Oklahoma Social Studies USH.P.2.4.C

Social StudiesGrades 9–12Social Studies Practices

The Standard

USH.P.2: Use interdisciplinary tools to acquire, apply, and evaluate content understanding of the four strands of social studies.
USH.P.2.4: Identify the principles of economic systems and develop an understanding of the benefits of a market system in local, national, and global settings.

Evaluate the impact, both intended and unintended, of government policies on market outcomes at national and global levels, past and present.

Oklahoma Academic Standards for Social Studies (2026) · USH.P.2.4

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students explain how a government policy can change prices, sales, and jobs at home and abroad. They identify what the policy was meant to do, what else happened, and what evidence supports each claim.
What Mastery Looks Like: Given a past or current tariff case, a student can explain a likely benefit for one group and a cost for another. They can trace a possible response from a trading partner and avoid blaming every price change on the tariff.
Common Misconceptions: Students may think foreign governments pay U.S. tariffs, rather than U.S. importers. They may assume a tariff helps every U.S. business or that other countries will not respond.
How to Assess It: Exit ticket: A tariff raises the cost of imported steel. Explain one intended effect on U.S. steel producers and one possible unintended effect on U.S. carmakers or overseas trade.

Lesson moves

Give groups 1930 tariff price cards for U.S. and imported goods, then have them calculate a shop's costs before and after the tariff.
Ask, 'Who gained and who lost from the 2018 steel tariffs in the United States and abroad? What evidence would settle it?'
Hand out steel producer, carmaker, farmer, and foreign buyer role cards; have groups trade before and after tariff and retaliation cards.
Bring in an imported item from a local store and a current tariff headline; have students sketch a possible path from policy to price.

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