GOVERNMENT/ECONOMICS
Course Description
Download Government Course Description (PDF)
Download Economics Course Description (PDF) Off-Campus Permission Form (PDF)
Course Description, US Government (CP) (one semester)
Students in 12th grade US Government study the US federal, state, and local governments, how they are related, and how they have evolved since their inception. Students begin with a study of the ancient democratic processes and the enlightenment philosophers who most influenced the framers of the US Constitution. Students then examine each branch of the federal, state, and local governments and how they have changed. Students focus particularly on the first, second, and fourth amendments, and how they have been interpreted by the Supreme Court throughout our history. Along the way, students must formulate and support opinions on the logic and morality behind the philosophical underpinnings of the US systems of government.
Each unit in Government lasts for 1-2 weeks.
| Unit 1, Essential Vocabulary, part 1 |
| Unit 2, Essential Vocabulary, part 2 |
| Unit 3, Foundations of American Political Thought |
| Unit 4, The Writing of our Constitution |
| Unit 5, The Legislature, part 1 |
| Unit 6, The Legislature, part 2 |
| Unit 7, The Executive |
| Unit 8, The Judiciary |
| Unit 9, The Criminal Justice System |
| Unit 10, First Amendment |
| Unit 11, Second Amendment |
| Unit 12, Fourth Amendment |
| Unit 13, Governmental Expansions |
| Unit 14, Foreign Policy |
| Final |
Student Learning Outcomes:
The course builds reading, researching, writing, and critical thinking skills. Students learn how to formulate opinions and persuade peers of the validity of said opinions. The course adheres to UC, CA, and Common Core standards for 12th grade US Government
Texts:
Holt McDougal United States Government, Principles in Practice
ISBN: 978-0-547-45138-1
Course Description, Economics (CP) (one semester)
Students start by learning basic concepts of supply and demand, how to draw and interpret market diagrams, and what rules govern the business world. Students learn the economic theories of Adam Smith, Karl Marx, and John Keynes and how they have been applied throughout the history of this and other nations. Students then learn macroeconomic theory, how it has been applied in our country in the past, and how it is applied today. Students must formulate and support opinions on the morality of different economic theories.
Each unit in Economics lasts for 1-2 weeks.
| Unit 1, Essential Vocabulary |
| Unit 2, The Market and Government |
| Unit 3, Market Diagrams |
| Unit 4, Types of Businesses |
| Unit 5, Intro to Macro |
| Unit 6, Macro, Part 2 |
| Unit 7, Forms of Money |
| Unit 8, International Trade |
| Unit 9, The Flow of Money |
| Unit 10, The US Banking System |
| Unit 11, Stocks,Bonds and Finance |
| Unit 12, Incentives |
| Final |
Student Learning Outcomes:
The course builds reading, researching, writing, and critical thinking skills. Students learn how to formulate opinions and persuade peers of the validity of said opinions. The course adheres to UC, CA, and Common Core standards for 12th grade Economics.
Texts:
Prentice Hall Economics, Principles in Action ISBN:0-13-133487-5
Freakonomics
Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner
ISBN-13: 9780060731335
