Browse | Search | Lesson Plans | Products, consulting Training & workshops Purpose | History | Process | Acknowledgment | Reference Civics Standards What is Government and What Should it Do?   1.  Understands ideas about civic life, politics, and government   2.  Understands the essential characteristics of limited and unlimited governments   3.  Understands the sources, purposes, and functions of law, and the importance of the rule of law for the protection of individual rights and the common good   4.  Understands the concept of a constitution, the various purposes that constitutions serve, and the conditions that contribute to the establishment and maintenance of constitutional government   5.  Understands the major characteristics of systems of shared powers and of parliamentary systems   6.  Understands the advantages and disadvantages of federal, confederal, and unitary systems of government   7.  Understands alternative forms of representation and how they serve the purposes of constitutional government What are the Basic Values and Principles of American Democracy   8.  Understands the central ideas of American constitutional government and how this form of government has shaped the character of American society   9.  Understands the importance of Americans sharing and supporting certain values, beliefs, and principles of American constitutional democracy   10.  Understands the roles of voluntarism and organized groups in American social and political life   11.  Understands the role of diversity in American life and the importance of shared values, political beliefs, and civic beliefs in an increasingly diverse American society   12.  Understands the relationships among liberalism, republicanism, and American constitutional democracy   13.  Understands the character of American political and social conflict and factors that tend to prevent or lower its intensity   14.  Understands issues concerning the disparities between ideals and reality in American political and social life How Does the Government Established by the Constitution Embody the Purposes, Values, and Principles of American Democracy?   15.  Understands how the United States Constitution grants and distributes power and responsibilities to national and state government and how it seeks to prevent the abuse of power   16.  Understands the major responsibilities of the national government for domestic and foreign policy, and understands how government is financed through taxation   17.  Understands issues concerning the relationship between state and local governments and the national government and issues pertaining to representation at all three levels of government   18.  Understands the role and importance of law in the American constitutional system and issues regarding the judicial protection of individual rights   19.  Understands what is meant by "the public agenda," how it is set, and how it is influenced by public opinion and the media   20.  Understands the roles of political parties, campaigns, elections, and associations and groups in American politics   21.  Understands the formation and implementation of public policy What is the Relationship of the United States to Other nations and to World Affairs?   22.  Understands how the world is organized politically into nation-states, how nation-states interact with one another, and issues surrounding U.S. foreign policy   23.  Understands the impact of significant political and nonpolitical developments on the United States and other nations What are the Roles of the Citizen in American Democracy?   24.  Understands the meaning of citizenship in the United States, and knows the requirements for citizenship and naturalization   25.  Understands issues regarding personal, political, and economic rights   26.  Understands issues regarding the proper scope and limits of rights and the relationships among personal, political, and economic rights   27.  Understands how certain character traits enhance citizens' ability to fulfill personal and civic responsibilities   28.  Understands how participation in civic and political life can help citizens attain individual and public goals   29.  Understands the importance of political leadership, public service, and a knowledgeable citizenry in American constitutional democracy     Topics      1. American constitutional government      2. American national identity and political culture      3. American political conflict      4. American response to demographic and environmental developments      5. Attaining of individual and public goals      6. Celebrations, traditions, and customs      7. Citizenship      8. Civic characteristics and disposition      9. Civic life, politics, and government      10. Civic responsibility      11. Civil society and government      12. Confederal, federal, and unitary systems      13. Conflicts among values and principles in American political and social life      14. Development and implementation of U.S. foreign policy      15. Distinctive characteristics of American society      16. Distinguishing characteristics of social and political participation      17. Distribution of power under the United States Constitution      18. Distribution, sharing, and limitation of powers of the national government      19. Diversity in American society      20. Domestic policies in late 20th century United States      21. Economic rights      22. Education and society      23. Ends and means of U.S. foreign policy      24. Evaluating rules and laws      25. Foreign policies in the late 20th century United States      26. Formation and implementation of public policy      27. Forms of political participation      28. Function of government      29. Functions of state constitutions      30. Government representatives      31. Government taxation      32. Historic documents, treaties, and agreements      33. Historical context of U.S. foreign policy      34. Human and civil rights      35. Ideals and reality in American political and social life      36. Impact of world economic, technological, and cultural developments      37. Impact of world political, demographic, and environmental trends      38. Individual rights and responsibilities      39. Influence of American political ideas on other nations      40. Influence of media on American political life      41. Institutions of the national government      42. International diplomacy and relations      43. International political developments in the United States and in other nations      44. Judicial protection of individual rights      45. Labor movements, patterns, and conflicts      46. Liberalism and American constitutional democracy      47. Limited and unlimited government      48. Meaning and importance of United States Constitution      49. Nature of representation      50. Necessity and purpose of government      51. Organization of the world      52. Personal responsibility      53. Personal rights      54. Political and economic freedoms      55. Political leadership and public service      56. Political organizations and groups      57. Political parties, campaigns, and elections      58. Political rights      59. Power and authority      60. Prevention and management of conflict      61. Prevention and management of conflict in society      62. Privacy      63. Promotion of American democratic ideals      64. Public agenda      65. Purpose and function of international organizations      66. Purpose and function of rules and laws      67. Purpose and use of constitutions      68. Relationship between state and local governments      69. Relationship between states and the national government      70. Religion, belief systems, and values      71. Republicanism and American constitutional democracy      72. Responsible political participation      73. Role of justice in American society      74. Role of law in American society      75. Role of public opinion in American politics      76. Rule of law      77. Scope and limit of rights      78. Selection of political leaders      79. Shared powers and parliamentary systems      80. Shared values and principles in American society      81. Structure and responsibilities of local government      82. Structure and responsibilities of state government      83. Structure and responsibilities of the national government      84. Structure of constitutional government      85. Symbols and landmarks      86. United States foreign policy, early 19th century      87. Values and principles of American democracy      88. Voluntarism in American life

Sign up for McREL FREE-SOURCES   •   Privacy Policy - Disclaimer

© 2010 Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning