Vote Democracy!
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
ENGAGING STUDENTS AND TEACHERS THROUGH FILM COMMUNITY CLASSROOM: VOTE DEMOCRACY! EDUCATOR GUIDE Educators can use the VOTE DEMOCRACY! Educator Guide to support viewing of PLEASE VOTE FOR ME, IRON LADIES OF LIBERIA, CHICAGO 10 and AN UNREASONABLE MAN while engaging students in discussions about democracy abroad, elections, third-party politics, gender, the role of dissent in democracy and media literacy. These lessons and activities also provide a con- text for understanding and further investigating the changing nature of democracy around the world. WWW.PBS.ORG/INDEPENDENTLENS/CLASSROOM COMMUNITYITVS CLASSROOM CLASSROOM VOTE DEMOCRACY! TABLE OF CONTENTS How To Use the Films and This Guide 3 About the Films 6 Activity 1: What is Democracy? 8 Activity 2: Third Party Voices 11 Activity 3: Participating in a Campaign 14 Activity 4: Democracy Around the World 17 Activity 5: Women and Democracy 20 Activity 6: Dissent in Democracy 24 Activity 7: Media Literacy 28 Student Handouts 31 Teacher Handouts 34 National Standards 42 Guide Credits 43 COMMUNITY CLASSROOM is an exciting resource for educators. It provides short video modules drawn from the Emmy® Award–winning PBS series Independent Lens. Drawn from the United States and abroad, these stories reflect the diversity of our world through the lens of contemporary documentary filmmakers. The COMMUNITY CLASSROOM video modules are supported with innovative, resource-rich curricula for high school, college and other youth educators. The video modules are five to ten minutes in length and can be viewed online or on DVD. Content is grouped into subject-specific segments corresponding to lesson plans and is standards- based. COMMUNITY CLASSROOM is a product of the Independent Television Service and KQED Education Network, with support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Educational content was developed with guidance from PBS Teachers, the National Association for Multicultural Education, the American Association of Community Colleges, the National Council for the Social Studies, National State Teachers of the Year and the National Council of Teachers of English. INDEPENDENT TELEVISION SERVICE (ITVS) 651 BRANNAN STREET, SUITE 410 SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107 PHONE: 415.356.8383 EMAIL: [email protected] WEB: WWW.PBS.ORG/INDEPENDENTLENS/CLASSROOM PAGE 2 COMMUNITYITVS CLASSROOM CLASSROOM VOTE DEMOCRACY! HOW TO USE THE FILMS AND THIS GUIDE Educators can use the VOTE DEMOCRACY! Educator Guide to support viewing of PLEASE VOTE FOR ME, IRON LADIES OF LIBERIA, CHICAGO 10 and AN UNREASONABLE MAN while engaging students in discussions about democracy in the U.S. and abroad, third parties, elections, gender, dissent and media literacy. These lessons and discussions also provide a context for under- standing and further investigating the changing nature of democracy around the world. The activities can foster discussion about these topics within families and in the broader school community so that students, teachers and community members can gain a greater understanding of these issues. GRADE LEVEL Activity 6: Dissent in Democracy 9–12, College This activity takes a look at how dissent is manifested in American democracy and gives students an opportunity to share their own voice SUBJECT AREAS on controversial issues. Government, Political Science, Social Studies, Current Events, Language Arts, Debate, Ethnic Studies, Sociology Activity 7: Media Literacy In this lesson, students will critically view and analyze media, learning ACTIVITIES how images, especially in documentary filmmaking, are constructed. The activities target students at the high school level, but can be A Reminder for Teachers and Educators scaffolded to accommodate the college classroom, as well as informal Please remember that these activities are guidelines only. We hope that you will make the classrooms such as after-school programs, clubs and youth training necessary adjustments to meet the needs of your academic and social environment, keeping programs through community-based organizations. All content aligns in mind your own and your students’ familiarity with the issues, the needs of your school and community, your students’ grade level and social awareness and the class size and duration. with national standards for social studies and English language arts. It is particularly important that educators remember that some of the topics in the film could Each of the activities is designed to last two traditional class periods cause intense debate among students with strong opposing views. (90-120 minutes total); together, the four activities and video modules constitute a unit that can last one to two weeks. All activities aim to COMMUNITY CLASSROOM VIDEO MODULES incorporate educational content and themes that can be integrated With this Educator Guide, you can build a unit around the entire film into your existing content curriculum. or you can focus on one or more of the COMMUNITY CLASSROOM video modules. Each module runs 5-10 minutes. The activities in the VOTE DEMOCRACY! Educator Guide are presented in the following order: PLEASE VOTE FOR ME (10:00) This module takes a look at the proposition of hosting a democratic election inside a third-grade Activity 1: What is Democracy? classroom in communist China. It provides glimpses of each of the In this lesson, students will consider the qualities that exist in a three young candidates for class monitor: at home, in class and while democracy and how different people would define democracy. They actively campaigning. Viewers also see the involvement of the teacher, will create their own media expressions of what the concept means to the parents and classmates. Show this module with Activities 1 and 2. them. IRON LADIES OF LIBERIA (10:00) This module examines the first Activity 2: Third-party Voices year in the term of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first female This lesson examines the political party system in the U.S. and in head of state in the civil war-damaged African nation of Liberia. Short other democracies, especially the participation of independent parties. clips examine her personal philosophy, public persona and methods of leadership as she deals with a devastated infrastructure, irate former Activity 3: Participating in a Campaign soldiers, the Firestone Corporation and the governments of China and This lesson focuses on the mechanics of political campaigns, from the United States. Show this module with Activities 3 and 4. campaign team roles to skills and strategies. AN UNREASONABLE MAN “Third Parties” (5:00) In this module, Activity 4: Democracy Around the World viewers are introduced to Ralph Nader, consumer activist and third- This lesson takes a global look at the range of democratic party presidential candidate. Nader discusses his political activism and governments in different countries, from new and transitional the reasons behind his pursuit of a presidential campaign. The module democratic systems to more established ones. features news footage of his exclusion from the presidential debates. Show this module with Activity 2. Activity 5: Women and Democracy In this lesson, students will discuss and research the impact of prominent women who have led, challenged and shaped both the ideas and practices of democracies around the world. INDEPENDENT TELEVISION SERVICE (ITVS) 651 BRANNAN STREET, SUITE 410 SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107 PHONE: 415.356.8383 EMAIL: [email protected] WEB: WWW.PBS.ORG/INDEPENDENTLENS/CLASSROOM PAGE 3 COMMUNITYITVS CLASSROOM CLASSROOM VOTE DEMOCRACY! AN UNREASONABLE MAN “Campaign” (5:00) This module further Purchase the Full-Length Films: examines Nader’s candidacy: strategies for voter outreach, including IRON LADIES OF LIBERIA “super rallies” and television advertising; the role of his campaign staff Women Make Movies: and the coverage by and response from the media. Viewers are also http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/pages/c717.shtml introduced to Nader’s Raiders, a group of former Nader consumer advocate staffers who spoke out against his presidential bid. Show AN UNREASONABLE MAN this module with Activity 3, together with the PLEASE VOTE FOR ME New Yorker Films: module. http://www.newyorkerfilms.com/nyf/non-theatrical/nr_n.htm. Email [email protected] to obtain Public Performance CHICAGO 10 “1968” (3:42) This module highlights major historical Rights events that took place leading up to and surrounding the protests at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 1968. Archival footage portrays President Johnson’s escalation of the Vietnam War, CHICAGO 10 his reinstatement of the draft, the assassination of Martin Luther King http://www.amazon.com and the subsequent civil unrest across the country. Show this module with Activity 6. PLEASE VOTE FOR ME http://www.shoppbs.org CHICAGO 10 “The Convention” (6:27) This module highlights protest strategies used by activist organizations like MOBE and the Yippies during the Democratic National Convention in 1968. Viewers will see the activities of convention delegates juxtaposed with the activities of the protestors, including archival footage of the march that escalated into a violent confrontation with Chicago police. Show this module with Activities 6 and 7. CHICAGO 10 “The Trial” (6:08) This module features animated reenactments of what happened in the courtroom during the trial of the most vocal activists behind the protests in Chicago. Based on court transcripts, the reenactments capture the circus- like atmosphere of the trial and the intense generational conflict of