AP U.S. History - Course and Exam Description - Effective Fall 2026

Sep 14, 2026

Uploaded by Aria

AP U.S. History Course and Exam Description outlines the course framework and instructional model effective Fall 2026. It explains guiding principles for Advanced Placement teaching, including clarity, evidence-based inquiry, respect for intellectual freedom, and development of historical thinking skills. The document provides course content organization with unit guides for U.S. history periods, outlines instructional approaches, and details exam information such as exam overview, sample exam questions, rubrics, and scoring guidelines.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages562

Reading Time23 h 36 min

AccessFree to download

Course Framework

Introduction

The Founding Documents

Course Framework Components

Historical Thinking Skills and Reasoning Processes

Course Content

Course at a Glance

Unit Guides

Using the Unit Guides

Unit 1– Period 1: 1491–1607

Unit 2– Period 2: 1607–1754

Unit 3– Period 3: 1754–1800

Unit 4– Period 4: 1800–1848

Unit 5– Period 5: 1844–1877

Unit 6– Period 6: 1865–1898

Unit 7– Period 7: 1890–1945

Unit 8– Period 8: 1945–1980

Unit 9– Period 9: 1980–Present

Instructional Approaches

Selecting and Using Course Materials

Instructional Strategies

Developing Historical Thinking Skills

Developing the Reasoning Processes

Exam Information

Exam Overview

Sample Exam Questions

AP History Rubrics

Scoring Guidelines

Part B: Short-Answer Question with Secondary Text Sources

Document-Based Question

Long Essay Question

Appendix

AP U.S. History Concept Outline

INCLUDES Course framework Instructional section Sample exam questions AP® U.S. History COURSE AND EXAM DESCRIPTION Effective Fall 2026 AP® U.S. History COURSE AND EXAM DESCRIPTION Effective Fall 2026 AP COURSE AND EXAM DESCRIPTIONS ARE UPDATED PERIODICALLY Please visit AP Central ([apcentral.collegeboard.org](apcentral.collegeboard.org)) to determine whether a more recent course and exam description is available. What AP® Stands For Thousands of Advanced Placement teachers have contributed to the principles articulated here. These principles are not new; they are, rather, a reminder of how AP already works in classrooms nationwide. The following principles are designed to ensure that teachers’ expertise is respected, required course content is understood, and that students are academically challenged and free to make up their own minds. 1. AP stands for clarity and transparency. Teachers and students deserve clear expectations. The Advanced Placement Program makes public its course frameworks and sample assessments. Confusion about what is permitted in the classroom disrupts teachers and students as they navigate demanding work. 2. AP is an unflinching encounter with evidence. AP courses enable students to develop as independent thinkers and to draw their own conclusions. Evidence and the scientific method are the starting place for conversations in AP courses. 3. AP opposes censorship. AP is animated by a deep respect for the intellectual freedom of teachers and students alike. If a school bans required topics from their AP courses, the AP Program removestheAP designation from that course and its inclusion in the AP Course Ledger provided to colleges and universities. For example, the concepts of evolution are at the heart of college biology, and a course that neglects such concepts does not pass muster asAP Biology. 4. AP opposes indoctrination. AP students are expected to analyze different perspectives from their own, and no points on anAP Exam are awarded for agreement with a viewpoint. AP students are not required to feel certain ways about themselves or the course content. AP courses instead develop students’ abilities to assess the credibility of sources, draw conclusions, and make up their own minds. As the AP English Literature course description states: “AP students are not expected or asked to subscribe to any one specific set of cultural or political values, but are expected to have the maturity to analyze perspectives different from their own and to question the meaning, purpose, or effect of such content within the literary work as a whole.” 5. AP courses foster an open-minded approach to the histories and cultures of different peoples. The study of different nationalities, cultures, religions, races, and ethnicities is essential within a variety of academic disciplines. AP courses ground such studies in primary sources so that students can evaluate experiences and evidence for themselves. 6. Every AP student who engages with evidence is listened to and respected. Students are encouraged to evaluate arguments but not one another. AP classrooms respect diversity in backgrounds, experiences, and viewpoints. The perspectives and contributions of the full range of AP students are sought and considered. Respectful debate of ideas is cultivated and protected; personal attacks have no place in AP. 7. AP is a choice for parents and students. Parents and students freely choose to enroll in AP courses. Course descriptions are available online for parents and students to inform their choice. Parents do not define which college-level topics are suitable within AP courses; AP course and exam materials are crafted by committees of professors and other expert educators in each field. AP courses and exams are then further validated by the American Council on Education and studies that confirm the use of AP scores for college credits by thousands of colleges and universities nationwide

FAQs

When does this AP U.S. History course and exam description take effect?

It is effective Fall 2026, as stated in the document header.

What does the document provide for students and teachers besides content topics?

It includes course framework components, historical thinking skills and reasoning processes, instructional approaches, and exam information such as sample questions and rubrics.

How are exam tasks and scoring organized in the document?

Scoring guidelines are grouped by question types, including the short-answer question with secondary text sources, the document-based question, and the long essay question.

Sep 14, 2026

Uploaded by Aria