ADVANCED PLACEMENT CLASSES

Gulf Breeze High School

WHY CHOOSE AN AP COURSE?

Save money on college tuition

Classes impress college admission officers

Classes help develop college-level academic skills

Classes can increase your chances for college-specific merit aid

Helps develop individual thought and the ability to support those ideas

Creates more flexibility in choice of college courses

Creates the possibility of skipping introductory college level courses

Develops higher level critical thinking skills

Helps students develop research skills

WHAT SHOULD YOUR CHILD EXPECT FROM AN AP COURSE?

1st AP Course

This course will probably be more difficult than any other course they’ve taken

AP courses are often writing intensive and require critical thinking skills to be applied

Some good students struggle in their 1st

AP course; as a result, they earn their 1st

“low” grade.

Passing the AP course does not guarantee that the student will pass the AP exam, which is needed for college credit to be given.

AP Course Veterans

Not all AP courses are structured the same; some are more writing intensive than others and AP exams (from course to course) vary in difficulty.

COMMON QUESTIONS ABOUT AP COURSES

Do AP courses count as college credit? It depends on the college/university and it depends on the AP course. The best way to answer this is to check with the college of interest

Example: University of Florida--https://catalog.ufl.edu/UGRD/academic-advising/exam-credit/#examstext

College Board AP Credit Search: https://apstudents.collegeboard.org/getting-credit-placement/search-policies/course/3

Should students take AP courses or Dual Enrollment courses? Both AP and Dual Enrollment courses have great qualities. If attending a college outside Florida, AP courses may be the better alternative. AP and DE courses are weighted the same to colleges, where Honors courses are weighted less—different than GBHS GPA weight

Can an AP course be dropped? Yes, but only during the 1st two weeks of school. If a student/parent decides that an AP course is too difficult, then a decision needs to be made during that timeframe

Do AP courses or the exam cost money? Santa Rosa County students do not have to pay money to take an AP course or to take the exam

Are students taking an AP course required to take the AP exam? We strongly encourage all of our students to take their AP exams. No college credit will be assigned for an AP course without taking and passing the exam. Also, considering how much work goes into taking an AP course, it does not make sense for a student to not follow through with the last component to the class.

AP CAPSTONE

The AP Capstone program focuses on developing the critical thinking, research, collaboration, time management, and presentation skills needed for college-level work. These classes are interdisciplinary. Two classes – AP Seminar and AP Research – make up the program.

Email Ms. Myers with questions: MyersM@santarosa.k12.fl.us

AP ENGLISH AND LANGUAGE COMPOSITION

This course is designed to provide students with a learning experience equivalent to that of an introductory college course in English composition.

It is intended to engage students in:

becoming skilled readers of prose written in a variety of periods, disciplines, and rhetorical contexts

in becoming skilled writers who compose for a diversity of purposes including analysis of non-print tests such as paintings, advertisements, films and political cartoons.

The overall goal of this course is to help students become better writers, readers, and critical thinkers.

AP ENGLISH LITERATURE AND COMPOSITION

The purpose of the course is to involve students in the study and practice of writing and the study of European literature.

Each student will take the AP national exam in May. A score of 3-5 on the test may enable students to earn freshman English credit in college.

Basic criteria for the course, but not limited to the following:

Summer Reading – 3 novels

Novels – inside and outside of class - 6-8

Plays (classics) - 6

Narrative Poems (full length classics – 2, excerpts from classics - 4)

Essays- in-class and out-of-class for every major work read.

Note: There is a considerable amount of poetry analysis.

AP CALCULUS AB

Equals 1 college semester

Prerequisite: 85% or higher is Pre-calculus Honors

Required Summer Packet

Attend 3 mandatory Saturday prep-sessions

After the AP Exam: will have a Calculus Video Project

HW is assigned most days

Will have 5 weeks of review for the AP Exam

Will be covering 6 chapters

AP CALCULUS BC

Equals 2 college semesters

Prerequisite: 95% or higher is Pre-calculus Honors or 85% or higher in Calculus AB

Required Summer Packet

Attend 3 mandatory Saturday prep-sessions

After the AP Exam: will have a Calculus Video Project

HW is assigned everyday

Will have 3 weeks of review for the AP Exam

Will be covering 9 chapters

AP STATISTICS

Introductory college-level statistics course that introduces students to the major concepts and tools for collecting, analyzing and drawing conclusions from data.

Prerequisite: 85% or higher in Pre-calculus Honors or 90% in DE Statistics

Required Summer PacketThis Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

AP BIOLOGY

Prerequisite: Honors Biology 80 Grade: 10-12

Equivalent to a two-semester college introductory biology course

Topics covered: Biology is LIFE!! • Evolution• Cellular Processes• Genetics• Ecological Interactions

You will develop skills that can be applied to ANY course of study you choose to pursue in the future:

• Organizational skills• Study Skills• Critical thinking skills• Analytical writing skills• Data analysis

AP CHEMISTRY

Prerequisite Honors Chemistry-90, must have taken or be co-enrolled in Algebra 2 Honors

Higher level math strongly recommended

Comparable to 1st and 2nd semester college Inorganic Chemistry

Students who take the course are very well prepared for the rigors of college

Exam consists of 60 multiple choice questions

and 7 free response

AP ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES(APES)

Prerequisites:• BIOLOGY (Honors 75%+) 85%+Suggestions• Algebra• Life Science class like Chemistry or Earth Science

Equivalent to one-semester, introductory college course in environmental science with a LAB

Interdisciplinary course meant to help understand the interrelationships of the natural world, evaluate the relative risks associated with environmental problems and examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing them. Encompassing topics from geology, biology, environmental studies, environmental science, chemistry and geography.

AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHYBECOME A BETTER WORLD CITIZEN!

Learn about the systematic study of patterns and processes that have shaped human understanding, use, and alteration of earth’s surface!

This is MUCH MORE than a “memorization of countries” course!

Units include: Geography: Its Nature and Perspectives

Population and Migration

Cultural Patterns and Processes

Political Organization of Space

Agriculture, Food Production, Rural Land Use

Industrialization and Economic Development

Cities and Urban Land Use

SUMMER WORK: Introductory Map Packet

Amanda Dixondixona@santarosa.k12.fl.us

AP WORLD HISTORY

(Grade 10); English I Honors: 90 or AP Human Geography 85.

The purpose of the AP World History course is to develop greater understanding of the evolution of global processes and contacts in different types of human societies. The course highlights:

the nature of changes in global frameworks and their causes and consequences,

comparisons among major relevant factual knowledge

leading interpretive issues

skills in analyzing types of historical evidence

There is an emphasis on writing, analytical reasoning, and problem solving. This course requires extensive reading and writing assignments and a willingness to work independently. Successful completion of the AP exam with a score of 3 or above earns college credit at many colleges and universities.

AP UNITED STATES HISTORY

Content: 9 Eras spanning 1491-Present Day

Era 1: 1491-1607

Era 2: 1607-1754

Era 3: 1754-1800

Era 4: 1800-1848

Era 5: 1848-1877

Era 6: 1865-1898

Era 7: 1890-1945

Era 8: 1945-1980

Era 9: 1980-Present

Exam: 3 hours, 15 minutes

Part I:

A. 55 multiple choice questions (55 mins)

B. 3 Short Answer Questions (40 mins)

• Part II:

A. Document Based Question (60 mins)

B. Long Essay Question (40 mins)

The course requires: extensive writing, public speaking, and independent study skills.

AP MICROECONOMICS & AP MACROECONOMICS (BOTH ARE SEMESTER COURSES)

(Grade 12); AP US History 80 or American History Honors 85.

The AP Microeconomics Innovation and Macroeconomics course content is designed to help students

develop critical-thinking skills through the understanding, application and analysis of fundamental economic concepts

apply quantitative and mathematical skills to economics and to apply economic logic to a wide variety of real-world and hypothetical situations.

Successful completion of the AP exam with a score of 3 or above earns college credit at many colleges and universities.

AP UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT & POLITICS

AP United States Government is taught at the college level, and provides students a comprehensive understanding of the framework and operation of American government and politics. Students will gain a deeper understanding of the U.S. Constitution, and be able to critically examine timely and current political events.

❖Includes an extensive and interactive election project, in which students research policy and defend political positions.

❖Encourages students to civilly debate controversial issues.

❖Includes a college level research paper assignment, to better prepare students for future college coursework.

❖Teaches students how to identify reliable media reports and acceptable academic sources.

❖Prerequisites: Must have completed AP US History with an 85 or higher or Honors History with a 90 or higher. Successful AP Exam scores can earn 3 college credits.

AP COMPARATIVE GOVERNMENT & POLITICS

AP Comparative Government provides students with a comprehensive look at the political history and government structures of the United Kingdom, Russia, China, Mexico, Iran & Nigeria. Students will learn to critically examine the various types of government systems and regimes around the world, in order to gain a deeper understanding of global political events. This course is taught at the college level.

❖Includes a guest speaker series to broaden understanding.

❖Designed to be taught following one semester AP US Government.

❖Students who complete both courses statistically do very well on both AP Exams.

❖Successful completion of both AP US Government & AP Comparative Government exams can result in a total of 6 college credits!

❖Prerequisites: Completion of AP US Government with an 85 or higher.

AP PSYCHOLOGY: THE STUDY OF THE HUMAN MIND

• Do we really only use 10% of our brains?

• How much of our behavior is in our control?

• What are the disorders of the mind?

• What controls our emotions and feelings?

• Is intelligence genetic?

Take AP PSYCHOLOGY to explore the human mind and human behavior. We delve into everything from the brain’s anatomy to theories of famous psychologists to discover the biological and cultural explanations for what makes us us.

Typically a junior/senior year course

AP ART AND DESIGN

Students are required to have earned an A in Art 3 and must submit a portfolio of 15 original works of art by the middle of April. These courses require many hours beyond the assigned period, so it is recommended that the student work at home and also take the appropriate extra art course.

AP COMPUTER SCIENCE PRINCIPLES

Across Careers. Across Industries. Across the World.

Helping students prepare for success, they’ll learn: Creative problem solving.

How to apply computational processes to analyze large data sets.

Internet structures and important cybersecurity issues.

How computer science addresses real-world issues that interest them.

Skills revenant across other disciplines and industries.

Prerequisites: Geometry 80% or Geometry Honors 85%

Required summer assignments.

Students must have access to a computer, the internet and a printer at home.

Successful AP Exam scores can earn 3 college credits.