Social Studies Department
WORLD STUDIES - 2 CREDITS - 9 NCAA APPROVED - This is a required 9th grade course that addresses the social science literacy, inquiry, geography, economics, civics and history standards. Students will utilize a variety of text types to understand issues through in-depth inquiry, engagement with diverse sources of information and technologies, deliberation of their own positions, and collaborative and constructive problem-solving activities.
AMERICAN HISTORY - 2 CREDITS - 10 NCAA APPROVED - This is a required 10th grade social studies course that addresses standards in literacy, inquiry, geography, economics and government through the course of 20th Century United States and Iowa history. Students will practice an inquiry based approach to the study of history that emphasizes using various sources to develop an understanding of important historical events.
AP U.S. HISTORY - 2 CREDITS (2 trimesters) - 11, 12 Prerequisite: American History or instructor approval - Students will investigate significant events, individuals, developments, and processes in nine historical periods from approximately 1491 to the present. Students develop and use the same skills, practices, and methods employed by historians: analyzing primary and secondary sources; developing historical arguments; making historical comparisons; and utilizing reasoning about contextualization, causation, and continuity and change over time. The course also provides seven themes that students explore throughout the course in order to make connections among historical developments in different times and places: American and national identity; migration and settlement; politics and power; work, exchange, and technology; America in the world; geography and the environment; and culture and society. Students will be prepared to take the optional AP Exam.
CIVICS - 1 CREDIT - 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED - Civics will focus on increasing the understanding of individual rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Topics addressed may include public policies, political participation, roles of local and state governments, and financial and economic development. Students will be expected to internalize democratic processes and values and be better able to justify citizen participation in political parties and elections, and in government decision making.
AMERICAN GOVERNMENT - 1 CREDIT - 12 NCAA APPROVED - American Government will consider the implications and responsibilities of effective citizenship. The Constitution, the Federal System, the instructions and process of the Judicial, Legislative, and Executive branches will be studied. In addition to formal knowledge, students will be expected to internalize democratic processes and values and be better able to justify citizen participation in government decision-making.
ICCC AMERICAN NATIONAL GOVERNMENT (POL-111) - 1 HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT AND 3 SEMESTER HOURS COLLEGE CREDIT -11, 12 Prerequisite: Student must have scored at the minimum placement testing levels. - This survey course introduces the general principles, policies, and problems of the national government in the United States. Fundamentals of American democracy; constitutionalism; the nature of federalism; the rights and duties of citizens; the institutions and processes of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government; the role of public opinion and the media; and the participation of interest groups, social movements, and political parties in the U.S. political system are emphasized.
ICCC U.S. HISTORY TO 1877 (HIS-151) - 1 HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT AND 3 SEMESTER HOURS COLLEGE CREDIT - 11, 12 Prerequisite: Student must have scored at the minimum placement testing levels. -This course includes the political, socio-cultural, and economic factors in the development of American Civilization from the earliest European explorers until the end of the Civil War and Reconstruction. The course will focus on the changing aspirations and behavior of ordinary Americans as well as the transformative achievements of the powerful and famous. The objective is to understand not only what happened but also why it happened. The course will allow students to analyze critically the significance of race, ethnicity, religion, class, and gender in the American Experience and prepare students to make their own judgments about the relative importance of different factors in shaping the American past.
ICCC U.S. HISTORY SINCE 1877 (HIS-152) - 1 HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT AND 3 SEMESTER HOURS COLLEGE CREDIT - 11, 12 Prerequisite: Student must have scored at the minimum placement testing levels. - This course includes the political, socio-cultural, and economic factors in the development of American Civilization from the end of Reconstruction to the present. The course will focus on the changing aspirations and behavior of ordinary Americans as well as the transformative achievements of the powerful and famous. The objective is to understand not only what happened but also why it happened. The course will allow students to analyze critically the significance of race, ethnicity, religion, class, and gender in the American Experience and prepare students to make their own judgments about the relative importance of different factors in shaping the American past.
ANCIENT CIVILIZATION - 1 CREDIT - 10, 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED - History of western civilization to 1648, with emphasis on Greek and Roman civilization, the medieval world, The Renaissance and Reformation, and the transition to the modern era.
MODERN CIVILIZATION - 1 CREDIT - 10, 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED - History of the formation of modern Western democracies. Topics cover European history from the mid-seventeenth century through the Cold War period, including political, economic, and cultural developments such as Scientific Thought, the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, the revival of democracy, and the First and Second World Wars.
ICCC WESTERN CIVILIZATION: ANCIENT TO EARLY MODERN (HIS-112) - 1 HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT AND 4 SEMESTER HOURS COLLEGE CREDIT - 10, 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED Prerequisite: Student must have scored at the minimum placement testing levels. - This course will be taken for both high school and college credit. Students must be high school juniors, seniors or must be identified as a tenth grade TAG student to be eligible. The course revolves around major themes in the early story of Western Society, emphasizing such themes as our heritage from the Greeks, Romans, feudalism and castles, the revival of Democracy, Renaissance, Reformation, Age of Kings and Rise of Nations through the Age of Enlightenment.
ICCC WESTERN CIVILIZATION: EARLY MODERN TO PRESENT (HIS-113) - 1 HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT AND 4 SEMESTER HOURS COLLEGE CREDIT - 10, 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED Prerequisite: Student must have scored at the minimum placement testing levels. - This course will be taken for both high school and college credit. Students must be high school juniors, seniors or must be identified as a tenth grade TAG student to be eligible. This course covers the French Revolution and Napoleon, political, social and economic events, revolution, world wars, and nation-building to the present (1815).
ECONOMICS - 1 CREDIT - 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED (Completion of this course fulfills the financial literacy requirement needed for graduation.) - Economics develops an understanding of how our economy works, how prices are determined, and how our country fits into the world economy. Areas of study are: 1) Micro Economics-units on demand, supply, price determination, costs, profits, and market workings; and 2) Macro Economics-the study of inflation, unemployment, gross national product, monetary and fiscal policies and economic growth. This course is recommended for students planning to attend college.
CONSUMER ECONOMICS - 1 CREDIT - 11, 12 (Completion of this course fulfills the financial literacy requirement needed for graduation.) - Consumer Economics is a class that helps students develop skills in the areas of financial planning, banking, using credit, buying insurance, housing, investments and personal taxes in a manner designed to help them function in today’s economy.
ISSUES IN AMERICAN AFFAIRS - 1 CREDIT - 10, 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED - Issues in American Affairs is a study of issues and conflicts challenging America. Topics covered may include issues on capital punishment, AIDS, drug abuse, child abuse, abortion, and gun control as well as the nature of American culture, social change, and democracy. The course will allow students the opportunity to analyze, through research and discussion, various issues and topics.
ETHNIC STUDIES - 1 CREDIT - 10, 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED - Ethnic Studies is a study of the culture of the African Americans, Hawaiian American, Hispanic Americans, and Native Americans. The course will examine cultural characteristics and patterns in contemporary society. It will explore reasons for the problems of yesterday. Each culture will be examined in terms of contributions, diversity, and common cultural characteristics.
WORLD GEOGRAPHY - 1 CREDIT - 10, 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED - World Geography is a study of the peoples of the world, their lifestyles and the physical surroundings in which they live. The course will emphasize culture similarities and differences of people as viewed in their geographic settings.
ICCC WORLD REGIONAL GEOGRAPHY (GEO-121) - 1 HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT AND 3 SEMESTER HOURS COLLEGE CREDIT - 10, 11, 12 - This introductory course in world geography acquaints the student with spatial relationships that exist between people, their culture, their environment, and places on earth.
ICCC INTRODUCTION TO CRIMINAL JUSTICE (CRJ-100) - 1 HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT AND 3 SEMESTER HOURS COLLEGE CREDIT - 11, 12 - This course examines the criminal justice system and those areas closely related to it. Emphasis is on the relationships among law enforcement, adult and juvenile corrections, courts and private security and correctional agencies.
Behavioral Science
INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY - 1 CREDIT - 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED - Introduction to Psychology is a study of the science of human behavior and mental processes. Topics include, research methods and experimentation, childhood and adolescent developmental psychology, sensation and perception, memory, and the varying types of learning.
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY - 1 CREDIT - 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED - Social Psychology is a study of the science of how groups influence an individual’s behavior, how an individual influences a group, and how members of groups can shape their behavior to make a better life. Topics in this include: social perception, social communication, and language, self-identity, roles, relationships and territoriality.
APPLIED PERSONAL PSYCHOLOGY - 1 CREDIT - 11, 12 - Applied Personal Psychology allows students to apply and study the applications of psychological theories and knowledge to personal life experiences. Students will study how we analyze the brain, varying theories of psychology and personality development, states of consciousness, intellectual testing, and abnormal psychology, which looks at various mental conditions, classifications, and treatments.
ICCC INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY (PSY-111) - 1 HIGH SCHOOL CREDIT AND 3 SEMESTER HOURS COLLEGE CREDIT - 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED Prerequisite: Student must have scored at the minimum placement testing levels. - This course will be taken for both high school and college credit. Students must be high school juniors and seniors. Psychology is the study of human behavior and mental processes. Topics covered include: research methods, learning, memory and cognition, abnormal psychology, therapies and related developmental and biological factors that affect human behavior.
SOCIOLOGY - 1 CREDIT - 10, 11, 12 NCAA APPROVED - Sociology is a study of human groups and behavior. Students will investigate human relationships, their causes and consequences. Topics will include culture/variations, social structure, socialization, groups and formal organizations, the organization of society, and selected social problems (e.g. crime, deviance, and prison systems)..
