Social Studies

World History is a college-prep level course which examines the historical origins and patterns of various global civilizations and their political, economic, and cultural development and interactions from the early civilizations up to the French Revolution. In addition to the required textbook, the course will utilize primary source documents and other supplemental readings to give students various perspectives on the study of a historical period and the human events which contribute to the historical importance of the civilization and/or era and provide them greater knowledge and insight to the topic. Such work will provide opportunities to enhance critical thinking skills. The course will also provide students opportunities to further develop their writing skills through essay questions and other related assignments. Finally, the course will provide collaborative learning opportunities and will incorporate such skills as notetaking, time-management, and effective use of a planner; all of which will prepare the student to move on to honors level courses following freshman year, if they desire.

Honors World History examines the histories and cultural achievements of peoples from ancient times to the 19th Century. Freshman students are introduced to the political, social, economic, philosophical, religious, artistic, and scientific developments that highlight both western and non-western civilization. Honors World History builds a foundation by exposing students to the information and skills they will use in other social studies courses, including historical research, primary source reading, map reading, and introducing them to document based long-essay questions used in Advanced Placement courses. The course will also provide the student with opportunities to develop effective note-taking, critical thinking, writing and collaborative learning skills.

This course is both a chronological and topical examination of the key events, people, developments, and trends that have shaped world history during the period 1815-1991 and is open to all sophomores. Among the key topics to be examined during the first semester include the rise of nationalism, socialism, and imperialism and the role each played in producing the atmosphere that led to World War I. World War I and World War II and the global ramifications of each of those wars are thoroughly examined. The course will conclude with some of the major issues and conflicts which have helped to shape the last forty years. The course also encourages students to read, think, write, and discuss critically in order to become better-informed citizens.

Economics is the social science concerned with how resources are used to satisfy people’s wants. This course is designed to help the student gain an economic understanding of current events and problems. The subject matter of economics is divided into two major fields--microeconomics and macroeconomics. In addition, units on Economic Fundamentals, Consumer behavior, Monetary and Fiscal Policy, Personal Finance, Trade and Investments are included. This course provides the analytical tools necessary to understand and solve economic problems.

This course is an elective that presents an overview of the religious experiences, symbols, rituals, history, and philosophy of the religions of the world exclusive of Christianity. World Religion studies the following: Hindu, Jain, Sikh, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, Confucian, Taoist, Shinto, Islamic, Judaic, Earth and Occult religions. This course will prepare one to understand the sameness of mystical expressions and the similarity of ethic codes. This is a lecture course that incorporates the extensive use of slides, the study of artifacts, films, guest speakers, and correlation to Christianity and Benedictine life. World Religions may not be substituted for sophomore, junior, or senior religion.

Honors Geography introduces and reinforces the concepts of location, place, and human/environmental interaction along with the vocabulary of the discipline through a regional approach. The course investigates the interaction between natural/physical phenomena and human activity, the distribution of economic development, and the uniqueness of the world’s regions in terms of both the human and the natural elements. Course goals are achieved through traditional methods as well as extensive use of the library, video, internet, and other information sources. Students will take a fascinating academic trip around the world allowing them to become better learners in their future courses and well informed citizens of the Earth.

In AP European History, students investigate significant events, individuals, developments, and processes from approximately 1450 to the present. Students develop and use the same skills, practices, and methods employed by historians: analyzing primary and secondary sources; developing historical arguments; making historical connections; and utilizing reasoning about comparison, causation, and continuity and change over time. The course also provides seven themes that students explore throughout the course in order to make connections among historical developments in different times and places: interaction of Europe and the world, economic and commercial development, cultural and intellectual development, states and other institutions of power, social organization and development, national and European identity, and technological and scientific innovations. The course follows the AP curriculum, and prepares the students for the Advanced Placement exam in European History given in May.

United States History is both a chronological as well as a thematic and topical examination of the history of the United States from the Revolutionary Era into the Twentieth Century. This course meets the requirement for juniors to complete one credit of U.S. history and concentrates on the major events, individuals, and themes in U.S. History. In addition, units on the U.S. and Illinois constitutions are included in order to comply with state of Illinois mandates and to assist our students in becoming better and more informed citizens in order to prepare them to be active, participatory citizens. Finally, this course reinforces the view that the study of our nation’s past is a necessary foundation for understanding the American present.

Like the U.S. History course described above, the Honors United States History is also a chronological as well as a thematic and topical examination of the history of the United States from the Revolutionary Era into the Twentieth Century. This course meets the requirement for juniors to complete one credit of U.S. history and concentrates on the major events, individuals, and themes in U.S. History. In addition the Honors course will incorporate case studies prepared and authorized by the Harvard University Business School High School Case Method Project into the curriculum, as well as introducing students to both Long Essay (LEQ’s) and Document Based Essays (DBQ’s) utilized in Advanced Placement courses to help prepare students who may seek to take Advanced Placement courses their senior year.

 

In addition, units on the U. S. and Illinois Constitutions are included in order to comply with state of Illinois mandates and to assist our students in becoming better and more informed citizens in order to prepare them to be active, participatory citizens. Finally, this course reinforces the view that the study of our nation’s past is a necessary foundation for understanding the American present.

AP U.S. History is equivalent to a two-semester introductory college course in U.S. history. In AP U.S. History, students investigate significant events, individuals, developments, and processes in nine historical periods from approximately 1491 to the present. Students develop and use the same skills and methods employed by historians: analyzing primary and secondary sources; developing historical arguments; making historical connections; and utilizing reasoning about comparison, causation, and continuity and change. The course also provides eight themes that students explore throughout the course in order to make connections among historical developments in different times and places: American and national identity; work, exchange, and technology; geography and the environment; migration and settlement; politics and power; America in the world; American and regional culture; and social structures. This course is designed to prepare students to take the Advanced Placement Exam in United States History given in May. In addition, units on the U.S. and Illinois Constitutions are included in order to comply with state of Illinois mandates and to assist our students in becoming better and more informed citizens in order to prepare them to be active, participatory citizens.

Constitutional Law examines the philosophical origins of the U.S. Constitution and the evolution and application of the Bill of Rights throughout our history, with a particular emphasis on the rule of law. The course also provides a focus on the U.S. legal system and its impact on everyday life through judicial precedents, along with research into and discussion of current issues and controversies related to constitutional law and the legal system, with particular emphasis on cases involving individual liberties and responsibilities, liability, contracts, labor laws, case law, property, and insurance.

AP Psychology is an introductory college-level psychology course. Students cultivate their understanding of the systematic and scientific study of human behavior and mental processes through inquiry-based investigations as they explore concepts like the biological bases of behavior, sensation and perception, learning and cognition, motivation, developmental psychology, testing and individual differences, treatment of abnormal behavior, and social psychology. The course prepares students for the AP Examination at the end of the year, administered by the College Board. This course is an elective and may not be taken in place of any level United States History course.

This course is one semester in length, offered to students of above-average ability. This course gives students a thorough understanding of the basic principles of a market economy. Students learn about national income and price determination and become familiar with economic performance measures, economic growth, and international economics. Students are required to enroll in AP Microeconomics in addition to enrollment in this course for a full year commitment.

The purpose of the AP course in Microeconomics is to give students a thorough understanding of the principles of economics that apply to the functions of individual decision makers, both consumers and producers, within the economic system. It places primary emphasis on the nature and functions of product markets and includes the study of factor markets and the role of government in promoting greater efficiency and equity in the economy. Students are required to enroll in AP Macroeconomics in addition to enrollment in this course for a full year commitment.

This course will provide students with a comprehensive study of the origins and nature of the American political system, political institutions, and current political activities and trends. The course utilizes a college-level textbook, primary and secondary sources such as samples of historic and current political documents including the Federalist papers and Supreme Court cases. The course follows the AP curriculum. Focus skills include developing analytic perspectives for interpreting, understanding, and explaining political events in this country, further developing writing skills through both summative and argumentative essays. This course will prepare students for the U.S. Government and Politics Advanced Placement exam.

The America Since 1945 course evaluates the foreign and domestic issues that have helped to shape the United States since the end of World War II. The general topics covered in the course are: the Cold War and its origins, McCarthyism, the “conservatism” of the Eisenhower years, the “idealism” of the Kennedy years, the Black Civil Rights movement, the Vietnam experience, the social unrest of the 1960’s, the Great Society and the Johnson Years, the Nixon Presidency, the Carter Presidency, and the Reagan “Revolution.”