Social Studies

High School

All students need to complete four units of Social Studies, in partial fulfillment of diploma requirements.

Global History/Geography 9:

Ninth graders take the first year of a two-year Global Studies curriculum organized around major areas of the world.  Grade 9 includes units on Africa, South Asia, India East Asia (including China and Japan), and sections on geographical and historical settings and cultural and economic developments.  This course will prepare the students to satisfy the Regents requirement of Global Studies 10.

Global History/Geography 10:

Tenth graders take the second year of the Global History curriculum.  Grade 10 continues the themes of the 9th grade curriculum from the French Revolution to present.  Students will study all geographic areas of the world simultaneously and make thematic connections across time periods of world history.  Major themes of Global History 10 include: interdependence, migration of peoples, revolutions, government and economic systems, wars, important leaders and the shaping of historical perspectives on historical events.  Students are responsible for analyzing primary source material to further understand historical events. A passing grade of 65 or better on the Global History and Geography examination is a requirement for graduation.

U.S. History and Government:

A chronologically-organized course in U.S. History with an emphasis on major themes such as the Constitution, industrialization, legal issues, the rights of minority groups, the U.S. role in world affairs, economic issues, presidential decisions, and United States in the present day.  Students are responsible for reading and analyzing a number of primary source documents and Supreme Court cases for successful completion of the course.  A passing grade of 65 or better on the United States History and Government Regents examination is a requirement for graduation.

Participation in Government:

One semester of the Grade 12 program is a course in Participation in Government.  This course is designed to instruct students about the nature of politics, how decisions are made, and how public policy is formed, implemented and evaluated at the local, state and federal level.  Mock trials, town meetings, and public hearings are some of the formats that will be used to learn about public policy in our country.  Students will be expected to use their accumulated knowledge and skills from their previous courses in social studies.  This course satisfies the requirement for graduation by the State of New York.

Economics:

The other semester of the Grade 12 program is a course in Economics and economic decision-making.  This course includes the basic economic concepts and understandings which all persons need to function effectively and intelligently as citizens and participants in the economy of the United States and the world.  This course satisfies the requirement for graduation by the State of New York.