This
information has been taken directly from the Accelerate
U - Standards and Resource Guides (with approval) from the K-12
Education, NEW YORK STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT site. No information
in this document has been changed.
Learning Standards for Social
Studies at Three Levels
Standard 5: Civics, Citizenship,
and Government - Commencement
Students will use a variety
of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the
necessity for establishing governments; the governmental system
of the United States and other nations; the United States Constitution;
the basic civic values of American constitutional democracy; and
the roles, rights, and responsibilities of citizenship, including
avenues of participation.
1. The study of civics, citizenship, and government
involves learning about political systems; the purposes of government
and civic life; and the differing assumptions held by people across
time and place regarding power, authority, governance, and law. (Adapted
from The National Standards for Civics and Government, 1994)
Students:
- analyze how the values of a nation and international
organizations affect the guarantee of human rights and make previsions
for human needs
- consider the nature and evolution of constitutional
democracies throughout the world
- compare various political systems with that
of the United States in terms of ideology, structure, function,
institutions, decision-making processes, citizenship roles, and
political culture
- identify and analyze advantages and disadvantages
of various governmental systems.
This is evident, for example, when students:
- analyze excerpts from the writings of Hobbes,
Locks, Rousseau, and others of the Enlightenment Period
- explain what the term "social contract"
means and how it was applied to the establishment of civil society
and legitimate government in many areas of the world
- compare various political systems throughout
the world with that of the United States in terms of their ideologies,
structures, functions, institutions, decision-making processes,
citizenship roles, and political cultures. (Adapted from Curriculum
Standards for the Social Studies, NCSS)
compare and contrast the American federal system
with that of other democratic nations.
2. The state and federal governments established
by the Constitutions of the United States and the State of New York
embody basic civic values (such as justice, honesty, self-discipline,
due process, equality, majority rule with respect for minority rights,
and respect for self, others, and property), principles, and practices
and establish a system of shared and limited government. (Adapted
from The National Standards for Civics and Government, 1994)
Students:
- trace the evolution of American values,
beliefs, and institutions
- analyze the disparities between civic values
expressed in the United States Constitution and the United Nation
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the realities as evidenced
in the political, social, and economic life in the United States
and throughout the world
- identify, respect, and model those core
civic values inherent in our founding documents that have been
forces for unity in American society
- compare and contrast the Constitutions of
the United States and New York State
- understand the dynamic relationship between
federalism and state's rights.
This is evident, for example, when students:
- analyze how core American civic values are
expressed in those documents that provide the basis for our democratic
form of government, including the Magna Carta, the Mayflower Compact,
the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation,
the Albany Plan of Union, the Federalist papers, the Constitution,
the Bill of Rights, and other amendments
- using the Declaration of Independence, find
evidence of the influence of Locke and other Enlightenment
philosophers on a political leader like Thomas Jefferson
- analyze key Supreme Court decisions (e.g.,
Marbury v. Madison, McClloch v. Maryland, Dred Scott v.
Sanford, Plessy v. Ferguson, Brown v. Board of Education of
Topeka, Miranda v. Arizona, and Rose v. Wade) in
terms of the ongoing struggle to realize democratic ideals; explore
how these decisions embody constitutional civic values and the
evolution and application of constitutional values within American
political, economic, and social life
- present dramatic readings of key excerpts
from speeches and writings of Daniel Webster, John C. Calhoun,
Henry David Thoreau, Frederick Douglass, and Abraham Lincoln
analyze the United States Constitution, the United
Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, United Nations Convention
on the Rights of the Child, the Charter of Amnesty International,
and other civil/human rights documents to identify and explain the
significance of the fundamental values and principles which they
espouse.
3. Central to civics anal citizenship is an
understanding of the roles of the citizen within American constitutional
democracy and the scope of a citizen's rights and responsibilities.
Students:
- understand how citizenship includes certain
personal responsibilities, including voting, considering the rights
and interests of others, behaving in a civil manner, and accepting
responsibility for the consequences of one's actions (Adapted
from The National Standards for Civics and Government,
1994)
- analyze issues at the local, state, and
national levels and presets responses that promote the public
interest or general welfare, such as planning and carrying out
a voter registration campaign
- describe how citizenship is defined by the
Constitution and important laws
- explore how citizens influence public policy
in a representative democracy.
This is evident, for example, when students:
- compare basic British political documents
with the United States Constitution, identifying how each system
defines leadership, a citizen's rights and responsibilities, and
powers of the government
- outline how one can become a citizen and
analyze the rights and responsibilities of citizenship
- plan and implement a voter registration
campaign or other voluntary activity in the community
- implement a student court to adjudicate
in-school offenses
- volunteer and support conflict mediation
programs within the school
investigate local environmental issues and propose
solutions based on state and federal environmental laws.
4. The study of civics and citizenship requires
the ability to probe ideas and assumptions, ask and answer analytical
questions, take a skeptical attitude toward questionable arguments,
evaluate evidence, formulate rational conclusions, and develop and
refine participatory skills.
Students:
- participate as informed citizens in the
political justice system and processes of the United States, including
voting
- evaluate, take, and defend positions on
what the fundamental values and principles of American political
life are and their importance to the maintenance of constitutional
democracy (Adapted from The National Standards for Civics and
Government, 1994)
- take, defend, and evaluate positions about
attitudes that facilitate thoughtful and effective participation
in public affairs
- consider the need to respect the rights
of others, to respect others' points of view (Adapted from The
National Standards for Civics and Government, 1994)
- participate in school/classroom/community
activities that focus on an issue or problem
- prepare a plan of action that defines an
issue or problem, suggests alternative solutions or courses of
action, evaluates the consequences for each alternative solution
or course of action, prioritizes the solutions based on established
criteria, and proposes an action plan to address the issue or
to resolve the problem
- explain how democratic principles have been
used in resolving an issue or problem.
This is evident, for example, when students:
- use trade books to sharpen critical thinking
skills to analyze issues of citizenship when defending a stance
on controversial issues
- analyze issues at the local, state, national,
and international levels and prescribe responses that promote
the public interest of general welfare, such as planning and carrying
out a voter registration campaign
- select a state, regional, national, or international
environmental problem or issue. Propose several alternative solutions
to the problem. Assess the ethical implications as well as the
comparative costs and benefits for each alternative approach to
resolving the issue or problem. Defend a solution
- participate in a voter registration campaign
- study current international disputes and
apply principles of international law in formulating a proposed
course of action
critically analyze historic Supreme Court cases
to determine how well they reflect the intent and spirit of the
Constitution then and now.
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