Preparation Manual

Section 3: Overview and Exam Framework
Social Studies 7–12 (232)

Exam Overview

Table outlining the exam format, number of questions, time, and passing score.

Exam Name	TExES Social Studies 7–12
Exam Code	232
Time	5 hours
Number of Questions	140 selected-response questions
Format	Computer-administered test (CAT)

The TExES Social Studies 7–12 (232) exam is designed to assess whether an examinee has the requisite knowledge and skills that an entry-level educator in this field in Texas public schools must possess. The 140 selected-response questions are based on the Social Studies 7–12 exam framework. Questions on this exam range from grades 7–12. The exam may contain questions that do not count toward the score. Your final scaled score will be based only on scored questions.

The Standards

Domains and Competencies

Table outlining test content and subject weighting by domain.

Domain	Domain Title	Approx. Percentage of Exam	Standards Assessed
I	World History	15%	Social Studies 7–12 IV
II	U.S. History	20%	Social Studies 7–12 IV
III	Texas History	13%	Social Studies 7–12 IV
IV	Geography, Culture and the Behavioral and Social Sciences	13%	Social Studies 7–12 V, IX
V	Government and Citizenship	13%	Social Studies 7–12 VII– VIII
VI	Economics and Science, Technology and Society	13%	Social Studies 7–12 VI, X
VII	Social Studies Foundations, Skills, Research and Instruction	13%	Social Studies 7–12 I–III

The content covered by this exam is organized into broad areas of content called domains. Each domain covers one or more of the educator standards for this field. Within each domain, the content is further defined by a set of competencies. Each competency is composed of two major parts:

• The competency statement, which broadly defines what an entry-level educator in this field in Texas public schools should know and be able to do.
• The descriptive statements, which describe in greater detail the knowledge and skills eligible for testing.

Domain I—World History

Competency 001—(Ancient World Civilizations): The teacher understands significant historical events and developments in ancient world civilizations, factors influencing the development of ancient world civilizations and major characteristics and contributions of ancient world civilizations.

The beginning teacher:

1. Analyzes the influence of various factors (e.g., geography, processes of spatial exchange [diffusion], development of agriculture) on the development of early and classical civilizations.
2. Demonstrates knowledge of individuals, events and issues that shaped the development of early and classical civilizations.
3. Understands major political, economic and cultural developments in and interactions among the civilizations of Africa (e.g., Egypt, sub-Sahara), the Mediterranean basin (e.g., Greece, Rome), Mesoamerica (e.g., Maya), Andean South America (e.g., Inca tradition), Middle and Near East and Asia (e.g., China, India, Japan).
4. Applies knowledge of the location, political organization, cultural characteristics, and contributions and influence of ancient civilizations.

Competency 002—(World History from 600 A.D. to 1450 A.D.): The teacher understands significant historical events, developments and traditional points of reference in world history from 600 A.D. to 1450 A.D.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of individuals, events, issues and traditional points of reference that shaped the development of world civilizations from 600 A.D. to 1450 A.D. (e.g., Mongol conquests, the founding of Islam, Charlemagne, the Norman Conquest, Silk Road).
2. Demonstrates knowledge of major developments in and interactions among the civilizations of Africa (e.g., Egypt, sub-Sahara), Mesoamerica (e.g., Aztec tradition), Andean South America (e.g., Inca tradition), Europe (including Western and Eastern) and Asia (e.g., Islamic civilization, China, India, Japan).
3. Knows how new political, economic and social systems evolved in Western Europe after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire (e.g., feudalism, manorialism).
4. Understands the influence exerted by the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church in medieval Europe.
5. Compares social, political, economic and religious aspects of medieval Europe with previous civilizations.
6. Demonstrates knowledge of the political, economic, religious and social impact of the Crusades and other religious interactions.

Competency 003—(World History from 1450 A.D. to 1750 A.D.): The teacher understands significant historical events, developments and traditional points of reference in world history from 1450 A.D. to 1750 A.D.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of individuals, events, issues and traditional points of reference that shaped the development of world civilizations from 1450 A.D. to 1750 A.D. (e.g., the fall of Constantinople, Martin Luther, the Black Death, Leonardo da Vinci).
2. Demonstrates knowledge of major developments in and interactions among the civilizations of Africa (e.g., Egypt, sub-Sahara), the Americas (e.g., Inca, Aztec, Maya), Western and Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Asia (e.g., China, India, Japan).
3. Understands the importance of the European Renaissance and Reformation eras in shaping the modern world.
4. Understands the causes of European expansion and the effects of that expansion on European and non-European societies (e.g., Columbian Exchange, Atlantic slave trade).
5. Analyzes the impact of political, economic and cultural imperialism (e.g., conquest of the Aztec, expansion of the Ottoman Empire) on both colonizers and the colonized.

Competency 004—(World History from 1750 A.D. to the Present): The teacher understands significant historical events and developments in world history from 1750 A.D. to the present.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of developments, events, issues and interactions that shaped the development of world civilizations from 1750 A.D. to the present (e.g., the Great Depression, the Holocaust, decolonization).
2. Analyzes the causes and effects of major political revolutions and independence movements of the eighteenth through the twentieth centuries (e.g., the American Revolution, the French Revolution, Napoleon, Simón Bolívar, Latin American wars of independence, Russian Revolution).
3. Understands the impact of political, economic and cultural expansion (e.g., rise of the British Empire, Japanese imperialism).
4. Analyzes the causes and effects of the Industrial Revolution.
5. Demonstrates knowledge of the impact of totalitarianism in the twentieth century (e.g., fascist Italy, Nazi Germany, Soviet Union).
6. Analyzes the causes and effects of World War I and World War II.
7. Understands significant events related to the twentieth-century spread and fall of communism (e.g., Cold War, Korean War, Vietnam War) and the post-Cold War world (e.g., globalization, radical Islamic fundamentalism, terrorism).
8. Analyzes the influence of significant individuals of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries (e.g., Charles Darwin, Mohandas Gandhi, Adolf Hitler, Nelson Mandela, Mao Zedong, Mother Teresa).

 

Domain II—U.S. History

Competency 005—(Exploration and Colonization): The teacher understands significant historical events and developments in the exploration and colonization of North America and the development of colonial society.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands the causes and effects of European exploration and colonization of North America, including interactions with American Indian populations.
2. Demonstrates knowledge of individuals, events and issues that shaped the development of colonial society, including interactions among Europeans, Africans and American Indians.
3. Analyzes political, economic, religious and social reasons for establishment of the thirteen colonies.
4. Demonstrates knowledge of the foundations of representative government in the United States (e.g., ways in which the Mayflower Compact, the Iroquois Confederacy, the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, and the Virginia House of Burgesses contributed to the growth of representative government).
5. Analyzes the influence of various factors on the development of colonial society (e.g., geography, slavery, processes of spatial exchange [diffusion]).

Competency 006—(Revolutionary Era and the Early Years of the Republic): The teacher understands significant historical events and developments of the Revolutionary Era and the early years of the Republic, including the foundations of representative government in the United States.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of individuals, events and issues that shaped the development of U.S. society during the Revolutionary Era and early years of the Republic.
2. Analyzes causes of the American Revolution (e.g., mercantilism, British policies following the French and Indian War).
3. Understands significant political and economic issues of the Revolutionary Era (e.g., taxation without representation, enforcement of the Navigation Acts, Lexington, Concord, winter at Valley Forge, Treaty of Paris of 1783).
4. Demonstrates knowledge of the foundations of representative government in the United States (e.g., the Articles of Confederation and issues of the Philadelphia Convention of 1787, such as major compromises and arguments for and against ratification).
5. Understands the origin and development of the American political system and political parties (e.g., Federalists, Democratic-Republicans, Jacksonian democracy, Whigs, Democrats).
6. Analyzes the challenges confronted by the government and its leaders in the early years of the Republic and the Age of Jackson (e.g., economic programs and tariffs, court system, expansion of slavery, foreign relations, Indian removal).

Competency 007—(Westward Expansion, the Civil War and Reconstruction): The teacher understands significant historical events and developments related to westward expansion, the Civil War and Reconstruction.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of westward expansion and its effects on the political, economic, cultural and social development of the nation.
2. Understands the political, economic and social roots of Manifest Destiny and the relationship between the concept of Manifest Destiny and the westward growth of the nation.
3. Identifies the territorial acquisitions that formed the United States and explains the factors that influenced these acquisitions.
4. Understands major issues and events of the United States-Mexican War and their impact on the United States.
5. Analyzes ways in which slavery and other political, economic and social factors led to the growth of sectionalism and to the Civil War.
6. Demonstrates knowledge of individuals, events and issues of the Civil War (e.g., Abraham Lincoln, Jefferson Davis, the Emancipation Proclamation, Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Court House).
7. Analyzes the effects of Reconstruction on the political, economic and social life of the nation.

Competency 008—(The United States as a World Power): The teacher understands significant historical events and developments related to the emergence and role of the United States as a world power and the effects of major decisions and conflicts on the United States.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands factors and events that contributed to the emergence of the United States as a world power between 1898 and 1920 (e.g., imperialism, Panic of 1893, acquisition of Hawaii, Spanish-American War, U.S. involvement in and effects of World War I).
2. Analyzes how national and international decisions and conflicts between World War I and World War II affected the United States (e.g., the Fourteen Points, isolationism, reasons for U.S. involvement in World War II).
3. Analyzes how national and international decisions and conflicts from World War II to the present have affected the United States (e.g., decision to use the atomic bomb, Cold War).
4. Demonstrates knowledge of significant individuals who shaped U.S. foreign policy from 1898 to the present (e.g., Alfred Thayer Mahan, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Henry Kissinger).
5. Demonstrates knowledge of significant events and issues that shaped U.S. foreign policy from 1898 to present (e.g., Berlin airlift, Korean War, Sputnik I, Vietnam War, Marshall Plan, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, McCarthyism, Cuban Missile Crisis, the Gulf War).
6. Understands the origins of major foreign policy issues currently facing the United States and the challenges of changing relationships among nations.

Competency 009—(Political, Economic and Social Developments from 1877 to the Present): The teacher understands significant political, economic and social developments in the United States from 1877 to the present.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands political, economic and social changes in the United States from 1877 to the present (e.g., in relation to political parties, transportation, labor unions, agriculture, business, race, gender).
2. Demonstrates knowledge of the effects of reform and third party movements and their leaders on U.S. society (e.g., Populism, Progressive Era reforms, New Deal legislation, Susan B. Anthony, W. E. B. Du Bois, George Wallace).
3. Analyzes the causes and effects of industrialization in the United States.
4. Demonstrates knowledge of significant individuals who shaped political, economic and social developments in the United States from 1877 to the present (e.g., Jane Addams, Henry Ford, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, Jr., Cesar Chavez, Betty Friedan, Malcolm X).
5. Demonstrates knowledge of events and issues that shaped political, economic and social developments in the United States from 1877 to the present (e.g., ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment, Great Depression, passage of the GI Bill, passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, urbanization, anti-trust legislation, immigration restriction, globalization, terrorism).
6. Analyzes the impact of civil rights movements in the United States, including the African American, Hispanic, American Indian and women’s rights movements.

 

Domain III—Texas History

Competency 010—(Exploration and Colonization): The teacher understands significant historical developments and events in Texas through the beginning of the Mexican National Era in 1821.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands the important similarities and differences among American Indian groups in Texas including the Gulf, Plains, Puebloan and Southeastern groups.
2. Demonstrates knowledge of the traditional historical points of reference in the history of Texas during the Spanish colonial period.
3. Understands the major causes and effects of European exploration and colonization of Texas.
4. Understands how significant individuals, events and issues shaped the early history of Texas from the Spanish Colonial Era to the Mexican National Era (e.g., Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, José de Escandón, Fray Damián Massanet, Francisco Hidalgo, Alonso Álvarez de Pineda, Moses Austin).
5. Understands the impact of major geographic features of Texas on American Indians and settlers, and how various groups altered the natural environment through the beginning of the Mexican National Era.
6. Demonstrates knowledge of significant cultural and economic developments in Texas history through the beginning of the Mexican National Era.

Competency 011—(Independence, Statehood, Civil War Reconstruction and Aftermath): The teacher understands significant historical developments and events in Texas from 1821 to 1900.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of the individuals, issues and events related to Mexico becoming an independent nation and the impacts of this event on Texas.
2. Demonstrates knowledge of important individuals, events and issues related to the Texas Revolution (e.g., the Law of April 6, 1830, Fredonian Rebellion, Battle of Gonzales, Surrender at Goliad, Battle of the Alamo, Battle of San Jacinto, George Childress, Juan N. Seguín, Antonio López de Santa Anna, William B. Travis, James Fannin).
3. Demonstrates knowledge of important individuals, events and issues related to the history of the Republic of Texas and early Texas statehood (e.g., Stephen F. Austin, Lorenzo de Zavala, Sam Houston, Joshua Houston, Mary Maverick, Mirabeau Lamar, the Córdova Rebellion, the Council House Fight, the Santa Fe Expedition, United States-Mexican War).
4. Demonstrates knowledge of important individuals, issues and events of the Civil War and Reconstruction in Texas (e.g., Jack Coffee Hayes, John Bell Hood, John Magruder, Battle of Galveston, the Battle of Palmito Ranch).
5. Understands the major effects of Reconstruction on the political, economic and social life of Texas.
6. Understands the major causes and effects of the expansion of settlement along the frontier in Texas and of the conflicts between some settlers and American Indian groups (e.g., Quanah Parker, Texas Rangers, Buffalo Soldiers).
7. Demonstrates knowledge of the impact of major economic and technological developments in Texas in the period 1821 to 1900.
8. Understands the impact of major geographic features of Texas on migration, settlement patterns and economic development and how various groups altered the natural environment.
9. Demonstrates knowledge of major cultural developments in Texas in the period 1821 to 1900.

Competency 012—(Texas in the Twentieth and Twenty-first Centuries): The teacher understands significant historical developments and events in Texas from 1900 to the present.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands the impact of individuals and reform movements such as the Progressive movement and the Civil Rights movement on Texas in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries (e.g., Jane McCallum, Lulu Belle Madison White, Manuel C. Gonzales, Oveta Culp Hobby, James Hogg, Hector Garcia).
2. Understands the political, economic, cultural and social impacts of major events in the twentieth century, including World War I, the Great Depression, World War II and the Cold War on the history of Texas.
3. Understands the political, economic and social impact of major events and individuals in the latter half of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries on the history of Texas (e.g., Kay Bailey Hutchison, Barbara Jordan, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Henry B. Gonzalez, Lyndon B. Johnson, James Farmer, George Walker Bush, Craig Anthony Washington, immigration, Rust Belt to Sun Belt migration).
4. Understands the impact of major developments in manufacturing, the petroleum and gas industry (e.g., Spindletop), commercial agriculture (e.g., cotton, citrus, beef and dairy production) and suburbanization and how various groups altered the natural environment from 1900 to the present.
5. Understands the effect of major developments in computer technology, transportation (including aerospace) and medical research on the contemporary economic and social history of Texas.

 

Domain IV—Geography, Culture and the Behavioral and Social Sciences

Competency 013—(Physical Geography Concepts, Natural Processes and Earth’s Physical Features): The teacher understands basic geographic concepts, natural processes involving the physical environment and Earth’s physical features.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands the concept of physical region as an area of Earth’s surface with related physical characteristics (e.g., soils, climate, vegetation, river systems).
2. Analyzes ways in which physical processes shape patterns in the physical environment (i.e., lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere).
3. Demonstrates knowledge of how Earth-Sun relationships affect physical processes and patterns on Earth’s surface.
4. Analyzes relationships among climate, vegetation, soil and geology to explain the distribution of plants and animals in different regions of the world.
5. Demonstrates knowledge of the patterns and characteristics of major landforms, climates and ecosystems of Earth and the processes that produce these patterns and characteristics (e.g., factors that influence physical regions such as elevation, latitude, ocean currents, mountain barriers, tectonic processes).

Competency 014—(Global and Regional Patterns of Culture and Human Geography): The teacher understands global and regional patterns of culture and characteristics and processes associated with different cultural regions.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands the concept of cultural region as an area of Earth’s surface with related cultural characteristics (e.g., language, religion, economy, political system).
2. Analyzes ways in which cultural processes of innovation and diffusion shape patterns in the human environment.
3. Demonstrates knowledge of locations and cultural and environmental features of major world regions (e.g., East Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, Europe, Southwest Asia, North Africa) and regions of the United States and Texas.
4. Understands how the components of culture (e.g., land use, systems of education, religion, language) affect the way people live and shape the characteristics of regions.
5. Demonstrates knowledge of the growth, distribution, movement and characteristics of world populations (e.g., trends in past world population growth, push and pull factors affecting major national and international migrations, ways in which physical and cultural factors affect migration, how migration and immigration have affected societies), and understands the benefits and challenges of globalization.
6. Analyzes ways in which political, economic and social processes shape cultural patterns and characteristics in various places and regions (e.g., analyzing political, economic, social and demographic indicators to determine the level of development and standard of living in countries).
7. Applies knowledge of the history and significance of major religious and philosophical traditions (e.g., Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Realism, Idealism).
8. Understands the importance of place for populations (e.g., Mecca, Jerusalem, Cuzco, Ganges River, Shrine of Guadalupe).
9. Demonstrates knowledge of the impact of religion on the way of life in the United States.
10. Recognizes relationships of the arts to the times in which they were created in the United States and world areas.

Competency 015—(Interactions between Human Groups and the Physical Environment): The teacher understands the nature and significance of interactions among peoples, places and environments.

The beginning teacher:

1. Analyzes ways in which humans depend on, adapt to and modify the physical environment in a variety of cultural and technological contexts.
2. Understands and analyzes how people, places and environments change over time and are connected and interdependent (e.g., impact of different types of natural disasters).
3. Understands types and patterns of settlement and physical and human geographic factors that affect where people settle (e.g., transportation routes, availability of resources) and processes of settlement development over time.
4. Analyzes the influence of physical and human geographic factors on political, social, cultural and economic developments and events in U.S. and world history (e.g., Dust Bowl, opening of the Panama and Suez canals).
5. Analyzes the impact of the Neolithic agricultural revolution on human life and on the development of the first civilizations.
6. Demonstrates knowledge of how population growth and modernization have affected the physical environment throughout history.
7. Understands factors affecting the location of different types of economic activities and economic issues related to the location and management of key natural resources.
8. Understands relationships between physical and human geographic factors and political divisions, relationships and policies (e.g., ways in which forces of conflict and cooperation influence control of Earth’s surface, the influence of physical and human geographic factors on foreign policies of countries such as Iraq, Israel, Japan, and the United Kingdom).

Competency 016—(Sociological, Anthropological and Psychological Concepts and Processes): The teacher applies sociological, anthropological and psychological concepts and processes to understand cultural formation and change, intergroup relations and individual development.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands the role of culture as a foundation of individual and social behavior.
2. Understands the evolving nature of race and gender relations in the United States and knows how people from various racial, ethnic and religious groups have adapted to and modified life in the United States and contributed to a national identity.
3. Analyzes ways in which cultures and societies both change and maintain continuity (e.g., social movements, modernization).
4. Demonstrates knowledge of the theoretical foundations of sociology and basic sociological principles and processes, including those related to group membership, roles, status, values and stratification.
5. Understands the role and influence of social institutions (e.g., family, religion, educational system, science, mass media) in meeting basic societal needs.
6. Demonstrates knowledge of the roles of men, women, children and families in historical and contemporary cultures.
7. Understands ways in which socialization, cultural values and norms vary across space and time and influence relationships within and among groups.
8. Demonstrates knowledge of the theoretical foundations and development of psychology.
9. Demonstrates knowledge of behavioral, social, cognitive and personality perspectives of human identity, development and learning.
10. Understands basic psychological principles and processes, including those related to motivation, sensation and perception, cognition, personality, relationships between biology and behavior and relationships between the self and others.

 

Domain V—Government and Citizenship

Competency 017—(Democratic Principles and Government in the United States): The teacher understands the principles of democratic government and the structure and functioning of government in the United States.

The beginning teacher:

1. Analyzes the beliefs and principles reflected in the U.S. Constitution (e.g., republicanism, checks and balances, federalism, separation of powers, separation of church and state, popular sovereignty, individual rights) and other important historical documents (e.g., Declaration of Independence, Federalist Papers, English Bill of Rights).
2. Demonstrates knowledge of the structure and functions of the government created by the U.S. Constitution (e.g., bicameral structure of Congress, role of congressional committees, constitutional powers of the president, role of the Cabinet and independent executive agencies, functions of the federal court system).
3. Understands the processes by which the U.S. Constitution can be changed.
4. Knows procedures for enacting laws in the United States.
5. Analyzes changes in the role of the U.S. government over time (e.g., civil rights, New Deal legislation, wartime policies).
6. Understands changing relationships among the three branches of the federal government (e.g., Franklin D. Roosevelt’s attempt to increase the number of U.S. Supreme Court justices, War Powers Act, judicial review).
7. Demonstrates knowledge of the impact of Constitutional amendments on U.S. society (e.g., Thirteenth, Fourteenth, Fifteenth, Seventeenth, Nineteenth, Twenty-fourth and Twenty-sixth amendments).
8. Analyzes the interpretations and impact of landmark Supreme Court decisions on U.S. society (e.g., Marbury v. Madison, McCulloch v. Maryland, Cherokee Nation v. Georgia, Dred Scott v. Sandford, Plessy v. Ferguson, Schenck v. U.S., Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, Engel v. Vitale, Miranda v. Arizona, Roe v. Wade, Regents of the University of California v. Bakke).
9. Understands the relationship between the states and the national government of the United States (i.e., federalism).
10. Demonstrates knowledge of the structure and functions of Texas state government and local governments.

Competency 018—(Citizenship and Political Processes in the United States): The teacher understands political processes in the United States and the rights and responsibilities of U.S. citizens.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands the historical and contemporary roles played by political parties, interest groups and the media in the U.S. political system.
2. Demonstrates knowledge of processes for filling elective and appointive public offices (e.g., primary system, electoral college).
3. Demonstrates knowledge of processes for making policy in the United States, the impact of technology on the political process and ways in which different points of view influence decision making and the development of public policy at the local, state and national levels.
4. Understands rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, including each amendment in the Bill of Rights, (e.g., due process, equal protection) and their role in protecting individual liberties.
5. Demonstrates knowledge of efforts to expand the democratic process in the United States and understands the contributions of significant political and social leaders (e.g., George Washington, John Marshall, Frederick Douglass, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, Jr.).
6. Demonstrates knowledge of the causes and effects of major reform movements in U.S. history (e.g., abolitionist movement, public education, temperance, women’s rights, prison reform, civil rights movement).
7. Understands civic responsibilities (e.g., jury duty), the difference between personal and civic responsibilities and the importance of voluntary individual participation in the U.S. political process.

Competency 019—(Types of Political Systems): The teacher understands the development of political systems and the similarities and differences among major historical and contemporary forms of government.

The beginning teacher:

1. Understands major political ideas in history (e.g., the laws of nature and nature’s God, divine right of monarchs, social contract theory, the rights of resistance to illegitimate governments) and analyzes the historical development of significant legal and political concepts.
2. Demonstrates knowledge of significant political documents and the philosophies of individuals in world history (e.g., Hammurabi’s Code of Laws, Justinian’s Code of Laws, Magna Carta, John Locke, Thomas Hobbes) and their impact on the development of political thought.
3. Analyzes how governments have affected and reflected cultural values and provided for social control.
4. Understands similarities and differences between the U.S. constitutional republic and other contemporary forms of government.
5. Demonstrates knowledge of major forms of government in history (e.g., monarchy, authoritarian government, classical republic, liberal democracy, totalitarian government) and of the historical antecedents of major political systems.
6. Analyzes the process by which democratic-republican government evolved (e.g., beginnings in classical Greece and Rome, developments in England, impact of the Enlightenment).

 

Domain VI—Economics and Science, Technology and Society

Competency 020—(Economic Concepts and Types of Economic Systems): The teacher understands basic economic concepts, major developments in economic thought and various types of economic systems.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of the concepts of scarcity and opportunity costs and their significance.
2. Understands the circular-flow model of the economy.
3. Analyzes interactions among supply, demand and price and factors that cause changes in supply, demand and price, and interprets supply-and-demand graphs.
4. Demonstrates knowledge of the historical origins of contemporary economic systems (e.g., capitalism, socialism, communism), including the influence of various economic philosophers such as John Maynard Keynes, Karl Marx and Adam Smith.
5. Understands free enterprise, socialist and communist economic systems in different places and eras.
6. Understands and compares types of market structures (e.g., pure competition, monopolistic competition, oligopoly, monopoly).
7. Demonstrates knowledge of concepts and issues related to international trade (e.g., absolute and comparative advantage, effects of changes in the exchange rate of world currencies, free trade and the effects of trade barriers).

Competency 021—(Structure and Operation of the U.S. Free Enterprise System): The teacher understands the structure and operation of the U.S. free enterprise system; the role of government, business, consumers and labor in the system; and basic concepts of consumer economics.

The beginning teacher:

1. Analyzes the origins and development of the free enterprise system in the United States and understands the basic principles of the U.S. free enterprise system (e.g., profit motive, voluntary exchange, private property rights, competition).
2. Analyzes issues and developments related to U.S. economic growth from the 1870s to the present (e.g., anti-trust acts; tariff policies; The New Deal; economic effects of World War I, World War II and the Cold War; increased globalization of the economy).
3. Understands and compares types of business ownership (e.g., sole proprietorships, partnerships, corporations).
4. Demonstrates knowledge of the role of financial institutions in saving, investing and borrowing.
5. Analyzes the role of government in the U.S. free enterprise system (e.g., significance of government rules and regulations, impact of fiscal and monetary policy decisions, role and function of the Federal Reserve System, relationship between government policies and international trade).
6. Demonstrates knowledge of the goals of economic growth, stability, full employment, freedom, security, equity and efficiency as they apply to U.S. economic policy.
7. Understands the rights and responsibilities of consumers, labor and business in the U.S. free enterprise system.
8. Demonstrates knowledge of basic concepts of personal financial literacy and consumer economics (e.g., factors involved in decisions to acquire goods and services, means by which savings can be invested, risks and rewards of various investment options).

Competency 022—(Science, Technology and Society): The teacher understands major scientific and mathematical discoveries and technological innovations and the societal significance of these discoveries and innovations.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of how major scientific and mathematical discoveries and technological innovations have affected societies throughout history.
2. Traces the origin and diffusion of major of ideas in mathematics, science and technology that occurred in river valley civilizations, classical Greece and Rome, classical India, the Islamic Caliphates between 700 and 1200 and in China from the Tang to Ming Dynasties.
3. Demonstrates knowledge of the contributions of significant scientists and inventors (e.g., Copernicus, Galileo, Isaac Newton, Marie Curie, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein).
4. Understands how major scientific and mathematical discoveries and technological innovations have affected societies from 1750 to the present.
5. Demonstrates knowledge of how specific developments in science, technology and the free enterprise system have affected the economic development of the United States (e.g., cotton gin, Bessemer steel process, electric power, telephone, railroad, petroleum-based products, computers).
6. Analyzes moral and ethical issues related to changes in science and technology.
7. Analyzes the impact of scientific discoveries, technological innovations and the free enterprise system on the standard of living in the United States (e.g., radio, television, automobile, vaccines).

 

Domain VII—Social Studies Foundations, Skills, Research and Instruction

Competency 023—(Social Studies Foundations and Skills): The teacher understands social studies terminology and concepts; the philosophical foundations of social science inquiry; relationships among and between social science disciplines and other content areas; and skills for resolving conflicts, solving problems and making decisions in social studies contexts.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of the philosophical foundations of social science inquiry.
2. Uses social studies terminology correctly.
3. Knows how knowledge generated by the social science disciplines affects society and people’s lives, understands practical applications of social studies education and knows how to use social studies information and ideas to study social phenomena.
4. Understands how social science disciplines relate to each other and to other content areas.
5. Knows how to use problem-solving processes to identify problems, gather information, list and consider options, consider advantages and disadvantages, choose and implement solutions and evaluate the effectiveness of solutions.
6. Knows how to use decision-making processes to identify situations that require decisions, gather and analyze information, identify options, predict consequences and take action to implement decisions.

Competency 024—(Sources of Social Studies Information; Interpreting and Communicating Social Studies Information): The teacher understands sources of social studies information and knows how to interpret and communicate social studies information in various forms.

The beginning teacher:

1. Demonstrates knowledge of characteristics and uses of primary and secondary sources (e.g., databases, maps, photographs, documents, biographies, interviews, questionnaires, artifacts).
2. Evaluates the validity of social studies information from primary and secondary sources and identifies bias (e.g., assessing source validity on the basis of language, corroboration with other sources and information about the author).
3. Assesses multiple points of view and frames of reference relating to social studies issues and knows how to support a point of view on a social studies issue or event.
4. Organizes and interprets information from outlines, reports, databases, narratives, literature and visuals including graphs, charts, timelines and maps.
5. Knows how to use maps and other graphics to present geographic, political, historical, economic and cultural features, distributions and relationships.
6. Uses maps to obtain and analyze data for solving locational problems and to answer questions, infer relationships and analyze spatial change.
7. Communicates and interprets social studies information in written, oral and visual forms and translates information from one medium to another.
8. Analyzes various economic indicators to describe and measure levels of economic activity.
9. Uses economic models such as production-possibilities curves, circular-flow charts and supply-and-demand graphs to analyze economic concepts or issues.

Competency 025—(Social Studies Research): The teacher understands social science and historical research methods, including procedures for formulating research questions and for organizing, analyzing, evaluating and reporting information.

The beginning teacher:

1. Knows how to formulate research questions.
2. Uses appropriate procedures to reach supportable judgments and conclusions in social studies.
3. Understands social studies research and knows how social scientists and historians locate, gather, organize, analyze, interpret and report information using established research methodologies.
4. Knows how to analyze social studies information by sequencing, categorizing, identifying associations and cause-and-effect relationships, comparing, contrasting, finding the main idea, summarizing, making generalizations and drawing inferences and conclusions.
5. Analyzes social studies data using basic mathematical and statistical concepts and other analytical methods.

Competency 026—(Social Studies Instruction and Assessment): The teacher understands the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) in social studies; knows how to plan and implement effective social studies instruction, including helping students make interdisciplinary connections and develop relevant reading skills; and knows procedures for assessing students’ progress and needs in social studies.

The beginning teacher:

1. Knows state content and performance standards for social studies that comprise the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) and understands the vertical alignment of social studies in the TEKS from grade level to grade level, including prerequisite knowledge and skills.
2. Selects and uses developmentally appropriate instructional practices, activities, technologies and materials to promote student knowledge, skills and progress in social studies.
3. Understands the appropriate use of technology as a tool for learning and communicating social studies concepts and provides instruction on how to locate, retrieve and retain content-related information from a range of texts and technologies.
4. Uses a variety of instructional strategies to ensure all students’ reading comprehension of content-related texts, including helping students link the content of texts to their lives and connect related ideas across different texts.
5. Provides instruction on how to locate the meanings and pronunciations of unfamiliar content-related words using appropriate sources, such as dictionaries, thesauruses, atlases and glossaries.
6. Knows how to provide instruction that makes connections between knowledge and methods in social studies and in other content areas.
7. Provides instruction that models and promotes understanding of various points of view.
8. Demonstrates knowledge of forms of assessment appropriate for evaluating students’ progress and needs in social studies.
9. Uses multiple forms of assessment and knowledge of the TEKS to determine students’ progress and needs and to help plan instruction in social studies (e.g., Freedom Week).

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