Alabama Social Studies SS24.US2.11a
The Standard
- SS24.US2.11
- Analyze how cultural changes, economic growth, and government action during the Truman and Eisenhower administrations shaped the daily lives of Americans.
Evaluate the effects of the arms and space races on the growth of the military-industrial complex.
2024 Alabama Course of Study: Social Studies
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students explain how Cold War competition increased federal spending on weapons and space missions. They trace how that money reached private contractors and judge its effects on jobs, technology, and political influence.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can use missile production and Apollo contracts to show why aerospace firms grew. They can explain one benefit, such as new jobs, and one concern, such as contractors pushing for more spending.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think NASA was part of the military or that space missions only produced weapons. They may leave private companies and Congress out of their explanation of the military-industrial complex.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: How did missile production and Apollo missions help aerospace firms grow? Give one benefit and one concern tied to federal contracts.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give groups cards labeled Congress, federal agencies, aerospace firms, workers, missiles, and Apollo spacecraft; have them arrange two funding chains.
Ask students to write: Did the jobs and technology from Cold War contracts outweigh their costs and the influence contractors gained?
Play contract match: students pair missile and Apollo project cards with agency and contractor cards, then explain where the funding came from.
Show a NASA contract award notice; have students identify the contractor, dollar amount, and work, then compare it with a defense contract notice.
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Related Standards
- SS24.WH.10
Evaluate the economic, global, political, and social consequences of World War II.
- SS24.WH.7a
Assess the effects of trench warfare and new military technologies on combat during World War I.
- SS24.WH.15a
Explain the development of new technologies and their significance in the nuclear arms race and space race.
- SS24.US2.8
Analyze the domestic, economic, and civil rights impact of World War II on United States society.
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