AISL Grade 8 Benchmarks in Social Studies

(Revised June, 2010)

AISL.SST.01 HISTORY: Students will understand patterns of change and continuity, relationships between people and events through time, and the causes and effects of interaction among societies.
AISL.SST.01.G8.01 Use key concepts such as chronology, causality, and conflict to identify patterns of historical change
AISL.SST.01.G8.02 Examine historical resources for a point of view, context, bias, distortion, or propaganda
AISL.SST.01.G8.03 Analyze the multiple interpretations of an historical or current event
AISL.SST.01.G8.04 Differentiate between historical fact and historical interpretations
AISL.SST.01.G8.05 Examine the causes of problems in the past and evaluate solutions chosen as well as possible alternative courses of actions
AISL.SST.01.G8.06 Develop critical sensitivities regarding attitudes, values, and behaviors of people in different historical contexts
AISL.SST.02 GEOGRAPHY: Students will understand the concepts of geography and how they contribute to the interaction between humans and natural and man-made environments.
AISL.SST.02.G8.01 Use appropriate data sources and geographic tools to generate, manipulate, and interpret information
AISL.SST.02.G8.02 Know the relative location of, size of, and distances between places
AISL.SST.02.G8.03 Describe social effects of environmental changes and crises resulting from natural phenomena
AISL.SST.02.G8.04 Explain and give examples of voluntary and involuntary migration
AISL.SST.02.G8.05 Explain how human migration affects the physical and human characteristics of a place
AISL.SST.02.G8.06 Use key demographic concepts (population density, birth and death rates, etc) to analyze the structure and characteristics of different populations and population patterns over time
AISL.SST.02.G8.07 Describe how people create places that reflect cultural values and ideals
AISL.SST.02.G8.08 Propose, compare, and evaluate alternative uses of land and resources in communities, regions, nations and the world
AISL.SST.03 CIVICS AND GOVERNMENT: Students will understand why societies create and adopt systems of government and how these systems address human needs, rights, and citizen responsibilities.
AISL.SST.03.G8.01 Identify and explain essential ideas of government, which are expressed in various documents
AISL.SST.03.G8.02 Define and explain the importance of individual and civic responsibilities
AISL.SST.03.G8.03 Describe various types of elections and explain way that citizens can participate in political parties, campaigns, and elections
AISL.SST.03.G8.04 Explain how citizens can monitor and influence the development and implementation of public policies
AISL.SST.03.G8.05 Explain how different types of government acquire, use, and justify power
AISL.SST.03.G8.06 Identify functions and responsibilities of government leaders and public servants
AISL.SST.03.G8.07 Explain issues related to basic freedoms
AISL.SST.03.G8.08 Explain conditions, actions, and motivations that contribute to conflict and cooperation within and among nations
AISL.SST.03.G8.09 Explain how power, role, status, and justice influence the examination of persistent issues and social problems
AISL.SST.04 CULTURE: Students will understand cultural and intellectual developments and interactions among and within societies
AISL.SST.04.G8.01 Identify how patterns of behavior can reflect cultural values and attitudes
AISL.SST.04.G8.02 Evaluate ethical questions from points of view of different belief systems
AISL.SST.04.G8.03 Understand how taboos and publicly acceptable behavioral norms evolve
AISL.SST.04.G8.04 Evaluate major movements in literature, music, and the visual arts and ways in which they expressed or shaped dominant social values
AISL.SST.04.G8.05 Identify patterns of social and cultural continuity in various societies and analyze ways in which people maintained traditions and resisted external challenges
AISL.SST.04.G8.06 Understand the tension between the ideals of diversity and community
AISL.SST.04.G8.07 Explain how information and experiences may be interpreted by people from diverse cultural perspectives and frames of reference
AISL.SST.04.G8.08 Articulate the implications of cultural diversity, as well as cohesion, within and across groups
AISL.SST.05 ECONOMICS: Students will understand fundamental economic principles and ways in which economies are shaped by geographic and human factors
AISL.SST.05.G8.01 Explain economic reasons for voluntary migration
AISL.SST.05.G8.02 Evaluate conventional and alternative uses of resources
AISL.SST.05.G8.03 Describe historical and contemporary economic systems
AISL.SST.05.G8.04 Understand primary causes and effects of world trade
AISL.SST.05.G8.05 Understand global patterns of resource distribution and use
AISL.SST.05.G8.06 Describe how governments and institutions allocate limited resources among competing needs
AISL.SST.05.G8.07 Describe the role that supply and demand, prices, incentives, and profits play in determining what is produced and distributed in a competitive market system
AISL.SST.05.G8.08 Use economic reasoning to compare different proposals for dealing with contemporary social issues
AISL.SST.06 CURRENT EVENTS: Students will understand and analyze major issues and events while tracing their historical foundation.
AISL.SST.06.G8.01 Explain the causes of significant current political events and issues
AISL.SST.06.G8.02 Explain how historical legacies have facilitated global understanding or caused misunderstanding
AISL.SST.06.G8.03 Understand the primary effects of world trade and global patterns of resource distribution and use in terms of connections and conflicts
AISL.SST.06.G8.04 Explain the relationships and tensions between national sovereignty and global interest
AISL.SST.06.G8.05 Identify issues and standards related to human rights
AISL.SST.06.G8.06 Explain how events and conditions in one region might affect other regions in the area and across the world