If you consider yourself to be a social studies student or if you just like learning about people around the world, consider taking AP Human Geography at Bel Air High School. The class is taught by Mr. Roth who has taught the class 5 of his 7 years at Bel Air High School. Mr. Roth is also the supervisor for the student government.

 The course was described in the 2012- 2013 Student Education Planning Guide as followed, “This college-level course introduce students to the systematic study of patterns and processes that have shaped human understanding, use, and alteration of the Earth’s surface.

Students employ spatial concepts and landscape analysis to examine human social organization and its environmental consequences. They also learn about the methods and tools geographers use in their science and practice. At the completion of the course students are eligible to take the College Board Advance Placement Test.”

 Class Contents include: human population, cultural geography, geography politics, agriculture, industrial economic geography, urban geography and cultural geography. Despite liking to teach all units, Mr. Roth’s favorite unit to teach is the cultural geography unit.

 Like all AP courses at Bel Air High School, if a student receives an ‘A’ in the class it is worth 5 points. Likewise, a ‘B’ is worth 3.75 points, a ‘C’ is worth 2.50 points, a ‘D’ is worth 1.25 points and an ‘E’ is worth no credit. At the completion of the course, students will have the option to take an AP exam that could potentially be considered to be a college credit. When asked about the number of kids that pass this test, Mr. Roth responded by saying, “We have had a good percentage this far.”

 For a student to sign up for AP Human Geography, the only requirement is to get a signature from their current social studies teacher. Mr. Roth believes that it is important to take this class because, “it will open the students minds about different cultures and be a form of more true learning.”

The one thing that Mr. Roth asks students who are entering the class is to, “be open minded when learning about different cultures and studying history. Also be prepared to think differently in this class.”