American Government is designed to meet the scope and sequence requirements of the single-semester American government course. This title includes innovative features designed to enhance student learning, including Insider Perspective features and a Get Connected Module that shows students how they can get engaged in the political process. The book provides an important opportunity for students to learn the core concepts of American government and understand how those concepts apply to their lives and the world around them. American Government includes updated information on the 2016 presidential election.Senior Contributing AuthorsGlen Krutz (Content Lead), University of OklahomaSylvie Waskiewicz, PhD (Lead Editor)

Students will be expected to begin their basic understanding over the Articles of Confederation and the roots of the Constitution.

Congressman Abner J. Mikva joins UC BerkeleyŐs Harry Kreisler to discuss his distinguished career in the U.S. House of Representatives and the lesson he learned about politics and life. (57 min)

At OSPI, part of our mission is to prepare students for civic engagement throughout their lives. We believe our schools must engage and empower students, from an early age, with opportunities to participate in civil conversations, examples of effective civic engagement, and tools to find peaceful solutions to community problems.OSPI’s Social Studies and Social-Emotional Learning teams have put together resources for educators, families, and students to help with these difficult conversations.

Through this lesson, students will analyze the boundaries of presidential power through primary sources and complete a performance task.

As we get caught up in elections cycles and endless political debates, we can sometimes forget what democracy is and its institutions; how they work, their strengths and weaknesses. It's divided into 5 sections.

The state of democracy
The first part looks at the overall state of democracy across the world. After definining what a democracy is, we're look at how not all democracies are equal in measure, with some having more functioning democratic institutions than others. A useful recap of the other major types of government will feature.

Checks and balances
The separation of powers (legislative, executive and judicial) come from the premise that concentrating power in the hands of one person, party or government can have a detrimental effect on society. Hence why power and functions are distributed across separate and independent entities.

Thriving political culture
A democracy is more than voting once every x number of years. It's first of all making sure everyone who is elligible to vote can easily do so (obstacles are common). Political culture is also determined through the freedom to contest and protest.

Transparency, accountability & corruption
It is a given that a functioning democracy, with politicians elected by the people who get to decide how tax-payer money is spent, decision-making processes and accounting should be as transparant and corruption-free as possible. Unfortunately, lobbying and other forms of corruption are proven to be a hindrance on democracy as a whole.

Media: the fourth power
What is discussed in media outlets - from podcasts to TikTok videos, news articles to TV news bulletins - can have a significant impact on society, raising matters of public interest, forcing politicians to take position, debate and take action.
Hence the importance of a free press. One that is independent, can speak openly about any issue, criticise the government if need be, without fear of reprisal. It is also crucial that information is transparent, that journalists can access information on what governments are doing without hindrance.

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Part of the political science collection.

In this activity, students will identify and draw conclusions about the relationship between the legislative, executive and judicial branches by critically analyzing primary sources. Using the scale, they will decide whether the United States government more appropriately fits the concept of "separation of powers" or "shared powers." They will formulate an opinion about each document and place it on the scale accordingly, and support their opinions with specific evidence from the primary sources.

The "Future Ready" content focuses on civics and the United States Constitution. It explains the Constitution's purpose and how it was ratified. The objectives are to teach about power distribution between national and state governments, principles of the American constitutional federal republic, the role of law in the political system, government institutions created during the Revolution, and different levels of government in the US.Key terms related to the Constitution are highlighted, such as amendments, bicameral legislature, Bill of Rights, checks and balances, Declaration of Independence, federalism, Preamble, separation of powers, and unalienable rights.The content emphasizes the Constitution as the highest law and the relationship between the federal government and states. The Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments, is explained along with specific rights and protections. Important amendments like the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Ninth, and Tenth are described.The passage also covers the separation of powers and checks and balances in the American government to prevent any one branch from becoming too powerful. It concludes with questions to test understanding, including the purpose of the Preamble, the meaning of domestic tranquility, the provision for common defense, and the importance of the separation of powers.