Grade 12 - North Carolina Social Studies

Core: North Carolina American History II (Credit: 0.50)

This course traces the nation's history from the end of the period of Reconstruction to the present. It describes the emergence of the United States as an industrial nation, highlighting social policy as well as its role in modern world affairs. Students evaluate the attempts to bind the nation together after Reconstruction while also exploring the growth of an industrial economy. Moving into the 20th and 21st centuries, students probe the economic and diplomatic interactions between the United States and other world players while investigating how the world wars, the Cold War, and the "information revolution" affected the lives of ordinary Americans. Woven through this chronological sequence is a strong focus on the changing conditions of women, African Americans, and other minority groups. The course emphasizes the development of historical analysis skills such as comparing and contrasting, differentiating between facts and interpretations, considering multiple perspectives, and analyzing cause-and-effect relationships. These skills are applied to text interpretation and in written assignments that guide learners step-by-step through problem-solving activities. The content is based on standards from the National Council for History Education (1997), the National Center for History in the Schools (1996), and the National Council for Social Studies (1994) and is aligned to state standards.