World History

Students will study the rise of the nation state in Europe, the French Revolution, and the economic and political roots of the modern world. They will examine the origins and consequences of the Industrial Revolution, nineteenth century political reform in Western Europe, and imperialism in Africa, Asia, and South America. They will explain the causes and consequences of the great military and economic events of the past century, including the World Wars, the Great Depression, the Cold War, and the Russian and Chinese Revolutions. Finally, students will study the rise of nationalism and the continuing persistence of political, ethnic, and religious conflict in many parts of the world. Relevant Tennessee connections will be part of the curriculum, as well as appropriate primary source documents. Students will explore geographic influences on history, with attention given to political boundaries that developed with the evolution of nations from 1750 to the present and the subsequent human geographic issues that dominate the global community. Additionally, students will study aspects of technical geography such as GPS and GIS, and how these innovations continuously impact geopolitics in the contemporary world.

Lecture, cooperative learning, authentic learning, class presentations, and individual and group projects will be included. Students will develop writing skills, note taking and organization skills.

Available: CHS, MHS, UHS

The AP World History course focuses on developing students’ understanding of world history from approximately 8000 B.C.E. to the present. The course has students investigate the content of world history for significant events, individuals, developments, and processes in six historical periods, and develop and use the same thinking skills and methods (analyzing primary and secondary sources, making historical comparisons, chronological reasoning, and argumentation) employed by historians when they study the past. The course also provides five themes (interaction between humans and the environment; development and interaction of cultures; state building, expansion, and conflict; creation, expansion, and interaction of economic systems; development and transformation of social structures) that students explore throughout the course in order to make connections among historical developments in different times and places encompassing the five major geographical regions of the globe: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania.

Available: CHS, UHS