AP Central^®

AP^® Art History

Dear AP Art History Teacher:

We want to thank you again for all that you do to help your students be successful. AP students owe much to the expertise and commitment you bring to your classroom every day. As you prepare your students for this last half of the year and for the AP Exam in May, we wish you all the best, and hope you find the information in this newsletter helpful.

Online Event: Art Beyond the European Tradition
Presented by: Michael Bieze; Marist School, Atlanta GA
February 3, 2009
6:30–8:30 p.m. (Eastern Time)

This AP Art History workshop presents a variety of ways for teachers to meaningfully include art beyond the European tradition in their classes.

Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center and Grand Hyatt
San Antonio, TX
July 15–19, 2009

Register Now for the 2009 AP Annual Conference and take advantage of the Early Bird Savings.

This conference is the centerpiece of the AP Program's professional development efforts. The AP Annual Conference is our annual opportunity to come together from across the world to share our experiences. Each year, more than 3,000 AP professionals attend, taking advantage of relevant and engaging sessions for teachers of all AP courses, including AP Art History. The conference also offers sessions in Pre-AP^® strategies.

Administrators at your school are responsible for renewing any courses that were authorized last year through the AP Course Audit process and are being offered again this year. If your course was authorized in 2007–08, and you are teaching the course in 2008–09 but it has yet to be renewed, alert your school administrators immediately. If you are new to teaching the AP course at your school, and haven't yet submitted your course audit materials, you must do so no later than January 31, 2009. The AP Course Ledger now includes courses authorized for the 2008–09 academic year.

Visit the AP Art History course home page for a variety of free resources related to teaching the course, including:

From the College Board's online store, AP Art History teachers can purchase the following materials:

Future Resources for AP Art History Teachers

News about the 2010 AP Art History Exam

Beginning with the May 2010 AP Exam administration, there are several changes AP Art History teachers should be aware of:

(1) The order of the free-response questions will change.

(2) Decision to not count prehistoric examples

The AP Art History Development Committee has been concerned over the years about students' use of prehistoric examples when answering the 30-minute long essay questions. These long essay questions typically ask the student to provide contextual information about a work of art. Since there is little known about the particular cultures that produced prehistoric art, students who use prehistoric examples cannot earn full credit, as it is impossible to provide a factual discussion of the context. Therefore, beginning with the 2010 exam, prehistoric examples such as the Venus of Willendorf, the Caves of Lascaux, and Stonehenge will not be accepted as appropriate examples for these questions.

(3) Emphasis on using examples from non-Western cultures other than Egypt and the Ancient Near East

One of the 30-minute essay questions requires students to incorporate at least one example of art beyond the European tradition into their essays. The Development Committee is concerned about the overuse of Egyptian and Ancient Near East examples in response to that question because Ancient Egypt and the Ancient Near East are fully covered in the multiple-choice questions in Part I and the short-answer essays in Part II of the exam. For this reason, the AP Course Description will now specify that the intent of this essay question is to draw from areas such as Africa (beyond ancient Egypt), the Americas, Asia, Islamic cultures, and Oceania.

The College Board offers IACET-certified professional development in hundreds of locations across the United States and around the world. All participants in AP Art History workshops for experienced teachers will receive materials focused on a specific instructional theme, "Special Focus: Art of the Twentieth Century."

To find an AP Art History or related Pre-AP strategies workshop in your area, visit Institutes & Workshops. The College Board also provides professional development opportunities for international teachers worldwide. Visit International Professional Development Events for more information.