Civic Engagement Project and Timeline

Civic Engagement Project: Task 1: Selecting a Domestic Policy Problem of Interest

Deadline: End of Unit 1

Student Output: For the first benchmark of the interest group project, students will submit a written report that:

A. Identifies the members of their group

B. Identifies and describes their domestic policy area and policy problem the group would like to explore and try to solve.

C. Explains the signifigance of the policy problem by describing how key stakeholders will be affected if this issue is not solved.

Students will use the policy chapters of the textbook and online resources such as the Brookings Institute or the Pew Research Center, to complete this first benchmark. Domestic policy areas students will be encouraged to select from include fiscal policy, monetary policy, healthcare policy, education policy, environmenal/energy policy, or civil rights policy. The instructor will work with students to craft their problem of interst in an objective non-partisan manner.

Congress

· The Constitutionality of the 2010 Texas Redistricting Plan

· How a Bill Becomes a Law

· Breakout- Lost in Committee

· Congress Simulation

Executive

· Presidential Report Card

· President’s Cabinet

· Presidential Madness

Judicial

· Nominating a judge

Bureaucracy:

· Federal Budget

Civic Engagement Project: Task 2: Domestic Policy and Federalism

Deadline: End of Unit 2

Student Output: The goal for this second benchmark is for students to connect what they learn in Unit 1 about federalism to their policy problem and begin exploring potential solutions to their policy problem. Students will submit a written report that:

A. Identifies the government powers relevant to their policy problem and explains whether these powers are best classified as enumerated, implied, reserved, or concurrent.

B. Explains the relationship between their policy problem and Constitutional provisions that frame federalism, including the Tenth Amendment, the Fourteenth Amendment, the Supremacy Clause, the Necessary and Proper Clause, and the enumerated powers in Article 1, Section 8.

C. Explains the relationship between federalism and the policy problem and whether, overall, the policy problem is more influenced by the national government or state governments.

D. Explains at least one advantage and one disadvantage that federalism and checks and balances in the national government poses for interest groups seeking to influence government policy on this policy problem.

· Bill of Rights Graphic Organizer

· Do you have the right activity?

· Moot court simulation

· Who is Most Responsible for Advancing Civil Rights since the 1950s?

Civic Engagement Project Task 3: Domestic Policy and the Institutions of the Federal Government

Deadline: End of Unit 3

Student Output:

The goal for this third benchmark is for students to connect what they learn in Unit 2 about the institutions of the federal government to their policy problem and begin determining which institution of government should be targeted if the interest group wants to push for change related to their policy problem. For this benchmark, students will submit a written report that addresses the following for each of the institutions of the federal government (e.g., Congress, the president, the federal judiciary, and the federal bureaucracy):

A. Identify and describe at least ONE power that each federal government institution can use to influence your policy problem. Explain how each of these powers influence the policy problem.

B. Identify at least ONE specific landmark action that each federal government institution has taken in your policy area and explain how each action influences your policy problem.

C. Explain at least ONE way in which the influence of each federal government institution over your policy problem can be limited by one of the other federal government institutions.

D. Explain how at least ONE of the following concepts might limit or enhance your interest group’s ability to influence the policy problem – divided government, gerrymandering, and iron triangle. E. Make an argument in written form, supported by evidence, concerning which institution of the federal government your interest group should target in seeking to influence policy related to your policy problem.

******Students will also find a visual source related to their policy problem. This visual source can take the form of a political cartoon from a news website, such as U.S. News & World Report or The Week news magazine, or an infographic from a news website, such as The Washington Post or the New York Times. Students will describe the topic and perspective conveyed in the visual and explain how the elements of the visual are related to their policy problem and how the visual impacts their view of the problem.

· Political Culture and Political Ideology Party Platform Analysis

· Polling Lessons Learned from The Literary Digest 1936 Presidential Election Poll

· Political Ideology Quiz

· Political Party Webquest

Civic Engagement Project Task 4: The Connection Between Influencing Domestic Policy, Civil Liberties, and Civil Rights

Deadline: End of Unit 4

Student Output:

The goal for this fourth benchmark is for students to both analyze civil liberties or civil rights issues underlying their policy problem and to analyze how interpretations of civil liberties protect and limit interest groups as they seek to influence domestic policy. For this benchmark, students will submit a written report that:

A. Explains the relationship between their policy problem and civil liberties, and as appropriate, identifies the specific provisions in the Bill of Rights that relate to their policy problem and explains how these provisions are related to the policy problem.

B. Explains the relationship between their policy problem and civil rights. C. Explains how at least ONE Supreme Court case related to civil liberties or civil rights protects or enhances their interest group’s ability to influence policy.

D. Explains how at least ONE Supreme Court case related to civil liberties or civil rights limits their interest group’s ability to influence policy.

E. Describes at least ONE lesson, strategy, or idea their interest group can borrow from “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” the National Organization for Women, or the pro-life movement in terms of how to successfully influence government policy.

Civic Engagement Project Task : Domestic Policy, Public Opinion, and Political Ideology

Deadline: 1 week before end of unit 5

Student Output:

The goal for this fifth benchmark is for students to analyze the relationship between their domestic policy problem and both public opinion and political ideology. For this benchmark, students will submit a written report that:

A. Presents two public opinion polls from a polling service or website, such as Gallup, the Pew Research Center, a news website, or FiveThirtyEight, that present public opinion data related to their policy problem. Students will describe the data presented in each poll, describe patterns and trends in the data, draw at least one conclusion based on the data, explain how the data relates to their policy problem, and account for any differences in the data presented by both polls. Students will also evaluate the reliability and veracity of the polls by analyzing their sampling techniques and question types. [CR9] B. Describes the stance of the Republican Party, Democratic Party, and ONE third party as it relates to the policy problem based on the information presented in the most recent national party platforms. Students will also explain the relationship between the Republican Party’s stance and conservatism, the Democratic Civic Engagement Project

Civic Engagement Project Task : Final Presentations

Deadline: 1 week after end of unit 5

Student Output

Students will synthesize the research on their domestic policy problem that they researched throughout the year and the course content on linkage institutions in Unit 5 to create a visual presentation (e.g., PowerPoint, Prezi, tri-fold poster board, video) that presents a strategic plan that their interest group should take to push government to solve the policy problem. This presentation should include:

A. A description of the policy area and problem the interest group is seeking to influence.

B. A description of the policy solution that the interest group would like to see enacted and an explanation of how this solution solves the policy problem.

C. An identification of the specific institutions of government the interest group is going to lobby and an explanation of why these institutions are the most important to lobby on this issue.

D. A description of the specific strategies the interest group is going to use to influence the policy problem and an explanation of why these strategies are the most effective in this context.

E. A description of at least TWO challenges the interest group is likely to encounter (e.g., shifts in public opinion, party polarization on the issue, Constitutional challenges, challenges related to media coverage and exposure) and an explanation of how the interest group plans to overcome these challenges. Groups will present their interest group’s strategic plan for approximately 10–12 minutes. Groups will then field questions from their peers and a panel of social studies teachers regarding the accuracy, effectiveness, and viability of their interest group strategic plan.