AP World History

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can’t believe no content is taught. It’s absolutely mind boggling and incomprehensible. I compare over to another school - they get power points and lectures. They read one section at a time, and take a reading quiz (multiple choice) the next period. They test on one unit at a time. In preparation for the first unit, they were given a study guide and multiple SAQs. They also practiced SAQs in class. They also watch Heimler videos in class at times.

Why does our teacher not teach any content? Kids aren’t taking notes during class. They are not digesting any of the info. The kids are scoring 2s and 3s on the reading quizzes.

They’re just note taking at home and since no one goes over them, retention is poor. DD watches Heimler and other videos and we’re getting other online resources to make sure that she understands the material.

Frustrating as it is, it is what it is, and we have to figure out a way to get her through this without entirely torching her GPA.

This exactly. Zero discussion on the material leads to poor retention - they don’t know what’s important. The only reason my child is doing well is due to Heimler’s videos which really helps with retention. The class is embarrassingly bad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nope. There is no teaching in any of her AP classes this year.

So, what does the teacher do?

DD says he talks about random things. Like about his kids and their HS experience, grand kids, how his weekend was, general life lessons, etc. The only relevant things he talks about are test taking strategies. There is no teaching of content. They are expected to read the book, take notes, and figure out what’s important, themselves.

+1 I second this. They do sometimes work on MCQs on the College Board website in class. They have also self studied in groups before a quiz. They also take class time to grade each other’s quizzes (only 2 given so far). The first quiz (from Unit 1/2 I believe) was announced on schoology over a weekend and given on a Monday. He made it a summative even though the kids absolutely bombed it.

[Anonymous]

For the other posters that I think have kids in the same class mine does - I discovered something yesterday. There is a supplemental/optional folder in Schoology that contains the lessons that had apparently been taught in the past. It’s not life altering or anything but there is a ton of useful information there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For the other posters that I think have kids in the same class mine does - I discovered something yesterday. There is a supplemental/optional folder in Schoology that contains the lessons that had apparently been taught in the past. It’s not life altering or anything but there is a ton of useful information there.

Thank you! Also, today they actually did something with the new material that may help with retention. I wonder if that’s because the class did so bad on the first test?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For the other posters that I think have kids in the same class mine does - I discovered something yesterday. There is a supplemental/optional folder in Schoology that contains the lessons that had apparently been taught in the past. It’s not life altering or anything but there is a ton of useful information there.

The teachers explain this to the kids the first week of class.

Not all the kids pay attention or remember it though since there is so much more material and higher expectations than they are used to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nope. There is no teaching in any of her AP classes this year.

How do you know this?

Are you in class with her?

One of them posts videos of their “lessons”. If you listened to them, you’d unlearn even the things you used to know. The second posts nothing, other than ‘Do this, do that, you have a test on date X’. There are no lessons, no study guides no material. The third does post their slides. [/b]There are generally about 5 slides per 30 page chapter, and it’s missing significant portions of what’s in the textbook, the material that they get tested on. [b]

So, she’s watching YouTube videos, we’re buying resources, and she’s self teaching.

At my son’s back to school evening the APUSH teacher explained that students got their first tests back and he is aware that most students are used to getting above 100% on tests because they get extra credit and are shocked that they got below 70 percent on the first test.

He said students come up to him and say, “but I watched extra YouTube videos, I listened in class, I reviewed my notes, I made 100 flash cards and got a C or D. And he tells them what he told them the first day- This is a college level class where you are required to read the textbook. There is no substitution for actually reading every single one of the assigned pages.”

So now I can see what he is talking about. There are only 5 slides because your kid is expected to independently read the 30 pages.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No. My daughter got a B+ in the class and a 4 on the exam.

That’s appropriate if a little generous on the grade, no? A 4 is supposed to be equivalent to a B.

A B is still a pretty decent grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For the other posters that I think have kids in the same class mine does - I discovered something yesterday. There is a supplemental/optional folder in Schoology that contains the lessons that had apparently been taught in the past. It’s not life altering or anything but there is a ton of useful information there.

Is APUSH at this school even worse?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For the other posters that I think have kids in the same class mine does - I discovered something yesterday. There is a supplemental/optional folder in Schoology that contains the lessons that had apparently been taught in the past. It’s not life altering or anything but there is a ton of useful information there.

The teachers explain this to the kids the first week of class.

Not all the kids pay attention or remember it though since there is so much more material and higher expectations than they are used to.

I don't know what other teachers do, but this one did not. The only ongoing thing they do is to read and take notes. As another poster noted, they finally did an activity that was related to the material they were supposed to read. Hopefully there will be more of these.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nope. There is no teaching in any of her AP classes this year.

How do you know this?

Are you in class with her?

One of them posts videos of their “lessons”. If you listened to them, you’d unlearn even the things you used to know. The second posts nothing, other than ‘Do this, do that, you have a test on date X’. There are no lessons, no study guides no material. The third does post their slides. [/b]There are generally about 5 slides per 30 page chapter, and it’s missing significant portions of what’s in the textbook, the material that they get tested on.

So, she’s watching YouTube videos, we’re buying resources, and she’s self teaching.

At my son’s back to school evening the APUSH teacher explained that students got their first tests back and he is aware that most students are used to getting above 100% on tests because they get extra credit and are shocked that they got below 70 percent on the first test.

He said students come up to him and say, “but I watched extra YouTube videos, I listened in class, I reviewed my notes, I made 100 flash cards and got a C or D. [b]And he tells them what he told them the first day- This is a college level class where you are required to read the textbook. There is no substitution for actually reading every single one of the assigned pages.”

So now I can see what he is talking about. There are only 5 slides because your kid is expected to independently read the 30 pages.

This is precisely what the kids have been doing. They are reading and taking notes. But because there is no one going over the material (the 5 slides is in a different class), discussing it, contextualizing it, etc. in class, retention is poor. At least for my kid, her studying involves reading and taking notes, listening to at least two separate YouTube teachers who teach the class (their emphasis is slightly different, so she gets more out of it than listening to one), then using supplemental material I bought to go over overarching themes, SAQs, MCQs, etc. It's like that for all 3 of her AP courses this year. She would do just as well if she never attended a single class; in fact, she'd probably do better since she'd have a few extra hours to go over the material.

She is doing fine in terms of grades so far. In one of her classes, her teacher asked her to come to him after class, and asked her what material she was using to study because she got the highest grade he has ever given out on that particular unit test. She is just incredibly stressed because teaching yourself a whole day's worth of material after coming home is incredibly time consuming and exhausting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For the other posters that I think have kids in the same class mine does - I discovered something yesterday. There is a supplemental/optional folder in Schoology that contains the lessons that had apparently been taught in the past. It’s not life altering or anything but there is a ton of useful information there.

The teachers explain this to the kids the first week of class.

Not all the kids pay attention or remember it though since there is so much more material and higher expectations than they are used to.

I don't know what other teachers do, but this one did not. The only ongoing thing they do is to read and take notes. As another poster noted, they finally did an activity that was related to the material they were supposed to read. Hopefully there will be more of these.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nope. There is no teaching in any of her AP classes this year.

How do you know this?

Are you in class with her?

One of them posts videos of their “lessons”. If you listened to them, you’d unlearn even the things you used to know. The second posts nothing, other than ‘Do this, do that, you have a test on date X’. There are no lessons, no study guides no material. The third does post their slides. [/b]There are generally about 5 slides per 30 page chapter, and it’s missing significant portions of what’s in the textbook, the material that they get tested on.

So, she’s watching YouTube videos, we’re buying resources, and she’s self teaching.

At my son’s back to school evening the APUSH teacher explained that students got their first tests back and he is aware that most students are used to getting above 100% on tests because they get extra credit and are shocked that they got below 70 percent on the first test.

He said students come up to him and say, “but I watched extra YouTube videos, I listened in class, I reviewed my notes, I made 100 flash cards and got a C or D. [b]And he tells them what he told them the first day- This is a college level class where you are required to read the textbook. There is no substitution for actually reading every single one of the assigned pages.”

So now I can see what he is talking about. There are only 5 slides because your kid is expected to independently read the 30 pages.

This is precisely what the kids have been doing. They are reading and taking notes. But because there is no one going over the material (the 5 slides is in a different class), discussing it, contextualizing it, etc. in class, retention is poor. At least for my kid, her studying involves reading and taking notes, listening to at least two separate YouTube teachers who teach the class (their emphasis is slightly different, so she gets more out of it than listening to one), then using supplemental material I bought to go over overarching themes, SAQs, MCQs, etc. It's like that for all 3 of her AP courses this year. She would do just as well if she never attended a single class; in fact, she'd probably do better since she'd have a few extra hours to go over the material.

She is doing fine in terms of grades so far. In one of her classes, her teacher asked her to come to him after class, and asked her what material she was using to study because she got the highest grade he has ever given out on that particular unit test. She is just incredibly stressed because teaching yourself a whole day's worth of material after coming home is incredibly time consuming and exhausting.

Thank you so much for speaking up. I feel everything about this post relates to us as well, even down to we don’t need to be in class and would have more time to do it/ My child is incredibly stressed and exhausted this year due to this one class.

Can I ask how long it takes your child to read one section from AMSCO and take notes, let alone 2?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nope. There is no teaching in any of her AP classes this year.

How do you know this?

Are you in class with her?

One of them posts videos of their “lessons”. If you listened to them, you’d unlearn even the things you used to know. The second posts nothing, other than ‘Do this, do that, you have a test on date X’. There are no lessons, no study guides no material. The third does post their slides. [/b]There are generally about 5 slides per 30 page chapter, and it’s missing significant portions of what’s in the textbook, the material that they get tested on.

So, she’s watching YouTube videos, we’re buying resources, and she’s self teaching.

At my son’s back to school evening the APUSH teacher explained that students got their first tests back and he is aware that most students are used to getting above 100% on tests because they get extra credit and are shocked that they got below 70 percent on the first test.

He said students come up to him and say, “but I watched extra YouTube videos, I listened in class, I reviewed my notes, I made 100 flash cards and got a C or D. [b]And he tells them what he told them the first day- This is a college level class where you are required to read the textbook. There is no substitution for actually reading every single one of the assigned pages.”

So now I can see what he is talking about. There are only 5 slides because your kid is expected to independently read the 30 pages.

This is precisely what the kids have been doing. They are reading and taking notes. But because there is no one going over the material (the 5 slides is in a different class), discussing it, contextualizing it, etc. in class, retention is poor. At least for my kid, her studying involves reading and taking notes, listening to at least two separate YouTube teachers who teach the class (their emphasis is slightly different, so she gets more out of it than listening to one), then using supplemental material I bought to go over overarching themes, SAQs, MCQs, etc. It's like that for all 3 of her AP courses this year. She would do just as well if she never attended a single class; in fact, she'd probably do better since she'd have a few extra hours to go over the material.

She is doing fine in terms of grades so far. In one of her classes, her teacher asked her to come to him after class, and asked her what material she was using to study because she got the highest grade he has ever given out on that particular unit test. She is just incredibly stressed because teaching yourself a whole day's worth of material after coming home is incredibly time consuming and exhausting.

Thank you so much for speaking up. I feel everything about this post relates to us as well, even down to we don’t need to be in class and would have more time to do it/ My child is incredibly stressed and exhausted this year due to this one class.

Can I ask how long it takes your child to read one section from AMSCO and take notes, let alone 2?

Hours, because it's read, comprehend, condense her thoughts, write. Repeat. The unit 3 chapters aren't terribly long, mercifully.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nope. There is no teaching in any of her AP classes this year.

How do you know this?

Are you in class with her?

One of them posts videos of their “lessons”. If you listened to them, you’d unlearn even the things you used to know. The second posts nothing, other than ‘Do this, do that, you have a test on date X’. There are no lessons, no study guides no material. The third does post their slides. [/b]There are generally about 5 slides per 30 page chapter, and it’s missing significant portions of what’s in the textbook, the material that they get tested on.

So, she’s watching YouTube videos, we’re buying resources, and she’s self teaching.

At my son’s back to school evening the APUSH teacher explained that students got their first tests back and he is aware that most students are used to getting above 100% on tests because they get extra credit and are shocked that they got below 70 percent on the first test.

He said students come up to him and say, “but I watched extra YouTube videos, I listened in class, I reviewed my notes, I made 100 flash cards and got a C or D. [b]And he tells them what he told them the first day- This is a college level class where you are required to read the textbook. There is no substitution for actually reading every single one of the assigned pages.”

So now I can see what he is talking about. There are only 5 slides because your kid is expected to independently read the 30 pages.

This is precisely what the kids have been doing. They are reading and taking notes. But because there is no one going over the material (the 5 slides is in a different class), discussing it, contextualizing it, etc. in class, retention is poor. At least for my kid, her studying involves reading and taking notes, listening to at least two separate YouTube teachers who teach the class (their emphasis is slightly different, so she gets more out of it than listening to one), then using supplemental material I bought to go over overarching themes, SAQs, MCQs, etc. It's like that for all 3 of her AP courses this year. She would do just as well if she never attended a single class; in fact, she'd probably do better since she'd have a few extra hours to go over the material.

She is doing fine in terms of grades so far. In one of her classes, her teacher asked her to come to him after class, and asked her what material she was using to study because she got the highest grade he has ever given out on that particular unit test. She is just incredibly stressed because teaching yourself a whole day's worth of material after coming home is incredibly time consuming and exhausting.

Thank you so much for speaking up. I feel everything about this post relates to us as well, even down to we don’t need to be in class and would have more time to do it/ My child is incredibly stressed and exhausted this year due to this one class.

Can I ask how long it takes your child to read one section from AMSCO and take notes, let alone 2?

Hours, because it's read, comprehend, condense her thoughts, write. Repeat. The unit 3 chapters aren't terribly long, mercifully.

Same here. I am terrified what will be assigned over the long weekend. There has been no breaks whatsoever.

[Anonymous]

I guess the one positive would be if you are absent, you won’t miss anything?! There are no notes to catch up on.