COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

These courses are designed to give teachers an overview of the basic structure and content necessary for an Advanced Placement course in the subjects listed.  In addition, instructors review the Advanced Placement Examination in each subject as it applies to that content area by discussing sample multiple choice and free-response questions. A major portion of each course involves the development of an Advanced Placement curriculum by each participant. In the past, these courses have proven to be beneficial to experienced teachers of Advanced Placement as well as to prospective new instructors for AP classes.  Each course is offered for 3 graduate credits in Education.

Ed. 611- ART HISTORY FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Yu Bong Ko 

Among many topics covered during the week, this session will closely examine the recent changes and directions in which AP Art History is being taught and assessed, with special focus topics placed on:

• Rethinking the curriculum framework and its implications for teaching.
• Thematic and cross-cultural approaches to infusing art beyond the European traditions (“non-Western art”) into the survey course and merging “contemporary art” into the curriculum all year long.
• Understanding works of art and architecture through visual, historical and contextual analysis.

Participants will have ample opportunities to learn, acquire and share best teaching practices and walk away with practical materials and strategies to immediately promote active student-centered learning in the classroom, including ways to enhance visual literacy: how to help students develop skills in looking at, thinking about and communicating ideas about works of art.  In addition, this session will directly address ways to seamlessly utilize digital images and computer based multimedia technology into the AP Art History course. Finally, participants will be mentored to become “Readers” in a simulated reading of the essay portions (free-response questions) of the AP examination and gain an understanding of the grading process, with specific attention placed on the common student errors (as evident on recent AP examinations) and their implications for instruction. A group excursion will be organized to a museum/gallery in New York City.  (Participants are encouraged to bring a laptop as most of the handouts are in electronic format, such as on a CD or a flash drive).

Ed. 630 - TEACHING THE REDESIGNED AP BIOLOGY COURSE FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Leo Alves and Patricia Grove 

This course will provide an overview of the redesigned Advanced Placement Biology course. In the redesigned AP Biology course, the College Board, in collaboration with the National Science Foundation, has done the following:

• Reduced content breadth to promote conceptual understanding;
• Provided an explicit, comprehensive curriculum framework;
• Directed that scientific inquiry and student-directed lab exercises will replace the twelve lab exercises currently in use, with the concomitant development of student inquiry skills;
• Articulated clear learning objectives;
• Redesigned the format for the AP Biology exam (new exam format to be implemented in May 2013).

Participants will have the opportunity to perform several lab exercises that align with the College Board redesign. Best practices will be discussed. Information about the requirements for the AP Biology Course Audit for 2012-2013 will be shared.

Ed. 601 - CALCULUS AB FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Maxine Lifshitz

This workshop is suitable for both new and experienced AP Calculus AB teachers.

Participants will work on methods and create lesson plans and AP-type questions on a variety of topics.

Major topics covered will include:

• Basic Definitions and Theorems
• Differential Equations and Slopefields
• Riemann Sums
• Fundamental Theorem of Calculus 
• Applications of the Derivative and the Antiderivative
• Recent  AP exam questions
• Grading procedures
• New format of the AP exam

Ed. 617 - CALCULUS BC FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Mark Howell 

Although this course will include materials covering the full range of Calculus BC content, the "C" topics in the curriculum will receive special emphasis. In particular, the mathematics the teacher needs to know and the mathematics the student is expected to learn will be covered. Teaching strategies directed towards approach, activities, time frame, and assignments will be developed. The role of the graphing calculator as a powerful instrument for enriching and enhancing the study of calculus will be explored, and a collection of student-ready activities will be distributed. Current textbooks related to the new technology will be available for participants to examine.  Evaluation techniques, including the development of teacher-made tests, will be discussed and the Advanced Placement examination will be analyzed. Participants will be familiarized with grading standards and the application of grading scales to free-response questions. They are asked to bring a graphing calculator (such as a Ti-84 or TI-89). Participants are also asked to bring any materials that they may wish to share with other teachers.

Ed. 631 - CHEMISTRY FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Mark Langella  

This methodology course surveys the basic structure and content necessary for teaching an Advanced Placement Chemistry course. Chemistry topics such as equilibrium, kinetics, and “how to” problem solving are presented.  Class size, student selection, textbooks and labs are also addressed. Special attention is paid to teaching strategies, the AP exam and its grading. Some lab experiments suitable for AP classes are incorporated into the course. Participants receive examples of past AP exams, appropriate tests, worksheets and lab experiments. This  institute will provide an opportunity for high school AP Chemistry teachers to observe significant teaching demonstrations, perform experimental procedures using computer interfaced equipment, and to review with presenters a variety of topics covered in AP Chemistry. Teachers will have the opportunity to discuss the methodology of converting typical cookbook lab into a guided inquiry lab.

This course will provide an overview of the redesigned Advanced Placement Chemistry  course. In the redesigned AP Exam, the College Board, in collaboration with the National Science Foundation, has done the following:

• reduced content breadth to promote conceptual understanding;
• provided an explicit, comprehensive curriculum framework;
• directed that there must be at least six scientific inquiry and student-directed lab exercises with the  development of student inquiry skills;
• articulated clear learning objectives;
• redesigned the format for the AP Chemistry  Exam (new exam format to be implemented May 2014).

Participants will have the opportunity to perform several lab exercises that align with the College Board redesign. Best practices will be discussed. Information about the requirements for the AP Chemistry Course Audit for 2013-14 will be shared.

Please note that this course is a methodology class for teachers with experience teaching chemistry. Content for teaching will be provided for study in the evening.

All participants will have access for the  of the workshop to:

• Sequential Course Curriculum
• Links to numerous Sequenced Online Applets
• Lab Activities and Class Demonstrations Sequenced by Topic
• Links to numerous sequenced curriculum video clips
• Class Notes and HW Samples
• Various PowerPoint's, Overhead Notes, Handouts Organized by Topic
• Student Study Guidelines

Ed. 627 - COMPUTER SCIENCE FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Maria Litvin  

The course accommodates participants with different levels of familiarity with Java and OOP. We will study classes and objects, constructors and methods, interfaces, inheritance, and polymorphism, strings, arrays, and ArrayList, and other topics specified in the AP CS Course Description. We will also work with the GridWorld case study, review the College Board’s AP materials and the 2012 AP CS Exam, and discuss techniques for teaching Java in high school (role play, team projects). 

Ed. 619 - ENGLISH LANGUAGE & COMPOSITION FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty:  Steve Klinge

This week will focus on method and content used in teaching students to become superior readers, writers, and thinkers. To cultivate new texts and strategies for classroom use, the seminar will include a variety of essays, speeches, and maybe even a poem or two. The instruction of composition will be a major focus of the class. Much time will be spent looking at both the multi-draft essay—including the research paper—and the timed essay. Some of the week will be used exploring how to use holistic scoring to improve student writing.

We will work with the objective and written portions of the AP English Language test. Special attention will be paid to the essay questions from the 2012 reading. A look at formal logic, visual literacy, a variety of syllabi, forms of assessment, and managing the overwhelming paper load that comes with teaching AP English classes are just a few other topics we will cover during the week.

Ed. 603 - ENGLISH LITERATURE & COMPOSITION FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: sj Miller 

This AP Literature and Composition workshop is a college/university level course that focuses on different genres, contexts, literary skills, and sociocultural issues in order to prepare students for the exam in May and to also teach beyond the exam—so as to help students conceptualize what English can mean in the larger context of their lives. Together, we will carefully and critically analyze literature; understand the way writers use language to provide meaning; consider a work’s structure, style, and themes as well as literary elements such as: figurative language, point of view, tone, diction, allusion, syntax, imagery, symbolism; study representative works from various genres and time periods (from the sixteenth century through contemporary times- poetry, prose, plays, short stories, young adult literature, film, TV, radio, music[hip-hop, punk, EMO, grunge, Indi-rock, country, rock]); apply different critical lenses to reading including but not limited to: classical/ancient, feminism, archetypal, cultural studies, formalism/new criticism, postcolonialism, deconstruction, Marxism, psychoanalysis, structuralism/poststructuralism; study characterization and development; consider the social and historical values a work embodies and reflects; consider how ethnicity, social class, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, and ability are reflected by literature; explore ways to write in different genres for different audiences and purposes including but not limited to: expository, analytic, rhetorical, and prose; engage, when possible, with multi-modal literacies, for reading, writing and presenting; reflect on the writing revision process as a way to help students become a more effective critic of one’s own writing; become a more effective communicator and thinker about reading and writing; and, discuss ways to prepare students for the college application process. Most of the week will be taught through constructivist (hands-on) and liberatory pedagogies as teachers will be invited to discuss, engage, participate, reflect, share, question, probe, teach, re-teach, and push beyond where their current practices reside. The week will provide teachers with an overview of an AP curriculum, offer tools for immediate application to their practice, test taking practice and strategies for the essays and multiple choice sections, and provide essential networking opportunities with other AP experts in the field. 

Ed. 626 - ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Jeanne Kaidy

In this session, participants will learn about the development and grading of the AP test, discuss and evaluate teaching resources, and experience several different kinds of lessons and student-centered experiences.  Participants will ultimately draft a comprehensive syllabus for a year-long AP Environmental Science course.  Much of the week will be spent in the field and in the lab, so that participants leave with a multitude of hands-on activities meant to facilitate student learning and develop critical analysis and problem solving abilities, fundamental skills necessary for this course.  Through designing experiments, engaging in inquiry-based activities, and collecting data in the field, students will understand how the process of science works.  Hands-on activities rather than lecture are the focus, and workshop activities will focus on resources available in every community; cemeteries, power plants, fields, forests, ponds, and school campuses are all rich resources of inquiry-based projects.  This course is appropriate for both new and experienced AP teachers.

Ed. 604 - EUROPEAN HISTORY FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Jessica Young 

This course provides an overview of the historical content of the Advanced Placement exam in European history from approximately 1450 to the early 21st century. In addition participants will learn how the AP exam is written and scored, how to design and implement their AP EH curriculum and how to prepare their students to succeed on the various components of the AP test, including multiple choice questions, Document Based Questions and Free Response Questions.

Ed. 608 - FRENCH LANGUAGE & CULTURE FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Kately Demougeot 

The 2013 French APSI will concentrate completely on the newly redesigned exam and course alignment. Participants will examine the major themes that will drive the French AP curriculum along with the numerous sub-themes. Designing units of instruction will be an important part of the workshop as well as examining sample exam items. Developing a familiarity with the three modes of communication--interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational--will be a key factor in our work. Another feature of the workshop will be becoming proficient in interpreting achievement-level descriptions that will assist teachers in evaluating student work. We will become familiar with strategies to present various aspects of the target culture, including products (tools, books, music, laws, conventions, institutions); practices (patterns of social interactions); and perspectives (values, attitudes, assumptions). Time will be spent on integrating authentic materials and technology into our curriculum. We will also discuss the production of the new course audit. 

Ed. 623 - GERMAN LANGUAGE & CULTURE FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Delbert Hausman 

Last year students of Advanced Placement German experienced a brand new exam: the all new AP German Language and Culture Exam. This course will focus on material designed to support the new AP German Language and Culture course and exam. Participants will engage in a wide range of activities designed to prepare students for success on the new exam. Throughout the course, emphasis will be placed on exploring activities that support teachers in the implementation of the new curriculum framework. Participants will also have the opportunity to begin designing and/or revising course syllabi to submit for the course audit, and will collaborate on curriculum units based on the six themes. Relevant materials, including Internet sources, and specific instructional strategies designed to support the curriculum will be examined. Class members will have the opportunity to air concerns and share their successful strategies and materials. You will receive a significant amount of material that you will be able to put to immediate use in your classroom.

Ed. 624 - HUMAN GEOGRAPHY FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Pamela Wolfe 

This course will provide an overview of the AP Human Geography curriculum and help teachers design their own course. Teachers will review lesson plans, resources, and websites for teaching each of the major topics covered in the AP Human Geography course, including geography, population, cultural patterns, the political organization of space, rural land use, industrialization, and cities. The course will focus on effective teaching strategies, learning activities and preparation for success on the AP exam. Participants will begin to develop their own course outline, syllabus, and assessment tools.

Ed.  628 - ITALIAN LANGUAGE & CULTURE

Faculty: Ida Wilder

This course gives participants an overview of the AP Italian Language and Culture course. They will examine the requirements of the course and exam, discuss classroom strategies and engage in a professional exchange of ideas. Special emphasis will be placed on the teaching of the four skills, curriculum issues related to the course, integration of the ACTFL Standards, and how to prepare students to be successful on the final assessment. In addition, participants will review AP teacher workshop material, including the teacher’s guide, course description, exam specifications, and examples from various exams. Appropriate materials and activities for various learning styles will be presented and discussed. Other highlights include: ideas for syllabus development, scoring student work with rubrics, becoming acquainted with the electronic media used to support AP teachers (AP Central, Electronic Discussion Group, useful websites) and the results of the program thus far. 

Ed. 613 - MUSIC THEORY FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Gilbert DeBenedetti

This course helps participants to develop a curriculum/course of study, which parallels the content of the AP Music examination. The objectives of the class include becoming familiar with the structure, format, and workings of the AP Music exam, to discuss tasks and skills necessary for student achievement on the exam, to develop teaching strategies for student success at mastering these tasks and skills, to assemble and evaluate teaching materials, and to determine methods for assessment of student learning. A strong emphasis is placed upon the teaching of basic parts: writing and figured bass, musical form, counterpoint, and aural skills, including contextual listening.

Ed. 609 - PHYSICS FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Greg Jacobs 

The AP Physics B exam will be given one more time in 2014, after which the AP Physics 1 and AP Physics 2 courses will begin.  AP Physics C will not change. 

In the summer of 2013, we will discuss in detail the forthcoming AP Physics 1 and 2 exams.  The focus of the summer institute will still be AP Physics B, but we will primarily discuss topics and pedagogical approaches which overlap with those necessary for AP Physics 1 or 2. 

The goal of the week will be to communicate and share physics teaching ideas that could be applied to any level of physics, including conceptual, Regents, AP Physics B, AP Physics 1/2, and AP Physics C.  In particular, we will discuss:

• Quantitative use of demonstrations: Whenever students can be asked to predict the result of a demonstration, that demonstration has served a purpose beyond simply attention-grabbing.
• Laboratory activities in the style of AP lab questions: We will perform two or three of these.  We will discuss how to create activities that are not only pedagogically valuable, but which also directly prepare the students for the types of exam questions they will face.

Ed. 620 - PSYCHOLOGY FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Jeanne A. Blakeslee

Using the National Standards for High School Psychology, the teacher of the course will incorporate activities, demonstrations, and media resources to engage and challenge students of psychology. The class will examine and execute a variety of writing assignments in order to shape student responses that are more accurate and terse. Participants will write and score a series of AP free response questions to gain an understanding of the process and criteria used to score the AP exam. Guiding the course are the principles that:

• concept-based instruction is highly effective;
• psychology teachers should use psychology to teach psychology;
• writing to demonstrate understanding is crucial for critical thinking;
• every unit should be enhanced by 2 or 3 demonstrations or activities;
• we want our students to apply psychology to their lives

Ed. 632 – SPANISH LANGUAGE & CULTURE FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Raul Rodriguez 

Participants will get acquainted with the new 2013-2014 AP Spanish Language and Culture course and examination. Descriptions and discussions will comprise all components of the AP Curriculum Framework including learning objectives, expected student performance, thematic approach, organizing concepts and essential questions. They will discuss models of instructional design for the course that connect language proficiency with products, practices and perspectives of the Spanish-speaking world. Cross-cultural comparisons will make ample use of multimedia and internet resources. Participants will also discuss and share appropriate classroom materials, techniques and content-specific strategies that can be incorporated into the AP classroom to help students prepare to be successful in their AP course work. Consideration will be given to AP curriculum and syllabus development, and resources to support AP teachers. Sample questions for multiple choice and free response sections of the exam will be made available.

Ed. 625 - SPANISH LITERATURE & CULTURE FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Rodney Rodriguez

This year’s institute will deal exclusively with the new program in Spanish Literature and Culture, which began last fall. The recent changes are exiting and they will be examined and explained with special focus on the new cultural components.  We will analyze the more difficult works on the reading list and exchange ideas on making these works more accessible to our students and improving writing skills.  This year we will have the results of the first test administration, so we will have concrete examples of real essays and a much better idea what is being expected of students.  Participants will be given a copy of my recent book, Reflexiones, which was written with the new AP program in mind and includes all of the readings. 

Ed. 616 - STATISTICS FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Douglas Cashing  

This course is intended for AP Statistics teachers who feel uncertain about the content or the expectations of the course. We will discuss a variety of questions from previous exams, along with their scoring rubrics and some student solutions, as a spring-board for investigating the content and how to present it. There will also be discussions regarding the use of available technology in the course, available resources, test-taking strategies, and ideas for projects and activities. 

Ed. 612 - STUDIO ART FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Mark Schimsky 

Using a sample AP Studio Art Syllabus, this course will cover the structure of all three AP Studio Art Exam Portfolios with overviews  of the Breadth and Concentration sections of the exam plus guidelines for organizing the Quality section. Then using sample AP scoring rubrics, the AP Studio Art scoring process will be reviewed. There will be two “standards settings," one for each of the two major sections of the Exam – the “Breadth” and the “Concentration”. These standards settings will give participants a fairly accurate sense of how AP Studio Art exams are actually scored by AP readers each year. Participants will also engage in a hands-on project to develop a scope of technical and conceptual strategies to meet the demands of the “Concentration Section” of the AP Art Exam. This simple project will culminate in a “Best Practices” session where participants will share lessons and ideas for their AP Studio Art classes. For this project, you will need to bring some art supplies with you to the APSI. A list of suggested art supplies will be provided. In addition, it is suggested that you bring a journal/sketchbook with you and an assortment of pens and/or pencils. There will also be discussions on vertical teaming, critiquing techniques, and how to photograph art work.

Ed. 602 – U.S. HISTORY FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Robert Handy

This course provides students an overview of the basic structure and content necessary for an Advanced Placement U.S History course. The instructor emphasizes the practical aspects involved in teaching an AP course in U.S. History.  Samples of multiple choice and essay questions, including the document based question are reviewed in class.  Attention is also given to how standards are established for grading student responses.  A major portion of the course is devoted to the development of an AP U.S. History syllabus, by each student.

Ed. 615 - U.S. GOVERNMENT & POLITICS FOR ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: James B. Riddle

The Advancement Placement (AP) Summer Institute featuring the AP United States Government and Politics course is designed to provide a comprehensive offering in substantive and critical knowledge and materials essential for teacher and student success on the AP Government and Politics examination.  A course review examining important goals, topics and study units to cover United States Government and Politics from the adoption of the United States Constitution to the 21st century, and the development of a thorough syllabus including a realistic outline, accords the teacher (and the student) a proper structure for managing a course that can be cumbersome and confusing.  Critical thinking skills, analysis, and interpretation will be employed to understand traditional and evolving American ideas, beliefs, institutions and interest groups. Relevant documents, resources, texts and multimedia materials are utilized to enhance fuller appreciation of course challenges.

Strategic learning techniques are practiced by participants to demonstrate how various approaches will facilitate effective student learning and conceptual development. Further, activities are scheduled for participants to aid students in expressing their thoughts in lucid, thoughtful, and substantive writing exercises, and improve success on multiple choice questions.  Finally, participants will inspect in detail past AP United States Government and Politics examinations to gain perspective on course expectations and demands. The Summer Institute is structured to provide a forum for new and/or experienced teachers, and promote professional camaraderie.

Ed. 622 – WORLD HISTORY FOR TEACHERS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Faculty: Michele Forman 

This course will prepare participants to construct an AP World History course based on the latest revisions to the AP Course Description and upcoming changes in the exam.  Participants will use periodization and global themes and interactions to select content coverage and develop or revise a world history syllabus.  The course will emphasize practical strategies for teaching AP including setting standards for evaluating student performance.