Forced Choice, Day 2 - Class Recap

This is what the inside of the United States Capitol building dome looks like, in Washington, D.C. The Capitol is where Congress meets to debate legislation!

Hi everyone,

Today, we wrapped up the Forced Choice activity, which took most of class. There were some really valuable discussions and insights that were shared about how we think the world should operate! Here's the class recap for the day:

Learning Targets: 
Communication LT 5: I can communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.

Knowledge LT 1: I can demonstrate an understanding of the interplay between citizens and their governments. 

Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.

Soundtrack: "Get Up, Stand Up" by Bob Marley. Selected for today because students were standing up for what they believed in, with the Forced Choice activity. Plus, Logan had a Bob Marley shirt on! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 9/17/14:
News Brief – Katharyn
Blog Recap
Forced Choice
Debrief
Declaration of Independence

Homework: Read the blog. Finish the Forced Choice reflection paper and be ready to turn it in at the start of next class. The next news brief is assigned to Chloe.

News Brief: Katharyn selected this news article to talk about this morning: OregonLive.com - Portland Public Schools' $16.8 million windfall could lead to immediate relief in crowded schools. We talked again about how schools get money (from the state), then theorized as to how a school district could have $16.8 million extra to spend. Maybe from higher than expected tax revenue, combined with a school budget that was the "worst case" scenario? Thanks, Katharyn! Chloe, you are next up.

Blog Recap: For this section, I just wanted to show this website again and re-emphasize the importance of checking in, reading the recaps, on staying on top of what we are doing in class. A lot of time and effort goes into writing the blog - please use it to help yourself be successful! :-)

Forced Choice: Again, a continuation of the activity that we started last class. This time, we hit a variety of questions from 4-10, here:

1. Giving up some of our rights (like our phones being listened to without a warrant) is necessary for our own protection. 

2. The Second Amendment means that everyone in the US has the right to have any weapons that they want.

3. Same-sex marriage should be legal everywhere.

4. Marijuana should be legalized everywhere for recreational use.

5. Organized prayer in public schools should be allowed.

6. The government of a country should have the power to make decisions that the majority of the people in it do not support.

7. Should the motto “In God We Trust” be removed from our currency?

8. A ban on all guns would reduce crime in the United States.

9. People in power are always corrupt in some way.

10. Democracy is always the best form of government for anywhere in the world.

I had the class answer the 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.

Today's class was interesting - it did get a little heated/ridiculous during the discussion time for question 8! One of the discussion points had to do with Hitler taking guns away from Germans once he got into power. Here's an article about how that might be a misrepresentation of history: Salon.com - The Hitler gun control lie.

Another discussion point was about Germany not invading Switzerland because everyone in Switzerland had a gun. Here's a little background about Germany's plans for invading Switzerland, which fell through.

Debrief: The prompt at the end of class (the rest of the time was just for writing) was this: Write a one page reflection on the activity. What was the most difficult or controversial question for you? Why? How do these sorts of questions relate to the study of government?

Yes, you will be turning this in, and yes, it will be graded. The learning target that is being assessed for this one is: Communication LT 5: I can communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.

Please come ready at the start of next class to turn this reflection in and to talk a bit about the activity. Then, we will move on to more of the details about the start of the United States government. Thanks, everyone!