The student will apply social science skills to understand economic systems by

1. identifying the basic economic questions encountered by all economic systems;
2. comparing the characteristics of traditional, free market, command, and mixed economies, as described by Adam Smith and Karl Marx; and
3. evaluating the impact of the government’s role in the economy on individual economic freedoms.

The student will apply social science skills to understand the role of government in the Virginia and United States economies by

1. describing the provision of government goods and services that are not readily produced by the market;
   
2. describing government’s establishment and maintenance of the rules and institutions in which markets operate, including the establishment and enforcement of property rights, contracts, consumer rights, labor-management relations, environmental protection, and competition in the marketplace;
   
3. investigating and describing the types and purposes of taxation that are used by local, state, and federal governments to pay for services provided by the government;
   
4. analyzing how Congress can use fiscal policy to stabilize the economy;
   
5. describing the effects of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy on price stability, employment, and the economy; and
   
6. evaluating the trade-offs in government decisions.

The student will apply social science skills to understand political and social conditions in the United States during the early twenty-first century by

1. assessing the development of and changes in domestic policies, with emphasis on the impact of the role the United States Supreme Court played in defining a constitutional right to privacy, affirming equal rights, and upholding the rule of law;
   
2. evaluating and explaining the changes in foreign policies and the role of the United States in a world confronted by international terrorism, with emphasis on the American response to 9/11 (September 11, 2001);
   
3. evaluating the evolving and changing role of government, including its role in the American economy; and
   
4. explaining scientific and technological changes and evaluating their impact on American culture