This AP U.S. Government and Politics course is a single-semester course and follows the framework of the College Board Advanced Placement course and exam description. The framework focuses on key concepts and essential knowledge about the foundations of American democracy, civil liberties and civil rights, interactions among branches of government, American political participation, ideologies, and beliefs.
By following the AP curriculum framework closely, this course will give an analytical perspective on government and politics in the United States: students will study U.S. foundational documents and Supreme Court cases to examine core principles, theories, and processes. The learning activities challenge students to use reasoning and analytical skills to explore political concepts, policies, interactions, roles, and behaviors that characterize the constitutional system and political culture of the United States.
This course also incorporates AP Classroom (an online platform hosted by the College Board) and requires students to access the site to review content and complete practice activities.
Additionally, this course is designed to help students prepare for the AP U.S. Government and Politics Exam hosted by the College Board.
Course does not include the AP Exam; students can contact their school’s AP Coordinator or the College Board to sign up to take the Exam. There are required due dates in AP courses. The pacing of due dates in AP courses aligns to the completion of all lessons and required assignments and assessments prior to the national AP exam date related to this course title. This course requires purchase of a textbook.
Prerequisites: There are no prerequisite courses for AP U.S. Government and Politics. Students should be able to read a college-level textbook and write grammatically correct, complete sentences.
Course Objectives: Upon completion of this course, students will be able to...
- Provide evidence-based explanations of political phenomena by applying critical reasoning, identifying causal relationships, and evaluating the implications of different political principles and institutions
- Construct factually valid, well-reasoned arguments or opinions on issues related to the American government and politics by using multiple disciplinary perspectives to analyze political information presented in various formats
- Engage thoughtfully and critically with contemporary constitutional interpretation, governance, and public policy debates by applying their understanding of the historical and intellectual foundations of American constitutionalism and democratic governance
Course Outline:
Unit 1: Foundations of American Democracy
Unit 2: Interactions Among Branches of Government
Unit 3: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights
Unit 4: American Political Ideologies and Beliefs
Unit 5: Political Participation
Unit 6: AP Exam & Review
Resources Included: Online lesson instruction and activities, opportunities to engage with a certified, online instructor and classmates, when appropriate, and online assessments to measure student performance of course objectives and readiness for subsequent academic pursuits.
Additional Costs: Students must purchase the following College Board approved textbook.
Janda, Kenneth, Jeffrey Berry, Jerry Goldman, Paul Manna (2020). The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics, 14th Edition, Cengage.
For purchasing options, visit https://www.cengage.com/c/the-challenge-of-democracy-american-government-in-global-politics-enhanced-14e-janda/9781337799812PF/
Course enrollment does not include the AP Exam fees. Students may be responsible for their AP exam fees when registering for the exam with their local schools AP coordinator.
Scoring System: Michigan Virtual does not assign letter grades, grant credit for courses, nor issue diplomas. A final score out of total points earned will be submitted to your school mentor for conversion to their own letter grading system.
Time Commitment: Semester sessions are 18-weeks long: Students must be able to spend 1 or more hours per day in the course to be successful. Summer sessions are 10 weeks long: Students must be able to spend a minimum of 2 or more hours per day, or about 90 hours during the summer, for the student to be successful in any course. Trimester sessions are 12-weeks long: Students must be able to spend 1.5 or more hours per day in the course to be successful.
Technology Requirements: Students will require a computer device with headphones, a microphone, webcam, up-to-date Chrome Web Browser, and access to YouTube.
Please review the Michigan Virtual Technology Requirements: https://michiganvirtual.org/about/support/knowledge-base/technical-requirements/
Instructor Support System: For technical issues within your course, contact the Customer Care Center by email at [email protected] or by phone at (888) 889-2840.
Instructor Contact Expectations: Students can use email or the private message system within the Student Learning Portal to access highly qualified teachers when they need instructor assistance. Students will also receive feedback on their work inside the learning management system. The Instructor Info area of their course may describe additional communication options.
Academic Support Available: In addition to access to a highly qualified, Michigan certified teacher, students have access to academic videos and outside resources verified by Michigan Virtual. For technical issues within the course, students can contact the Michigan Virtual Customer Care by email at [email protected] or by phone at (888) 889-2840.
Required Assessment: Online assessments consist of formative and summative assessments represented by computer-graded multiple choice, instructor-graded writing assignments including hands-on projects, model building and other forms of authentic assessments.
Technical Skills Needed: Basic technology skills necessary to locate and share information and files as well as interact with others in a Learning Management System (LMS), include the ability to:
- Download, edit, save, convert, and upload files
- Download and install software
- Use a messaging service similar to email
- Communicate with others in online discussion or message boards, following basic rules of netiquette
- Open attachments shared in messages
- Create, save, and submit files in commonly used word processing program formats and as a PDF
- Edit file share settings in cloud-based applications, such as Google Docs, Sheets, or Slides
- Save a file as a .pdf
- Copy and paste and format text using your mouse, keyboard, or an html editor’s toolbar menu
- Insert images or links into a file or html editor
- Search for information within a document using Ctrl+F or Command+F keyboard shortcuts
- Work in multiple browser windows and tabs simultaneously
- Activate a microphone or webcam on your device, and record and upload or link audio and/or video files
- Use presentation and graphics programs
- Follow an online pacing guide or calendar of due dates
- Use spell-check, citation editors, and tools commonly provided in word processing tool menus
- Create and maintain usernames and passwords
Additional Information: The official course descriptions for Advanced Placement courses and information about their exams are located on the College Board site at http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/courses/descriptions/index.html.
Michigan Virtual prepares students in AP courses for the AP exam, but does not offer the exam test itself. It is the responsibility of the school or parent to register for a local administration of the AP exam.
There are required due dates in AP courses. The pacing of due dates in AP courses aligns to the completion of all lessons and required assignments and assessments prior to the national AP exam date related to this course title. The calendar of AP exam dates is published by the College Board (Exam Calendar).