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Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This is where the United States Constitution was debated and signed. We did some debating today in class and will continue to do so next time!
Hi everyone,
Thanks for the excellent discussions today in class and for reading the blog! Here's what happened:
Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 4: I can explain how different ideological movements and philosophies shape politics.
AGENDA 2/17/17:
News Brief – Ethan
Government Overview
Government Overview
Philosopher Reading
Forced Choice
Homework: Read the blog! Next news brief: Fatimah.
News Brief: Today's news brief was brought in by Ethan, who selected an article about this story to talk about: TheGuardian.com - Donald Trump considered using national guard to round up immigrants, memo suggests. We discussed this article for a bit, along with what we were up to in the coming weekend. Thanks, Ethan!
Fatimah was assigned the next news brief.
Government Overview: This was stemming off of the PowerPoint on the four philosophers we are studying. I wanted students to think in their own minds about the role of government. The questions, to answer on a blank sheet of paper and keep for later, are:
1. What is the purpose of government?
2. What does a government do?
3. What role should the government play in people’s lives?
4. What do you know about the structure of the United States government? Draw a web!
I had a few students randomly answer the questions with the class, and we talked about what the general viewpoint was.
Philosopher Readings: I passed out this reading about the four philosophers and a handout to answer with the reading, that asked you to summarize the different ideas for the purpose of government, the role of government in people's lives, and ideas that are included in the current U.S. government. Here they are again if you lost your copy or missed class today:
We went over the answers in class and reviewed who Hobbes, Locke, Montesquieu, and Rousseau were and what they thought about the role of government. Keep these answers to review for an upcoming test!
Forced Choice: One of my favorite activities of the year. I had the class answer the following questions and choose YES or NO to each of them. Then, we split up the class so that two sides were facing each other. With each question, students moved to the side they felt best represented their opinion on the matter. The questions were:
1. Giving up some of our rights (like our phones being listened to without a warrant) is necessary for our own protection.
2. Everyone in the United States should be able to have firearms if they want.
3. Government officials should have to approve/sign off on marriages that they are against on religious grounds.
4. Marijuana should be legalized everywhere for recreational use.
5. Public schools should strictly enforce a standardized dress code.
6. Organized prayer in public schools should be allowed.
7. The government of a country should be able to make decisions that the majority of the people do not support.
8. Should the motto “In God We Trust” be removed from our currency?
9. I agree with the death penalty option for convicted murderers.
10. People in power are always corrupt in some way.
2. Everyone in the United States should be able to have firearms if they want.
3. Government officials should have to approve/sign off on marriages that they are against on religious grounds.
4. Marijuana should be legalized everywhere for recreational use.
5. Public schools should strictly enforce a standardized dress code.
6. Organized prayer in public schools should be allowed.
7. The government of a country should be able to make decisions that the majority of the people do not support.
8. Should the motto “In God We Trust” be removed from our currency?
9. I agree with the death penalty option for convicted murderers.
10. People in power are always corrupt in some way.
We only made it through question 2 today, so I will pick and choose next class as to which questions we will discuss and debate, before writing a reflective piece about the experience. I love these discussions and I think we did a great job of following the Ground Rules that we established at the beginning of the year. Thank you for your participation! Be ready to keep talking next time. If you have any further thoughts, please post them in the comments!
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