Self Reflection: AP European History

As a student, this AP level European History has helped me identify my own strengths and weaknesses and gain a better general understanding of European History. I have worked hard to keep up with notes and extracurricular assignments. I personally made a concerted effort to complete class projects to the best of my ability and focused on honing my writing skills.
Things I could do that would help me to be more successful in class include consistently using the History of Western Society companion study guide to prepare for tests, focusing more closely on timelines and dates, utilizing the Barron AP Prep book to review material throughout the entire school year, keeping a consistent study schedule, and practicing speaking prior to presentations in class.
Some things that helped me to succeed in my American U.S.History class were the general schedule of covering roughly between 1 and 2 chapters per week, schedules showing test dates, in-class tests including DBQs and FRQs as part of the test material for each student, smaller class size, and in class review of chapter materials.
Things that helped me to succeed in AP European History include typing notes, covering chapter information in class in a lecture format, and the use of maps and other visual aids to illustrate changing European borders or the movement of trade. I enjoyed the online blog feature of the course and the emphasis on debate and discussion. I would be interested to try using an online wiki to compile information similar to the way the class used PowerPoint’s to cover different topics within a chapter and also to have more opportunities for formal debate in class. At times the blog component of the chapter could be overwhelming, however, overall I enjoyed this feature of the class and would have liked to be able to view other people’s work and blogs to post comments. Obstacles to succeeding in this course include, larger class size, class interruptions (PSSAs), sometimes an unclear schedule of test dates, and a lack of clarity in the pace and amount of work to be covered week by week. Something I struggle with is synthesizing dates with covering historical material. Oftentimes I can readily understand the general ideas and significance of a time period ,but have trouble recalling dates and general time periods something that using timelines and reviewing chapter material using practice tests from the A History of Western Society Study Guide seems to help me with.
In conclusion, I enjoyed AP European History and found the course topics interesting and at times compelling. This course has helped lay the foundation for me to feel confident going into a college level European History Course and with a more dedicated study schedule, personal goal and focus this course would allow me to test out of European History. However, it has really provided me with general information on European History that will help me to succeed at the college level and also has helped prepare for the sheer amount of reading and writing required in upper level Humanities. At times the extracurricular work seemed overwhelming and the textbook not nearly as comprehensive as the AP U.S. History book ,but overall I enjoyed the course and find the information presented valuable to me in my studies and my understanding of the world from a historical context and perspective. Thank you for your time and effort to make this course comprehensive and interesting. I appreciate your effort to incorporate blogs and online components into class curriculum and to provide me with resources like the AP Barrons Review Book. All these things and many more elements of the class helped me succeed as a student and kept me interested in the class. Thank you again for all your efforts.