Civics & Economics Top 100
What every student should know to pass the Civics & Economics EOC
Goal 6
Goal 6: The learner will explain why laws are needed and how they are
enacted, implemented, and enforced at the national, state, and local levels.
Foundations of Law• Code of Hammurabi –
– the earliest legal code known in its entirety • Ten Commandments –
– ten injunctions given to Moses, serving as the basis of Mosaic Law
• Justinian Codes – – the collections of laws and legal interpretations
developed under the sponsorship of the Byzantine emperor Justinian I
Types of Laws• Common law –
– a body of law based on judges’ decisions• Criminal law –
– the group of laws that tell which acts are crimes, how accused persons should be tried in court, and how crimes should be punished
• Civil law – – the group of laws that help settle
disagreements between people
Types of Laws• Constitutional law –
– a body of statutory and case law based on, concerns, or interprets a constitution
• Administrative law – – the body of rules, regulations, orders, and decisions
created by administrative agencies of government • Statutory law –
– the body of laws created by legislative statutes • International law –
– the body of rules that nations generally recognize as binding in their conduct toward one another.
Creation of Laws• The early leaders of our nation knew that it
was important to establish a set of laws for the nation.
• Laws must be fair, reasonable, and understandable.
Lobbying Procedures
Interest groups work to convince senators
and representatives to support bills that help their members and to oppose bill that hurt them. This is done by hiring
lobbyists, people who represent interest groups.
Mass Media• Newspapers, motion pictures, radio,
television, and magazines, all of which have the technical capacity to deliver information to millions of people.
Consequences of Breaking the Law
• A major purpose of laws is to keep the peace and prevent violent acts.
• Laws set punishments that are meant to discourage potential criminals from such acts as murder, assault, or robbery.
Types of Punishments• Probation• Juvenile detention• Community service• House arrest• Prison• Boot camp
Criminal Trial Process1. Arrest –
- Police arrest and book suspect2. Preliminary Hearing –
- Suspect appears before a judge, bail is set3. Indictment –
- Grand jury hears evidence and formally charges the suspect with a crime
4. Arraignment – - Defendant pleads not guilty, trial date is set. OR Defendant pleads guilty and accepts a plea bargain.
5. Trial – - Prosecution and defense present cases to jury. Jury reaches verdict.
6. Acquittal – - Defendant found not guilty and goes free. OR
Sentencing – - Defendant found guilty, judge sentences defendant.
Civil Trial1. Plaintiff’s attorney files a
complaint1. Court sends a to defendant2. Defendant’s attorney files a written answer3. Attorneys for both sides exchange 4. Attorneys for plaintiff and defendant argue
case in court5. Court gives a verdict
Law Enforcement Agencies• Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)• State Bureau of Investigation (SBI)• Municipal or county law enforcement
Independent AgenciesThere are three types of independent agencies: • Executive Agencies
are under the direct control of the President. (NASA, EPA)
• Regulatory Commissions make and carry out rules for certain business or economic activities. (FCC, CPSC)
• Government Corporations are like private businesses, but provide public services. (US Postal Service)
Regulatory Commissions• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
monitors the purity, effectiveness, and labeling of food, drugs, and cosmetics.
• The Federal Communications Commission• (FCC) makes rules for radio and television
stations.• The Consumer Product Safety Commission• (CPSC) sets safety standards for products.
Informed Citizenry
• “Ignorance of the law is no excuse.”
Civics & Economics Top 100
What every student should know to pass the Civics & Economics EOC
Goal 7
Goal 7: The learner will investigate how and why individuals and groups make
economic choices.
Factors of Production• Resources necessary to produce goods
and services• The four factors of production are
natural resources, labor, capital, and entrepreneurs.
Natural Resources
• Gifts of nature that make production possible
Labor
• Human effort directed toward producing goods and services
Capital
• Previously manufactured goods used to make other goods and services
Entrepreneurs
• Individuals who start new businesses, introduce new products, and improve management techniques
Scarcity• Not having enough resources to produce
all of the goods and services we would like to have
Trade-offs• The alternative you face if you decide to
do one thing rather than another
Opportunity Costs• The cost of the next best alternative use of
time and money when choosing to do one thing rather than another
Law of Diminishing Returns
• The tendency for a continuing application of effort or skill toward a particular project or goal to decline in effectiveness after a certain level of result has been achieved.
Marginal Utility• The additional satisfaction a consumer
gains from consuming one more unit of a good or service.
Productivity• The degree to which resources are being
used efficiently to produce goods and services
Specialization• When people, businesses, regions and/or
nations concentrate on goods and services that they can produce better than anyone else
Division of Labor• The breaking down of a job into separate,
smaller tasks to be performed individually
Needs• Requirements for survival, such as food,
clothing, and shelter
Wants• Things we would like to have, such as
entertainment, vacations, and items that make life comfortable and enjoyable
Cost-Benefit Analysis• Economic model that compares the
marginal costs and marginal benefits of a decision
Command Economy• An economic system in which the major
economic decisions are made by the central government
Market Economy• An economic system in which individuals
own the factors of production and make economic decisions through free interaction
Mixed Economy• An economic system combining the
characteristics of more than one type of economy
Traditional Economy• An economic system in which the
decisions of what, how, and for whom to produce are based on custom or habit
Civics & Economics Top 100
What every student should know to pass the Civics & Economics EOC
Goal 8
Goal 8: The learner will analyze features of the economic system of the
United States.
Economic Questions
• Economics is the study of how we make decisions in a world where resources are limited.
• WHAT to produce?• HOW to produce?• FOR WHOM to produce?
Free Enterprise System• Economic system in which individuals and
businesses are allowed to compete for profit with a minimum of government interference
Circular Flow Model• Circular flow shows us that input from each
sector and to each sector spurs on production and thus goods and services are created.
Supply• The amount of goods and services that
producers are able and willing to sell at various prices during a specified time period
• Law of Supply – the principle that suppliers will normally offer more for sale at higher prices and less at lower prices
Demand• The desire, willingness, and ability to buy
a good or service• Law of Demand –
the concept that people are normally willing to buy less of a product if the price is high and more of it if the price is low
Types of Income
• Wages – Payment for labor or services to a worker, especially remuneration on an hourly, daily, or weekly basis or by the piece.
• Salary – Fixed compensation for services, paid to a person on a regular basis.
Surplus• Situation in which quantity supplied is
greater than quantity demanded• Situation in which government spends less
than it collects in revenue
Shortage• Situation in which
quantity demanded is greater than quantity supplied
Competition• The struggle that
goes on between buyers and sellers to get the best products at the lowest prices
Types of Businesses• Sole Proprietorship –
a business owned and operated by a single person
• Partnership – a business owned by two or more people
• Corporation – type of business organization owned by many people but treated by law as though it were a person
Labor Unions• Association of workers
organized to improve wages and working conditions
Investments
• An asset or item that is purchased with the hope that it will generate income in the future.
• In an economic sense, an investment is the purchase of goods that are used in the future to create wealth.
• In finance, an investment is a monetary asset purchased with the idea that the asset will be sold at a higher price in the future.
Civics & Economics Top 100
What every student should know to pass the Civics & Economics EOC
Goal 9
Goal 9: The learner will analyze factors influencing the United States economy.
Business Cycle• Alternating periods of growth, and decline
that the economy goes through
Economic Indicators• Series of statistical figures,
such as the consumer price index or the gross domestic product, used by economists to predict future economic activity.
Consumer Price Index• An index of prices used to
measure the change in the cost of basic goods and services in comparison with a fixed base period. Also called cost-of-living index.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
• The total market value of all the goods and services produced within the borders of a nation during a specified period.
Government Regulation
• A regulation is a legal restriction promulgated by government administrative agencies through rulemaking supported by a threat of sanction or a fine.
• Common examples of regulation include attempts to control market entries, prices, wages, pollution effects, employment for certain people in certain industries, standards of production for certain goods and services.
Globalization• Individuals and nations working across
barriers of distance, culture, and technology
Downsizing• To become smaller in
size by reductions in personnel
Regional Economic Issues
• North Carolina’s furniture and textile industries have been affected by globalization. Many factories in North Carolina have closed.
Tariffs• A customs duty; a tax on an imported
good
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
• An agreement between the United States, Canada, and Mexico to establish free trade. It took effect in 1994 and is designed to eliminate trade barriers between the three nations by 2009.
World Trade Organization (WTO)
• An international organization based in Geneva that monitors and enforces rules governing global trade
European Union (EU)• An economic and political union established in
1993 by members of the European Community. • The establishment of the European Union
expanded the political scope of the European Economic Community, especially in the area of foreign and security policy, and provided for the creation of a central European bank and the adoption of a common currency, the euro.
Federal Reserve System• A U.S. banking system that
consists of 12 federal reserve banks, with each one serving member banks in its own district. This system, supervised by the Federal Reserve Board, has broad regulatory powers over the money supply and the credit structure.
National Debt• The debt of the government; the amount of
borrowing by the government to meet expenditures exceeding tax revenues.
Inflation• Sustained increase in the general level of
prices
Civics & Economics Top 100
What every student should know to pass the Civics & Economics EOC
Goal 10
Goal 10: The learner will develop, defend, and evaluate positions on issues
regarding the personal responsibilities of citizens in the American constitutional
democracy.
Civic Responsibilities
• It is comprised of actions and attitudes associated with democratic governance and social participation.
• Civic responsibility can include participation in government, church, volunteers and memberships of voluntary associations.
Discrimination
• Unfair treatment based on prejudice against a certain group
Freedom
• Freedom emphasizes the opportunity given for the exercise of one's rights, powers, desires, or the like: freedom of speech or conscience; freedom of movement.
Public Problems• Under employment• Education needs• Graft and corruption• Citizen apathy• Disease• Poverty• Substance abuse• Discrimination• Waste Disposal• Homelessness• Crime• Pollution
Choices
• The power, right, or liberty to choose