Mainland Regional HS
bsmith@mainlandregional.net
This does not include the summary format and the US Constitution Packet. For these, any prospective student must come into school to get the packet from guidance or Mr. Marrone.
Re: Summer Assignment
First, I wanted to congratulate you on being the third group of students to enroll in the Advanced Placement United States Government course. Mainland Regional takes great pride in its AP program, and you, the students, are the main reason for the success of our institution. In the 2008 study of American high schools, conducted and printed in Newsweek magazine, and based on participation in the Advanced Placement curriculum, Mainland’s rank was # 756 in the country and #12 in the state of New Jersey. This is in the top 5 % of all high schools in the nation.
This will be my third year teaching the AP level and I look forward to improving on the challenge, as I hope you are. The Advanced Placement program involves a rigorous course of study designed to emulate a college level course. As such, students are expected to take the AP US Government exam in May, which can lead to college credit if you score high enough. The course will be intensive and will require a significant amount of time and effort on your part. You will be expected to keep up with an accelerated schedule of readings, of both the textbook and other sources. This will enable you to be involved in classroom discussions and dialogues, which will be the heart of your understanding of our government.
Your summer assignment is relatively simple, yet will require diligence. Beginning with the first week in July, you must find a minimum of one article per week dealing with politics and/or government in the United States. You should keep a scrapbook or folder of these articles, along with a summary of each article. If you are on vacation or otherwise indisposed and miss a week as a result, you can double up on any given week. The summary should follow the format described in the enclosed directions. I would suggest you use more substantial publications or websites, such as: New York Times, Washington Post, Newsweek, Time Magazine, National Review, Atlantic Monthly, or other similar publications. Do not rely on smaller newspapers, like the Atlantic City Press, for your articles. If you find articles online, be sure they are from a reputable source (e.g. - Salon.com, Politico.com, or similar sites that deal with government), or from the sites of the publications listed above. Print them out and include them in your scrapbook or folder.
The purpose of this assignment is to familiarize you with the political landscape in the United States. You should be able to identify all the major issues. How is President Obama fairing in the first year of his historic presidency? What’s going on with health care reform? Government bailouts of businesses? Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran and North Korea? What is the current state of the Republican Party? Who is Rush Limbaugh and what’s the big deal with him? How is the NJ governor’s race unfolding? These questions, and more, will be addressed in a test the first week of class based on the current events of the summer. So, the more articles you find, read, and summarize, the better off you’ll be. However, the minimum is 8 total articles and summaries (for the eight weeks of July and August). At least one of the articles should relate to the New Jersey governor’s race.
In addition, you must complete the Constitution assignment included.
I look forward to seeing you all in September and getting started on what promises to be a very interesting year.
Enjoy your summer!
Mr. Brian Smith