Students will need a color pencil for the line graphs on this page.  Red is a good choice. 
   Students should study the table, then neatly place dots for the data and connect the dots with straight lines. 

What the Charts Show

   These two graphs show a pattern that still generates considerable political debate.  Federal spending was rising sharply, with much of the increase due to new social welfare programs intended to help citizens improve their lives. 
   No doubt many citizens were helped by such programs.  But a shockingly large number turned to crime, especially violent crime, during the same years.
   One argument suggested that as the government took more responsibility for citizens' lives, the traditional sources of stability in society - families, neighborhoods, and churches - had less influence. 
   An opposite point of view held that even the expanded federal programs did not do enough to meet the needs of a society undergoing great changes in these years. 

   Students will need two color pencils to complete the line graphs on this page.  Red and green are good choices. 
   The first line graph on this page is really two graphs in one.  Explain to students that it is easiest to do each part separately.  For example, use the red pencil and do the line for college enrollment of males.  When it is drawn, use the green pencil to do the line for female college students.  Finish the last graph using the red color pencil.

What the Charts Show

   The "College Enrollment" graph shows that many more young people were enrolling in degree programs.  The biggest change came for young women, who increasingly joined their brothers on college campuses.
   Many factors were behind that trend, but certainly a key factor was the broader movement by women to expand their opportunities in the work place.  By 1980 the number of women in college exceeded the number of men.
   The last graph shows a pattern that has generated great concern since the late 1960s.  Many observers have argued that the data reveals a serious weakening of the role of marriage and the traditional family in American life.