This one-semester course will give students an analytical perspective on government and politics in the United States. Within AP U.S. Government and Politics, students develop and use disciplinary practices and reasoning processes to explore political concepts, policies, interactions, roles, and behaviors that characterize the constitutional system and political culture of the United States. Students examine core principles, theories, and processes through direct study of U.S. foundational documents and Supreme Court opinions. They also participate in a civic project in which they research, study, and compile data on a political science topic and create a presentation that exhibits their findings and
experiences. The AP U.S. Government and Politics course is structured around five big ideas outlined
within the College Board Advanced Placement United States Government and Politics Course Framework. Each big idea is aligned to enduring understanding statements and learning objectives that focus on key concepts and essential knowledge about foundations of American democracy, civil liberties and civil rights, interactions among branches of government, American political participation, ideologies, and beliefs. In order to maintain the integrity of AP standards, all AP course midterm and final exams must be proctored. Prerequisites: Completion of high school U.S. History is recommended.
Course Objectives: Upon the completion of this one-semester course, students will be able to...
- describe the constitutional underpinning of the US Government;
- describe and discuss political beliefs and behaviors;
- describe the various types of campaigns and elections;
- be able to compare and contrast all the various institutions of the national government such as Congress and the Federal Budget, the Executive Branch and the Bureaucracy and the Judicial Branch;
- and consider various components and examples of civil liberties, civil rights, and public policy.
Course Outline:
Unit 1: Constitutional Democracy
Unit 2: Civil Liberties, Civil Rights
Unit 3: Interactions Among Branches
Unit 4: Political Culture and Participation
AP Practice Exam
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: A textbook must be acquired for this course: Ginsberg, B., Lowi, T. J., Weir, M., Tolbert, C. J., & Spitzer, R.J. We the People, Essentials Twelfth Edition. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2019 (ISBN: 978-03936796700). Purchases may be made by students through Amazon.com, Textbooks.com, or other book retailers; Schools may purchase digital access on behalf of students by contacting W.W. Norton's High School Division - contact Michigan Virtual Customer Care for details.
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/
Lightweight devices such as Apple iPads, Google Chromebooks, and tablets have limited support for Java which still appears in a small percentage of FLVS courses. FLVS has worked to de-Flash its courses. Students may need extra work-around steps or alternate browsers to engage with some portions of select courses or may be required to utlize text-alternatives for some interactive objects. FLVS recommends students have a Windows or Mac based computer available to complete coursework in the event that your selected mobile device does not meet the needs of the course. Fully supported Operating Systems for FLVS courses include Windows (7 or higher), Mac OS X (10.8 or higher), and MacOS (10.12 or higher). Supported Browsers include the most recent versions of Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and Apple Safari on devices that support Java and HTML5. Browsers need to be up to date, and some FLVS courses may require installation or enabling of the following Plug-ins: JavaScript enabled, Cookies enabled, Java installed. https://www.flvs.net/student-resources/system-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 and AP practice exams.
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 a 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).