Online Resources Recommended by AP Teachers

We surveyed AP Comparative Government and Politics teachers about what online resources they recommend, and the list below comes directly from their responses. The list also includes teacher descriptions of the resources. This is not a comprehensive list, nor is it an endorsement of any of these resources by the College Board.

BBC

  • News; videos; podcasts
  • “Great resource for global coverage of current events.” Easily searched and “many relevant materials to assign, including the BBC Global News Podcast.”

Constitute

  • Online texts; links to related resources
  • Provides searchable versions of constitutions from various countries. Allows for comparison views, which are useful when analyzing constitutions. It’s great to see constitutions from the countries in the course.

Citizens U

  • Online text; instructional videos for students; resources for teachers
  • Provides videos, handouts, and activities aligned to both the AP U.S Government and AP Comparative Government courses. For Comp, see the Comparative Corner for materials. This website was created by experienced, expert AP Teachers Andrew Conneen and Daniel Larsen.

C-Span Classroom

  • Online text; videos for students; lesson plans; resources for teachers
  • Offers “tons of primary source material for students studying government.” The sources “bring up useful and relevant topics that go along nicely with the study of Comp Government and Politics and have lesson plans for teachers.”

CIA World Factbook

  • Online text; maps
  • Comprehensive reference that provides foundational information for countries around the world. “Great go-to for teachers and resource for students.”

The Economist

  • News; videos; podcasts; data
  • In addition to its role as a major international news source, The Economist has other resources that are useful for assignments and class projects. The Intelligence is a podcast that offers a deeper dive into specific events and issues;” they publish the Democracy Index; and “their ‘graphic detail’ section helps students practice quantitative analysis.”

Freedom House

  • Reports, data
  • This website provides information frequently used by the media monitoring democracy and citizen rights in countries around the world. The site includes reports and analysis on key topics covered in Comparative Government and Politics.

Pew Research Center  

  • Reports; news; data
  • Includes a range of reports on global issues, demographic studies and datasets that show current trends and research on topics covered in Comparative Government and Politics. “Useful for class examples and practice assignments.”

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