ND Curriculum Initiative

Subject & Standards

Needs Assessment/Rational

Working at the Turtle Mountain Community High School for 32 years, I’ve observed and participated in curriculum development. Most concerns were knowledge-based; analyzing what skills and knowledge students were lacking. We have added Geography and Tribal Government and wrote plans of action for each of the Social Studies courses. After working in teams (K-12) in 2001, we found that there is a major gap in economic knowledge in the community.
With 67% unemployment of eligible workers and 60% of families at or below the poverty level on the Turtle Mountain Reservation (Bureau of Indian Affairs, 2003), I see a need to incorporate economics at the High School level with an emphasis on money management and investments. A lack of economics knowledge is clearly shown in the 9th & 10th Grade CTBS tests. Sixteen (16) of 36 questions in the 9th Grade CTBS and 17 of 36 questions in the 10th Grade CTBS directly related to an understanding of economics. Our students scored in the 38.6%ile at the 9th Grade level and 43.4% at the 10th Grade level (Belcourt District #7).
I believe most young people learn about planning for retirement, investments, loans and savings from their parents. Our community does not have the economic role-modeling because of the meager wages and high unemployment rates of the parents. Thus, the cycle of poverty continues generation after generation. This is where the school needs to intervene and help break the cycle of economic illiteracy and government dependency.
The Turtle Mountain Community College is providing opportunities to break the cycle, but they service a small percentage of the population. Now that our Social Studies Department has researched the CTBS and curriculum (K-12), we are trying to sell the idea of Economics as a required course in the 9th grade. There are a number of standards for Civics/American Government and Economics that need to be addressed to satisfy this deficiency - Standard 2 12.2.2, Standard 3 12.3.1 & 12.3.2, Standard 4 12.4.1 & 12.4.3, Standard 5 12.5.2 and Standard 9 12.9.4.
During the last 10 years, I have implemented a short Economics Unit in American Government with a focus on Investment for the Future. The only technology used was research of Stock Market companies. Most of the portfolio is done by hand in a project-based format. I want to expand the unit to an inquiry-based unit while linking the information to government policies. I feel requiring more technology-based research will empower the students on how they can access this information and become more prepared to be a responsible and achieving citizen when they live in the real-adult world.
I am a believer in an interdisciplinary approach to teaching. As a Social Studies teacher I strive to include Vocational career planning, Mathematics,Music, Language Arts Research into American Government. Inserting Economics/Stock Market into the curriculum allows students to apply their Math and Technology skills. This additional rationale motivates me to expand this Unit.

Understandings & Goals

Enduring Understanding: 1. Students will understand the relationship between the economy and government policies.  2. Students will become economically literate in their personal use of money.
Goal(s): 1. Students will explore avenues of money management in relation to government policy.  2. Students will be empowered economically by gaining a better understanding of planning for the future.

Questions Answered

Essential questions: 1. How can I (the student) plan for my future and retirement with any income I may have?  2. How can I responsibly make loans, investments and savings in my best interests?  3. How can I become a responsible voter by understanding how government policy affects the income of the worker? 4. What careers can I utilize the information presented in this unit on economics/government policy?
Objectives: 1. After analyzing data collected about stock market investments, students will appraise investment profits and document them every week on their portfolio graph allowing them to rethink and revise their view of economic stability.  2. When comparing and contrasting the effects of government economic policy in five ways, students will demonstrate a better understanding of how to vote for candidates that pursue their interests.  3. By practicing their math and technology skills, students will become more proficient in research and be able to complete a line and/or circle graph organized in a lengthy portfolio with at least 5 criteria from the group’s rubric.

Assessment

What quiz and test items (e.g. simple content-focused questions that require a single, best answer) will provide evidence of understanding? 1. Essay tests will be used to assess the impact government policy has on their pocketbooks.  2. Short answer quizzes will assess their knowledge of economic terms and strategies.  3. Graphing of portfolio profits/losses will test their knowledge of technology and mathematics.  4. Analysis of “cooperative learning rubrics” as they go through the step-by-step process of the of the portfolio. 5. Students will have input on the basic structure of the rubric. 6.  Informal check of group progress on portfolio will occur with weekly conferencing.
What academic prompts (e.g. open-ended questions or problems that require students to think critically and then to prepare a response / product / performance) will provide evidence of understanding? 1. Students will respond to simple knowledge of “what they know about the economy” and “what they feel they need to know” to become responsible tax-paying citizens.  2. Students will analyze in essay form ways the government influences the economy and its impact on their daily lives.  3. Students will take an income and examine the various strategies for investment that best suits their needs and future security.
What performance tasks and projects (e.g. complex challenges that are authentic, mirror the real world and require a performance or product) will you include that will provide evidence of student understanding?  1. Students will submit a group/team portfolio illustrating research of the history and economic growth of five stock companies. 2. Reasons for their selection will be incorporated in their group portfolio. 3. Also, included will be a profit graph spreadsheet that will mirror the progress of their investment.  4. Research evidence of current government policies and world events found through websites must be included that could influence their portfolio. 5. Students are to correlate the two with an explanation why.
What other evidence (e.g. observations, work samples, dialogues, student self-assessment) of understanding will you collect?  1. Discussion of current events with observations of the stock market will be used.  2. A rubric for each step of the portfolio will be monitered and evaluated by the student.  3. E-mail lists or listservs will be used in electronic discussion groups to provide a forum for discussion of points to consider when setting up their investment portfolio.

Instructional Strategies

Inquiry-based learning is the key tool used when developing interest and a focus on what economic information will be presented. Students will investigate a working definition of economics by describing what they know and what they would like to know about economics of investment.
Some problem-based strategies will be applied as students categorize different investment tools to create the best possible solution for improved money management. A round-robin collaborative effort will help disseminate information about what topics will be evaluated in this unit.
To close the gap between what is known and what they desire to learn, students will design a project-based portfolio. Students will correlate the needs of their daily lives with government economic policies. Students will evaluate stock companies and they will be exposed to economic careers that they can tie into their vision of a self-supporting life.