Joanne R. Pompano
“The Americans with Disabilities Act and the Supreme Court”
Grades:9-12
Subjects:Civil Rights, Civics, Language, History, Resource/ Disabled
Overview of Lesson Plan:
Students will examine the
Americans with Disabilities Ac
t and the rights that it grants to individuals who have disabilities
Goal:
Students will create a magazine or newspaper dealing with ADA and the issues that surrounds this law.
Lesson I:
In this lesson, students will work in small groups to examine and present each section of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Divide students into small groups and distribute copies of the ADA to each student. Assign each group one area to read. Each group will interpret and summarize the rights guaranteed to people that are disabled. Representatives will present their section of the ADA to the class. They will choose an editor. Reporters will be assigned to write a summary of each section.
Lesson II:
In this lesson, students will work in small groups to examine the Supreme Court cases that deal with issues of the ADA.
1. E. Sutton v. United Airlines, 527 U.S. 471 (1999)
2. G. Albertson’s Inc. v. Kirkingburg, 527 U.S. 555 (1999).
Divide students into small groups and assign each group one case to read. Each group will also research articles on the case assigned to them. Representatives will present their section of the ADA to the class in a mock court that summarizes the majority and minority reports of each case. Reporters will be assigned to write a summary of the proceedings.
Lesson III:
Students will tour their school and other places in their community to take an inventory of areas or situations that might present problems for individuals with disabilities. They will look for situations such as wheelchair accessibility, large print or Braille signs, etc.
Reporters will be assigned to interview students, faculty, and community members that have handicapping conditions. They will investigate how people with disabilities feel about the ADA and what problems or concerns they have about the community access, etc.
Lesson IV:
Students will be divided into panels for discussion on
the following issues:
How has the ADA assisted people with disabilities in the past three decades? What problems are there with ADA?
Do the Supreme Court cases studied show a trend toward weakening the rights of Americans with disabilities?
Lesson V:
Students will create a magazine using the articles written from Lesson 1-4. Also, additional background articles will be obtained by having students visiting websites and reading background information:
1. Read the history of the Americans with Disabilities Act. What obstacles were faced in trying to create this law?
2. What changed due to the creation of this law?
3. Define terms and found in the ADA
Evaluation / Assessment
: Students will be evaluated based on participation in class discussions, participation in interpretation and panel discussions, and analysis of cases and articles written.
Resources
To obtain copy of ADA
dol/.gov/esa
Civil Right Laws
Summary of federal civil rights laws that ensure equal opportunity for people with disabilities.
http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/disabilityrights.html