AP Seminar Course Description 

AP Seminar is a class about arguments -- identifying, evaluating, building, and defending them. We will investigate multiple perspectives, gather and analyze information from various sources, and write research and argumentative essays using credible and valid evidence. We will engage in various forms of communication and collaboration, both written and verbal, on topics of interest to you. 

Our work this year is guided by five Big Ideas from the College Board. These are called the QUEST framework, which stands for the following:

• Question & Explore

• Understand & Analyze

• Evaluate Multiple Perspectives

• Synthesize Ideas

• Team, Transform, & Transmit

There are six assessments that comprise your AP score: a research paper; a team presentation; an argumentative paper; an individual presentation; a 2-part exam. If this seems like a lot, don't worry -- we break it down to make it feel manageable. 

Summer Assignment

There are three parts to the summer assignment. The first two parts are required; the third is optional. The goal of this assignment is to help you start to think about arguments in the world around you, and to broaden the base of knowledge that you bring to this class. The more you are reading and noticing about the world around you, the better your thinking and arguments will be in response. 

1. Over the summer, find 2-3 pieces of visual media. This could be an advertisement, a billboard, a photograph by you or someone else, an image you encounter on social media, or a piece of fine art. It must be an image, with or without text. This artifact should make some kind of argument -- it can be any claim, about anything. Bring this artifact to school during the first week, and be ready to explain this argument to the class. 

2. Read the article Journalism Is Not a Luxury, by Ta-Nehisi Coates. It is the introduction to a collection of essays, which we will continue working with this year. You need to print this text to complete the task:

   1. • Annotate, looking for the following:

        1. Every time you encounter an unfamiliar term, concept, or reference, look it up and write the definition. 

        2. Highlight claims (reasons that support the overall argument) and evidence (information or data that supports a claim) in the article, using a different color for each. 

      • Write, by hand, your responses to the following questions. Number your responses. Your response to #1 can be a few sentences. Your responses to #2 and #3 should be multiple paragraphs. 

        1. Identify the author's argument, main idea, or thesis.

        2. Explain the author's line of reasoning by identifying the claims used to build the argument and the connections between them. 

        3. Evaluate the effectiveness of the evidence the author uses to support the claims made in the argument. 

3. (Optional) Choose one or two of the following publications and take a look at them on a weekly basis throughout the summer, keeping an eye out for topics of interest to you that you might want to explore in this class. **Some of these have limited free articles or paywalls, so be judicious in your browsing**

   1. • Daily Newspapers: The New York Times; The Guardian; Al Jazeera English; Vox 

      • Magazines/Journals: The Atlantic; Nature; National Geographic; Smithsonian; The New Yorker

Your Teacher

Enjoy the summer! I look forward to starting our work together in August.