American Government 2e
Core Code Alignment
Social Studies
Political Science
09060000001: American Government & Law
Political Science
09060000001: American Government & Law
Recommendation
Recommended Primary
Evaluation
No evaluation provided.
Educators Using These Materials
No educators found.
Rubric : Generic
Content
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alignment | The content of this resource aligns with appropriate grade-level core standards and is current, well-researched and referenced from reliable sources. | The content of this resource aligns with most grade-level core standards but will need supplementary materials to ensure coverage of all the objectives for this course. | The content of this resource aligns with a few grade-level core standards for a portion of the course. | The content of this resource does not align with standards and objectives for this course. | ||
| The content meets the state standards quite well. The only standard that is not addressed is fiscal operations of local governments. The eleven units align with the American Government standards; each lesson has a list of sources annotating the references used to write the text and provide the images. The text is updated only to 2016. | ||||||
| Scaffolding | Scaffolding supports for these materials are complex and challenging, engage learners from various skill levels, assist all students in enhancing conceptual understanding, and offer opportunities for students to share evidence and research. | Scaffolding supports for these materials engage learners from various skill levels and assist students in enhancing conceptual understanding. | Scaffolding supports for these materials engage learners from various skill levels. | Scaffolding supports for these materials do not engage learners. | ||
| Learning objectives are listed at the beginning of each lesson. Summary and formative assessment questions are provided for students at the end of each lesson. Each lesson can be downloaded in a pdf format. Vocabulary words are highlighted in the text; scrolling over the vocabulary word produces the definition. The Get Connected feature shows students ways they can become engaged in the U.S. political system. The Finding a Middle Ground feature highlights a compromise related to the chapter’s content area. The Insider Perspective feature shows students behind the scenes of the governmental system. Links to Learning allow students to connect to the most current data related to a subject in the lesson. The Milestone feature highlights a key historical moment related to the lesson topic. Students are able to filter the study guide to see just what they need. | ||||||
| Navigation | Students can navigate the material independently. Instructions are clear and understandable. | The material contains instructions that are understandable and easy to navigate. Students may need educator support to navigate material. | The material may be used with direct educator support but lacks clear instructions. | The instructions in this material are unclear, and navigation is difficult. | ||
| The table of contents is simple and easy to navigate. Text is easy to navigate through; there are both teacher and student views. The student view limits the amount of text on each screen. Each lesson can be downloaded in a pdf format. Resource links do not open in a new window but clicking on the browser back button takes the reader back to the original text. Students can also click forward or backward through the text. | ||||||
Accessibility
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physical Characteristics | The design of the material is ADA-compliant and can be utilized by all students. In physical terms, this material is durable, interactive, and provides high-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for all users. The material contains modern, up-to-date, and relatable visuals, including diverse groups of people. | In physical terms, this material is durable, interactive, and provides high-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for all users. | In physical terms, this material is fragile in construction, and provides limited tactile experiences for students. | In physical terms, this material is designed to be disposable and temporary. | ||
| The text is available in a variety of formats, from a physical book to online access. Further, the instructor can access the pages in Google Docs format, if desired. Students can highlight text in different colors and then access a tool that allows them to quickly review their highlighted text throughout the text. | ||||||
| Technical Standards | The material goes above and beyond meeting all the technical standards, ensures student data privacy is safeguarded, and can be easily installed or accessed without technical assistance. Licensing information is clearly stated in the description. | The material meets all the requirements of federal and state laws, along with the accepted technical standards (ISTE Standards and VPAT Compliance). Additional technical specifications and limitations, including hardware requirements, bandwidth demands, student data privacy, and software/ web access restrictions, are adequately noted in the description. The design of the material allows for error-free installation or access without purchasing additional components. | The material is limited by specifications requiring additional materials, technical assistance, hardware, software, or infrastructure. Student data privacy could be at risk. Resources within the material end after a trial period. | Student data privacy is at risk. | ||
| The text opens on a variety of browsers and can be downloaded as a pdf for offline reading. The additional student resources and tools seemed seamless as well. | ||||||
| Adaptability | The material is currently relevant and adaptable for teacher and student use in individualized or group instructional settings across multiple content areas. The material can be customized for the needs of diverse learners. | The material is currently adaptable for a teacher or student to use in a limited instructional setting across a few content areas. The material can be utilized by diverse learners (not customizable). | The material has some features adaptable for students in at least one content area. The material has limited options to address the needs of diverse learners. | The material is not adaptable or easily incorporated into various educational settings or with various diverse learners. | ||
| Teachers have a variety of options for format, including assigning content in Google Docs and in Canvas. That means that they would be able to edit and augment content easily if they used those additional features. Otherwise, there isn’t a way to directly edit or customize the text itself. | ||||||
Pedagogy
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instructional Support | The material provides multiple examples and strong support to educators of ways to deliver instruction. These may include: -Scaffolding Lesson Plans, Personalized/Differentiated Instruction, Experiential Learning, Concept Mapping, Questioning Techniques, or Family Involvement. Furthermore, this material has content that can be problem/project-based, with incorporated skills and concepts that are integrated with all disciplines equally to support student sense-making. (Transdisciplinary/ Interdisciplinary Content Integration) | The material provides some examples to educators of ways to deliver instruction. It contains a few of the following: Scaffolding Lesson Plans, Personalized/Differentiated Instruction, Experiential Learning, Concept Mapping, Questioning Techniques, or Family Involvement. | The material contains limited instructional support on using the material with diverse groups of students, various skill levels, and student needs. | The material does not provide instructional support or examples for the educator. | ||
| There are a wide variety of instructor support aids included when a free account is created with the publisher. They include a getting started guide, and the ability to easily create a Canvas or Blackboard course. There are also PowerPoint slides available for each chapter, with more content, particularly visuals, to accompany the text. There is also access to and OER group that shares additional resources that are created by others specifically for this text. | ||||||
| Supplemental Resources | The material provides a wide variety of supplemental resources that are evidence-based and are linked to real-world circumstances and current events. | The material references numerous available supplemental resources. | The material references some available supplemental resources. | The material does not refer to any supplemental resources. | ||
| There are guides to help students be more successful, including reading and notetaking strategies, as well as time management strategies. There is also a study guide that students can access as they read the text. Some supplemental resources including photographs and graphs are included as part of the text. Links to other websites, games, and articles are included in the text as well. Five appendices include historical documents and court cases. Suggestions for Further Study list books, films, and online resources to help students further explore the chapter topic. | ||||||
| Assessments | The material contains a variety of formative and summative assessments aligned with Utah Core Standards, Personalized Competency-Based Learning, and Universal Design for Learning. It provides appropriate intervention strategies that lead to observable performance and real-world experiences for students. The assessments are ADA-compliant. | The material contains summative assessments aligned with Utah Core Standards with few interventions and is ADA-compliant. | The material contains a limited number of assessments without intervention strategies but is ADA-compliant. | The material does not provide assessment materials. | ||
| Multiple-choice and short-answer Review Questions provide opportunities to recall and test the information students learn throughout each module. End-of-chapter Critical Thinking Questions encourage deeper reflection on the chapter concepts and themes. The answers to odd numbered questions are available at the end of the text. | ||||||
Culture of Learning and Belonging
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bias Free | This material is free from bias and is in compliance with all relevant federal and state laws, rules, and regulations, as listed in the next “2-Adequate” section for this item. Furthermore, this material focuses on shared identity and includes the unique characteristics & cultural differences of students in Utah. (53E-4-204.1) This material supports civic and character education. (53G-10-204) | This material is neutral and is in compliance with the laws, rules, and regulations below: -It can be used by all students regardless of sex, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or membership in any other protected class, such as ethnicity, or disability, as described in (R277-328). -This material supports educators to be in compliance with (53G-10-202.4), where they may not use their positions to endorse, promote, or disparage a particular religious, denominational, sectarian, agnostic, or atheistic belief or viewpoint. -The material is free from discrimination and does not support stereotyping of character traits, including hard work ethic. (53G-10-206) -It is free from advertising, e-commerce, or political interest and is in compliance with the law and community standards. | This material may be interpreted as biased. Or promoting advertising, e-commerce, or political interest. Or maybe considered to regard or treat some groups unfairly. | This material does not comply with federal and state laws, rules, and regulations. This material is biased and favors a point of view that may be distracting to the educational experience of students. | ||
| Text presents differing viewpoints on policy and issues. Links are given for students to explore pros and cons of some issues. Multiple viewpoints are represented, but the text is directed at younger learners, so it tends to lean a bit more to the current liberal side of the political spectrum. Issues of gender, gender identity, and race seem to be presented in the same “slightly left of center” way. | ||||||
| Cultural Awareness | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Inclusive Components | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Shared Values and Character Traits | This item has not been graded. | |||||
UTAH STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
250 East 500 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84111-3204
Phone: 801.538.7807