The last unit in my Humanities 10 class was a social experiment. Confused? Don’t worry, when we were told that everything we were going to be doing in our class for the next month would be an experiment, we were very confused as well. As confused as we were, we were also very excited to start a unit that is unique and interesting.
The first assignment that our teacher gave us was to split ourselves into six even groups of students that were fair and equal. The hardest aspect of this activity was that everyone has to agree on the groups, and if someone didn’t agree we would have to rearrange the groups.
As we started this activity, a few students (including myself) stepped up to be leaders. We stood at the front of the board to write up the teams. Of course, we listened to what the students wanted and did our best to make even teams. As you can imagine, the classroom became very loud very fast and resulted in a talking stick being assigned so that only one person could talk at a time. As a class, we had to make compromises so that the teams were even and as fair as possible. Some students were disappointed to not be with their friends, but overall the teams were relatively even if there was disagreement.
This social experiment didn’t fail completely, even if we did get very loud and break our talking stick. In the end, the groups were good enough to not be switched by the teacher. My teammates for the rest of the year were Sam, Spencer, and Michael.
The next piece of this unit was the point system. As we continued to do experiments, class activities, and quizzes, we would be marked on our participation and completion. As teams, we would try to earn the most points and win the overall class experiment. It was important to not only do well as a student, but be a good classmate as well. There were many ways that a team could earn points, and many ways that a team could loose points as well.
Our teacher introduced the main part of our unit, reading the well known novel called Lord of the Flies by William Goulding. We would have three weeks to complete this book, while completing assignments and taking weekly tests on the content that we have learned. Some of the assignments included a character chart and a symbol Chart, where I could show my understanding of the events that happen in the novel and what they symbolized.
Click here to read my symbol chart!
The character chart was an important aspect of reading the book because it made it easier to remember what each character did in the book and how their actions influenced the plot. When doing that chart, I added an extra column for Sam and Eric (two twins who I thought were very important to the plot).
Click here to read my character chart!
While reading a complicated book like Lord of the Flies, it is important to highlight sections of the book and bookmark pages that contain important events. This was a huge part of reading the book because it made it easier to go back and look at what I learned in the chapters I recently read. Before taking the weekly team test, I would look over my notes so that I remember the most important parts of those chapters.
The tests were very important for my team because it helped us discuss the book easier. By remembering aspects of the book that we read, we were able to have conversations afterwards about what we thought was interesting, exciting, or in some cases, depressing.
I really enjoyed reading this book, even if some chapters were hard to read. This book had a deep understanding of human nature and what people would do when put in dangerous and unfortunate situations that require critical thinking. Although some parts of the book were coded, like the scar or the creepers, it was a very unique and interesting book to read.
As we moved farther into the novel, we started to talk about different politics and how they can relate to Lord of the Flies. I learned the six major forms of government and their meanings.
This is a type of autocracy where only one person is in charge. The head of state is either a King or a Queen. An example of this is the Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth II.
This is a type of autocracy because only one person is in charge. This individual makes all of the rules for the country without needing consent from anyone. They make the important decisions that include trade, economics, and war tactics. An example of a dictator is Kim Jong Un.
This is a form of government where there are multiple people in charge. Whether it is the citizens or an elected leader to represent them, the people have a say in what happens. When the people have a vote it is called a complete democracy, whereas when there is an elected leader it is called a representative democracy. An example of representative democracy is Donald Trump in the United States and Switzerland is an example of a complete democracy because they have a national voting system.
This is a form of government where a small group of individuals are in charge of a country, organization, or institute. An example is a military group, a group of wealthy business owners, and the Soviet Union.
This is a form of government where religion takes a large role in the way the country is run. Priests rule and religion is intertwined in the laws and beliefs are enforced through the government. An example of this is Saudi Arabia because religion is a very important part of ther belief system, and therefore is a part of their laws and government.
This is actually not a form of government because anarchy is when there isn’t authority which results in disorder and violence. There are no rules or punishments, which leads to chaos and problems within the country.
The next part of politics that we would investigate is the Canadian political system. This is where we talked about the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which is a part of the Canadian Constitution. The Canadian Constitution is full of basic rules that explain how Canada is run as a country.
The Charter of Rights and Freedoms includes-
Equality rights:
Every citizen in Canada has the right to be treated equally and without discrimination.
Minority rights:
Every citizen is under the minority language education rights. Any citizen who speaks French outside of Quebec and citizens who speak English in Quebec are protected by this law.
Democratic rights:
Every citizen has the right to vote in an election of Members of the House of Commons or of a legislative assembly.
Mobility rights:
Every citizen has the right to enter, remain in, and leave Canada when they want to.
We also discussed the electoral system in Canada, which is a minority government. A minority government means a government in where the governing party has the most seats but still has less than half the total.
The last thing that my class discussed was the political spectrum. I didn’t know what the political spectrum was, let alone what side I was on. I learned that the political spectrum is a system that classifies and compares different political positions. There are two main sides to the political spectrum, the left and the right wing. If you are more left wing, you are liberal or democratic. If you are more right wing, you are a conservative or libertarian.
My class had the chance to find out whether we are left or right wing by taking a test that asks how we feel about important topics. I found out that I am more left wing because I have more liberal thoughts.
The last part of this unit was the debating section. After listening to a podcast by Intelligence2, my class had a better idea of what the formatting is for a debate. First, the statement is said to both the pro and con sides. Next, the pro and con side of this argument will have a chance to say their opening statements. Then, both sides will rebuttal against the opening statements before the audience has a chance to ask a question to both sides. After all of this is done, both sides will have two minutes to say their conclusion.
To practice working as a team to get a point across, we played a few games and participated in a few activities that would help us. I really enjoyed playing the game called “pass the buck” because it allowed my team to work together. One person would start talking about a topic that was important to them and then we would pass the “talking stick” around until everyone in our group had added a point that relates to this subject.
The next activity we did was a quick thinking game where we made a story one word at a time. We would go in a circle and add one word at a time until we created a story. This game was helpful because we needed to be on the same page to allow the story to make sense.
Next, we had the assignment of creating concept journals. Concept journals were a way for us to talk about an important topic that interests us and be able to make important points. My first concept journal was based on the topic of humanity vs inhumanity. In this journal I talked about the treatment of farm animals and how certain things we do to the animals today are inhumane.
Click here to read my first concept journal!
After getting feedback from my teacher, I decided to make my second journal about something we have been talking about in class this year, the book Lord of the Flies. My paragraph was about power and authority and I mentioned what parts of power are good and what parts are bad. This paragraph was an improvement because it talked about something8 relevant to our unit.
Click here to read my second concept journal!
Before moving on to the final part of this unit, we needed to understand rules to speaking in front of an audience. By watching a video called the 7 Secrets of the Greatest Speakers, I was able to pick up great notes that would help me in the debate. I learned that public speaking is nothing more than having a conversation about something you are passionate about, not a speech. You need to be able to speak with your heart and relate to the audience, as well as believing in what you are talking about.
The next part of the debating unit is the class debates. Using the teams that we already have for this unit, my class was split into three groups (the six teams would be paired up). These groups would be given a statement and each team would be either fighting for pro or cons. My statement was: be it resolved that power leads to corruption. My team was fighting for the con side, so we needed to prove that power does not lead to corruption.
The first step to a debate is research. My group did extensive research on different examples of power that doesn’t lead to corruption throughout history. The hardest part of this research is making sure that we create a statement that we believe in so that we can fully commit to what we are fighting for. Our groups statement was that power does not lead to corruption, rather corrupt people abuse their power. This statement would allow us to fight against any examples that the pro side mentioned. For example, we knew that they would mention Adolf Hitler as a corrupt leader, so our statement would help us convince the audience that Hitler as a person was corrupt, not the power he had.
Now that the debate preparation was over, it was time for the real debate! After an approximate fifteen minute debate, my class and teacher voted for who they thought should win the debate. My team won by one vote!
The podcast below encompasses the entire debate, including statements, rebuttals, and questions from the audience!
Overall, this was a very important unit for my growth as a student. One of the biggest aspects of my learning that I wanted to improve on was public speaking. Throughout this unit, I have communicated with my group, communicated with another team in a debate, and communicated my ideas with the class during class discussions and activities. I have learned so much about politics and public speaking while using our class novel as evidence. I really enjoyed all aspects of this unit because I was able to challenge myself and work with students that I haven’t had the chance to work with this year.
Bibliography:
TriciaMowat Follow. “Forms of Government.” LinkedIn SlideShare, 27 Aug. 2010, www.slideshare.net/mobile/TriciaMowat/forms-of-government-5066122.
“Democracy Vs Dictatorship – Lessons – Tes Teach.” Tes, www.tes.com/lessons/vs5NpI2B9DyU2Q/democracy-vs-dictatorship.
N4CM. “Halfway to Theocracy: 44 Percent of Republicans Want to Make Christianity Our Official Religion.” Church and State, 25 Mar. 2018, churchandstate.org.uk/2015/10/halfway-to-theocracy-44-percent-of-republicans-want-to-make-christianity-our-official-religion/.
Foot, Richard. “Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.” The Canadian Encyclopedia, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/canadian-charter-of-rights-and-freedoms/.
“Civic Engagement.” NCCM – National Council of Canadian Muslims, www.nccm.ca/programs/civic-engagement/.
“What Is the Political Spectrum?” I Agree to See, www.iagreetosee.com/faq/what-is-the-political-spectrum/.
Bluegenel, and Lasuz. “What Do You Think of People That Pass the Buck?” ANSWEROLOGY ‘RELOADED’, 14 May 2017, www.answerologyreloaded.com/143578/what-do-you-think-of-people-that-pass-the-buck.
justiceforbosnia, Posted by. “Solving the ‘Inhumanity’ in Our Humanity.” Justiceforbosnia, 14 Mar. 2016, justiceforbosnia.wordpress.com/2016/03/11/inhumanity-in-our-humanity/.
“Hollywood’s Latest Brilliant Idea: ‘Lord of the Flies, But Girls’.” Flavorwire, Flavorwire, 31 Aug. 2017, flavorwire.com/609680/hollywoods-latest-brilliant-idea-lord-of-the-flies-but-girls.
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