AP African American Studies

The core document for each AP course is the course and exam description. Start by reviewing it to understand the objectives and expectations of the course and exam. 

Download the AP African American Studies Course and Exam Description (.pdf). 

Your course must fulfill these requirements. 

AP African American Studies curricular requirements:

• The teacher and students have access to a college-level African American Studies textbook and/or comparable resources in print or electronic format that support the required content of the AP African American Studies course. 
• The course is structured to incorporate all the primary sources for each topic in the course and exam description. 
• The course provides opportunities for students to analyze and understand Black experiences from interdisciplinary perspectives. 
• The course provides opportunities for students to engage directly with secondary sources by African American Studies scholars representing diverse perspectives and disciplines such as literature, the visual arts and music, data, and history. 
• The course provides opportunities for students to develop the skills outlined in the course and exam description: 
  • Skill Category 1: Applying Disciplinary Knowledge 
  • Skill Category 2: Source Analysis (text, visual, and data sources) 
  • Skill Category 3: Argumentation 
• Students are required to spend at least 15 45-minute class periods, or the equivalent thereof, engaging in the Individual Student Project, including research, analysis of multiple sources, and the development and submission of a research project that will culminate in a presentation and oral defense. 

AP African American Studies resource requirements: 

• The school ensures that each student has a college-level African American Studies textbook and/or comparable resources (in print or electronic format). The textbook is supplemental when necessary to meet the curricular requirements.
• The school ensures that each student has access to the required sources listed in the course and exam description for individual use inside and outside of the classroom.
• The school ensures that each student and teacher have access to appropriate instructional resources and technology (i.e., library and research databases, the internet, computers, and presentation software).
• The school ensures that each student has access to support materials for the AP African American Studies course, including scholarly, college-level texts, articles, and diverse sources that correspond with course topics.

The list below shows examples of resources that are commonly used in colleges’ introductory African American history and African American Studies courses. The list is not exhaustive, and the texts listed should not be regarded as endorsed, authorized, recommended, or approved by the Advanced Placement Program. Accordingly, while all AP African American Studies students must be given access to college-level texts, schools are not required to use a textbook from the subset on this list and can supply comparable resources in print or electronic format that support the required content of the AP African American Studies course. 

While every effort is made to keep this list current, it can take a few months for newly published titles and revised editions to be added. 

• Brooks-Higginbotham, Evelyn, and John Hope Franklin. From Slavery to Freedom: A History of African Americans. 10th ed. McGraw-Hill, 2022. 
• Hine, Darlene Clark, William C. Hine, and Stanley C. Harrold. The African-American Odyssey, Combined Volume. 7th ed. Pearson, 2019. 
• Painter, Nell Irvin. Creating Black Americans: African-American History and Its Meanings, 1619 to the Present. Oxford University Press, 2006. 
• White, Deborah Gray, Mia Bay, and Waldo E. Martin Jr. Freedom on My Mind, A History of African Americans, with Documents. 3rd ed. Macmillan Learning, 2021.

This annotated sample AP African American Studies syllabus shows how the curricular requirements can be demonstrated and what level of detail you’ll need to include. 

AP African American Studies Sample Syllabus 1

Review this document for help creating your syllabus. 

Syllabus Development Guide: AP African American Studies 

This resource includes the guidelines reviewers use to evaluate syllabi along with three samples of evidence for each requirement. This guide also specifies the level of detail required in the syllabus to receive course authorization.