My Most Memorable High School Class
When I think back on high school, one class stands out more vividly than the rest: AP World History with Mrs. Remsberg. At the time, I didn’t realize how significant that class would become in shaping the way I think, analyze, and understand the world. It wasn’t just another box to check for college applications—it was an experience that fundamentally changed how I viewed the past, and more importantly, how I approached learning itself.
Mrs. Remsberg had a way of making history feel alive. She didn’t stand at the front of the room and recite facts. Instead, she challenged us to engage with history—to dissect it, question it, and piece it together like a puzzle with missing and misleading parts. She used to say, “History isn’t just what happened; it’s what we say happened—and why we say it that way.” At first, I didn’t fully grasp what she meant. But over time, as we analyzed primary sources, debated interpretations, and examined the ripple effects of empires, revolutions, and belief systems, I began to see the layers behind every event we studied.
One of the most eye-opening lessons came when we studied the Columbian Exchange. Rather than just memorize the goods traded between the Old and New Worlds, Mrs. Rembsberg asked us to explore its ethical, environmental, and cultural implications. She had us write from different perspectives—European merchants, Indigenous leaders, enslaved Africans—forcing us to confront the vastly different experiences of those impacted by the same historical moment. That assignment, like many in her class, pushed me to think critically and empathetically.
What made Mrs. Remsberg’s class truly memorable wasn’t just the material, but the mindset she instilled. She taught us to ask “why” and “how,” not just “what.” She emphasized context, causation, and complexity—tools that I didn’t realize at the time were the foundation of historical thinking, and which I now find myself using in every college course I take, even outside the humanities. Whether I’m writing a research paper, evaluating a scientific study, or discussing political theory, I find myself breaking things down the way we did in AP World—looking for patterns, questioning assumptions, and staying open to multiple interpretations.
Beyond academics, that class helped me develop confidence in my own voice. Mrs. Remsberg encouraged discussion and debate, and she made space for every student to contribute. Even if our ideas were half-formed, she treated them with respect and nudged us toward deeper insight. It was in her classroom that I first felt like a thinker, not just a student.
Looking back, I can say without hesitation that AP World History with Mrs. Remsberg was the class that taught me how to learn. It sparked my curiosity, shaped my worldview, and gave me tools I still rely on today. In many ways, it wasn’t just a history class—it was the beginning of my intellectual journey.