objectives

Unit 1 Students and the System

Introduction

Unit/Module 1 provides a foundation for understanding government, tracing today's U.S. government back to colonial times. It answers some fundamental questions, e.g., what is government? Who rules? How does one engage in the process? We explore America’s historical antecedents, from British rule over 13 independent colonies to one single United States, the world’s first democratic republic. You will learn why these colonies remained sovereign, despite having a national government, and the Founders’ embrace of this novel federal-state system, also known as federalism.

What You Will Learn

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

Define government
Identify different types of government
Describe our constitutional federal republic
Explain how we got from colonial rule to the world's first constitutional democratic republic.

You Will Demonstrate Mastery of Unit 1

By being able to:

Compare and contrast the different theories behind governmental regimes.
Analyze the pros and cons of each such regime.
Describe how 13 disparate sovereign colonies became one “constitutional republic.”
Apply your learning to current events, specifically the "Politics in the News" discussion board