AP® U.S. Government and Politics
Course Summary
Acquire a deep understanding of the foundations and systems of the U.S. government in this non-partisan introductory course. Examine key political concepts, ideas, institutions, policies, and roles of the constitutional system and the political culture of the United States. In this course, students complete a research project and learn invaluable analytical skills through reading and interpreting data, making comparisons, and engaging in evidence-based arguments from Supreme Court decisions and U.S. foundational documents.
This course prepares students for the AP® U.S. Government and Politics exam.
Course Prerequisite(s):
There are no prerequisites for this course. Students should be able to read a college-level textbook and write grammatically correct sentences. In addition, students should be able to analyze images, think critically and write essays using evidence.
Curriculum
This is a 1-semester course.
Unit 1: Foundations of American Democracy
- The Basic Function of Government
- American Democracy
- Constitutional Foundations
- The Declaration of Independence
- Building the Constitution
- The U.S. Constitution
- The Basic Principles of the Constitution
- Inside the Constitution
- The Bill of Rights
- Powers Divided
- Evolution of Federalism
- The Anti-Federalists and Brutus 1
- The Federalist Papers
Unit 2: Interactions Among Branches of Government
- The House of Representatives
- The Senate
- Bills and Resolutions
- Legislation to Law
- The Nature of a President
- Presidential Roles
- The White House
- The Budget
- The Nature of the Bureaucracy
- The Cabinet
- Other Bureaucratic Bodies
- Checks on the Bureaucracy
- State and Local Courts
- The Federal Court System
- Historical Supreme Courts
- The Nature of the Supreme Court
- The Modern Supreme Court
Unit 3: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights
- Incorporation
- Freedom of Religion
- Freedom of Speech
- Freedom of the Press
- The Fourth Amendment
- Due Process and Criminal Rights
- The Civil Rights Movement
- Civil Rights Legislation
- Equality Before the Law
Unit 4: American Political Ideologies and Beliefs
- Political Participation
- Party Identification
- Politics, Polls, and the Press
Unit 5: Political Participation
- The Two-Party System
- Third Parties
- Party Function and Structure
- Political Party Eras
- Voting Behavior and Intensity
- Financing Elections
- Congressional Elections
- The Electoral College
- Presidential Elections