Curriculum Outline: A key element of the Course Description is the curriculum outline, which summarizes the course specifications. It is reproduced below. Pay close attention to the percentages in the outline, as these numbers indicate approximately what percentage of the multiple-choice section of the exam will come from a particular topic. The free-response section of the exam will test students in some combination of the six major categories outlined below. The outline, though by no means an exhaustive list of topics or the preferred order of topics, should guide your planning for teaching the course. Content Area Percentage Goals of Exam (multiple-choice section)
I. Constitutional Underpinnings of United States Government....................................... 5–15%
A. Considerations that influenced the formulation and adoption of the Constitution
B. Separation of powers
C. Federalism
D. Theories of democratic government
II. Political Beliefs and Behaviors........................................................................................ 10–20%
A. Beliefs that citizens hold about their government and its leaders
B. Processes by which citizens learn about politics
C. The nature, sources, and consequences of public opinion
D. The ways in which citizens vote and otherwise participate in political life
E. Factors that influence citizens to differ from one another in terms of political beliefs and behaviors
III. Political Parties, Interest Groups, and Mass Media....................................................... 10–20%
A. Political parties and elections
1. Functions
2. Organization
3. Development
4. Effects on the political process
5. Electoral laws and systems
B. Interest groups, including political action committees (PACs)
1. The range of interests represented
2. The activities of interest groups
3. The effects of interest groups on the political process
4. The unique characteristics and roles of PACs in the political process
C. The mass media
1. The functions and structures of the media
2. The impacts of media on politics
IV. Institutions of National Government: The Congress, the Presidency, the Bureaucracy, and the Federal
Courts....................................................................... 35–45%
A. The major formal and informal institutional arrangements of power
B. Relationships among these four institutions and varying balances of power
C. Linkages between institutions and the following:
1. Public opinion and voters
2. Interest groups
3. Political parties
4. The media
5. Subnational governments
V. Public Policy .................................................................................................................... 5–15%
A. Policymaking in a federal system
B. The formation of policy agendas
C. The role of institutions in the enactment of policy
D. The role of the bureaucracy and the courts in policy implementation and interpretation
E. Linkages between policy processes and the following:
1. Political institutions and federalism
2. Political parties
3. Interest groups
4. Public opinion
5. Elections
6. Policy networks
VI. Civil Rights and Civil Liberties....................................................................................... 5–15%
A. The development of civil liberties and civil rights by judicial interpretation
B. Knowledge of substantive rights and liberties
C. The impact of the Fourteenth Amendment on the constitutional development of rights and liberties
I. Constitutional Underpinnings of United States Government....................................... 5–15%
A. Considerations that influenced the formulation and adoption of the Constitution
B. Separation of powers
C. Federalism
D. Theories of democratic government
II. Political Beliefs and Behaviors........................................................................................ 10–20%
A. Beliefs that citizens hold about their government and its leaders
B. Processes by which citizens learn about politics
C. The nature, sources, and consequences of public opinion
D. The ways in which citizens vote and otherwise participate in political life
E. Factors that influence citizens to differ from one another in terms of political beliefs and behaviors
III. Political Parties, Interest Groups, and Mass Media....................................................... 10–20%
A. Political parties and elections
1. Functions
2. Organization
3. Development
4. Effects on the political process
5. Electoral laws and systems
B. Interest groups, including political action committees (PACs)
1. The range of interests represented
2. The activities of interest groups
3. The effects of interest groups on the political process
4. The unique characteristics and roles of PACs in the political process
C. The mass media
1. The functions and structures of the media
2. The impacts of media on politics
IV. Institutions of National Government: The Congress, the Presidency, the Bureaucracy, and the Federal
Courts....................................................................... 35–45%
A. The major formal and informal institutional arrangements of power
B. Relationships among these four institutions and varying balances of power
C. Linkages between institutions and the following:
1. Public opinion and voters
2. Interest groups
3. Political parties
4. The media
5. Subnational governments
V. Public Policy .................................................................................................................... 5–15%
A. Policymaking in a federal system
B. The formation of policy agendas
C. The role of institutions in the enactment of policy
D. The role of the bureaucracy and the courts in policy implementation and interpretation
E. Linkages between policy processes and the following:
1. Political institutions and federalism
2. Political parties
3. Interest groups
4. Public opinion
5. Elections
6. Policy networks
VI. Civil Rights and Civil Liberties....................................................................................... 5–15%
A. The development of civil liberties and civil rights by judicial interpretation
B. Knowledge of substantive rights and liberties
C. The impact of the Fourteenth Amendment on the constitutional development of rights and liberties