A1 Foundations of US Democracy UA PDF

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Unit Activity

Unit: Foundations of US Democracy This Unit Activity will help you meet these educational goals:  Inquiry Skills—You will develop questions and plan investigations; analyze societal issues, trends, and events; develop explanations and make persuasive arguments in support of your conclusions; and communicate your conclusions.  21st Century Skills—You will use critical-thinking and problem-solving skills, assess and validate information, and independently raise questions and pursue leads.

Introduction Civil society has emerged in social studies and the media as a term for describing a subtle and ethereal part of what makes modern nations and governments function. People use a range of definitions of civil society, including:  the voluntary associations outside of the government that people and groups create for many reasons, including social reasons, charitable reasons, and economic reasons  a sector of social and community activity distinct from government and business that includes intermediary institutions such as advocacy organization, religious groups, professional associations, community service organizations, and labor unions  organizations and groups that empower a variety of voices in society and enrich participation in democratic structures  the informal structures driven by voluntary participation that support a free society and encourage participation in governance This unit activity will explore the concept of civil society, how it relates to governments on a spectrum from democratic to totalitarian, and how the United States’ form of government establishes and supports room for civil society to flourish. __________________________________________________________________________

Directions and Analysis Task 1: Civil Society To understand the role of civil society in sustaining the relevance of a government, in this task you will work with the definition of civil society, analyze how citizens build the skills needed to engage in civil society, and explore a real-world case study of the role that civil society plays in supporting a nation’s transition to democracy. a. What is civil society? You’ve seen a handful of definitions of civil society. Now you need to form your own personal definition. Consider how a civil society is formed, differences in democratic and totalitarian regimes, and global forms. 1.

Read this article, and then listen to this short podcast. As you do, think about the ideas noted above. In the table provided below, list the important elements of civil society and their roles and importance in society. (Add in a bit of your own research on 1

the concept of civil society as you wish.) One element has been included as an example. Finally, use the last row of the table to draft a definition of civil society in your own words. Type your response here: Element voluntary participation

Role and Importance Activities should be organically driven by the interests and needs of individuals and groups.

My Definition of Civil Society

2.

Some definitions of civil society specifically reference an increase in democracy as an outcome or motivation for the behavior of individuals or groups in this type of social structure. In fact, totalitarian or repressive governments often work specifically to undermine or outlaw activities related to civil society. Read more about civil society under repressive government forms, listen to this short podcast, and then answer this question: How do repressive regimes interact with civil society, and what impact does that have on citizens? Type your response here:

3.

While observers often discuss civil society activities as happening within a certain country or localized community, many parties work on growing civil society at the global level. Some organizations, such as the Open Society Foundations and the Civil Society International, base their mission on global efforts to encourage the formation of civil society. In addition, the United Nations maintains programs to build and sustain the mechanisms of civil society in its member nations. In a few sentences, explain how global civil society works. How is the practice of civil society different at a global level? Type your response here:

b. To build and maintain civil society, young citizens must be taught the skills involved in activities related to civic engagement. Schools address this need with courses like the one you are taking or in civics courses. Civil society organizations also provide training activities and other ways of welcoming young people, new citizens, or simply new members into this sphere of activity. Other mechanisms exist for ongoing civics training, including video games! Watch this brief discussion of how video games and the online world hold the ability to provide safe 2

places for people of all ages to build skills for civil society and perhaps even apply them to their real-world concerns. Write one to two paragraphs that reflect on the arguments made in the video about building skills for civil society and civic engagement. You may include an example where you have participated in such an event through a video gaming experience. Type your response here: c. Existing civil society institutions provide support when nations transition from authoritarian to democratic rule. A recent set of case studies occurred in the wave of governmental transitions known as the Arab Spring (2012 and 2013). Read this discussion of the role of civil society in the Middle East. A mistrust of Western ideals provides one challenge in supporting civil society on a global scale, especially when supporting transitional democracies in the Middle East. This is because some believe that civil society is a Western concept. Based on the article above, the definition for civil society you developed, and additional research you do on your own, write a 250-word analysis of the challenges to growing civil society and democratic practices in the Middle East (such as resistance to Western ideals, Western funding, and Western involvement in local affairs). Type your response here:

Task 2: The Bill of Rights For the United States, the Bill of Rights serves the basic purpose of protecting individual rights and liberties. Yet it also performs a fundamental role in establishing an environment that supports and sustains civil society. While the Founders may not have used the term “civil society” in their writings and discussions, the rights they protected in these first 10 amendments to the Constitution encourage citizens to engage with each other informally and formally in civic institutions to continually improve the nation’s democracy. a. Review the amendments in the Bill of Rights. Choose three rights to focus on—the rights you believe are the most important ones in the document. Take notes in the table provided below about each right. Include the amendment number and the name of the right, identify a current real-world scenario that illustrates conflict around that right, and describe the reasons explaining the different sides of the conflict. Type your response here: Right 1 Amendment

Right

Current issue Reasons for conflict

Explanation 3

Right 2 Amendment

Right

Current issue Reasons for conflict

Right 3 Amendment

Explanation

Right

Current issue Reasons for conflict

Explanation

b. Now, choose one of the three scenarios from part a of this task. Write a speech as if you were a member of the House of Representatives or some other government official speaking to a town hall meeting in your district. In your speech, highlight this conflict and issue for your constituents. Also list potential solutions to the issue and discuss the consequences if no solution is found. Finally, explain your own opinion, in your role as a US representative, on how to resolve the situation. Be sure to support your viewpoint with evidence. Review these brief speeches from Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) and former Rep. Jim Ramstad (R-MN) as examples of this type of argument for a policy prescription. Once you have written your speech, ask your teacher if he or she would like you to record the speech and submit a video of it for peer or teacher evaluation via School Tube. Type your response here:

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Resources What is civil society? Civil society Civil society under repressive governments Civil society and authoritarianism Open Society Foundations Civil Society International Civil society and the UN Video games and civil society Civil society in the Middle East Rep. John Lewis on voting rights Rep. Jim Ramstad on mental health Bill of Rights School Tube Document any references you used for this project below. At a minimum, include a title and a URL for any Internet resource.

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Evaluation Your teacher will use this rubric to evaluate the completeness of your work as well as the clarity of thinking you exhibit. Task 1

Deeply explores various approaches to understanding civil society Articulately evolves and explains own definition of civil society Demonstrates a thorough understanding of the importance of building civil society skills Cleverly applies understanding of civil society to analyze recent global events Makes excellent use of note-taking tools and tasks Writes with highly developed clarity and form

Proficient

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Adequately explores various approaches to understanding civil society Evolves and explains own definition of civil society Demonstrates an understanding of the importance of building civil society skills Appropriately applies understanding of civil society to analyze recent global events Makes good use of note-taking tools and tasks Writes with clarity and good form

Developing

     

Explores some approaches to understanding civil society Explains own definition of civil society with limited effectiveness Demonstrates some understanding of the importance of building civil society skills Applies some understanding of civil society to analyze recent global events Makes some use of note-taking tools and tasks Lacks clarity and struggles with form in writing

     

Fails to explore approaches to understanding civil society Fails to explain own definition of civil society Demonstrates a poor understanding of the importance of building civil society skills Fails to apply understanding of civil society to analyze recent global events Makes poor use of note-taking tools and tasks Writes text that is hard to follow and full of errors

Distinguished

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Beginning

Criteria

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Task 2

Distinguished

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Deeply explores issues related to rights in the Bill of Rights Articulately explains real-world issues Demonstrates a thorough understanding of the Bill of Rights Cleverly applies understanding of Bill of Rights in forming a speech Makes excellent use of note-taking tools and tasks Writes with highly developed clarity and form Delivers a clear and powerful speech

Proficient

     

Adequately explores issues related to rights in the Bill of Rights Adequately explains real-world issues Demonstrates an understanding of the Bill of Rights Appropriately applies understanding of Bill of Rights in forming a speech Makes good use of note-taking tools and tasks Writes with clarity and good form

Developing

     

Beginning

Criteria

     

Begins to explore issues related to rights in the Bill of Rights Explains real-world issues with limited effectiveness Demonstrates some understanding of the Bill of Rights Applies some understanding of Bill of Rights in forming a speech Makes some use of note-taking tools and tasks Lacks clarity and struggles with form in writing St l i d li i h Fails to explore issues related to rights in the Bill of Rights Fails to explain real-world issues Demonstrates a poor understanding of the Bill of Rights Fails to apply understanding of Bill of Rights in forming a speech Makes poor use of note-taking tools and tasks Writes text that is hard to follow and full of errors

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