AP African American History

The Philadelphia School District is one of few that requires each high school student to take an African American History course during their high school education. Masterman is no exception, and every sophomore used to take it as an honors course. However, a new AP pilot program has surfaced, and the 2023-2024 school year is the first year that sophomores have the option to take AP African American History. This course is an interdisciplinary pilot course that is a rigorous examination of the African-American experience from the transatlantic slave trade to the present day. The curriculum is meticulously crafted to offer a refined exploration of pivotal events, influential figures, and cultural movements that have shaped African-American history. Topics span from the Middle Passage to the Civil Rights Movement, Black Power, and contemporary issues facing the African-American community.

In the 2022-23 school year, AP African American studies were offered to sophomores in 60 high schools across the United States, and by the next year that number increased to 800 schools across the nation, including Masterman. 

Masterman has been lucky enough to host African-American studies and even luckier to have Ms. Taylor as a longtime educationalist of the class. Ms. Taylor has been teaching African American History at Masterman for many years but with the new College Board modifications for the course, Ms. Taylor has had to acclimate to the new curriculum. “Every day is new for you and for me. I hope students enjoy learning a lot and strengthen their writing skills, their reasoning skills, and research skills. I hope they feel confident about themselves as learners and as people who impact the historical conversation. Students should have the tools to learn history.”

The regular African American history course was a result of students and faculty raising concerns about the lack of knowledge on the history of African Americans before slavery. As a part of this movement, 3,500 Philadelphia students assembled outside the school district building rallying for the inclusion of Black studies. That tally does not include the almost 10,000 other students who were prevented from attending by action of the school administration and police, through locking school doors, turning students away from the demonstration, and holding students in police custody throughout the afternoon. Eventually, a small group of students and community leaders were allowed inside to negotiate and their demands were met. However, the crowd did not disperse in victory but rather grew substantially with the arrival of 900 more students from Benjamin Franklin and William Penn High School. The protest turned violent between the rowdy students and out-of-control police officers– rocks were thrown and people were heavily beaten. 22 people were seriously injured and 57 were arrested. This event still stands as the largest student protest in Philadelphia history. 

During the development of the Advanced Placement course, a reoccurring critique was that it showed a “racial preference” towards African Americans and that if one ethnic group has an Advanced Placement course, then every ethnic group should have one. 

A leak of the College Board’s curriculum outline sparked intense controversy among conservative Republican politicians. Florida state governor, Ron DeSantis proposed plans to ban it from schools, calling the original curriculum “indoctrination.” AP African American History is not currently available for students in Florida. 

David Coleman, College Board President responded to the controversy by stating, “[African American Studies] is an unflinching encounter with the facts and evidence of African American history and culture.” 

Ultimately, the inclusion of African American history is important in the understanding of both World history and United States history. Its status as an AP course will help prepare students for college-level work and increase their chances of academic success while also allowing students to become more engaged and informed citizens.