Henry J. Brajkovic
Lesson One
: Teaching About Politics
Topic
: Political Conventions
This lesson may take three to four class periods to cover. One can start the lesson by asking the students if any of them watched the television coverage of the Democratic or the Republican conventions. There is always someone who watched some part of the proceedings on television. The teacher could proceed with the following questions:
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1. Who sets up a national convention?
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Possible answer: The Democratic, Republican, or any independent National Committee for each party.
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2. Who is picked to go to a convention?
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Possible answer: Delegates chosen at the local level by local party politicians or by the local party members at their own political meetings.
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3. Who decides which delegates will be accepted at the convention?
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Possible answer: The Credentials Committee verifies the election of the delegates. It can accept or reject delegates.
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4. What do we call a meeting of politicians planning some kind of political action?
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Possible answer: Caucus
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5. What is a committed delegate?
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Possible answer: A committed delegate is one who must vote for a particular candidate. He cannot switch his vote to someone else.
6. What is an uncommitted delegate?
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Possible answer: The uncommitted delegate is free to decide for whom to vote at the convention.
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7. How do the delegates vote?
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Possible answer: Delegates vote by a roll call, according to the alphabetical order of the states and the territories.8. Where do the political parties get the money to run a convention?
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Possible answer: Each party has a national committee that receives financial contributions from individuals, businesses and corporations. Each city that has been chosen by the national committee as the site of the convention contributes toward the cost of running it with the hope that the convention will benefit the city financially.
By discussing the purpose and mechanics of setting up a national convention of a political party the students will learn the definitions of the appropriate terms pertaining to the topic under discussion.
The teacher can choose to teach the definitions and concepts of the following terms:
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caucus
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delegatecommitted delegate
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uncommitted delegate
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alternate delegate
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to nominate
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to second
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a state delegation
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nominee
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candidate
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committee
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credentials
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party primaries
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the presidency
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president
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vice-president
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presidential candidate
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favorite son candidate
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qualifications for public office
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keynote speaker
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a political deal
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pages (messengers)
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running mate
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auditorium
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ballots
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Convention Hall
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roll call
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alphabetical order
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political demonstrations
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political platform
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goals and ideals
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ideology
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speeches
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speech writer
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ghost writer
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political campaign
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campaign workers
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volunteers
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supporters
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financial contributions
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political adviser
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political strategist
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the advance man
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political backing
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lobbyist
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special interest groups
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the ethnic vote
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party affiliation
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Democrat
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Democratic
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Republican
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Independent
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independent ticket
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influential persons
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politician
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politics
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to bolt the party
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the press
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the newspaper reporter
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pollster
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political commentators
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television reporters
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interviews
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cameramen
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conservative
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liberal
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A teacher may add or subtract words from the above list.
A good idea is to make a selection of the above words for a spelling or definition test prior to the writing of the composition. This would help the students produce a better composition.
The teacher may ask for volunteers to give oral reports about the different presidential candidates. Another method to stimulate the interest of the class would be to ask for volunteers to participate in role-playing as presidential candidates.
The teacher can show a filmstrip about political conventions giving ample time for students to copy captions from selected frames.
Once the students have learned the definitions of the terms, heard the class discussions, have seen the filmstrip, they will be amply prepared to write a composition in class on the topic.
The teacher can select one of the following themes for the composition:
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1. Imagine yourself a delegate at the convention trying to persuade other delegates to vote for your candidate. What would you say to them?
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2. You’re a walking television cameraman on the convention floor. What do you see and hear?
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3. You’re a reporter interviewing one of the candidates. What kind of questions would you ask the candidate?
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4. You’re a page at the national convention. What would this experience teach you about politicians and politics?
Lesson Two
: A spontaneous response to a major current event
Topic
: Attempted Assassinations
This lesson is for one class period only.
A student walks into the classroom and asks the teacher: “What do you think about the assassination attempt on Reagan?” This question spurs the class into a spontaneous discussion on the previous day’s major news event. Since the topic is a sensitive one, the teacher will control the discussion in a democratic way so that students with different viewpoints will have a chance to speak out their opinions about the event.
The teacher can interject some of the following questions to stimulate their thinking:
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1. Were the Secret Service men doing their job?
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(If answer is yes or no, ask “Why?”)
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2. Should Congress pass gun control laws?
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3. Should the president’s activities be more restricted than in the past?
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4. Do you feel that the media gave too much or too little coverage of the event?
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5. Should reporters wait until they have complete, accurate information or give immediate hasty reports?
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6. Can a democracy act like a police state in protecting the President?
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7. Should there be a death penalty if the president is killed?
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8. Do you feel that the media coverage triggers other assassination attempts on important individuals elsewhere in the world?
The discussion should not exceed more than 20 minutes of the classroom time so that there is ample time to write a short composition based on the students’ own personal opinion about the topic.
The teacher can select one of the following titles for the composition:
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1. My feelings about the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan.
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2. What I think about the assassination attempt on the life of Pope John Paul II.
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3. How would you go about protecting heads of states?
Lesson Three
: A Geography Lesson
Topic:
Turmoil in the Persian Gulf
This lesson could be covered in one class period.
Since the news from the Persian Gulf area has hit the headlines, before and after the Hostage Crisis, there has been a need for the students to know the geography of that area of the world. They may realize the importance of that area because of our need for oil supplies. The Middle East is the major oil supplier for the world. They are aware of this because of the rising fuel and gasoline prices.
The teacher may write out on the blackboard names of important Middle East personalities and list geographical names, such as:
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the Arabian Peninsula
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Strait of Hormuz
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the Persian Gulf
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Pakistan
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United Arab Emirates
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Baghdad
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Iran
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Iranian Prime Minister Ali-Rajai
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Iraq
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Iraqi president Saddam Hussein
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Tehran
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Ayatollah Khomeini
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Saudi Arabia
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Kuwait
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It is suggested that the teacher distribute blank copies of a map of the Persian Gulf area to the students so that they can fill in the above-mentioned geographical names. The teacher could use a large wall map of this area to point out the above geographical places. This will help the students understand the current events discussed and enable them to write a short composition about the topic covered.
The teacher may leave the word list on the blackboard and the map visible so that the students might feel more comfortable in writing about the people and places discussed.
In limiting this lesson to one class period it is best not to overburden the students with too many difficult names and places. A long list may confuse them.
This type of lesson and method assists the students with lower abilities to function well in such a situation. It will help them in the process of writing the composition.
The teacher can select one of the following questions for the composition:
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1. Why should the United States protect the oil fields and sea lanes in the Persian Gulf area?
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2. Why is the U.S.S.R. interested in the Persian Gulf area?
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3. What kind of a foreign policy should the United States have toward the Arab world?
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4. Now that the Hostage Crisis is over, should the United States have friendlier relations with Iran?
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(If answer is yes or no, explain why.)
Lesson Four
: Research Project
Topic
: Brotherhood Week
This lesson could take up one or two weeks, depending on how much time the teacher wants to devote to this topic. The first week prior to the observance of Brotherhood Week could be spent in preparation for it. The second week could be set aside for the students’ presentations.
It is suggested that the teacher start early in the school year gathering materials the students could use during the preparation week. The compilation of materials could consist of:
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art reproductions from various art magazines, museum post card reproductions, etc.
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a file of clippings of articles on ethnic personalities and cultures found in the Sunday edition of the New Haven Register in the “People” section.
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photographs of individuals, sometimes accompanied by an article from magazines like Newsweek, Time, People, etc.
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maps pertaining to a specific country or countries
During the first week the teacher could give the students a chance to examine the materials in the file and allow them to make a choice on which ethnic group, nationality, or individual they would like to report on. Also during the first week the students may bring in from home illustrations, pictures, artifacts, etc. for the classroom bulletin board.
For the students that cannot make up their minds what to write about the teacher can offer them the following choices of personalities:
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Igor Sikorsky, aeronautical engineer
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Fiorello LaGuardia, public official
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Charles Ives, American composer
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Joe Louis, boxer
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Helen Hayes, actress
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Eugene O’Neill, playwright
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Maria Callas, opera singer
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Miles Davis, jazz artist
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Allen Ginsberg, poet
The teacher can change the list.
In order to facilitate their research work the teacher could reserve the school library for two consecutive days since the students need a lot of time to locate the sources.
If some students write about a personality it should include the following:
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personal background of the individual
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education
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apprenticeship and work experience
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contribution(s) to society
Attending an International Festival during Brotherhood Week would enrich the students’ lives. The students’ impression of the International Festival could be included in their composition on a particular nationality.
This particular lesson would be different from the others in that the students would choose their own topic for the composition. Having a part in decision-making would spur the students to write with enthusiasm.