Alabama Social Studies SS24.US1.20b
The Standard
- SS24.US1.20
- Compare and contrast the domestic agendas and accomplishments of Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson.
Describe the political reforms passed during the Progressive Era.
2024 Alabama Course of Study: Social Studies
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students describe changes to elections and voting, including direct election of senators, women's voting rights, and state initiatives and recalls. They explain how each change gave voters more say in government.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can say that state lawmakers chose U.S. senators before voters gained that choice. They can explain that the 19th Amendment barred voting restrictions based on sex and distinguish an initiative from a recall.
Common Misconceptions
- Students often think voters always elected U.S. senators directly. They may confuse an initiative, which puts a proposed law to a vote, with a recall, which puts an official's removal to a vote. Some assume every state adopted both.
How to Assess It
- On an exit ticket, ask: Who chose U.S. senators before and after the 17th Amendment, and what can voters do through a state recall?
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give groups ballots for a mock state initiative on a school funding law, then tally votes and announce the result.
Ask students to write: Why might voters prefer electing senators directly instead of letting state lawmakers choose them?
Give pairs cards for the 17th Amendment, 19th Amendment, initiative, and recall; have them match each to a description.
Print the 2024 California Proposition 36 ballot summary and have students identify the decision voters made.
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Related Standards
- SS24.5.2
Describe Progressive Era political reforms in both the United States and Alabama.
- SS24.US1.16a
Analyze how the growing awareness of economic and political corruption during the Gilded Age led to reform efforts on both state and national levels.
- SS24.US1.18
Describe the emergence of the Populist and Progressive movements and explain changes brought about by individual reformers and organizations.
- SS24.5.3
Describe Progressive Era social reforms in both the United States and Alabama.
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