Why Take an AP History Class?

Why should (or maybe shouldn’t?) you take an AP History course?. You’ve probably heard the good and the bad from friends, family, teachers, guidance counselors, and who knows who else. 

The AP courses are college level courses that are developed by the College Board (who, by the way also are responsible for SATs and ACTs.) These courses are weighted, meaning that if you get a C or higher, it will actually count as a letter grade higher toward your GPA. So, on a 4-point scale, an A would give you 5 points, rather than 4 and a C would give you 3 points rather than 2, and so on.  Also, if you pass the end of the year exam, most colleges will award you college credit. Some colleges will only award credit for getting a 5, which is the highest score. Many will give you college credit for passing with just a 3. You’ll want to check with prospective colleges to know what their policy is. Regardless, it’s likely one less class you’ll be required to take and (for your parents if they are paying for your college education) one less class to pay for.

The textbooks that are required by the College Board are similar to those that introductory college courses use, and as such, they are big. And heavy. And are written at a high reading level. If you are not a strong reader, you will want to think twice about whether this is the best option for you. I’m not trying to say don’t do it. On the contrary, think twice and consider what supports you can put in place to overcome any obstacles. Is there an online version of the text that you can use a read-aloud feature? Is there a simpler text that you can use, like the AMSCO books. You would want to ask the instructor about this in advance. Also, if you can, you might want to consider hiring a tutor who can regularly review the content with you. 

The high expectations, or rigor of the coursework is great for helping you improve your critical thinking and analysis skills, as well as getting really good at writing about history in an academic, amateur historian kind of way.  Different teachers will require varying degrees of writing over the course of the school year, but on the exam, you will write three short answer questions, which are the total equivalent of 9 paragraphs, one Document Based Question essay, which should be about 5 paragraphs, and one Long Essay Question, which usually ends up being shorter than the DBQ, about 4-5 paragraphs. You will have to be able to incorporate your own knowledge of history with facts and documents and write critically about them. This is certainly challenging, but something that you’ll get better at the more you work at it. The skills for writing the essays can be honed over the course of the school year. And a perk here is that once you learn the skills for one AP history class, they are the same skills that are used for the other AP History classes, so you can feel better about taking another AP class.

Do you like history? AP courses, while they often skim the surface of history, do provide a deeper understanding of the past in each of the courses, while looking at the connections, the complexities and the nuances. The AP curriculum allows students to make connections across time periods and places and even courses. I had a student in my AP European class who was also taking AP World History and he found that certain units of AP World supported certain units of Euro, thus the cross-course connections. By the way, he got a 5 on the Euro exam. The AP curriculum often will send you down a rabbit hole as you discover people and topics that you want to know more about. The primary and secondary source documents that you will read give you multiple perspectives of historical situations that will expand your understanding of… all of it!

The workload can get pretty intense at times. To do this course correctly, you should be reading regularly and taking notes on the reading. It will depend on your teacher, but you need to determine what is the best way for you to learn from the reading: Cornell Notes? Reading out loud? Graphic organizers? You have to be metacognitive, which means being aware of how you learn best and regularly checking in with yourself as to whether and what you are learning. You do not do the homework for a grade. Let me repeat that. You should not be doing the homework just for the grade. Do it to learn the content that you will need to know. Most teachers will post the learning objectives somewhere. If not, the college board has their curriculum and exam description that includes what you should be learning with each Key Concept. I’ll post links to those for each class at the end. Anyway, you should be regularly checking those objectives or key concepts to make sure you are learning what you are supposed to be learning. 

In most of the AP classes that I’ve taught, the class becomes like a community, or a family, as we are working together to achieve a common goal, which is passing the AP exam in May. It’s quite different than other classes that just have state exams. It’s hard to explain it beyond that, and I’m sure there are some situations that don’t feel that way. Hopefully, if you decide to take an AP class, you’ll be fortunate to be part of that community. But even if you aren’t, you’ll likely find others who are in your situation on social media that you’ll be able to connect with. I saw it on my TikTok channel, where students would comment and yes, I would respond, but they basically started having conversations amongst themselves. 

You definitely need to improve your time and task management skills or if you are easily distracted, you’ll want to start working on that now because you have to try to stay focused and procrastinating is a bad habit to get into (why yes, I do teach a course on this!) One of my favorite techniques is something called the Pomodoro Method. Basically, it involves setting a timer for 20-25 minutes and eliminating all distractions so you can have focused work time. Then you take a 5-10 minute break, and then repeat as needed. This is just the tip of the time management iceberg and I’ll try to sprinkle more tips throughout the episodes. In general, if you’re taking rigorous classes and especially if you participate in extra curriculars or have an after-school job, you have to schedule your time. It’s so easy to get overwhelmed by all you need to do and then end up doing none of it (aka, scrolling on your phone.) Plan out your week to accommodate study time each day. Maybe give yourself Friday and Saturday off so you don’t burn out. Nevertheless, if you take an AP course, you’ll need to be intentional about how you spend your time.

The last thing I’ll talk about today is exam pressure. The AP exam is a lot: fifty-five multiple choice questions, 3 short answer questions, a DBQ essay and an LEQ essay. Not counting reading directions and breaks, it is a three hour and 15-minute exam. You can’t have water at your desk anymore, so you have to hydrate before and in the break halfway through. You can still pass the class if you don’t pass the exam, but you most likely still want to get that college credit. You’ve been preparing all year for this test. Of course you want to pass it. Yet, the reality is that the pass rate is between 50-60%. That means that 40-50% of students who take the exam don’t pass. That is a lot of pressure. And on any given day, anything can happen. Maybe you don’t feel well, but you’re not sick enough to see a doctor. You don’t get a second chance to take the test unless there is a doctor willing to say that you were on death’s doorstep. Missing the bus is not an excuse to take the late exam… get my drift. Do not put all of your eggs in the “I have to pass the AP exam basket.” Striving to pass, making it an important goal. Yes, that is ok. But do manage your expectations. You have to be okay with not passing that exam and appreciate the experience. 

If you have decided that an AP history class is for you, stick with me. I have your back. Check back as we go through all you need to know to be in the best possible position to succeed in AP US History, AP World History, or AP European History, and hopefully on the exam. 

Wendy is a veteran teacher with expertise in all things AP History. She offers courses, as well as individualized tutoring. She also hosts a bi-monthly podcast called APHistoryHelp. Learn more about the services she offers and the podcast by going to www.APHistoryHelp.com