AP World History: Modern

ADVANCED PLACEMENT WORLD HISTORY

The Advanced Placement (AP) program in World History is designed to provide students with the analytic skills and factual knowledge necessary to deal critically with the history of the world. The program prepares students for advanced college courses by making demands upon them equivalent to those made by universities. An AP History course should thus develop the skills necessary to arrive at conclusions on the basis of an informed judgment and to present reasoning and evidence clearly in essay format.

AP World History Periodization

AP World History course content is studied comparatively within and across the following periods of study:

Period 1: c. 1200 to c. 1450

Unit 1: The Global Tapestry (8-10% of exam)

Unit 2: Networks of Exchange (8-10% of exam)

Period 2: c. 1450 to c. 1750

Unit 3: Land-Based Empires (12-15 % of exam)

Unit 4: Transoceanic Interconnections (12-15 % of exam)

Period 3: c. 1750 to c. 1900

Unit 5: Revolutions (12-15 % of exam)

Unit 6: Consequences of Industrialization (12-15 % of exam)

Period 4: c. 1900 to the present

Unit 7: Global Conflict (8-10% of exam)

Unit 8: Cold War and Decolonization (8-10% of exam)

Unit 9: Globalization (8-10% of exam)

AP Historical Thinking Skills

1. Developments and Processes

2. Sourcing and Situation

3. Claims and Evidence in Sources

4. Contextualization

5. Making Connections

6. Argumentation

AP World History Course Themes and Corresponding Thematic Learning Objectives

Theme 1: Humans and the Environment (ENV)

Theme 2: Cultural Developments and Interactions (CDI)

Theme 3: Governance (GOV)

Theme 4: Economic Systems (ECN)

Theme 5: Social Interactions and Organizations (SIO)

Theme 6: Technology and Innovation (TEC)

YEAR LONG GOALS:

1. To examine how and why change occurs

2. To analyze and draw conclusions about recurring themes in History

3. To improve reading comprehension and critical thinking

4. To become efficient writers of an historical essay

5. To prepare for the successful completion of the AP exam in May

Is this course right for you?

If you’re interested in deepening your World History knowledge and would like additional support to take the exam. Also, you are willing to take responsibility of your learning, please sign up!

The 2025 test is Wednesday, May 7, 2026