AP Environmental Science
APES will be offered during the 2021-22 school year.
Course Description
The AP Environmental Science course is designed to be the equivalent of a one-semester, introductory college course in environmental science, through which students engage with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the natural world. The course requires that students identify and analyze natural and human-made environmental problems, evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems, and examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing them. Environmental Science is interdisciplinary, embracing topics from geology, biology, environmental studies, environmental science, chemistry, and geography.
Environmental science is interdisciplinary; it embraces a wide variety of topics from different areas of study. There are several unifying themes that cut across topics. The following are course themes:
• Science is a process.
• Energy conversions underlie all ecological processes.
• The Earth itself is one interconnected system.
• Humans alter natural systems.
• Environmental problems have a cultural and social context.
• Human survival depends on developing practices that will achieve sustainable systems.
Course Description
The AP Environmental Science course is designed to be the equivalent of a one-semester, introductory college course in environmental science, through which students engage with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the natural world. The course requires that students identify and analyze natural and human-made environmental problems, evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems, and examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing them. Environmental Science is interdisciplinary, embracing topics from geology, biology, environmental studies, environmental science, chemistry, and geography.
Environmental science is interdisciplinary; it embraces a wide variety of topics from different areas of study. There are several unifying themes that cut across topics. The following are course themes:
• Science is a process.
• Energy conversions underlie all ecological processes.
• The Earth itself is one interconnected system.
• Humans alter natural systems.
• Environmental problems have a cultural and social context.
• Human survival depends on developing practices that will achieve sustainable systems.
What are the prerequisites for the course?
An A in Earth and Environmental Science Honors, a willingness to work outside of class and to attend two mandatory field trips AND completion of a winter assignment designed to help students review the basic scientific concepts required for the course.
How is the class scheduled?
In the upcoming school year, the course will be offered during the spring semester as a semester long course during first block.
What is the class like?
In class, students can expect to engage in class discussions and make presentations of material they have researched independently. Group work should be expected about twice a week and laboratory/field work is an integral part of the course. Students complete 2-3 writing assignments per month and read 1 or 2 books outside of class per grading period. Tests consist of 35 multiple choice questions along with 4 short answer questions and are given twice per grading period along with 2 vocabulary tests. Monday-Thursday, students should expect to spend about an hour completing homework that consists of worksheets, questions from the text or quizzes from videos viewed online.
View the free response questions from a past AP exam: |
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