Standards - Social Sciences

Standards-based education is the process of basic teaching, learning and assessment that focuses on national, state, and local educational standards. Academic Content Standards are statements of what students are expected to know and be able to do at specified grade levels.

For any questions about the standards please contact ode.socialscience@ode.oregon.gov.

Social Sciences Standards

Every seven years, social science standards are adopted by the State Board of Education. In 2018, Oregon adopted Social Science Standards identifying grade-level standards for civics, geography, economics, financial literacy, history, historical thinking, and social science analysis. The 2018 standards also co-identified selected standards as multicultural. The 2018 standards are the current required standards for use by school districts through the 2025 school year.

In 2024, the State Board of Education adopted new social science standards integrating ethnic studies into each of the social science domains and removed the co-identified multi-cultural standards. School districts may implement the 2024 Social Science Standards. School districts are not required to implement the new standards until the 2026-2027 school year.

The 2021 social science standards reflect a shift in content best addressed through pedagogical methods that create a safe and inclusive learning environment for all students to study and discuss issues of discrimination, equity, racism, and prejudice.

2018-2021 Ethnic Studies Integrated Social Science Standards Crosswalk

2021-2024 Content Standards Crosswalks

Common Core State Standards for Literacy in History/Social Sciences

The 6-12 literacy standards for History/Social Studies are not meant to replace the content standards in the social sciences but rather to supplement them. The emphasis in the literacy standards is for students to learn to read and write in English Language Arts and to further develop reading and writing skills specific to social sciences’ content.