1.4 The Impact of Public Policy
1.4 The Impact of Public Policy
Key Questions
- How do the actions of governments such as laws or regulations promote certain outcomes?
- What are the criteria for success in government programs or initiatives?
- Why do some policies create different outcomes for citizens of varied races, genders, or classes?
One of the key areas to consider as a citizen is the role of public policy on the day to day lives of Americans. Programs such as Social Security, Medicare, and even the Affordable Health Care Act (Obamacare) started as complex laws that were passed with specific intended goals. However, the full scale of their impact(s) is still be being debated and evaluated.
Definition:
Public policy can be generally defined as a system of laws, regulatory measures, courses of action, and funding priorities concerning a given topic promoted and enforced by a governmental entity or its representatives.
Public policy can also be the basis of some fundamental shifts in a direction that people will later regret. Race and racism became the basis of public policy for a period of time in the early 20th Century. Some countries like Nazi Germany took this to what seemed to be a logical conclusion. Here in the United States we created the Eugenics movement to limit the "wrong" people from reproducing. This short film explains how this system worked.
Assessing your own views on public policies is a critical aspect of informed citizenship. Interpreting news sources, considering historical challenges, and evaluating biases are all critical skills aspects of active citizenship. Currently, there are several initiatives on the local, state, and federal levels that have had significant time to be implemented and assessed. We will be taking a look at several of these national initiatives and debating their legality, success, and long-term consequences. Each of you will be assigned one of the following policies and will develop a set of pro/con points, a brief historical overview, and guide a discussion about the assigned policy. Follow the links below to start your research. These Wikipedia articles should provide you with a STARTING point and at least three other sources must be included in your presentation's bibliography.
Create a presentation using this FORMAT
Please copy the template and make your OWN presentation.
Before we start our research we will investigate Mandatory Minimum Sentencing together.
Families Against Mandatory Minimums - Click on File Download at the bottom of the page
This is a piece produced by an organization opposed to mandatory minimums.