Oklahoma Social Studies USH.C.8.1.A
The Standard
- USH.C.8
- Analyze the rationale and impact of foreign and domestic policies of the late 20th century.
- USH.C.8.1
- Evaluate the foreign and domestic policies, as well as the legacy of President Jimmy Carter.
Examine the economic challenges of the 1970s, including stagflation (characterized by slow economic growth, high unemployment, and rising inflation) which affected the Carter administration.
Oklahoma Academic Standards for Social Studies (2026) · USH.C.8.1
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students explain how prices could rise while unemployment stayed high and growth slowed in the 1970s. They connect those problems to family budgets and the hard choices Carter faced.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can use economic graphs to spot when high inflation, high unemployment, and weak growth occurred together. They can explain why a plan to slow price increases might put more jobs at risk.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think inflation and unemployment cannot rise together. They may blame Carter for the whole decade or assume oil prices were the only cause. Some confuse inflation with high prices, rather than prices continuing to rise.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: “Prices are rising, unemployment is high, and the economy is barely growing.” Ask students to name the problem and explain why it was hard for Carter to address.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs printed 1970s inflation, unemployment, and growth graphs; have them highlight years when high prices and weak job markets overlapped.
Ask students to write two sentences answering: “Why might voters blame Carter for economic problems that began before he took office?”
Read three short news blurbs about rising prices, layoffs, and slow sales; have teams match each blurb to an economic measure.
Give students a $100 weekly budget, then raise the gas bill from $10 to $25; ask what they would cut.
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Related Standards
- USH.C.6.3.I
Analyze the political and economic impact of President Nixon’s foreign policies including détente and the opening of China.
- USH.C.8.1.C
Explain reaction to the OPEC oil embargo and issuance of the Carter Doctrine regarding national interests in the Persian Gulf.
- USH.C.8.1
Evaluate the foreign and domestic policies, as well as the legacy of President Jimmy Carter.
- USH.C.7.3.E
Analyze the political and economic impact of President Nixon’s foreign policies including détente and the opening of China.
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