In many parts of the world being a citizen of this country is a privilege that people would pay great sums of money, even risk their lives, to be. These people come from circumstances where they do not have access to necessities such as enough food and water, housing, safety, education, equal rights, or political representation. That is why people from Mexico pay smugglers thousands of dollars to help them cross the boarder, or why people from Cuba climbed into rafts and attempted to cross the ocean to come to Florida. They made that journey and risked their lives so that they, and their children, could have the better life that America is known to provide. I created this unit because I worry that my students are essentially unaware of these rights, or if they are aware they certainly take them for granted. These rights are the basis for my curriculum unit. My unit will explain the history of gaining these rights, why they are important to us all, and how we can use them to their fullest.
The most important benefits of citizenship that set the United States apart are the federal right to vote and the state right to education. These rights are provided to every citizen in this country, which cannot be said in a number of other countries around the world. In many countries these rights are only provided to men, to privileged minorities, or people that are upper class. In many cases women and poor people are unable to be educated past the elementary level, and they are also unable to vote in any elections, and in many cases there are no elections. In this country, citizenship grants you the right to be educated fully into the secondary level, and the right to vote for all political representation. These rights can be used to assist people who are minorities, poor, or are in any other way underprivileged achieve more than they believe they can. Education is a tool that can help people of any category achieve success. Voting allows people of any category to have a say in their political representation, and even run for office, so that they can effect real change in their communities and the country at large. These rights make it possible for underprivileged people to change their lives for the better, no matter what kind of situation they are in. While discussing these two specific rights that are the focus of this curriculum, we will also discuss amendments to the constitution and rights that coincide with the two main topics.
As great as these rights are for people, many students of them may not be aware of how helpful they can be. Some of them may feel that they do not have the tools they need to better their lives. They feel that their rights as citizens will not do enough for them and that the government has let them down. This is because they do not fully understand how significant it is that all people have access to these rights and how important education and representation are. This is the basis for my curriculum, teaching my students what their citizenship entitles them to, the history behind ordinary people just like them winning these rights, and how these can benefit their lives.
