U.S. History

This course offers a comprehensive overview of the history of the United States from the writing of the Constitution to very recent events. Through this course, students will make connections across time between the challenges and issues in America today to a wide variety of historical events.

Students will begin the course by examining the founding documents of the U.S. and the ideals they set forth. They will learn about the challenges of a new nation, examine the factors leading to the Civil War, the bold goals of Reconstruction, and the impact of its failure. Throughout this course, students will learn about the ongoing struggle for many groups to gain civil rights and increased opportunity from the late 19th century through the civil rights movement of the 1960s through the election of the first black president and ongoing efforts to expand rights and opportunity in America today. Students will study America’s changing role in the world over time, including the U.S. role in WWII, the Vietnam War, and the War on Terror.

Students will use a variety of sources, including an online textbook and primary source documents, to gain a rich understanding of major events, turning points, and important figures in American history. Students will apply their growing knowledge and interpretation of American history through weekly engagement in discussions as well as written responses demonstrating their synthesis of multiple perspectives. Each semester students will choose and research selected topics in order to gain a deeper understanding of how the ideals in the founding documents have been realized throughout our history.

In this Standard-level course, students are expected to invest approximately 6 hours per week on their coursework.

Acknowledgements

There are no prerequisites for this course.
This course contains an end-of-course proctored exam. Instructions for students to identify an appropriate adult proctor are included in the course lessons.

Course Objectives

Course Essential Questions:

To what extent does the United States live up to the ideals established in the founding documents?
How has the struggle for rights and opportunity been a defining feature of American history?
How do unresolved conflicts throughout American history continue to impact the country today?

Course Learning Objectives:

Students will synthesize a variety of sources in order to arrive at an understanding of major events, turning points and trends in U.S. history since the Constitution was written.
Students will compare the founding principles and ideas of America with ongoing challenges and debate in America.
Students will research selected topics in American history in order to explain how different groups have worked to achieve increased rights and opportunities.