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AMERICAN GOVERNMENT
In American Government, the
focus is on the principles and beliefs upon which the United States was
founded and on the structure, functions, and powers of government at the
national and local levels. This course is the culmination of the civics and
governmental content and concepts studied from Kindergarten through required
secondary courses. Students learn major political ideas and forms of
government in history. A significant focus on the course is on the U.S.
Constitution, its underlying principles and ideas, and the form of
government it created. Students analyze major concepts of republicanism,
federalism, checks and balances, separation of powers, popular sovereignty,
and individual rights and compare the U.S. system of government with other
political systems. Students identify the role of government in the U.S. free
enterprise system and examine the strategic importance of places to the
United States. Students analyze the impact of individuals, political
parties, interest groups, and the media on the American political system,
evaluate the importance of voluntary individual participation in a
democratic society, and analyze the rights guaranteed by the U.S.
Constitution.
CONTENT STANDARD 1
1. Culture
Performance Indicators
1.HS.1 Describe current
issues involving the rights, responsibilities, role, and statues of the
individual in relation to the culture of the community.
1.HS.2 Discuss specific
cultural responses to persistent human needs and contemporary issues.
1.HS.3 Evaluate a political
policy or decision in the United States that was a result of changes in
American culture.
1.HS.4 Analyze changes in the
American culture brought about by government policies (e.g., voting
rights, the G.I. bill, and racial integration).
1.HS.5 Describe an example of
a government policy that has affected a particular racial, ethnic, or
religious group.
CONTENT STANDARD 2
2. History
Performance Indicators
2.HS.1 Apply ideas, theories,
and modes of historical inquiry to describe and analyze the development of
American constitutional form of government.
2.HS.2 Identify and explain
several landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases dealing with racial
discrimination/segregation and evaluate their significance to contemporary
public issues.
2.HS.3 Explain major
political ideas in history (e.g., natural law, natural rights, divine
right of kings, social contract theory).
2.HS.4 Identify the
characteristics of classic forms of government (e.g., absolute monarchy,
authoritarianism, classical republic, despotism, feudalism, liberal
democracy, totalitarianism)
2.HS.5 Analyze the writings
of individuals whose principles and ideas underlie the Declaration of
Independence and the U.S. Constitution (e.g., Thomas Hobbes, John Locke,
Charles de Montesquieu).
2.HS1.6 Analyze the
contributions of the political philosophies of the Founding Fathers on the
development of the U.S. government (e.g., John Adams, Alexander Hamilton,
Thomas Jefferson, James Madison).
2.HS.7 Analyze debates and
compromises necessary to reach political decisions using historical
documents.
2.HS.8 Identify significant
individuals in the field of government and politics (e.g., Abraham
Lincoln, George Washington, selected contemporary leaders).
2.HS.9 Give examples of the
processes used by individuals, political parties, interest groups, or the
media to affect public policy.
2.HS.9 Analyze the impact of
political changes brought about by individuals, political parties,
interest groups, or the media, past and present.
CONTENT STANDARD 3
3. Geography
Performance Indicators
3.HS.1 Explain how geographic
factors affect the interrelationship between countries (e.g., climate,
land form, natural resources).
3.HS.2 Identify and explain
how regionalism influenced the development of a constitutional government.
3.HS.3 Analyze the political
significance to the United States of the location and geographic
characteristics of selected places or regions e.g., Cuba, Taiwan).
3.HS.4 Analyze the economic
significance to the United States of the location and geographic
characteristics of selected places or regions e.g., Middle East oil
fields).
3.HS.5 Analyze and evaluate
the consequences of a government policy that affects the physical or the
human characteristics of a place or region.
CONTENT STANDARD 4
4. Government
Performance Indicators
4.HS.1 Explain the importance
of a written constitution.
4.HS.2 Evaluate how the
federal government serves the purposes set forth in the Preamble to the
U.S. Constitution.
4.HS.3 Analyze how the
Federalist Papers explain the principles of the American constitutional
systems of government.
4.HS.4 Evaluate
constitutional provisions for limiting the role of government (e.g.,
republicanism, checks and balances, federalism, separation of powers,
popular sovereignty, individual rights).
4.HS.5 Analyze the processes
by which the U.S. Constitution can be changed and evaluate their
effectiveness.
4.HS.6 Analyze how the
American beliefs and principles reflected in the U.S. Constitution
contribute to our national identity.
4.HS.7 Analyze the structure
and functions of the legislative branch of the government (e.g., bicameral
structure of Congress, the role of committees, procedure for enacting
laws).
4.HS.8 Analyze the structure
and functions of the executive branch of government (e.g., constitutional
powers of the president, the growth of presidential power, the role of the
Cabinet and executive departments).
4.HS.9 Analyze the structure
and functions of the judicial branch of the government (e.g., federal
court system, types of jurisdiction).
4.HS.10 Analyze the functions
of selected independent executive agencies and regulatory commissions
(e.g., National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Federal
Communications Commission).
4.HS.11 Explain how certain
provisions of the U.S. Constitution provide for checks and balances among
the three branches of government.
4.HS.12 Analyze selected
issues raised by judicial activism and judicial restraint.
4.HS.13 Explain the major
responsibilities of the federal government for domestic and foreign
policy.
4.HS.14 Compare the structure
and functions of Guam’s government to the federal system.
4.HS.15 Analyze the structure
and functions of local government.
4.HS.16 Explain why the
Founding Fathers created a distinctly new form of federalism and adopted a
federal system of government instead of a unitary one.
4.HS.17 Categorize government
powers as national, state, or shared.
4.HS.18 Analyze historical
conflicts over the respective roles of national and state governments.
4.HS.19 Evaluate the limits
on the national and state governments in the U.S. federal system of
government.
4.HS.20 Compare different
methods of filling public offices at the local, state, and national levels
(e.g., elected and appointed offices).
4.HS.21 Analyze and evaluate
the process of electing the President of the United States.
4.HS.22 Identify the
functions of political parties.
4.HS.23 Analyze the two-party
system and evaluate the role of third parties in the United States.
4.HS.24 Analyze the role of
political parties in the electoral process at the local, state, and
national levels.
4.HS.25 Identify
opportunities for citizens to participate in political party activities at
local, state, and national levels.
4.HS.26 Compare the U.S.
system of government with other political systems.
4.HS.27 Analyze advantages
and disadvantages of federal, confederate, and unitary systems of
government
4.HS.28 Analyze advantages
and disadvantages of presidential and parliamentary systems of government.
4.HS.29 Understand the roles
of limited government and the rule of law to the protection of individual
rights.
4.HS.30 Analyze the rights
guaranteed by the Bill of Rights, including the first amendment freedoms.
4.HS.31 Analyze issues
addressed in selected cases that involve Supreme Court interpretations of
rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution (e.g., Engel vs. Vitale,
Miranda vs. Arizona, Schenck vs. U.S.).
4.HS.32 Analyze the role of
each branch of government in protecting the rights of individuals.
4.HS.33 Explain the
importance of due process rights to the protection of individual rights
and to the limits on the powers of government.
4.HS.34 Analyze the impact on
the incorporation doctrine involving due process and the Bill of Rights on
individual rights, federalism, and majority rule.
4.HS.35 Explain the
difference between personal and civic responsibilities.
4.HS.36 Evaluate whether
and/or when the obligation of citizenship requires that personal desires
and interests be subordinated to the public good.
4.HS.37 Evaluate whether
and/or when the rights of individuals are inviolable even against claims
for the public good.
4.HS.38 Analyze the
consequences of political decisions and actions of society.
4.HS.39 Analyze the
effectiveness of various methods of participation in the political process
at local, state, and national levels.
4.HS.40 Analyze historical
and contemporary examples of citizen movements to bring about political
change or to maintain continuity.
4.HS.41 Analyze the factors
that influence an individual’s political attitudes and actions.
4.HS.42 Compare and evaluate
characteristics, style, and effectiveness of local and national leaders,
past and present.
4.HS.43 Analyze different
points of view of political parties and interest groups on important
contemporary issues.
4.HS.44 Analyze the
importance of free speech and free press in a democratic society.
4.HS.45 Express and defend a
point of view on an issue of contemporary interest in the United States.
CONTENT STANDARD 5
5. Economics
Performance Indicators
5.HS.1 Explain the role of
government in determining what is produced and distributed in a
competitive system.
5.HS.2 Identify economic
issues that influence contemporary political/social problems and the role
of the government in dealing with these issues.
5.HS.3 Analyze government
policies that influence the economy at the local, state and national
levels.
5.HS.4 Identify the source of
revenue and expenditures of the U. S. Government and analyze their impact
on the U. S. Economy.
5.HS.5 Compare the role of
the government in the U. S. free enterprise system and other economic
systems.
5.HS.6 Explain the effects of
international trade on U.S. economic and political policies.
5.HS.7 Explain the
government’s role in setting international trade policies.
CONTENT STANDARD 6
6. Technology
Performance Indicators
6.HS.1 Identify examples of
government-assisted research that, when shared with the private sector,
have resulted in improved consumer products (e.g., computer and
communication technologies).
6.HS.2 Analyze how U.S.
government policies fostering competition and entrepreneurship have
resulted in scientific discoveries and technological innovations.
6.HS.3 Analyze the potential
impact on society of recent scientific discoveries and technological
innovations.
6.HS.4 Analyze the role and
reaction of the government to scientific discoveries and technological
innovations.
6.HS.5 Explain the need for
laws and government policies regarding technological Advances.
6.HS.6 Analyze and evaluate
the effects of advancing technology on the global community and nation.
6.HS.7 Explain the role of
the government in protecting the environment.
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