides a systematic study of human geography, including the following topics outlined in the Course Description:

➢ Nature and Perspectives on Geography

➢ Population

➢ Culture Patterns and Processes

➢ Political Organization and Space

➢ Agricultural and Rural Land Use

➢ Industrialization and Economic Development

➢ Cities and Urban Land Use

2. The course teaches the use of spatial concepts and landscape analysis to examine human organization of space.

3. The course teaches spatial relationships at different scales ranging from the local to the global.

4. The course teaches students how to use and interpret maps, data sets, and geographic models. GIS, aerial photographs, and satellite images, though not required, can be used effectively in the course.

Methods of Instruction

This class will be taught using the SOLE (Student Oriented Learning Environment) method of instruction. Additionally there will also be lectures, discussions, group work, creative research projects, student presentations, simulations, and debates.

Course Materials

The primary text for the AP Human Geography course is An Introduction to Human Geography: the Cultural Landscape, 8th edition (2005) by James M. Rubenstein, et. al. Additional case studies, readings from current issues, and field experiences will supplement the two texts.

Organization of Course

The AP Human Geography class meets Monday through Friday for one class period of 55 minutes. Students will maintain a class portfolio throughout the school year containing activities, vocabulary, key concepts and geographic models, and free response questions to be used prior to the AP Human Geography exam. Unit exams are administered over a two day period with timed multiple choice and essay segments.

BYLD/Cell Phone Usage

“Bring Your Own Device” initiative will be allowed once the student has submitted their user agreement form. Devices such as laptops and tablets will be allowed in class every day. Cell phones will only be allowed for certain activities and thus should remain off and out of sight. Students are not allowed to text or use their cell phones for any other purpose other than to complete the task requested by Mr. Strougo. Any student who violates their user agreement shall have his/her phone taken up and an administrative referral submitted.

Absences & Make-up Work Policy

If you are absent the day before a test, you are still expected to take the test on the day of your return. If you are absent the day before a project is due, you are still expected to turn in the project on the due date. If you are present at any point during the school day on which a project or major assignment is due, but do not attend your class, you must turn your project in that day to receive full credit for the assignment. It is your responsibility to obtain any daily assignments or notes as soon as you return to school. Students have up to ten days to make up any tests or missing assignments from absences based on teachers’ discretion. Make-up tests and quizzes must be scheduled and made up with me (Mr. Strougo) on or before the designated make up time. Students who miss class are responsible for obtaining the information missed that day.

Per the CCSD Policy Handbook and EHS Student Agenda page 7, “It is the expectation of the Cherokee County Board of Education that all work missed due to absences (excused/unexcused) will be made up. The time limit is not to exceed 10 school days. Some work by its very nature is impossible to make up and may necessitate alternative assignments. The principal or designee will be the final authority in determining alternate assignments.”

Late Work

All assignments are due at the beginning of the period on the date given as the due date. Assignments turned in late will be accepted with a penalty of one third of the grade for each day late. No assignments will be accepted after the third day. If the assignment has already been graded and discussed in class, it will not be accepted late.

Tutoring sessions

These sessions will be held after school from 3:30 until 4:30pm upon availability. I will make every attempt to assist you in preparation for a formal assessment, comprehension of course material, or any other matter pertaining to your education. All grade recovery will take place during these sessions.

Conferences

I am available for conferences before/after school. Please email me, call the school, or send a note, at least one day in advance if you would like to meet with me. I will be more than happy to talk with you at any time via e-mail or phone. E-mail is the easiest way to reach me!

Course Outline (by Topic)

1. Geography – Its Nature and Perspectives CO-1; 2 weeks

Readings: Rubenstein-Chapter 1,

- map activity: graduated symbol map of school based on student surveys

A. Geography and Human Geography

B. Basic concepts of Geography

C. History of the discipline

D. Methods of geographic study;

E. Geographic technologies, such as GIS, remote sensing, and GPS CO-2, CO-4.

F. Summative Assessment

2.Population – CO-1; 5 weeks

Readings: Rubenstein-Chapters 2 and 3,

- map activity: students will create choropleth maps based on results from population data activity

-Population data Activity is a case study of individual countries

- map activity: students will use migration data(local maps) of Cherokee County to explain phenomenon which are occurring in their county of residence. Students will explain their findings in FRQs

Population Research Project – ex.Hispanic Migration to Cherokee County CO-2, CO-3.

A. Population Patterns

1. Factors of growth: rates and averages

2. Historical patterns of growth

3. Demographic data CO-4

4. Population policies

5. Demographic transition.

B. Population distribution

1. Spatial patterns: global, regional, and local CO-3

2. Declining population rates

3. World health threats

C. Population Movement

1. Reasons for Migration

2. Global and internal migration

3. Cultural impact of migration

4. Characteristics of immigrants

5. Socioeconomic consequences of migration

D. Summative Assessments

3. Cultural Patterns and Process – CO-1; 7 weeks

Readings: Rubenstein-Chapters 4, 5, 6

- map activity: students will analyze maps and create models explaining the spread of languages and religions. Students will compare historical diffusion patterns with current ones

A. Folk and Popular Culture

1. Origins and diffusion of Folk and Popular Culture

2. Isolation promotes cultural diversity

3. Threats to Folk Culture

4. Environmental impact of Popular Culture

5. Cultural Diversity Project

B. Cultural Diversity

1. Language

2. Religion

3. Ethnicity

C. Cultural Landscapes – CO-3

1. Culture and the Environment

2. Culture and Group Identity

3. Culture and Conflict

4. Sense of Place

D. Summative Assessments

REVIEW FOR MID-TERM EXAM – Free response questions will be answered in the final two classes prior to the mid-term exam. Two free response questions will be answered allowing 20 minutes per question for a total of 4 questions. The allotted mid-term exam period will be a timed examination consisting of 75 multiple choice questions.

4. Political Organization and Space – CO-1; 5 weeks (two weeks before Winter break and three weeks after break).

Readings: Rubenstein-Chapter 7, 8

- map activity: students will analyze previous political election results and compare it to ethnic concentration to predict voter turnout and outcome in upcoming elections

A. Defining Nations and States

1. Development of the State Concept

2. Shapes of States and defining boundaries

3. Influences of boundaries on identity, interaction, and exchange CO-2 and CO-3

4. Centripetal and Centrifugal Forces

B. Contemporary Political Patterns

1. Historical Development of Boundaries and States

2. Colonialism and Neocolonialism

3. National and Sub-national governance CO-2 and CO-3

C. Cooperation and Conflict

1. Alliances

2. Devolution/Supranationalism

3. Conflicts

D. Summative Assessments

5. Agriculture and Rural Land Use - CO-1 2 weeks

Readings: Rubenstein-Chapter 10

A. Development and diffusion of agriculture

1. Neolithic Agricultural Revolution

2. Second Agricultural Revolution

3. Green Revolution

4. Modern Commercial Agriculture

B. Major agricultural production regions CO-3

1. Agricultural systems associated with major bioclimatic zones

2. Variations within major zones and effects of markets

3. Linkages and flows among regions of food production and consumption

C. Rural land use and settlement patterns

1. Models of agricultural land use, including von Thünen’s model

2. Settlement patterns associated with major agriculture types

3. Land use/land cover change, irrigation, conservation (desertification, deforestation)

D. Modern commercial agriculture

1. Biotechnology, including genetically modified plants and animals

2. Spatial organization and diffusion of industrial agriculture

3. Organic farming and local food production

4. Environmental impacts of agriculture

6. Economic Systems and Patterns – CO-1; 5 weeks

Readings: Rubenstein-Chapters 9, 11, 14

A. Development

1. Economic Indicators of Development

2. More Developed and Less Developed Regions

3. Development Through Self-Sufficiency

4. Development Through International Trade CO-2 and CO-3

B. Agriculture and Rural Land Use

1. Origins and Spread of Agriculture

2. Major Agricultural Regions

3. Commercial Agriculture

4. Science and Agriculture

5. Land Use Models – CO-4

6. Rural Activity and Environmental Issues CO-2 and CO-3

C. Industrialization

1. Origins and Spread of Industrialization

2. Major Industrial Regions

3. Industrial Location Models – CO-4

4. Deindustrialization

5. Industrialization and Standard of Living

D. Globalization and Service Economies

1. Trade and Transportation Patterns CO-2

2. Shifting Patterns of Production

3. Origins and Types of Services

4. Hierarchy of Services and Settlements

5. Transnationals and Outsourcing

6. Interdependence and Global Competition CO-3

E. Summative Assessment

7. Urban Geography – CO-1; 5 weeks

Readings: Rubenstein-Chapter 12, 13

A. Patterns of Urbanization – CO-3

1. Global: Rates and Regions

2. National: Growth and Decline

3. Local: Urban Sprawl

B. Evolution of Cities

1. Urban Place: Site and Situation

2. Models of Urban Form and Structure – CO-4

3. Deindustrialization and economic restructuring

4. Urban Hierarchies

C. Patterns within the City – Field Study – CO-2, CO-3, CO-4

1. Internal Structure – Models of Cities

2. Sector Model

3. Demographic and Social Patterns

4. Transportation and Infrastructure

5. Urban Planning and Political Organization of the City

6. Uneven development, ghettoization, and gentrification

D. Patterns Beyond the City

1. Megacities and Megalopolis

2. Suburbanization and Edge Cities

F. Summative Assessment

8. Review for the AP Human Geography Exam – 1 week – CO-1, CO-2, CO-3, and

CO-4.*

Supplemental Activities/Resources

Potential Supplemental Activities include, but are not limited to the following

- Worksheets to accompany class lectures/ PowerPoint presentations (homework)

- Maps for each chapter (As students read each chapter, plot each location on a world map

and explain significance of each in detail)

- Various unit activities (including supplemental readings to be done in or out of class)

- Vocabulary note cards

- Practice Free Response Questions (Both as homework and as timed in class assignments that will count as test grades) All past FRQs are used by the end of the school year.

- Power of Place videos from Annenberg Media as well as other media sources

*-Much of the information and format of this syllabus has been gleaned from the example syllabi found at apcentral.. The remainder is based on the following bibliography.

Rubenstein, James M. (2005). An Introduction to Human Geography: The Cultural

Landscape, 8th Edition, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, Pearson Education, Inc.

GRADING SYSTEM: Grades are calculated on a total point system.

1. Tests – There will be one test per chapter. The point value of a test will be 100 points.

2. Homework – There will be homework assignments for each chapter. The point value will vary between 10 and 50 points depending on the difficulty and length of the assignment.

3. Announced/Unannounced quizzes will be worth no more than 10 to 50 points.

4. Projects – There will be several projects completed over the semester. Projects will have a value of 50 to 200 points.

5. Midterm/Final exam – The final exam will be worth 20% of the total points accumulated over the semester.

Grades are calculated on a total points system. The total number of points a student earns is divided by the total possible points resulting in the student’s percentage average. For example, the student earns 500 points out of a possible 600 points. 500 divided by 600 equals 83.31 for an 83 average or a B.

CLASS AND TECHNOLOGY RULES

THIS CLASS IS A BYLD CLASS (see CCSD BYLD Terms of use form…attached)

ALL CHEROKEE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT RULES AND ETOWAH HIGH SCHOOL RULES WILL BE ENFORCED.

Class rules

1. Bring your textbook and writing materials to class everyday. Only write in blue and black ink.

2. NO FOOD OR BEVERAGES ARE ALLOWED IN CLASS. (Water is permitted)

3. Talking out of turn, rudeness, interrupting and creating a classroom disturbance will be dealt with accordingly.

4. Respect the right of others to learn.

5. If you are tardy to class more than 3 times, detentions will be administered. A tardy is defined as not being in the classroom when the beginning of class bell rings.

Technology rules:

1. Students are expected to keep the school technology equipment in good order. Any tampering with the school equipment will result in immediate disciplinary action.

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I have read and understand the information regarding AP Human Geography Course, Mr. Strougo’s class rules, and technology rules. Mr. Strougo reserves the right to change rules with notification at his discretion.

Please take a moment to complete the Parent Survey and Syllabus Confirmation Agreement by following the link below or the QR code.

The link is also found on Mr. Strougo’s SharePoint site under the “Parent/Student Links” section

Parent Information and Syllabus Confirmation Agreement



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