University of Arkansas at Little Rock

Jump to:

• English
• Social Studies
• AP Spanish
• AP Studio Art

English - Week 1

Bernie Phelan

Elgin District U-46, Elgin, Illinois
AP English Language - New Teachers

Bernie Phelan taught high school English for 40 years, AP English Language and Composition for 30 years. For the past 25 years, he has been a reader and table leader at the AP English Language exam and worked recently with sample selection for the exam as well. He is working with College Board on a project involving performance-based assessments for the exam. He is the chairperson for the SAT test development group for the writing portion of that exam. He has taught over 70 APSI’s the past 15 years and consults for the Elgin School District in Illinois. In addition, he does work in Arkansas, Kentucky, and Texas, having to do with teacher training under a state NMSI grant. He consults with The College Board as well, both for AP and SAT. From 2000-2004, he was an elected trustee of The College Board.

Course Description:This course will help prepare new AP teachers to meet the rigorous standards required of AP teachers in the subject. We will focus on a number of important topics. All participants will be thoroughly schooled in the core competencies for this course: rhetoric and argument. We will, as well, spend much time on how to teach the reading of non-fiction to high school students, especially rhetorical reading. We will deconstruct the exam itself, looking at the skills necessary for success on each portion of the exam. We will examine the multiple choice section in detail as well. Some time will be spent on the writing requirement for such a course, and we will, of course, examine the student responses that help us see the thought processes necessary for success on the essay portion of the exam. We will, finally, spend a fair amount of time on the building of a syllabus so that each participant will be ready to meet the challenge of teaching an AP course for the first time this coming autumn.

What to Bring:Participants should bring with them any potentially pertinent materials, plans, etc., in addition to ideas of how they might teach such a course, since they will have brainstorming and workshop time throughout the course.

Kevin McDonald

Edmond Memorial High School, Oklahoma
AP English Language – Experienced Teachers

Mr. McDonald graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor’s degree in English, secondary certification in English, and a minor in music. He is a National Board Certified Teacher and completed his M.A. in English from the University of Central Oklahoma in the spring of 2011. He has taught English for 15 years, including Pre-AP and AP English Language for 14 of those years. He started the AP English Language program for both school districts with which he has been employed, including his current teaching assignment where he team teaches the course in conjunction with AP US History. In addition, his teaching assignments have included Pre-AP sophomores and juniors, as well as multiple ability levels of sophomores, juniors, and seniors (and one section of Humanities this year). As a consultant, he has worked in multiple regions, presenting at numerous one and two day conferences, leading multiple APSIs, and as of last summer, will have led both pre- and post-conference workshops at the AP Annual Conference (in Seattle and in San Francisco, respectively). He lives in Edmond, OK, with his wife (an elementary music teacher) and his two daughters.

Course Description:This course will focus on the modes of assessment used in the recent history of the AP English Language Exam and how we can incorporate those modes of assessment into our instruction. The broad goal of the course is to increase our understanding of the AP Lang Course Description in an attempt to strengthen students’ exam scores while not focusing solely on test preparation. We will inevitably discuss the correlation between our AP curriculum and the goals of Common Core as well.

What to Bring:Please bring the following items when you come:
• A list of required curricular pieces (novels, short stories, poetry, etc) for the courses you teach and those in your vertical team
• A working knowledge of The Scarlet Letter and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (please do not re-read these if you are already familiar with them, although a good skimming wouldn’t hurt if it has been a while)
• Please have either a paper or electronic copy (if you are bringing a laptop) of the AP English Course Description available as a .pdf download at AP Central

Celine Gomez

Plano West Senior High School, Plano, Texas
AP English Literature and Composition - New Teachers

Celine M. Gomez lives and teaches in Plano, Texas, which is a northern suburb of the metropolitan city of Dallas. Celine received her B.A. in English and Philosophy from the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana. Then, she attended the University of Texas at San Marcos where she received her M.A. in English with a minor in Secondary Education. Upon graduation, she was hired to teach at Plano East Senior High School where she taught for eight years (1999-2007); at Plano East, she taught various levels of 11th and 12th grade English from on-level to AP to IB courses. Presently, she is teaching 12th grade and 11th grade AP English at Plano West Senior High School; at Plano West, she has taught various levels of 11th and 12th grade English. She is team leader for AP English Literature and Composition at Plano West and helps write district final exams for PISD. Since 2007 she has been an AP College Board Consultant and has conducted various workshops as well as summer institutes; for the past six years, she has been an AP Literature and Composition national essay grader for College Board.

Course Description:Students in this college–level course read and carefully analyze both English and American literature written in a variety of time periods, from 16th century through the contemporary period. This summer institute will combine the examination of methodology and content with sharing ideas, discuss effective critical thinking and writing strategies, and review samples from the 2011 AP exams. Participants can expect interactive sessions where they can learn and practice the basics essential to implementing a successful AP English Literature course with their students. Also, participants will examine strategies to help students better understand aesthetic, cultural and historical approaches and reasons to analyze and explain literary texts. This course uses College Board-developed materials as well as other resources to expand the participants’ knowledge base and to provide a framework for teachers in developing a curriculum. Participants will explore and share practical teaching strategies, including approaches that support the equity agenda of the College Board.

What to Bring:
- Any good lessons you have used in the past
- Copy of your AP course audit

Michael Degen

Jesuit College Preparatory School, Dallas, TX
AP English Literature and Composition - Experienced Teachers

Dr. Degen is in his 22nd year as an educator and currently teaches AP Literature and Pre-AP English II at Jesuit College Preparatory School in Dallas, Texas, where he is also the department chair. He has presented nationally for the National Council of Teachers of English and ASCD and at state conventions in Texas and Kentucky as well as at numerous College Board conferences and institutes over the past seventeen years. He has also been a reader for the AP Literature exam for four years. Dr. Degen is the author of “Crafting Expository Argument” and “Prospero’s Magic.”

Course Description:Participants will explore a sequence of strategies that show students how to acquire the skills found in the top-scoring essays on the literature exam. They will progress through a sequence of instructional strategies designed to develop essays marked by the use of concrete elaboration, perceptive interpretative commentary and effective compositional skills, including clear thesis statements and topic sentences and unified and coherent paragraphs. Course activities will involve the modeling of daily lesson plans seeking to reinforce the strategies necessary to interpret and write about all aesthetic forms of writing.

Topics will include the following:
• Developing an analytical-interpretive voice
• The composition strategies found in the “9” essay
• Developing a sophisticated syntax: Weaving grammar into the writing process

What to Bring:
√ 30 copies of your most successful lesson / activity
√ Please read and bring with you Jane Walpole’s Understanding Written Grammar.

Elizabeth Villarreal

New Braunfels High School, New Braunfels, Texas
Pre-AP High School English - New Teachers

Elizabeth Villarreal has taught all levels of English from grades six through eleven. She teaches AP English Language and Composition at New Braunfels High School. She has taught English for the past eighteen years, fourteen of which have been in Pre-AP/AP courses. She is an endorsed College Board consultant and an Educational Testing Service Reader for the AP English Language and Composition Exam. She is also an SAT Reader and a member of the NCTE. She has presented at workshops and Pre-AP/AP Summer Institutes in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Maryland. In addition, she has been a presenter at the AP Annual Conference and at the AP Colloquium for Equity and Excellence. Elizabeth has also served on the Texas Education Agency End –of- Course Advisory Committees and STAAR™ Item Review Committees for reading and writing.

Course Description: Basic Training: Strategies for Success in English Language Arts
In this interactive workshop, participants will learn foundational Pre-AP strategies that align with AP English Language and Composition and AP Literature and Composition. These strategies include close reading application for fiction, non-fiction, and visual texts. Additionally, participants will learn methods for teaching introductory skills for research, argumentation, rhetorical analysis, and synthesis writing tasks. Participants will leave with hands-on activities, lessons, and graphic organizers and will also learn strategies for integrating these tools into their existing curriculum. This institute will feature many new curriculum pieces to include Pre-AP synthesis units and timed writing workshop strategies.

What to Bring:

• Course syllabus and titles of major works taught
• Copies of a few passages of major works taught from fiction-novels, short stories, poetry, and drama
• Copies of a few selections from nonfiction- essays, visuals, speeches, etc.

If you have a copy of the AP Vertical Teams Guide for English, please bring it. If you do not, one will be provided.

Lynn Knowles

Flower Mound High School, Flower Mound, Texas
Pre-AP High School English - Experienced Teachers

Lynn Knowles graduated from The University of Texas with a bachelor’s degree in Journalism, certified to teach English and Journalism. She received a master’s in Humanities from the University of Texas at Dallas, and is currently working on a PhD in Rhetoric at Texas Woman’s University. She has taught high school English for 24 years, all in the Dallas area. She currently serves as English department chair at Flower Mound High School, where she is a charter staff member. She lives in Flower Mound with her husband and two sons.

Course Description:This course will focus on expanding best practices for pre-AP English teachers so they can better prepare their students for AP English Language and Literature. We will discuss strategies and design lessons for teachers to take back with them to implement immediately.

What to Bring:Please bring the following items with you:
• Any good lessons you have used in the past
• Plenty of paper for note-taking and lesson designing
• A core text you use in your course

Jan Harris

Clear Creek Intermediate School, League City, Texas
Pre-AP Middle School English- New Teachers

Jan Harris has been in secondary education for twenty years teaching in high schools and junior highs around the Houston area. Jan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and English from Stephen F. Austin State University and a Masters of Literature from the University of Houston, Clear Lake. She has taught high school English for ten years, teaching ninth, tenth, and twelfth grades and teaching academic, honors, and Advanced Placement levels. For the past ten years, she has been teaching seventh and eighth grades, with a concentration in Pre-AP and Gifted and Talented levels. At present, Jan teaches English IV AP at Clear Brook High School in Clear Creek I.S.D. Jan has worked for Lee College in Baytown, Texas, from 2000 to 2009, teaching freshman and sophomore English night courses, and came on board with the College Board in 2000, as well. She has participated in two-day seminars in Houston, San Antonio, Austin, and Norman, Oklahoma, in the last ten years, and participated with AP Summer Institutes at Southern Methodist University, Texas Christian University, the University of Texas at Austin, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Donna I.S.D., Lamar I.S.D., and will travel to the University of California at Riverside this year to consult. Jan also presents the English Vertical Teaming and Differentiation seminars for the College Board.

Course Description:Our week will be spent looking at all areas of English for the Pre-AP Classroom: Organization, Reading, Writing, and Poetry. We will look at rigor and how to bring a Pre-AP classroom up to a rigorous level of reading and analyzing that our students need to not only be prepared for high school, but for the AP Exams and college also.

What to Bring:
• Your favorite poem
• Any questions you may have
• Your Pre-AP Vertical Teams Guide will be provided

Debra McNeely

Curriculum Department, Conroe ISD, Conroe, TX
Pre-AP Middle School English - Experienced Teachers

Debbie McNeely taught English/Language Arts for 21 years, 10 of them Pre AP at both middle school and high school. She has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science with a minor in English, and she has her master’s degree in Secondary Education with a minor in English. For the past 4 years, Debbie has served as a Curriculum Coordinator for her district overseeing Secondary Language Arts, Advanced Academics and Foreign Languages. As an endorsed College Board consultant, she has presented throughout the Southwest Region at numerous APSI’s and one and two-day conferences. She is married, lives in The Woodlands, TX and has two children, one a sophomore in high school and the other a freshman at TX A&M University. In addition to education, she enjoys traveling, reading, running and spending time with family and friends.

Course Description:This session will offer those participants experienced in teaching Pre AP English a variety of enjoyable strategies to use with middle school students. Instruction will focus on close reading and writing skills, literary analysis, and ways to push students to succeed in a Pre-AP class. Participants will engage in hands-on activities and the creation and sharing of “best practice” ideas to take back to the classroom. In addition, participants will examine several pieces of sample literature and discuss many pieces in great detail. Be prepared to work and to have fun learning!

What to Bring:
• A favorite, rigorous lesson to share (25 copies)
• A copy of a text used in class: novel, short story, expository, persuasive, etc.
• A willingness to learn!

Back to top

Social Studies - Week 1

Marsha Gray

Carroll Senior High School Southlake,Texas (retired)
AP US History - New Teachers

Marsha Gray has just retired from teaching AP United States History at Carroll Senior High School in Southlake, TX. She has 30 years in education, including 13 in Advanced Placement. Ms. Gray has been an AP exam Reader for the last ten years, the last five years serving as a Table Leader. Ms. Gray is a nationally trained and certified consultant for the College Board and has worked with teachers across the United States. She is a graduate of North Texas State University (BA) and Southern Methodist University (MLA). She has been honored in Who’s Who Among American Teachers and spent a summer of study in India as a Fulbright-Hays scholar.

Course Description: The AP United States History Institute for New Teachers will include:
• How to structure an AP class.
• How to pace instruction.
• What works in the classroom?
• What are the expectations for AP?
• How to prepare students for writing the historical essay.
• Hands-on activities with proven success records.
• Content-specific lectures.
• Lesson planning ideas.
• And, valuable resources.

What to Bring:Participants are encouraged to bring copies of “best practices” that they may share with the group.

John Irish

Seven Lakes High School, Katy, Texas
AP US History - Experienced Teachers

John P. Irish teaches AP U.S. History and is the head coach for the Academic Decathlon and Octathlon teams at John Paul II High School in Plano, Texas. He is a nationally certified consultant in AP U.S. History and AP European History for the Southwestern Region of the College Board and serves as a reader for the AP U.S. History Exam. He was just named to the College Board Curriculum Development and Assessment Committee for the redesign of the AP U.S. History Course and Exam. He is currently working on the Student Guidebook for the 15/e of American Pageant and has published the Instructor Resource Guide and the Testbank for previous editions of that textbook. He just published a four volume updated edition of the AP U.S. History Workbooks by the Center for Learning, along with a curriculum unit on Edward Bellamy’s novel “Looking Backward” also by the Center for Learning. Mr. Irish holds a B.A. in political science and philosophy from Southern Methodist University and an M.A. in philosophy from the University of Arkansas. He has also done post-graduate work in history from Rice University. He is a member of the American Historical Association, Society for History Education, and the Organization of American Historians.

Course Description: This course will cover both the content and pedagogy necessary for teaching the AP U.S. History course. In addition, participants will receive an overview of the AP Program and any changes on the horizon. Presentations and discussions of teaching strategies will be divided equally between strategies for improving student success on the AP Exam and the content necessary to create an engaging and successful course. Teaching strategies will focus on the development of critical thinking skills, document analysis, and writing skills (e.g., Conducting Socratic Seminars, Analyzing Works of Art and Other Visual Documents, and Developing a Thesis Statement). Historical content will focus on American social, political, economic, and intellectual thought (e.g., Federalist versus Antifederalist, Did the South Have the Right to Secede?, Dr. Seuss Goes to War and Other WWII Satires, and Cornerstones of American Foreign Policy) and we will explore the ever-changing interpretations of U.S. History (for a meaningful and on-going discussion of current historical literature, participants are encouraged to bring favorite books or articles to share). Participants will also explore classroom resources, including online and multimedia resources. Participants are encouraged to bring successful lessons they have created and share these with the entire group. This AP U.S. History Summer Institute will create an active learning environment, please come prepared to participate.

What to Bring:  Participants are encouraged to bring successful lessons they have created and share these with the entire group.

Charles Hart

Carl Sandburg High School, Orland Park, Il
AP World History - New Teachers

Charles Hart has been an A.P. World History table leader for the last six years and has also read A.P. exams in U.S. History and European History since the 1980s. He has also facilitated weeklong workshops in Georgia, Iowa, Florida, North Carolina, Washington, Texas, Mississippi, Wisconsin, California, and Arkansas. College Board has asked Mr. Hart to present the AP World History post-conference workshop at the AP Annual Conference in Washington D.C. in 2010. Mr. Hart currently teaches at Carl Sandburg High School in Orland Park, Il. and can be reached at chazhistry@aol.com.

Course Description:The intent of this weeklong workshop in AP World History is to introduce the basic strategies, pace, and content of the course to teachers new to the program and to discuss essay evaluative procedures, best practices, and methods to excite the vast array of students attracted to the AP program. Of course, the audit process and new format will be emphasized.

Topics discussed will be determined, in part, by the needs of the workshop participants but typically include the following:
*Textbook Selection: different publishers will supply an assortment of textbooks for your perusal
*The Acorn Book: College Board says its what you need to successfully teach the course
*To Lecture or Not: There are alternatives: to what extent do you have to repeat what the text already says?
*Note Taking Strategies: Most of your students don’t know how to do it. This workshop has several suggestions that will get your kids beyond Cornell. It’s what makes the textbook relevant.
*Is The Course a Stairwell, an Elevator, or an Escalator: One is too slow, one is too exclusive, and one is just right for you! Let’s talk pace.
*When Do You Hold Their Hand, When Do You Kick Them In The Butt, and When Do You Grab Their Throat: After all, It is A.P. . . and sometimes they have to just do it!
*Essays, Essays, and More Essays! Strategies, evaluative techniques, and rubrics. How do they evaluate them In Salt Lake City and how should you evaluate them in your school? You will read and we will evaluate.
*To Review Or Not: You better do it. And this workshop will have some tried-and-true ideas, including test-taking strategies, graphic organizers, and review terms.
*The Nine Commandments (any more would be arrogant) of Teaching AP History: This is no return from the mountain but in reading for the College Board since the 1980s I have put together a philosophy that might be worth sharing. I know they served me well over the years.

What to Bring: Besides the above, a dvd will be provided with best practices, sample essays and essay responses, Multiple choice guidelines, and much more. Participants are encouraged to bring a laptop (with thumbdrive and extension cord) and a copy of their textbook.

Barbara Ozuna

AP World History - Experienced Teachers

Barbara Ozuna has taught history in the Fort Worth Independent School District for 15 years. She graduated with a BA in History and Spanish from Texas Christian University in 1990 and while teaching, attended the University of North Texas from where she graduated with a Masters of Arts in History in 1995.

Barbara has taught the AP world history class since its inception in 2001, first piloting the course for the District and then formally proposing its adoption by the school board. Barbara has also spent time on vertical articulation within the discipline, aligning the pre-AP world geography course to the AP world history course and writing its curriculum for the district. Barbara teaches “WHAP” at Paschal high school. She is currently the academic coordinator in addition to continuing her involvement with AP World History. When not kept busy with the course, she is the mom of two kids - Courtland and Sydney - and the wife of a band-director, musician husband.

Course Description:Teachers can expect to learn content as well as teaching strategies and pacing. College Board syllabus requirements will be discussed and time will be given for the creation of lessons and syllabi. The course is designed to be interactive and hands-on. The week will culminate with lesson presentations and participants will leave with a series of lessons from each time period. If time permits, teachers will also create sample multiple choice tests for each time-period.

Syllabus for the week

• Monday: in-depth review of the new course. Teachers will work through some sample activities that illustrate the changes in the course
• Tuesday: work on the new syllabus. Use check sheet to ensure compliance with all requirements. Submit syllabus
• Wednesday: exam prep. Multiple choice and essays.
• Thursday: Time period activity discussions. Sharing of best practices

What to bring:
If at all possible, teachers should bring –

• a memory stick
• a copy of the textbook
• a calendar
• test bank.
• Current syllabus if an experienced teacher

Patti Harrold

Edmond Memorial High School, Edmond, OK
AP European History

Patti Harrold is social studies department chair at Edmond Memorial High School in Edmond, Oklahoma, where she teaches AP European History, AP World History, and AP Art History. She has also taught AP U.S. History. She has been teaching for 37 years, primarily in Edmond, but also in Klein ISD and North Forest ISD, both in the Houston area. Ms. Harrold is a National Board certified teacher and AP Reader for European History, and has been a College Board consultant for 21 years, presenting at more than 65 College Board and AP workshops and week-long institutes. She has written and edited many publications for AP histories and has recently worked with the Teaching American History grant program and served on a History Channel grant committee. She received the College Board’s Southwestern Region AP Special Recognition Award and the National Council for the Social Studies Secondary Teacher of the Year award in 2004. Ms. Harrold holds a BA from Oklahoma City University and an MS from Lamar University.

Course Description:This course will offer methodology and topical studies for the AP European History teacher.

Topics and activities:
• Classroom strategies
• Topical European history studies
• Guest lecturers/field trip
• Sharing of lessons and classroom strategies
• Computer time for collegial work on lessons

Please contact Patti (apeuro@att.net) after you enroll in the course so that she can e-mail you helpful information.

What to Bring:
• AP European History text
• Flashdrive (at least 16G) to take home all shared lessons
• Highlighters (yellow, pink, blue, orange, green)
• Lesson or teaching strategy you would like to share with others (please bring electronic copy so that all can share)
• Lesson idea that you don’t ever seem to have time to bring to fruition and any materials that would help you create it

Jenny Esler

Round Rock High School, Round Rock, Texas
AP US Government and Politics

Jenny Esler graduated from The University of Texas at Austin. She has taught in the Round Rock Independent School District for 27 years, 23 at Round Rock High School. Jenny has extensive experience in the AP U.S. Government and Politics curriculum: she has taught the course for 20 years and been a reader or grader for the national exam for 15 years and served as a member of the AP Government & Politics Test Development Committee.

Course description: The sessions in this Institute will introduce participants to the AP U.S. Government and Politics course with a combination of “how to” and content. Sessions will range from looking at the scope of the course and how to cover the content, to lessons from past exams. We will start the week by analyzing the 2011 free response questions and past free response questions. We will also look at past multiple choice exams.

After you’ve had all that you can take of the exam, we’ll look at the course and different ways to organize your course. We’ll talk about preparing your syllabus and look at lots of different examples. As we go through the different units, we’ll look at content that should be covered and possible activities and materials appropriate to each unit. The goal of the week is for you to feel comfortable teaching AP U.S. Government and Politics and go home with lots of different activities and resources.

What to Bring: A copy of the text you are using or plan to use and a copy of your best lesson plan.

Dallas Koehn

Union 9th Grade Academy, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Pre-AP Middle School Social Studies

Dallas Koehn has been teaching various social studies courses at what was until recently known as Union Intermediate High School in Tulsa, OK, for 12 years. His classes have included Pre-AP sections for the past 10 years, and he’s been a consultant for the College Board for a good chunk of that time. As “Instructional Team Leader” (the latest Educationese for “Department Head”), he’s worked with his department to implement Pre-AP strategies at all levels to various degrees—a work still very much in progress. Dallas has worked with both the State Social Studies and Fine Arts Conference and numerous school districts in Oklahoma and Texas to throw as many starfish back in the ocean as possible—whether they wish to go or not. He is National Board Certified and is fairly tolerable in small doses.

Course Description: This course will focus on bringing Pre-AP ideals into the concrete realities of public education and include some thoughts on state testing and the potential impact of Common Core on our classrooms and our students. We’ll discuss the meaning and purpose of “Pre-AP” and focus throughout the week on different ways to approach both content and skill-building. We’ll do some document analysis (I know, right?), talk about basic writing skills (scaffolded for teachers and students alike), and make sure we’re comfortable responding to all sorts of prompts (FRQs, DBQs, and any other acronyms we can throw in.) Because SO many students are coming to us with fewer and fewer basic reading skills, we’ll look at some content-appropriate (i.e., “history-ish”) literacy strategies that will work with primary sources, outside reading, and even those big, scary, boring textbooks. In general, we’ll add to our repertoire of strategies for building students’ skills without them always realizing it in hopes of combining an appreciation for all the artsy-craftsy, hands-on, and occasionally odd things we do to help students learn NOW with a vision of what we want them to be able to do LATER, so that they can succeed academically and personally wherever their little paths may take them.

What to Bring:
• Please bring your best lesson plan or idea
• Your greatest challenge, insecurity, or weakness in the classroom (don’t worry—we’ll be gentle)
• Stuff to write with and on for various activities

Jo Anne Roler

Daniel Wright Junior High School. Lincolnshire, IL
Pre-AP Middle School Social Studies

Jo Anne Roler earned a bachelor’s degree in Social Studies/History Education from Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN and a master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from National Louis University in Chicago, IL.  She is National Board Certified.  Jo Anne is an adjunct professor at both Dominican University and Southern Illinois University, where she teaches elementary and secondary social studies education classes and middle school endorsement classes.  She is one of the co-authors of the original AP Vertical Team Guide for Social Studies.  Jo Anne also works as professional development provider and curriculum consultant.  She has been honored in Who’s Who of American Women.

 Course Description: The Pre-AP Social Studies workshop will include a detailed explanation of the skills required for students to be successful in Pre-AP and AP classes.  We will discuss social studies education as a process and the importance of building AP vertical teams. This workshop will include strategies for improving student comprehension of primary and secondary sources, as well as strategies to promote critical thinking and successful test-taking.  We will also discuss ways to improve student writing and ideas for supplementing curriculum through the development of projects, the use of literature, and the analysis of political cartoons.  A variety of resources will be presented.  Sample Pre-AP projects, DBQs, and AP course descriptions and exams will be shared.  The impact of Common Core on social studies education will also be discussed.

What to Bring:  Please bring the textbook you are currently using in your classroom.  You are also encouraged to bring any of your successful lessons/ activities you would like to discuss and share. Please bring a flashdrive in order to download more activities and information.

Eddie Carson

Houston Christian High School, Houston, TX

Pre-AP High School Social Studies

Edward Carson earned a bachelor’s degree in History and Social Science and a master’s degree in Curriculum Administration/History Education at Harding University in Searcy, AR. For four years he taught AP World History and AP European History at Central Arkansas Christian School in Little Rock, where he served as chairman of the History and Social Science Department. He currently teaches Pre AP World History, European History, and AP US History at Houston Christian High School in Houston, TX. Edward is an AP European History and Vertical Team specialist for the Southwestern Region of the College Baord and has presented at various two-day College Board conferences and summer academic institutes, as well as at several professional historical and educational meetings.

He is currently a member of the AP European History Test Development Committe and has been a European History reader and table leader for six years. He holds his professional memberships with the American Historical Association (AHA), the Organization for American Historians (OAH), the Society for History Education (SHE), and the World History Association (WHA).

Course Description:

Participants will engage in a week-long discussion, focusing on the construction of a Pre-AP course. Furthermore, a great deal of time will be spent discussing the role of a vertical team, essay construction, analytical tasks devoted to improving the essential skill set needed for AP: Evaluation, synthesis, categorization, generalizations, assessments, and analysis. Teachers will break down various AP courses, looking to measure deductively what is asked of students in AP so that a clear sense of structural design and activities can be organized for successful Pre-AP teaching. Each participant should bring his or her course curriculum/objectives and a sample of successful in-class activities.

What to Bring:

If you have an AP Vertical Teams Guide for Social Studies, please bring it. If you do not, one will be provided.

Back to top

AP Spanish - Week 2

Gloria Garza

Westlake High School, Austin, Texas
AP Spanish Language

Gloria Garza graduated from the University of Texas at Edinburg with a B.A. in Latin American Studies (1973) and an M.A. in spanish (1975). She later received her Ph.D. in Latin American & Brazilian Literature from the University of Texas at Austin (1992). She was Instructor of Spanish and Portuguese at UT-Edinburg from 1976-1983; Lecturer at UT-Austin from 1992-94, where she taught Spanish and Portuguese and Brazilian Literature. She teaches AP Spanish Language and Literature and French Language at West Lake High School in Austin, Texas. She has been a College Board consultant, AP Reader, Table leader since 1998, and Question Leader since 2007. She is an enthusiastic, energetic and inspiring teacher.

Course Description:The course will be divided into two parts. One part will be dedicated to language teaching strategies employed in an Advanced Placement Spanish language course; the other will focus on cultural topics of interest related to an AP Spanish Language course. Specifically, the language segment will emphasize teaching strategies related to the four linguistic skills, i.e., reading, writing, speaking and listening. The cultural portion will focus on topics of general cultural interest; specifically, through the use of podcasts from a website called “notespanish.com.” Additionally, topics relating to the study of literary analysis will be discussed. Participants will be provided with grammatical and cultural supplementary materials for classroom use.

What to Bring:

• a large three ring binder
• pens/red & blue
• a couple of pencils
• post-it notes (small)
• writing pad
• lots of questions
• any good strategies you use
• a positive attitude
• enthusiasm

Maritza Sloan

Plano West Senior High, Plano, Texas
AP Spanish Literature

Maritza Sloan graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor’s degree in Spanish with a K-12 certification and a Masters degree in Education from Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota. In addition to her degrees, she studied Spanish literature at the University of Salamanca, Spain in the summer of 2002 and the University of Santiago de Compostela in the summer of 2004. She has been teaching Spanish for 18 years, including AP Spanish Language and Culture and AP Spanish Literature and Culture at Plano West Senior High School since 2001. She developed the AP Spanish language and AP Spanish Literature Curriculum for the Plano ISD district. She has presented many AP Language and AP Literature workshops and sessions at AATSP, APAC, TFLA, SWCLT, NECFLT and ACTFL. Maritza currently lives in Plano, Texas with her husband and daughter and travels to Costa Rica, her home country, as often as she can to visit her family.

Course Description: This workshop will focus on preparing students for the AP Spanish Literature and Culture exam. Attendees will look at the new changes to the exam and the course’s implementation for the 2012-2013 year (new course title, shortened reading list, more emphasis on contextual analysis, emphasis on incorporating more media, specific literary terms, and emphasis on designing instruction by themes). We will work with the new six themes for the course, the organizing concepts and creation of essential questions for the themes. In addition to the aforementioned, we will work on the course syllabi that have to be submitted to the College Board by 1/31/13.

What to bring: Please bring the following items when you come:
• Interest in learning about new changes to the exam
• Any “best practices” that you are willing to share that have been effective in your class
• The Participant’s Manual: AP Spanish Literature and Culture will be provided.

Rosann Batteiger

Pre-AP Spanish

Rosann Batteiger has taught Spanish levels I to IV for the past 23 years at James Bowie High School in Austin, Texas, and she also taught English as a Second Language in Mexico City for ten years. She has served as a College Board Consultant for the past fourteen years and has been a reader for AP essays and tapes for six years. She has also presented workshops for the Texas Foreign Language Association, Southwest Conference on Language Teaching and Region XIII Educational Service Center and is a National Board Certified Teacher. She is also a proud grandmother of three year old Alexander.

Course Description: The goal of this institute is for teachers to develop a curriculum and strategies plan for their lower level courses, so their students can begin developing the necessary skills to be successful in AP courses. To help teachers develop a successful PreAP program, we will cover the following topics:
• an overview of the AP exam tasks, the scoring process and recent changes
• resources available to establish and maintain an AP program
• information for developing a course syllabi using the six themes for the AP World Languages and Cultures Course
• strategies for establishing and maintaining an AP vertical and horizontal team
• methods and strategies for developing AP listening, speaking, reading and writing skills with the three modes of communication: interpretive, interpersonal and presentational
• assessment strategies and rubrics
• strategies for working with a variety of learners
• strategies for implementing rigor and higher order thinking skills in levels 1 to 3

What to bring:
• their current textbooks, text scope and sequence guide or online link to their textbooks, if they want (in the past, participants have found this helpful so they can begin planning their curriculum for the next school year)
• a flash drive has been helpful at past institutes
• a project or activity to share with the other participants with an electronic file of the activity to post for other participants

Back to top

Studio Art - Week 2

Barry Lucy

McKinney North High School, McKinney, TX

AP Studio Art - New Teachers

Barry Lucy has been a College Board consultant and an ETS Faculty Portfolio Reader since 2001 and Table Leader since 2006. He is the College Board Advisor to the AP Studio Art Development Committee and has contributed articles on the AP Studio portfolio for College Board publications. He has presented topics related to AP Studio Art at past NAEA and College Board AP Studio workshops. Mr. Lucy is a 32-year veteran of public schools in Texas and New Mexico.

Course Description:  The course is designed as a collaborative studio and seminar session structured to address the use of contemporary practices in the AP Studio art class. The course will offer participants sessions for developing curricula through contemporary approaches specific to the particular portfolios, along with museum activities, peer sharing of best practices and up-to-date information on the AP Studio Art program.

What to Bring:

• Favorite sketching materials
• A sense of humor
• Laptops are welcome, but not required

Quiquia Calhoun

Oklahoma City Public Schools, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

AP Studio Art - Experienced Teachers

Quiquia Calhoun has taught AP Studio Art for 25 years of her 34 years teaching career with Oklahoma City Public Schools. She received her BA of Art and Education (Pre-K to Grade 12) from Oklahoma City University in 1977 and a Masters in Clothing and Textiles from Oklahoma University in 1978. While teaching at Northeast Academy for Health Sciences and Engineering, she has served as AP Studio Art National Consultant College Board consultant for nine years. Quiquia was selected Southwest Region AP studio Art Teacher of the Year in 1998. She has been and AP College Board Reader since 2001. In addition, she was National AP Vertical Team Guide Co-Author for AP Studio Art and panelist at the AP Equity Colloquium in 2008. Previously, she received an Excellent Education Award from Oklahoma City Public Schools Foundation and was a Teacher of the Year nominee in the Oklahoma City Public School District. In 2009, Quiquia completed AP Summer Institute Workshops at the following locations: University of Tulsa, Oklahoma, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, and Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas and University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

Course Description: The AP Summer Institute will be a valuable resource for teachers in connecting middle and high school students to a higher level of learning in the visual arts. It will give teachers the strategies and tools they need to engage their students in the development of higher visual studio art skills and computer knowledge.

Teachers will have an understanding of the Advanced Placement Studio Art Program to help students to prepare a portfolio. The teachers will learn a variety of approaches to representation, abstraction, expression, and the investigation of the principles and elements of art standards.

The institute will provide lesson ideas for three levels; emerging, proficient, and advanced. These levels will not necessarily correspond to a particular grade level. Teachers will view a PowerPoint showing works in a portfolio demonstrating a breadth of conceptual compositional and technical works of art, to address a very board interpretation of drawing, 2-D Design and 3D issues. Photography, computer lessons and various print making will be incorporated in the activity lessons.

What to Bring:

• Digital Camera
• Any drawing or painting supplies you like to use such as colored pencils, water colors, oil pastels, sharpies…etc.
• Personal photographs (no larger than 8×10) plus a variety of portraits

Institute Schedule
Monday Morning Session:
• Introduction of participates and Agenda for the week
• Inventory of needs and goal objectives from the workshop participates
• Introductions and Logistics to AP Studio Art
• Overview of the AP Studio Art Program course outline and the components of each portfolio
• Discussion on the new digital submission at the AP Studio Art reading in Ohio
• Overview of the week long syllabi, scheduling and activities

Monday Afternoon Session:
• Overview: Power Point of students works
• Discussion: Power Point presentation; examine the approach to 2D-Design and 3-D Design issues
• Activity: Photography techniques using a digital camera
Tuesday Morning Session:
• Activity: Introduction of various artistic media to create a Breadth of work

Tuesday Afternoon Session:
• Activity: continuation of hand on activities creating various works of art from the photographs

Wednesday Morning Session:
• Activity: creating a compositional story using photographic images, such as; Romare Bearden, Holly Roberts, Kara Walker and using various media

Wednesday Afternoon Session:
• Activity: continuation of the morning session using various media to create a Breadth of work

Thursday Morning Session:
• Activity: Work on the computer and demonstrate with Adobe Photo-Shop techniques to show 2-D Design and Drawing Compositions.

Thursday Afternoon Session:
• PowerPoint Presentation: Student’s works of art and grading of work using the AP rubric. Wrap-up all art activities
• Share Lesson Plans and distribution of free art books
• Review goals and outcomes of the week long workshop
• Question and Answer
• Evaluation forms and Certificates

Pre-AP Middle School Science- Week 2

Annis Hapkiewicz

Okemos Public Schools, Okemos, Michigan

Pre-AP Middle School Science

Annis Hapkiewicz has been teaching chemistry since 1969 and taught AP Chemistry for 25 years.  Since 1990, she was K-12 Science Coordinator for the Okemos Public Schools in Okemos, Michigan.  Annis worked with elementary and middle school teachers to develop the district’s science curriculum and to ensure that teachers had the materials needed to teach a laboratory based program.  During her career, Annis presented at numerous state and national conferences, published many articles and taught numerous workshops for teachers.  Annis was a member of a Woodrow Wilson traveling chemistry team and a presenter with the Flinn Science Summer workshops and 3-learning program.  She has been an active leader in science education serving on the Michigan Science Teachers Association board of directs for 20 years and was a founding member of the Michigan Chemistry Teachers Association.  Annis has received numerous awards, most recently the 2005 ACS James Bryant Conant Teaching Award and the Michigan Science Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award.  Currently she is serving as co-chair of the AP Chemistry Curriculum Development and Assessment Committee for the College Board.

Course Description: This workshop will increase teacher’s content knowledge in chemistry and physics topics.  We will do lab work appropriate for middle school students, especially inquiry-based laboratories.  We will spend some time looking at the current curriculum and address vertical teaming to better prepare students to take AP science courses in high school.
What to Bring: your own pair of safety goggles, calculator
Back to top