The Campaign Trail
(Overview for parents/Students)
This unit seeks to combine two classes commonly taught to 12th grade students: American Government and Statistics. This is done through the lens of a political campaign.
In Government, students will be divided into groups, where they will be assigned roles such as Candidate (participates in mock "debates" and gives speeches), Speechwriter (writes a stump speech covering the key beliefs of the campaign), Pollster (responsible for finding information on the demographic breakdown of the US and about the issues), Campaign Manager (coordinates the other team members), Media Expert (takes the lead on creating campaign promotional materials), Social Media Consultant (manages the campaign's online presence), and Platform Researcher (researches the issues that make up the campaign's platform).
Students will spend time crafting a platform, determining who they might have the most favor with, creating campaign materials, and participating in debates. This is also where this ITU adds an element of art integration; each campaign will have to create several pieces of propaganda. From time to time, Mock U.N.-style crises will arise, and the students will have to figure out how to address them. These campaigns will go through a brief primary process in the first week before consolidating into two or three campaigns and competing for the general election in the second.
In Statistics, students will be using electoral politics as a frame to investigate various statistical topics related to polling data. Students will research polling data from recent elections, research how and why this data can be misleading, and participate in a service learning activity surrounding a voter registration drive.
In Government, students will be divided into groups, where they will be assigned roles such as Candidate (participates in mock "debates" and gives speeches), Speechwriter (writes a stump speech covering the key beliefs of the campaign), Pollster (responsible for finding information on the demographic breakdown of the US and about the issues), Campaign Manager (coordinates the other team members), Media Expert (takes the lead on creating campaign promotional materials), Social Media Consultant (manages the campaign's online presence), and Platform Researcher (researches the issues that make up the campaign's platform).
Students will spend time crafting a platform, determining who they might have the most favor with, creating campaign materials, and participating in debates. This is also where this ITU adds an element of art integration; each campaign will have to create several pieces of propaganda. From time to time, Mock U.N.-style crises will arise, and the students will have to figure out how to address them. These campaigns will go through a brief primary process in the first week before consolidating into two or three campaigns and competing for the general election in the second.
In Statistics, students will be using electoral politics as a frame to investigate various statistical topics related to polling data. Students will research polling data from recent elections, research how and why this data can be misleading, and participate in a service learning activity surrounding a voter registration drive.
The Enduring Understandings for this unit are as follows:
While pursuing these understandings, students will engage with several guiding questions:
- Students will analyze the workings of the American political and electoral system.
- Students will discuss the issues inherent to representational democracy, both from a mathematical and a humanitarian perspective.
- Students will understand the ways in which political campaigns are carried out.
While pursuing these understandings, students will engage with several guiding questions:
- How does the American political system work?
- What is fair?
- How can we make sure everyone's voice is heard?