High School §113.C.
August 2022 Update Page 29 of 69
(4) Students identify the role of the U.S. free enterprise system within the parameters of this course
and understand that this system may also be referenced as capitalism or the free market system.
(5) Throughout social studies in Kindergarten-Grade 12, students build a foundation in history;
geography; economics; government; citizenship; culture; science, technology, and society; and
social studies skills. The content, as appropriate for the grade level or course, enables students to
understand the importance of patriotism, function in a free enterprise society, and appreciate the
basic democratic values of our state and nation as referenced in the Texas Education Code (TEC),
§28.002(h).
(6) Students understand that a constitutional republic is a representative form of government whose
representatives derive their authority from the consent of the governed, serve for an established
tenure, and are sworn to uphold the constitution.
(7) State and federal laws mandate a variety of celebrations and observances, including Celebrate
Freedom Week.
(A) Each social studies class shall include, during Celebrate Freedom Week as provided
under the TEC, §29.907, or during another full school week as determined by the board
of trustees of a school district, appropriate instruction concerning the intent, meaning, and
importance of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, including the
Bill of Rights, in their historical contexts. The study of the Declaration of Independence
must include the study of the relationship of the ideas expressed in that document to
subsequent American history, including the relationship of its ideas to the rich diversity
of our people as a nation of immigrants, the American Revolution, the formulation of the
U.S. Constitution, and the abolitionist movement, which led to the Emancipation
Proclamation and the women's suffrage movement.
(B) Each school district shall require that, during Celebrate Freedom Week or other week of
instruction prescribed under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, students in Grades 3-12
study and recite the following text from the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these
Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their
Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the
Pursuit of Happiness--That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among
Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed."
(8) Students discuss how and whether the actions of U.S. citizens and the local, state, and federal
governments have achieved the ideals espoused in the founding documents.
(c) Knowledge and skills.
(1) History. The student understands how constitutional government, as developed in America and
expressed in the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the U.S.
Constitution, has been influenced by ideas, people, and historical documents. The student is
expected to:
(A) explain major political ideas in history, including the laws of nature and nature's God,
unalienable rights, divine right of kings, social contract theory, and the rights of
resistance to illegitimate government;
(B) identify major intellectual, philosophical, political, and religious traditions that informed
the American founding, including Judeo-Christian (especially biblical law), English
common law and constitutionalism, Enlightenment, and republicanism, as they address
issues of liberty, rights, and responsibilities of individuals;
(C) identify the individuals whose principles of laws and government institutions informed
the American founding documents, including those of Moses, William Blackstone, John
Locke, and Charles de Montesquieu;
(D) identify the contributions of the political philosophies of the Founding Fathers, including
John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Jay, George
Mason, Roger Sherman, and James Wilson, on the development of the U.S. government;