AP Comparative Government class?

[rbk mama]

I have only been able to find one by PAHS, and very little information about it.  A few WTM posts with concerns about it, and one or two with positive reviews.  The posted stats from last year's exam are impressive -- 85% scored a 5 on the AP exam. 

 

This is an area of high interest for DS, so I am feeling sad about him self-studying and not getting to interact with a knowledgeable instructor and other students about the material.  He is great at self-studying, and would do fine on the exam on his own, but I wish he could have some avenue for interaction with others (beyond his family) over the material. 

 

My main concern about the PAHS class, and really about any class, would be busywork.  He took WHAP through PAHS last year, and it was overall a negative experience with huge loads of what felt like busywork.

 

Maybe he could self-study for the exam, but join some kind of active discussion group.  More ideal would be a very well-run class with a great instructor!  Anyone with recent reviews of the PAHS or other AP Comp. Gov't class?

[Luckymama]

Dd ended up with essentially guided self-studying. I wrote the syllabus for approval. She and her same-age cousin met once a week during the summer for discussion (guided by me and dsis as needed) and practice FRQ writing. They had to switch to days he was off once school began (he's in public school) so they met once a month until spring break when they met several times.

 

This was an area of interest for dd and for me so we would discuss topics all the time, as things came up in the news or whatever. We're doing the same for AP Comparative Government and Politics, though minus dnephew as he has to take AP US GoPo at his school.

[rbk mama]

Yes, we may need to settle for family discussions.  I can see DH and I both enjoying discussions stemming from his studies.  It's just that we are always discussing things, and it would be nice for him to have someone else other than us to hear from.  Maybe I can convince a friend of his (who attends a private school), to join him somehow.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

We self studied AP Comp Gov using a syllabus I wrote along with tons of Economist and Foreign Affairs articles. Discussion within the family mostly.

 

Where my son has scratched his itch for discussion is within Model United Nations and online courses from SPICE.

 

Sejong Korean Scholars Program

Reischauer Scholars Program (focused on Japan)

[rbk mama]

Thanks for the note about the SPICE programs -- I had never heard of them.  They both sound very interesting.  I'm curious about the ethnic background of the participants - if they are primarily Korean and Japanese?  Have you found them to be time-intensive?  I can see DS being intrigued by both, but not wanting either to consume too much time.  Maybe this is a stupid question, but is North Korea part of the study?  DS has a strong interest there. 

 

He will participate in a MUN this year for the first time; he is looking forward to it. 

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I'd have to ask my son specifics, but I would say each class was a good mix of kids who had family backgrounds in the area and those with none.

 

The classes are demanding with weekly reading, written homework each week, forums to engage with, webinars about once a week and a long research paper.

 

Sejong did have a week or two on modern North Korea as well as a week on the Korean War. Ds's paper was on North Korea.

 

He did these courses the year after comp gov.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Thanks for the note about the SPICE programs -- I had never heard of them.  They both sound very interesting.  I'm curious about the ethnic background of the participants - if they are primarily Korean and Japanese?  Have you found them to be time-intensive?  I can see DS being intrigued by both, but not wanting either to consume too much time.  Maybe this is a stupid question, but is North Korea part of the study?  DS has a strong interest there. 

 

He will participate in a MUN this year for the first time; he is looking forward to it. 

 

My previous reply about Sejong and Reischauer was a little brief since I was on a mobile.  

 

Each course is relatively small.  I think there were 25-30 students in each.  There is an application process for the course, which is competitive.  DS was turned down for the first course he applied to.  The course expectation is 3-6 hours a week, including the video chats.  Video chat participation is expected, though if a student has a time conflict, they can view the recording and make additional forum posts in lieu of the class participation.

 

DS also spent a great deal of time on writing his research paper.  His topics were rather obscure and he had to put some effort into finding sufficient information to use in the paper.  Having a university library nearby with a strong Asian focus helped.  Interlibrary loan or some creative research with online databases would also be an asset.

 

The application window for each semester is only a few weeks long.  Applications for the Reischauer Program are currently open and close in mid-October.

 

http://spice.fsi.stanford.edu/fellowships/reischauer_scholars_program