East has a variety of classes that may spark interest, but are unheard of. Many students know about AP U.S. History, AP U.S. Government, and AP Human Geography, but AP Comparative Government tends to go unnoticed.

This class is an Advanced Placement class through the College Board and runs only in the second semester. East teacher, Tyler Van Landeghem, has been teaching this class since Jan. 2012.

“It is the most current class there is. If you watch or read the news, it is the six countries we cover in this class. If you want to understand how the world works in geopolitics and the role of America in the broader world, this is where you learn the necessary information,” Van Landeghem said.

Senior Annabelle Williams shared her initial interest in joining the class. 

“I really like Mr. Van and his teaching style. I had him for AP Gov. and I really enjoyed the class,” Williams said. “We focus on six main countries and learn in depth about how their government systems work. I really enjoy that instead of just getting a gist on every country,” said.

AP Comparative allows students to learn more about six other countries’ governments. A key aspect of the class is that it goes into detail about these countries, like discussing interactions, changes, decisions, and more happening right now.

Another senior Goda Vievesis shares her take on the value of the class.

“It is about the different types of governments around the world and how they run it compared to our government. It’s helpful because we can learn positive and negative things from other governments and apply it to what we do here,” Vievesis said.

AP Comparative is a social studies class option at East for upperclassmen. If you’re looking for an important social studies class to take in the future, be sure to check out AP Comparative because it is a great option to deepen your understanding of how different political systems work.

Written by seniors Kayli Pembroke and Ava Karg. Edited by staff writers for Oswego East’s online news magazine The Howl.