Robert Cushman Murphy History Department

“The function of the historian is neither to love the past nor to emancipate himself from the past, but to master and understand it as the key to the understanding of the present.”
E. H. Carr (Historian and Writer)

History is a vital part of any liberal arts education, providing students with a perspective of events that have shaped the contemporary world. It is the objective of the History program to prepare students to become thoughtful individuals whose academic background and skills will enable them to function successfully in an increasingly complex, multi-cultural, and changing world. The social studies program must provide students with an intellectual framework of knowledge, the skills necessary to process information, and the capacity to understand and appreciate people from backgrounds and cultures different from their own. Further, the program is intended to develop an informed, discriminating citizenship essential to effective participation in the democratic processes of governance and the fulfillment of the nation's democratic ideals.

Teachers and Program of Study:
Tracy Beauchamp- AP World History Program, United States History Program
John Black- United States History Program
Kristen Cordella- United States History Program
Tim Ehlers- United States History Program
Charles Fernandes- United States History Program
Jeff Harris-Chairperson- United States History Program
John Neuberger- World History Program
John Strub- World History Program

Programs of Study

Students entering secondary school continue their social studies education with a two-year program in Grades Seven and Eight that focuses on American social history. A New York State
assessment of student proficiency will be administered at the end of GRADE EIGHT.

New York State requires that students continue history in Grades Nine and Ten with a general study of global history and geography. At the end of grade ten, students must pass the New York State Regents exam covering the content of both years of study.

The following chart explains the Three Village Central School District’s Social Studies Curriculum:

Essentials of Learning
United States History
Social Studies – Grade 7
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
Social:
• Understand the various cultural aspects of the Iroquois and other Eastern Woodlands groups, as well as Native Americans of North, Central,
and South America. Includes the study of human culture and settlement within the Americas.
• Understand that through European exploration and colonization, a new form of
cultural interaction occurred between Native Americans, Africans, and Europeans.
Political:
• Become familiar with the structure of
the U.S. government and the three branch
system.
• Recognize that the concepts of civic life, politics and government are supported by legal, political, and historical documents such as the
Mayflower Compact, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.
• Understand that the establishment of colonial governments led to the development of representative democracy for the nation.
• Become familiar with the New York State Constitution.
• Examine the development of political parties in the context of the development of the new U.S. government.
Economic:
• Examine the importance of wealth in the development of emerging nation states and
how the quest for gold led to exploration and discovery.
• Explore the relationship between land and wealth in the New World.
• Understand the interaction between the American colonies and the mother country
(mercantilism, triangle trade, taxation, and revolution).
• Contrast the impact of the Industrial revolution on the North and the South.
Geographic:
• Understand geographical factors that led to settlement patterns and future movements of peoples living in the Americas.
• Identify geographic features that contributed to the development of various lifestyles in the New England, Middle, and Southern colonies.
• Use maps and current technologies to understand basic map skills for the world and the United States (place, movement, Interaction with people, location, and climate).
• Examine the changes of the physical boundaries of the U.S. as a result of Manifest Destiny and the impact of territorial expansion on the issue of slavery.
Historic:
• Study the chronology of America from pre-Columbian times through the events leading to the Civil War.

Essentials of Learning
United States History
Social studies – Grade 8
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
Social:
• Discover the importance of cultural diffusion through immigration within American history.
• Examine the rising expectations of minorities in 20th century American society.
• Understand the relationship between social problems and reform movements in the Industrial Age.
Political:
• Recognize the changes in government philosophy from lassiez-faire to an evolvement of government regulation.
• Gain an appreciation of the suffrage movements that have occurred throughout American history.
• Examine the change in the role of responsibilities of citizens.
Economic:
• Understand the contributing factors to the Great Depression.
• Examine the impact of technology on the economic development of the United States.
• Recognize the shift from agricultural to an industrial economy
Geographic:
• Discover the political boundaries of the United States and the world abroad
• Understand the relationship and economic impact of geography on economic development of the United States.
Historic:
• Understand the threats to democracy and the consequent responses.
• Examine Foreign Policy choices of the United States.
• Examine the post-war world role of the United States as a global superpower

Essentials of Learning
Global History &Geography I & II
Social Studies Grades 9 & 10
Grade 9: Prehistory to 1750 Grade 10: 1750 to the Present
Upon completion of this two-year course, students will be able to:
Historic
Understand key themes in world history including the following:
• Belief Systems
• Change
• Choice
• Conflict
• Cultural and intellectual life
• Diversity
• Empathy
• Identity
• Imperialism
• Interdependence
• Cultural Diffusion
• Urbanization
• Turning Points
Geographic
Use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the geography of the interdependent world in which
we live—local, national, and global - including the distribution of people, places, and environments over the Earth's surface.
• The world in spatial terms
• Places and regions
• Physical systems
• Human systems
• Environmental and society
• Uses of geography
Economic
Use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of how the world develops economic systems and associated institutions to allocate scarce resources, how major decision-making units
function in world economies, and how an economy solves the scarcity problem through market and non-market economies.
• Economic systems
• Factors of production
• Needs and wants
• Scarcity
• Science and technology
Political
Use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the following:
• Examination and comparison of basic political institutions and their origins.
• Analyze how nations guarantee human rights
and provide for human needs.
• Identify and analyze the advantages and
disadvantages of various governmental institutions.