Course Catalog 2019-20

VERMONT ACADEMY COURSE CATALOG | 2019 - 20 Modern Comparative Cultures for International Students This course does not fulfill the United States History requirement.

This course is designed for students who are either new or returning to VA, and whose first language is not English.

Returning students who need one more year of focused English communication study will move into this course from the Foundations in History for International Students course before moving into US History their junior or senior year. This course does not fulfill the American history requirement.

As is the case with Foundations in History for International Students, the goal of the course is for students to develop their English communication and historical thinking skills through papers, projects, and presentations.

Students will improve their vocabulary, and reading, writing, and speaking skills while learning about the making of the modern world. The content of the course will focus on modern revolutions in France, Haiti, Russia, Germany, China, Iran, and Afghanistan. Structured, well-supported, and appropriately-cited essays will be the mainstay of students’ evaluation. Finally, class participation, especially in debates, will also be a major part of the course and each student’s evaluation.

Honors European History Prerequisites: Teacher recommendation and department chair approval; cumulative average of B+ in history courses.

Offered to sophomores who have achieved a high level of success in freshman history, this year long course covers the history of Europe from the Renaissance through the French Revolution. Students examine the forces of change that shaped the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth century. In particular, the course focuses on industrialization and its impact on the social, economic and political landscape of both Europe and the world. Topics will include the flowering of art, culture, and new ideas in Renaissance Italy; diversification of Christianity that accompanied the Protestant Reformation; expansion of Europeans’ worldview in the Age of Exploration; rise of secular and scientific ideas during the Enlightenment; and challenges to absolutist monarchy that characterized the French Revolution.

Students will learn to assess and interpret both primary and secondary sources and will develop their writing skills.

Debates, discussions, and research exercises will also help students hone critical thinking skills.

Grade 11 United States History This course surveys American history from the mid-15th century to the present. We will study the major social, political, and economic transformations that have characterized the past five centuries in what is now the United States. Emphasis will be placed not only on learning the important people and places of the past, but also on developing critical reading and writing skills to better prepare the students for study in college. Assignments include response papers, projects, presentations, and several research assignments.

AP United States History Prerequisites: Teacher Recommendation and Department Chair approval; All students in the course are required to take the AP exam at the end of the year.

We’ll prepare for the AP exam as we study the history of the United States from its infancy as a nation to the present. Throughout the year, we will study the major social, cultural, political, and economic transformations that have characterized American history. In addition, students will hone their reading, writing, and critical thinking skills, culminating in the AP exam in May. 14 | VERMONTACADEMY.ORG