Takin’ Care of AP Euro, every day

Advanced Placement European History throws sophomores into the deep end during their first college level course.

by Alex Olguin

Students enter room 300 after school on a Friday. While most after school meetings are for clubs or sports, this meeting is academic. It is a review session for students in Christopher Freiler and John Naisbitt’s sections of AP European History. Freiler and Naisbitt explain how to approach various problems such as stimulus-based multiple choice encountered in the class. It is not normal for classes to have review sessions about how to answer test questions. This unusual review seccion is a tribute to the difficulty and rigor of the course.

AP European History, known as AP Euro by many students and teachers is often the first college-level course that students take, and it is designed to challenge students, growing their intellectual curiosity and communication skills.

AP European History is a college-level, Advanced Placement course following the College Board’s curriculum for a college level survey course on European history from the Renaissance to the present.

“You have to cover 20 plus countries between 1450 and the present, so there’s a lot of material to cover, but it’s also skill focused,” Freiler said.

The class has a high level of difficulty, especially as almost all students in the class are sophomores and have not taken an Advanced Placement course before.

“It’s relentless,” Naisbitt said. “I think the learning curve is very steep for some who have not really been asked to do that kind of deeper level analysis; so, some need to get acclimated to the driving pace.”

While the course is taken primarily by sophomores, it can also be taken by juniors and seniors. Freiler said the benefit of taking the class is the preparation that the class gives students in future AP and college classes.

“[AP Euro] introduces sophomores to the rigors of a college level class and to the kind of work that will be expected of them as an upperclassman and then also going into college,” Freiler said.

Students prepare for four types of questions on the AP test, stimulus-based multiple choice questions and three writing-based questions: short answer questions, long essay questions, and document based questions.

“You have to formulate an idea,” Freiler said. “You have to produce evidence to support your argument and you have to write towards a rubric…which I think makes it somewhat harder because it’s both content and skills.”

Students selecting AP Euro understand the potential difficulty of the class. Shreemann Patel, a student in Freiler’s class, said AP Euro is among the most difficult classes in the school, but the payoff is worth it.

“It is definitely one of my more challenging courses. It takes a lot of hard work, but that doesn’t really detract from it because a lot of that is actually valuable learning,” Patel said.

Dana Karim said she also believes that the experience of the rigor of AP Euro has led to her growth as a learner.

“I definitely see that my writing skills have improved a lot already,” Karim said. “I also feel my speaking skills are also improving because it helps me get more succinct and understand exactly what I am going to say.”

Freiler recommends the course for students who want to transform who they are as learners and grow as thinkers.

“I think it can be a very transformative class for students,” Freiler said. “I think it can change the way in which they approach not only the specific discipline of history, but also change the way they act as a student and be much more self-reliant and responsible for their own education and learn how to study because the course puts this sort of pressure on you to do that.”

Naisbitt also encourages students to take AP Euro if they want to see improvement in their writing, communication and study skills.

“You have two teachers who are really willing to give writing exercises and willing to grade and give feedback on writing exercises, which I think are very valuable tools and very valuable exercises in becoming college ready,” Naisbitt said. “I am convinced that the student who takes AP Euro is more prepared, especially in the writing portion when they get to college.”

However, Freiler gave the distinction between the class helping students develop invaluable skills that will be useful in college and helping students get into college.

“If you’re just trying to curate your education and you’re just trying to pick out the classes that will give you the highest grade for the least amount of work so you can look like a good student who gets into a highly selective college, then maybe it’s not the kind of thing that you want to do,” Freiler said.

While Freiler acknowledges AP Euro is a hard class, he sees student growth come out in the challenges that students must face.

Instructor Fun Facts

30 years at Hinsdale Central

• On the College Board committee to redesign the AP Euro curriculum from 2006 to 2014

• Contributor to the AP Euro Course and Exam Description

• Was the Assistant Chief Reader for the AP Euro exam

• Author of “Achiever” an AP Euro review textbook

• Head Mock Trial coach since 2010

• Got 11 state championships in Mock Trial

• Wrote a college thesis on why Alexander Hamillton is better than Thomas Jefferson at the University of Virginia, a school Jefferson founded

• Co-sponsor of Citizen Club

• Gave a TEDx Talk on the importance of history

“In any class that you’re taking or any activity or sport that you do, just remember that at the end is when the champion comes out, the champion comes out when you’re tired, when you want to stop and when you want to quit,” Freiler said. “That’s when the heart of a champion is demonstrated.”

23 years at Hinsdale Central

• • Head varsity tennis coach for 13 years, winning seven titles

• Inducted into the University of Chicago Laboratory School’s Hall of Fame for basketball and soccer between 1976 and 1980

• Bowling coach at Hinsdale Central for 14 years

• Co-Sponsor of Citizen Club, which was formed after 9/11 to allow students to discuss current international and domestic issues.