A. Economic Literacy

1. Describe different types of local, state, and federal taxes such as sales, income, and social security, discuss how deductions, exemptions, and credits reduce taxable income, and explain the difference between a progressive and regressive tax.
2. Describe the purposes of social security and Medicare.
3. Explain and interpret basic economic indicators, including Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Consumer Price Index (CPI) the rate of economic growth, the poverty rate, the deficit and national debt, and the trade deficit.
4. Identify entrepreneurs in the community and describe the risks and rewards of starting a new business.
5. Discuss how a market economy experiences periodic business cycles of prosperity and recession and that the federal government can adjust taxes, interest rates, spending, and other policies to help restore economic health.
6. Analyze federal and state budgets, and discuss the proportional share of government spending to major elements such as education, social programs, public safety, military, foreign aid, and welfare.
7. Analyze the impact of supply and demand on market adjustments and prices (e.g., real estate and interest rates).
8. Define basic terms associated with international trade such as imports, exports, quotas, embargoes, tariffs, and free trade.
9. Compare and contrast forms of insurance that protect individuals from loss or damage (e.g., life, property, health, disability, personal liability, bank deposits).
10. Explain how changes in exchange rates impact the purchasing power of people in the United States and other countries.

B. Economics and Society

1. Compare and contrast the roles of the United States government and the private sector in the United States economy (e.g., Federal Reserve System, United States Mint, Stock Exchange).
2. Evaluate international trade principles and policies.
3. Analyze labor and environmental issues affecting American citizens raised by economic globalization and free trade pacts.
4. Discuss the value and role of free and fair competition versus the social need for cooperation and how business, industry, and government try to reconcile these goals.
5. Analyze the importance of economic issues to politics and be able to distinguish the economic views of different political parties.
6. Analyze the connections and potential effects of the widening gap between the rich and the poor in the United States, the decline in labor union membership since 1950, rapidly advancing technology, globalization, and problems of public schools.
7. Compare and contrast the causes and consequences of discrimination in markets, employment, housing, business, and financial transactions.
8. Evaluate the activities and impact in various countries of major international institutions including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Trade Organization.
9. Describe how clearly defined and enforced property rights (e.g., copyright laws, patents) are essential to a market economy.