Social Studies Course Guide High School English Social Studies Dept. Head: Mr. T. Hughes History Teacher: Ms. Kristy Duchensky History Teacher: Mr. Steven Poletto History Teacher: Mr. Peter Russo History Teacher: Mrs. Kristen Severino SOCIAL STUDIES DEPARTMENT 2016-2017 WORLD HISTORY FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS Grades: 9 World History is required for graduation. This course includes an overview and survey of Man s history from the earliest times of known and recorded events to the present time. Concentration is given to western cultures, eastern cultures and the historical basis of religions. The department works closely with the English Department so as to reinforce written and oral skills development in this course. WORLD HISTORY HONORS FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS Grades: 9 World History is required for graduation. This course includes an overview and survey of Man s history from the earliest times of known and recorded events to the present time. Concentration is given to western cultures, eastern cultures and the historical basis of religions. The department works
closely with the English Department so as to reinforce written and oral skills development in this course. The honors section is designed to challenge the academically motivated student through additional readings, research and book reports. U.S. HISTORY I FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS Grades: 10 United States History I includes an overview and a survey of (U.S.) American History from pre-columbian times to the Civil War. Concentration is given to the political, economic and social events and aspects of how the United States of America came into existence, its constitutional basis and structure, and the development of its domestic and foreign interests. Attention is given to current affairs and discussion of topical questions. U.S. HISTORY I HONORS FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS Grades: 10 U.S. History I Honors includes an overview and a survey of (U.S.) American History from pre-columbian times to the Civil War. Concentration is given to the political, economic and social events and aspects of how the United States of America came into existence, its constitutional basis and structure, and the development of its domestic and foreign interests. Attention is given to current affairs and discussion of topical questions. The honors section is designed to challenge the academically motivated student through additional readings, research and book reports. U.S. HISTORY I AP FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS Prerequisite: Teacher Recommendation
Grades: 10-11 This is the first of a two-year sequence in college level American History. This course will follow a different sequence of American History topics, which necessitates the follow-up course of United States History II AP. U.S. HISTORY II FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS Grades: 11 This course is a survey of American History from the Civil War to the present. Units include analyses of our governmental processes (executive, legislative and judicial), political parties, political philosophies, civil liberties, comparison of ideological forces in the 19th and 20th century, economic, sociological, historical forces in American life and the development of a peaceful solution to the world s aggressive forces of war, hunger and prejudice. There is a strong concentration on current affairs, written and oral work and analysis of historical information and data. U.S. HISTORY II HONORS FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS Grades: 11 This course is a survey of American History from the Civil War to the present. Units include analyses of our governmental processes (executive, legislative and judicial), political parties, political philosophies, civil liberties, comparison of ideological forces in the 19th and 20th century, economic, sociological, historical forces in American life and the development of a peaceful solution to the world s aggressive forces of war, hunger and prejudice. There is a strong concentration on current affairs, written and oral work, and analyses of historical information and data. In addition, honors students read, evaluate and discuss college-level passages for each unit of study.
U.S. HISTORY II AP FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS Prerequisite: United States History I AP Grades: 11-12 This is a culminating course in a two-year sequence of college level American History. Successful completion of this course, in addition to a grade of at least 4 on the Advanced Placement examination should result in the granting of college credit for a year of American History. PSYCHOLOGY FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS The Psychology curriculum is a program designed for exploring historical and current approaches to the student of the mind. Students will examine the origins of psychology and understand how the field has developed through the use of science and experimentation. Students will be exposed to the various branches of psychology and be made fully aware of the many different career opportunities currently available to them in this field. Psychology is a field of study that will allow students to examine the people they are and the decisions they make. This class will rely on student s objective assessments of themselves as well as the people around them. Experiments and personal assessment inventories will be used to gather and evaluate information. Students will play an active part in not only gathering information but also interpreting it in psychological terms. NOTE: Students in this course have already completed courses in social studies, which have met the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards for Social Studies. CRIMINAL JUSTICE ½ YEAR 2.5 CREDITS The Criminal Justice curriculum is an interdisciplinary program designed to provide students with the basic skills and technical knowledge required to further their development in this ever-changing field of study. Students will
understand theories involving criminal behavior and develop a deeper understanding of how the United States Criminal Justice System operates. This course will analyze court decisions that have established a precedent for the United States Justice system. To further the student learning experience, this course will also examine more recent, controversial court cases and decisions that are applicable to their lives. Students will rely heavily upon newspapers, magazine articles, the Internet, etc. as sources of current information for this course. WORLD ISSUES ½ YEAR 2.5 CREDITS The World Issues curriculum is a program specifically designed at making students socially, politically, culturally and economically aware of the current issues facing the planet. Students will identify and examine critical world issues as they relate to the United States and their own lives. This course will rely heavily on examining issues found on a global level. Instead of analyzing a specific issue relating to an individual country, this course will use a broader spectrum by studying general issues faced by multiple countries. Newspaper, magazines, the Internet, etc. will be considered valuable resources used to ascertain pertinent, up-to-date information. AMERICAN MILITARY HISTORY FULL YEAR 5 CREDITS The American Military History curriculum is an examination of the American Armed Forces from its beginnings during the American Revolution through the various wars fought by this country up to today s War on Terror. Special attention will also be given to various topics like the formation of each of the Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard. Other topics would include the integration of the Armed Forces, advances in technology and American military leadership. In examination of American wars, particular attention will be paid to the Civil War and World War II.
MACRO/MICRO ECONOMICS ½ YEAR 2.5 CREDITS (2010-2011) Prerequisite: Law and Economics or General Business and Algebra II (pre or co-requisite) Grades: 11-12 This advanced study in economics is designed for college preparatory students who are interested in studying business as a college/career major. Students will explore macroeconomic principles relevant to the total economic system including: the laws of supply and demand, national income accounting, aggregate demand and supply, the Classical vs. Keynesian model of the economy, the Federal Reserve Bank, and monetary and fiscal policy. Students will also learn to apply microeconomic principles relevant to businesses and consumers including: the private and public sectors, utility, production and cost, price and output determination, industrial organization, regulation, public choice, labor markets, the farm problem, social problems, natural resources, the economics of information, international trade, international finance, economic development and transitional economies. Please note, due to the mathematical and analytical nature of this course, students should have completed or currently be enrolled in Algebra II or its equivalent.