High School Course Guide

GEOGRAPHY COURSES

WORLD GEOGRAPHY STUDIES

GRADE LEVEL: 9-10                  CREDIT: 1

TX ID: 03320100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: In World Geography Studies, students examine people, places, and environments at local, regional, national, and international scales from the spatial and ecological perspectives of geography. Students describe the influence of geography on events of the past and present with emphasis on contemporary issues. A significant portion of the course centers around the physical processes that shape patterns in the physical environment; the characteristics of major landforms, climates, and ecosystems and their interrelationships; the political, economic, and social processes that shape cultural patterns of regions; types and patterns of settlement; the distribution and movement of the world population; relationships among people, places, and environments; and the concept of region. Students analyze how location affects economic activities in different economic systems. Students identify the processes that influence political divisions of the planet and analyze how different points of view affect the development of public policies. Students compare how components of culture shape the characteristics of regions and analyze the impact of technology and human modifications on the physical environment. Students use problem-solving and decision-making skills to ask and answer geographic questions.

AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

GRADE LEVEL: 9-10      CREDIT: 1

TX ID: A3360100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: In AP Human Geography, students will explore how humans have understood, used, and changed the surface of Earth. Students use tools and thinking processes of geographers to examine patterns of human population, migration, and land use. Students enrolled in this course are required to take the AP Human Geography Exam.

WORLD HISTORY COURSES

WORLD HISTORY STUDIES

GRADE LEVEL: 9-10                CREDIT: 1

TX ID: 03340400

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: World History Studies is a survey of the history of humankind. Due to the expanse of world history and the time limitations of the school year, the scope of this course should focus on "essential" concepts and skills that can be applied to various eras, events, and people within the standards in subsection (c) of this section. The major emphasis is on the study of significant people, events, and issues from the earliest times to the present. Traditional historical points of reference in world history are identified as students analyze important events and issues in western civilization as well as in civilizations in other parts of the world. Students evaluate the causes and effects of political and economic imperialism and of major political revolutions since the 17th century. Students examine the impact of geographic factors on major historic events and identify the historic origins of contemporary economic systems. Students analyze the process by which constitutional governments evolved as well as the ideas from historic documents that influenced that process. Students trace the historical development of important legal and political concepts. Students examine the history and impact of major religious and philosophical traditions. Students analyze the connections between major developments in science and technology and the growth of industrial economies, and they use the process of historical inquiry to research, interpret, and use multiple sources of evidence.

PRE-AP WORLD HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY

GRADE LEVEL: 9-10                  CREDIT: 1

TX ID: 03320100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: Pre-AP World History and Geography focuses deeply on the concepts and skills that have maximum value for high school, college, careers, and civic life. The course builds students’ essential skills and helps to prepare them for a range of AP history and social science coursework during high school, including AP Human Geography and all three AP history courses. The learning model is that of an apprenticeship. Primary and secondary sources take center stage in the classroom, and students use the tools of the historian and geographer to examine questions and build arguments.

AP WORLD HISTORY

GRADE LEVEL: 10                CREDIT: 1

TX ID: A3370100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: In AP World History, students study the cultural, economic, political, and social developments that have shaped the world from c.1200 CE to the present. Students will analyze texts, visual sources, and other historical evidence and write essays expressing historical arguments. Students enrolled in this course are required to take the AP World History Exam.

U.S. HISTORY COURSES

U.S. HISTORY STUDIES SINCE 1877

GRADE LEVEL: 11             CREDIT: 1

TX ID: 03340100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: In United States History Studies Since 1877, which is the second part of a two-year study that begins in Grade 8, students study the history of the United States from 1877 to the present. The course content is based on the founding documents of the U.S. government, which provide a framework for its heritage. Historical content focuses on the political, economic, and social events and issues related to industrialization and urbanization, major wars, domestic and foreign policies, and reform movements, including civil rights. Students examine the impact of geographic factors on major events and eras and analyze their causes and effects. Students examine the impact of constitutional issues on American society, evaluate the dynamic relationship of the three branches of the federal government, and analyze efforts to expand the democratic process. Students describe the relationship between the arts and popular culture and the times during which they were created. Students analyze the impact of technological innovations on American life. Students use critical-thinking skills and a variety of primary and secondary source material to explain and apply different methods that historians use to understand and interpret the past, including multiple points of view and historical context.

UNITED STATES HISTORY ALTERNATE

GRADE LEVEL: 11         CREDIT: 1

TX ID: 03340107                  

PREREQUISITE(S): Placement by ARD; Students must have an IEP goal for any special education course.

Course Description: Students in this course focus on U.S. history from Reconstruction to the present. Students analyze major themes and events in U.S. history, which include: leaders, political institutions, technological innovations, economics and the philosophies that affect the United States today. 

AP UNITED STATES HISTORY

GRADE LEVEL: 11                CREDIT: 1

TX ID: A3340100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: In AP United States History, students study the cultural, economic, political, and social developments that have shaped the United States from c. 1491 to the present. Students will analyze texts, visual sources, and other historical evidence while writing essays expressing historical arguments. College Board requires that students learn how to evaluate sources, analyze claims, evidence and reasoning, place historical developments in context with connections and create a thesis with the ability to explain and support it in writing. Students enrolled in this course are required to take the AP United States History exam.

ON-RAMPS UNITED STATES HISTORY

GRADE LEVEL: 11                CREDIT: 1

TX ID: 03340100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: This course is a combined two semester course in partnership with the University of Texas at Austin. Semester 1: United States History from 1492-1865 and Semester 2: United States since Reconstruction. Students in this course study significant themes in U.S History through the use of lectures, primary and secondary readings, video, apps and other graphics. Critical thinking is used through collaborative work as a class and the independent tasks provided to each student, oftentimes in the form of written responses. Students enrolled in On-Ramps should be prepared for college level reading and writing assignments with an expectation of collaboration with peers. 

GOVERNMENT COURSES

U.S. GOVERNMENT

GRADE LEVEL: 12                CREDIT: .5

TX ID: 03330100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: In United States Government, the focus is on the principles and beliefs upon which the United States was founded and on the structure, functions, and powers of government at the national, state, and local levels. This course is the culmination of the civic and governmental content and concepts studied from Kindergarten through required secondary courses. Students learn major political ideas and forms of government in history. A significant focus of the course is on the U.S. Constitution, its underlying principles and ideas, and the form of government it created. Students analyze major concepts of republicanism, federalism, checks and balances, separation of powers, popular sovereignty, and individual rights and compare the U.S. system of government with other political systems. Students identify the role of government in the U.S. free enterprise system and examine the strategic importance of places to the United States. Students analyze the impact of individuals, political parties, interest groups, and the media on the American political system, evaluate the importance of voluntary individual participation in a constitutional republic, and analyze the rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. Students examine the relationship between governmental policies and the culture of the United States. Students identify examples of government policies that encourage scientific research and use critical-thinking skills to create a product on a contemporary government issue.

AP UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

GRADE LEVEL: 12                CREDIT: .5

TX ID: A3330100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: In AP United States Government and Politics, students study the key concepts and institutions of the political system and culture of the United States. Students will read, analyze, and discuss the U.S. Constitution and other documents as well as complete a research or applied civics project. Students enrolled in this course are required to take the AP United States Government and Politics exam.

ECONOMICS COURSES

PERSONAL FINANCIAL LITERACY AND ECONOMICS

GRADE LEVEL: 11-12                     CREDIT: .5

TX ID: 03380083

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: Personal Financial Literacy and Economics builds on and extends the economic content and concepts studied in Kindergarten-Grade 12 social studies in Texas. The course provides a foundation in both microeconomics and macroeconomics. Students will survey the impact of demand, supply, various industry structures, and government policies on the market for goods, services, and wages for workers. Macroeconomic study involves economic systems with an emphasis on free enterprise market systems, goals of full employment, price stability, and growth while examining problems such as unemployment and inflation and the policies enacted to address them. The course also builds on and extends the personal finance content and concepts studied in Kindergarten-Grade 8 in mathematics in Texas. It is an integrative course that applies the same economic way of thinking developed to making choices about how to allocate scarce resources in an economy to how to make them at the personal level. The course requires that students demonstrate critical thinking by exploring how to invest in themselves with education and skill development, earn income, and budget for spending, saving, investing, and protecting. Students will examine their individual responsibility for managing their personal finances and understand the impact on standard of living and long-term financial well-being. Further, students will connect how their financial decision making impacts the greater economy.

ECONOMICS WITH EMPHASIS ON THE FREE ENTERPRISE SYSTEM AND ITS BENEFITS

GRADE LEVEL: 11-12                CREDIT: .5

TX ID: 03310300

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: Economics with Emphasis on the Free Enterprise System and Its Benefits is the culmination of the economic content and concepts studied from Kindergarten through required secondary courses. The focus is on the basic principles concerning production, consumption, and distribution of goods and services (the problem of scarcity) in the United States and a comparison with those in other countries around the world. Students analyze the interaction of supply, demand, and price. Students will investigate the concepts of specialization and international trade, economic growth, key economic measurements, and monetary and fiscal policy. Students will study the roles of the Federal Reserve System and other financial institutions, government, and businesses in a free enterprise system. Types of business ownership and market structures are discussed. The course also incorporates instruction in personal financial literacy. Students apply critical-thinking skills using economic concepts to evaluate the costs and benefits of economic issues.

AP MICROECONOMICS 

GRADE LEVEL: 12                CREDIT: .5

TX ID: A3310100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: In AP Microeconomics, students study the principles of economics that apply to the behavior of individuals within an economic system. Students will use graphs, charts, and data to analyze, describe, and explain economic concepts. Students enrolled in this course are required to take the AP Microeconomics exam.

ETHNIC STUDIES COURSES

ETHNIC STUDIES: AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDIES 

GRADE LEVEL: 9-12         CREDIT: 1.0

TX ID: 03380085

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: African American Studies is an elective course that examines the history and culture of Africa and the African-American experience in an interdisciplinary format, including an analysis of the unique historical, cultural, and social developments from before colonialism to present day. The course will address the literary and artistic contributions of African-Americans to American culture. Critical thinking, reading, writing, and oral presentation skills are emphasized.

ETHNIC STUDIES: LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES

GRADE LEVEL: 9-12          CREDIT: 1.0

TX ID: 03380001

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: Latin American studies is an elective course that examines the history and culture of Latin America and the Latin(o/a/x) experience in an interdisciplinary format, including an analysis of the unique historical, cultural, and social developments from before colonialism to present day. The course will address the literary and artistic contributions of Latin(o/a/x) Americans to American culture. Critical thinking, reading, writing, and oral presentation skills are emphasized.

ADDITIONAL SOCIAL STUDIES COURSES

PSYCHOLOGY 

GRADE LEVEL: 11-12      CREDIT: .5

TX ID: 03350100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: In Psychology, an elective course, students study the science of behavior and mental processes. Students examine the full scope of the science of psychology such as the historical framework, methodologies, human development, motivation, emotion, sensation, perception, personality development, cognition, learning, intelligence, biological foundations, mental health, and social psychology.

SOCIOLOGY 

GRADE LEVEL: 11-12         CREDIT: .5

TX ID: 03370100

PREREQUISITE(S): none

Course Description: Sociology, an elective course, is an introductory study in social behavior and organization of human society. This course will describe the development of the field as a social science by identifying methods and strategies of research leading to an understanding of how the individual relates to society and the ever changing world. Students will also learn the importance and role of culture, social structure, socialization, and social change in today's society.

LIFE 101

GRADE LEVEL: 11-12           CREDIT: .5 

TX ID: 03380001

PREREQUISITE(S): none 

Course Description: Students have identified certain topics that they would like to have experience with prior to graduation. Topics include self-awareness, self-care, time management, skills for living independently, planning for the future, and maintaining healthy relationships.