National Standards for Civics and Government

About National Standards for Civics and Government

National Standards for Civics and Government was developed by the Center for Civic Education with support from the U.S. Department of Education and The Pew Charitable Trusts. Three thousand individuals and organizations participated in the two-year project to identify what students should know and be able to do in the fields of civics & government when they complete grades 4, 8, and 12.

National Standards for Civics and Government has been used as a model for state curricular frameworks throughout the country. The United States Department of State is distributing an international edition of the Standards to other nations through its Public Affairs Offices and other agencies throughout the world.

The content standards are organized around five significant questions:

• What are civic life, politics, and government?
• What are the foundations of the American political system?
• How does the government established by the Constitution embody the purposes, values, and principles of American democracy?
• What is the relationship of the United States to the other nations and to world affairs?
• What are the roles of the citizen in American democracy?