Missouri's Learning Standards for Social Studies, approved April 2016, use five thematic strands — Principles of Constitutional Democracy (PC), Principles and Processes of Governance (PPG), Economics, Geography, and History — organized K-12 with escalating complexity. The civics strands address founding principles and documents, government structure and functions, rights and civic responsibilities, political participation, and the rule of law. A half-credit Government or Civics course is required for high school graduation. Priority Learning Standards identify the most critical benchmarks within each strand; local districts retain curriculum control. Standards revision has been an ongoing process with public stakeholder involvement since the 2016 adoption.