AP World History: An Introduction

Four Historical Thinking Skills Skill 1: Crafting Historical Arguments from Historical Evidence Skill 2: Chronological Reasoning Skill 3: Comparison and Contextualization Skill 4: Historical Interpretation and Synthesis

Skill 1: Crafting Historical Arguments from Historical Evidence Historical argumentation Historical thinking involves the ability to define and frame a question about the past and to address that question by constructing an argument. A plausible and persuasive argument requires a clear, comprehensive and analytical thesis, supported by relevant historical evidence—not simply evidence that supports a preferred or preconceived position. Additionally, argumentation involves the capacity to describe, analyze and evaluate the arguments of others in light of available evidence. Appropriate use of relevant historical evidence Historical thinking involves the ability to identify, describe and evaluate evidence about the past from diverse sources (including written documents, works of art, archaeological artifacts, oral traditions and other primary sources), with respect to content, authorship, purpose, format and audience. It involves the capacity to extract useful information, make supportable inferences and draw appropriate conclusions from historical evidence while also understanding such evidence in its context, recognizing its limitations and assessing the points of view that it reflects.

Skill 2: Chronological Reasoning Historical causation Historical thinking involves the ability to identify, analyze and evaluate multiple cause-and-effect relationships in a historical context, distinguishing between the long-term and proximate. Patterns of continuity and change over time Historical thinking involves the ability to recognize, analyze and evaluate the dynamics of historical continuity and change over periods of time of varying lengths, as well as relating these patterns to larger historical processes or themes. Periodization Historical thinking involves the ability to describe, analyze, evaluate and construct models of historical periodization that historians use to categorize events into discrete blocks and to identify turning points, recognizing that the choice of specific dates favors one narrative, region or group over another narrative, region or group; therefore, changing the periodization can change a historical narrative. Moreover, the particular circumstances and contexts in which individual historians work and write shape their interpretations and modeling of past events.

Skill 3: Comparison and Contextualization Historical thinking involves the ability to describe, compare and evaluate multiple historical developments within one society, one or more developments across or between different societies, and in various chronological and geographical contexts. It also involves the ability to identify, compare and evaluate multiple perspectives on a given historical experience. Contextualization Historical thinking involves the ability to connect historical developments to specific circumstances in time and place, and to broader regional, national or global processes.

Skill 4: Historical Interpretation and Synthesis Historical thinking involves the ability to describe, analyze, evaluate and create diverse interpretations of the past — as revealed through primary and secondary historical sources — through analysis of evidence, reasoning, contexts, points of view and frames of reference. Synthesis Historical thinking involves the ability to arrive at meaningful and persuasive understandings of the past by applying all the other historical thinking skills, by drawing appropriately on ideas from different fields of inquiry or disciplines, and by creatively fusing disparate, relevant (and perhaps contradictory) evidence from primary sources and secondary works. Additionally, synthesis may involve applying insights about the past to other historical contexts or circumstances, including the present.

Five Course Themes Theme 1: Interaction Between Humans and the Environment Theme 2: Development and Interaction of Cultures Theme 3: State-Building, Expansion, and Conflict Theme 4: Creation, Expansion, and Interaction of Economic Systems Theme 5: Development and Transformation of Social Structures

Theme 1: Interaction Between Humans and the Environment • Demography and disease • Migration • Patterns of settlement • Technology

Theme 2: Development and Interaction of Cultures • Religions • Belief systems, philosophies, and ideologies • Science and technology • The arts and architecture

Theme 3: State-Building, Expansion, and Conflict • Political structures and forms of governance • Empires * Nations and nationalism * Revolts and revolutions * Regional, transregional, and global structures and organizations

Theme 4: Creation, Expansion, and Interaction of Economic Systems • Agricultural and pastoral production • Trade and commerce • Labor systems • Industrialization • Capitalism and socialism

Theme 5: Development and Transformation of Social Structures • Gender roles and relations • Family and kinship • Racial and ethnic constructions • Social and economic classes

Six Chronological Periods *Course themes and key concepts studied within time periods

Period 1: Technological and Environmental Transformations, to c Period 1: Technological and Environmental Transformations, to c. 600 BCE Key Concept 1.1 Big Geography and the Peopling of the Earth Key Concept 1.2 The Neolithic Revolution and Early Agricultural Societies Key Concept 1.3 The Development and Interactions of Early Agricultural, Pastoral, and Urban Societies.

Period 2: Organization and Reorganization of Human Societies, c Period 2: Organization and Reorganization of Human Societies, c. 600 BCE-c. 600 CE. Key Concept 2.1 The Development and Codification of Religious and Cultural Traditions Key Concept 2.2 The Development of States and Empires Key Concept 2.3 Emergence of Transregional Networks of Communication and Exchange.

Period 3: Regional and Transregional Interactions, c. 600 to c. 1450 CE. Key Concept 3.1 Expansion and Intensification of Communication and Exchange Networks Key Concept 3.2 Continuity and Innovation of State Forms and Their Interactions Key Concept 3.3 Increased Economic Productive Capacity and Its Consequences.

Period 4: Global Interactions, c. 1450 to c. 1750. Key Concept 4.1 Globalizing Networks of Communication and Exchange Key Concept 4.2 New Forms of Social Organization and Modes of Production Key Concept 4.3 State Consolidation and Imperial Expansion

Period 5: Industrialization and Global Integration, c. 1750 to c. 1900. Key Concept 5.1 Industrialization and Global Capitalism. Key Concept 5.2 Imperialism and Nation-State Formation. Key Concept 5.3 Nationalism, Revolution, and Reform. Key Concept 5.4 Global Migration

Period 6: Accelerating Global Change and Realignments, c Period 6: Accelerating Global Change and Realignments, c. 1900 to present. Key Concept 6.1 Science and the Environment Key Concept 6.2 Global Conflicts and their Consequences. Key Concept 6.3 New Conceptualizations of Global Economy, Society, & Culture.

Habits of Mind The AP World History course addresses habits of mind in two categories: (1) those addressed by any rigorous history course, and (2) those addressed by a world history course.

Four habits of mind are in the first category: Constructing and evaluating arguments: using evidence to make plausible arguments Using documents and other primary data: developing the skills necessary to analyze point of view and context, and to understand and interpret information Assessing continuity and change over time and over different world regions Understanding diversity of interpretations through analysis of context, point of view, and frame of reference

Five habits of mind are in the second category: Seeing global patterns and processes over time and space while connecting local developments to global ones Comparing within and among societies, including comparing societies' reactions to global processes Considering human commonalities and differences Exploring claims of universal standards in relation to culturally diverse ideas Exploring the persistent relevance of world history to contemporary developments

Every part of the AP World History Exam assesses habits of mind as well as content. For example, in the multiple-choice section, maps, graphs, artwork, and quotations may be used to judge students' ability to assess primary data, while other questions focus on evaluating arguments, handling diversity of interpretation, making comparisons among societies, drawing generalizations, and understanding historical context. In Part A of the essay section of the exam, the document-based question (DBQ) focuses on assessing students' ability to construct arguments, use primary documents, analyze point of view and context, and understand global context. The remaining essay questions in Parts B and C focus on global patterns over time and space with emphasis on processes of continuity and change (Part B) and on comparisons within and among societies (Part C)