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| Core Learning Goal: 4 |
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The student will demonstrate an understanding of the historical development and current status of economic principles, institutions, and processes needed to be effective citizens, consumers, and workers.
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| Expectation: 1 |
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The student will demonstrate an understanding of economic principles, institutions, and processes required to formulate government policy.
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| Indicator: 4.1.2 |
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The student will utilize the principles of economic cost and benefits and opportunity cost to analyze the effectiveness of government policy in achieving socio-economic goals.
Assessment Limits:
- Competing socio-economic goals such as equity, security, productivity, national defense, environmental protection, and educational quality that cause governments to make choices about how to allocate resources.
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In this lesson students examine socio-economic goals and examples of government actions. They also consider the importance of competing goals. |
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Students will analyze evidence of society's socio-economic goals. |
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Students will prioritize goals and identify the opportunity costs of limited
government funding. |
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Teacher Resource: Economic Goals of the United States |
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Overhead Transparency: EVIDENCE - Inflation |
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Student Handouts:
- EVIDENCE - Minimum Wage
- EVIDENCE - Unemployment Compensation
- EVIDENCE - Welfare to Work
- EVIDENCE - Henry Ford's Assembly Line
- EVIDENCE - Superfund
- EVIDENCE - Empowerment Zones
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- Ask students to brainstorm some socio-economic goals of the government and society. List their responses on the chalkboard, and have students copy this list. See the Teacher Resource sheet for sample responses.
- Model how students should evaluate evidence about economic goals. Show a transparency of EVIDENCE - Inflation. Explain that this description can be used as evidence to tell us something about society's goals. In order to analyze this evidence, have students briefly summarize what they read about inflation. Ask the class if the evidence supports any goals on their "Socio-economic Goals" list. Add price stability if necessary.
- Inform students that they will work in small groups to examine other evidence of socio-economic goals. Explain that each group will be given a written description of an event or government action. The groups will:
- Describe how the event/action relates to a socio-economic goal.
- Decide how important that goal is to society.
Ask students if they have any questions before dividing them into groups.
- Distribute one Evidence handout to each group. Give the groups about 10 minutes to read their evidence. Call on each group to describe their evidence and explain how it relates to a socio-economic goal. Add to the "Socio-economic Goals" list if necessary as each group reports.
- Have students rank the revised goals in order of importance. Ask:
- Why does the government have to prioritize these goals?
- How does the government decide which goals to fund?
Lead the discussion into the government's budgetary process.
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Have students answer this Brief Constructed Response item:
- What are the opportunity costs of funding only your #1 goal?
- Explain how the benefits of your choice outweigh the opportunity costs.
- Include examples and details to support your answer.
Use the Social Studies Rubric to score student responses.
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 Print Version: Government Lesson Plan (Acrobat 27k)
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