AP Human Geography Course Overview

This set of flashcards covers key terms and concepts from the AP Human Geography course, focusing on skill categories, big ideas, units and models related to population, culture, urbanization, and political geography.

Skill Categories

The categories that spiral throughout the AP Human Geography course including Concepts and Processes, Spatial Relationships, Data Analysis, Source Analysis, and Scale Analysis.

Big Ideas

Broad themes that spiral across topics and units, including Patterns and Spatial Organization, Impacts and Interactions, and Spatial Processes and Societal Change.

Personal Progress Checks

Formative assessments containing multiple-choice and free-response questions for each unit to provide feedback on student understanding.

The Demographic Transition Model

A model that describes the transition of a country from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates as part of economic development.

Malthusian Theory

The theory proposed by Thomas Malthus that population growth will outpace food supply, leading to famine and societal issues.

Von Thünen Model

An economic model that explains land use in relation to a central market, including the concept of spatial organization of agriculture.

Urbanization

The process by which cities grow or by which societies become more urban in character, influencing various socio-economic factors.

Cultural Diffusion

The spread of cultural beliefs and social activities from one group to another, which can occur through various historical processes.

Sustainable Development

Development that meets present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Political Geography

The study of the spatial distribution of political processes and how these processes are affected by geographic space.

Economic Sectors

Categorization of the economy into primary, secondary, and tertiary sectors, each representing different stages of economic production.

Forced and Voluntary Migration

Types of migration where forced migration occurs due to conflict or disaster, while voluntary migration is driven by individual choices.