Part B Learning Plan

In this inquiry students will:

  • Analyze the consequences of a consumerism lifestyle with specific consideration of the social and environmental consequences of their personal consumer choices (RW8.1, 8.2)
  • Critique the approaches of Canadians to environmental stewardship and sustainability. (RW8.3)

Teacher Note

Guiding questions are suggested to support exploration of the essential questions.  Teachers are encouraged to use the questions that support their classroom work and make wording changes as required.  Guiding questions are more closely related to the inquiry.

Essential questions are posted and discussed with students at the start of the exploration of study. These open-ended questions are continually revisited; encompass concepts that students will explore throughout the unit of study; form the evidence of understanding; and, frame the assessment at the end of the unit of study. Guiding questions are posed to support student thinking as they explore the answers to the larger overarching questions.

Teachers may want to consider putting the questions into a “Before, During, After” chart to note the changes in students’ thinking as a result of the inquiries.

Questions to Guide Inquiry

Essential Questions: Guiding Questions

  • What is government’s responsibility to sustain and address common good?
    • What is common good? Is it constant?
    • Does the idea of common good change depending on the culture, community?
  • What is the relationship between the natural environment and the development of society?
    • What impact does your environment and your relationship with the land have on the development of your personal beliefs and values?
    • Does your environment and where you live/sense of place affect how your cultural and social behaviours develop?
  • What responsibility do you have to balance personal needs with the global community’s needs? / What are the impacts of supporting your lifestyle on your local community and the global community?
    • How much control do you have over the impact of your actions/decisions?
    • As a global citizen, what are your responsibilities regarding the impacts of your lifestyle as a global citizen?
  • What role does empathy play in citizenship?
    • What is the power and responsibility of the individual to make a difference in the world?

CONNECT TO TOPIC AND SURFACE STUDENTS’ THINKING ABOUT …

This section introduces the concepts and helps teachers gain an understanding of the current thinking of the class.  Present essential questions and allow students to think about and talk about.  Student answers will give teachers a baseline or beginning understanding of the amount of specific and incidental teaching required to explore these outcomes.  Record students’ current thinking for reflection throughout inquiry. This section also frames the “We do” portion of the lesson where teachers guide the initial structure of the inquiry.

There are three inquiries in this area of citizenship.  In this inquiry students will critically review the consequences of living in a mixed market economy.  They begin by tracking their purchases to become aware of the impacts that their choices are having on their environment.  They will also begin to understand the intricacies of a market economy.  Tracking purchases is critical to this inquiry as it provides actual data for student reflection. Teachers using this inquiry will want to have students begin tracking at least a month in advance. 

  • What is the appropriate Citizenship response to the marginalization we witness daily?
    • How do we contribute to marginalization?

Inquiry

What are the Social and Environmental consequences of supporting my lifestyle through a mixed market economy?

What are the implications of my personal consumer choices?

Who and what do my choices impact?

Learn more
  • How would students define a mixed market economy? What does this term mean to them?

Chart student answers for later reflection and revision.

  • Keep a journal of recent purchases by students and their families in the last week and month. (e.g., snacks, drinks, movies, clothing, hobbies).  At the end of each week, discuss the actual costs of the articles purchased.  (see appendix for graphic organizer)
    • Categorize those purchases (i.e. food/necessities, luxuries, services, etc.)
    • Identify the source of those purchases/materials – where they were produced, manufactured, etc. and who produced them – categorize into:
      • local, national, foreign produced (map countries that are providing products)
      • private – publically produced
      • fair trade
    • Identify where products are advertised.

What are students noticing?  What themes are surfacing?  Why do students think this is so?

DEVELOPING UNDERSTANDING
This section is the core of the inquiry.  It describes the main activity(ies) involved.  In inquiry-based learning, the teacher facilitates the activities that lead to the understandings that student make of the essential questions.  It is critical then, that students be allowed to raise questions and talk about issues that develop as they explore the learning activities.  This forms the  “They do” section of the inquiry where students are finding answers to the overarching questions and then searching for themes and patterns as possible explanations.
Map the countries that are providing goods.  Students studied Pacific Rim countries in Grade 7 so should have some understanding of the issues facing workers in those countries.
Have students log on to http://www.myfootprint.org/ to score their own/family eco footprint. This may need to be done at home with family input.

  • Identify positive and negative aspects of consumerism and market economy.

Goods and Services Exploration – (local economy, provincial economy, beyond) (see appendix for graphic organizer)

Understanding the relationships in a mixed market economy

Using the monthly purchases of the group/class, identify and chart:

  • What goods are being purchased in the local economy? Provincial economy? Beyond?
  • Who are the producers of goods in the local economy? Provincial economy? Beyond?
  • What are the services purchased in the local economy?
  • Who are the providers of the services?
    • Categorize services as provided by the public or private sector
      • define the differences and purposes of the two groupings
      • identify the characteristics of each sector
    • Who are the consumers of / market for the services?
    • Who are the consumers of the services? (market)(e.g., hospitals, hairdressers, manufacturers, farmers, exporters).
    • Develop a summary statement identifying the profile of the local community.
      • What are the consumer choices?
      • Who are the users of the goods?- services?
      • Who are the providers?
      • Use maps to indicate the areas where the goods originate.
    • What themes are emerging?
    • Create a catalogue of locally-produced products and fair-trade products available in local businesses. – Chamber of Commerce link
      http://www.saskchamber.com/

Continue to connect to the overarching, essential questions.

Learn more
  • Who and what are student consumer choices effecting?
  • Identify the impacts positive and negative. (Chart for later reflection)
  • What are students thinking about their impacts?
  • What are the impacts of supporting students’ lifestyle on the local community and the global community?
  • What responsibility do students have to balance personal needs with the global community’s needs?

Reflect on the student definition of mixed market economy.  What changes would students make?

  • What roles do the following play in the mixed market economy:
    • producer
    • consumer
    • government
  • What role does advertising play in a mixed market economy?
  • Go back to the survey, identify where the:
    • Purchased goods are advertised. How did students learn about them?
    • Identify where the services are advertised. How did students learn about them?
    • How prevalent was the advertising?

Go back to the student spending survey.  Examine the categories of consumption.

Essential Questions

  • Who and what are student consumer choices effecting?
  • What are the impacts of supporting students’ lifestyle on the local community and the global community?
  • What responsibility do students have to balance personal needs with the global community’s needs?
  • What are the Social and Environmental consequences of supporting my lifestyle through a mixed market economy?
  • Where was the highest spending?
  • What is the relationship between advertising/marketing and purchasing?
  • What are students noticing? What themes are emerging?  
  • Why is this information important to know?

Have students create a graphic or representation that demonstrates their understandings of the various parts of the mixed market economy and the inter-relationships between consumer, producer, government, and marketing/advertising.

This website has several shorter video options that cause students to think about multiple effects of consumerism.  Teachers are invited to choose those that are best for their classroom culture.

Look again at the positive and negative effects of consumerism.  What changes would students make to their consumer choices?  Connect back to the essential questions.  Has student thinking changed?  Why?  What questions are surfacing for students?

Resident Experts

Consider the people in the community who could come into the classroom or agree to be interviewed by students to share their expertise and offer a real-life perspective.

Arrange a class visit from a resource based professional to learn about …

This inquiry may raise sensitive issues about spending, cost of living, cost of consumer choices, and multiple social issues. As such, it may highlight socio-economic differences in the class.  The movie, The High Cost of Low Cost Prices, features the practices of the American company Wal-Mart but it could easily reflect practices of other large companies.  During the market survey it is quite likely that students and families in the class shopped at Wal-mart. Teachers must be sensitive to the variety of socio-economic levels in the class and work to ensure that students are aware of the impact of their choices but not made to feel badly because of economic realities. 

The inquiry provides opportunities for students to practice critical listening and viewing, and connect to Health outcomes regarding advertising and mixed messages. 

Inquiry

What are the advantages and disadvantages of:

The movie is 1.5 hours long; too long for most gr. 8 students to absorb and too long for most timetables.  It is suggested that teachers divide the movie viewing into four sections to deal with worker issues, community issues, global issues, and community response. As with all viewing situations, teachers are reminded to stop throughout the viewing to allow students to think about… talk about… what they are seeing.  A graphic organizer has been provided as a means for students to record their viewing thoughts.

Learn more
  • What are some of the issues students are finding?
  • What are the messages about the issues?
  • What are students noticing:
    • about the messages?
    • about the issues?
    • about the resolution of the issues?
  • Why do people choose to shop at Wal-Mart – convenience, selection, price, etc.
  • What are students thinking about the practices of the company?
  • What other companies follow similar practices?
  • What questions are students raising?
  • Why is it important to know this information?

Consider the community responses to keep Wal-Mart out of particular communities.

  • What kinds of advocacy skills did you observe?
  • How do advocacy practices in the United States compare with Canada? (studied in Engaged Citizens)
  • Think about the human rights issues that were raised in the documentary, i.e. discrimination against women and people of colour. How could those issues be addressed in Canada?

Exploring the Bangladesh Rana Plaza factory collapse – see resources list for video links

Learn more
  • How did your consumerism behaviours contribute to the situation in Bangladesh?
  • How responsible is this type of consumerism? How sustainable is it?
  • What responsibility do you have as a Canadian citizen to address the consequences of your consumer choices?
  • What has been the variety of responses to the collapse?
    • personal
    • corporate
    • national/federal
  • Identify the effects of excessive consumption in:
    • personal
    • community
    • national context.
  • What are the positive and negative social and environmental consequences in the Canadian mixed market economy for:
    • family
    • school
    • community

APPLY AND EXTEND KNOWLEDGE

This section includes ideas to “wrap up” the inquiry or apply concepts explored. This section may also include additional reflective questions to promote student connection to the topic.  This forms the “You do” section – extend thinking beyond the classroom discussions and inquiry experiences.  Pose additional reflective questions that have been raised to encourage critical and creative thinking.  
Alternatives to the mixed market economy

Some communities and cultures choose to share resources and assets.

  • Research the principles of collectively or communally owned assets.
  • Identify the benefits of collective and community owned assets for:
    • First Nations
    • Hutterite Colonies
  • What is the impact of this type of ownership:
    • On the local economy?
    • On the global economy?
  • Why do students suppose that collective or community owned assets remain as marginal choices by consumers?
These sets of inquiries ask students to think about the impact of their lifestyle choices.  There are several layers to the inquiry.  Teachers are encouraged to post student thinking throughout the inquiries and provide opportunities for students to go back and reflect on their original thinking and look for changes in their ideas.
Learn more
What are the impacts of your consumer choices? – Consumerism (Canada’s mixed market economy)?

How responsible is this type of consumerism?  How sustainable is it?

How could you increase the responsibility and sustainability of your practices?

  • Propose a definition of responsible consumerism
    • What choices would one have to make in order to become a more responsible consumer?
    • Identify a list of strategic actions leading to responsible consumerism.
  • What is government’s responsibility to address common good?
    • What is common good? Is it constant?
    • Does the idea of common good change depending on the culture, community?
  • What is the appropriate Citizenship response to the marginalization we witness daily?
    • How do our consumer choices contribute to marginalization?
    • How do we guard against indifference to the marginalization in the world?
  • Identify a personal change related to responsible consumption that you could integrate into your personal life.

CONNECT TO TOPIC AND SURFACE STUDENTS’ THINKING ABOUT …

This section introduces the concepts and helps teachers gain an understanding of the current thinking of the class.  Present essential questions and allow students to think about and talk about.  Student answers will give teachers a baseline or beginning understanding of the amount of specific and incidental teaching required to explore these outcomes.  Vocabulary should be noted here.  Record students’ current thinking for reflection throughout inquiry. This section also frames the “We do” portion of the lesson where teachers guide the initial structure of the inquiry.
Students will not likely be able to answer these questions before the inquiry but it is important to have them begin to think about these issues as they do their reading and researching.
Inquiry

What is Canada’s response to environmental stewardship? 

How effective are Canadian environmental policies and efforts?

Link to essential questions…

  • What is government’s responsibility to address common good?
    • What is common good? Is it constant?
    • Does the idea of common good change depending on the culture, community?
    • Is there an environmental common good?
  • What is the appropriate Citizenship response to the marginalization we witness daily?
    • How do we contribute to marginalization?
    • How do we guard against indifference to marginalization in the world?
Learn more
How is Canada perceived environmentally in the global community?    Give evidence to support your thinking.

  • What is Canada’s policy on the Canadian environment?
  • What is Canada’s policy on the global environment?
  • What kind of environmental steward is Canada?
  • What is the common good with respect to environmental stewardship?
  • What is the position of the First Nation in your area toward the environment?
  • Review the position of various political parties toward environmental sustainability.
    • Invite a FSI or band representative to your class to explain their environmental stance
    • Invite a political party member, or two, to visit the class explaining their party’s environmental stance.
    • How do the positions reflect worldviews?

Identify and compare similarities and differences between the various viewpoints.

Reflect on the personal consumer choices inquiry.  What kind of environmental statement do student consumer choices make?

What questions are being raised?  What themes are students noticing?

Connect back to the essential questions:  How has student’s thinking changed?  Why?  Why is it important to know this information?

  • What is Canada’s policy on the Canadian environment? How does it compare with Aboriginal positions?
  • What kind of environmental steward is Canada?
  • What kind of environmental steward is the First Nation in your area?
  • What is the common good with respect to environmental stewardship?
Teachers are reminded to ask students to consider current local environmental events and the impact of local consumer choices on those issues in an effort to bring reality into the classroom.
DEVELOPING UNDERSTANDING
This section is the core of the lesson.  It describes the main activity(ies) involved.  In inquiry-based learning, the teacher facilitates the activities that lead to the understandings that student make of the essential questions.  It is critical then, that students be allowed to raise questions and talk about issues that develop as they explore the learning activities. 
Begin to create a bulletin board/display of newspaper articles that highlight local, provincial, national, and global environmental stewardship issues.  What commonalities are students noticing?  What themes are emerging?
What has been Canada’s history with respect to the environmental stewardship?

Using the jigsaw research approach have students find the answers to the following questions. It is in the presentation of student answers that themes and patterns emerge.

  • 1. Represent on a timeline the evolution of Canadian policy on global environmental issues. Include:
    • historical First Nations approaches to environmental stewardship
    • the various leading political parties approach

    What are the similarities? What are the differences?

  • 2. Choose one of the following environmental challenge issues.
    • sharing water resources with the US
    • logging in Canadian forests
    • expansion of nuclear energy
    • development of tar sands
    • Outline the issues, presenting as many sides as available
    • Outline the proposed solutions to the environmental challenge
    • What do the various political stances to address the identified environmental challenge say about what is important to the group?
  • 3. What options exist in your community to protect or steward the environment?
    Consider:

    • walking
    • purchasing locally-produced or seasonal products
    • recycling
    • composting
    • disposing responsibility of garbage
    • using less paper
    • using less plasti;
    • factoring packaging into purchases

    What personal plans could you put into place to steward the environment?

APPLY AND EXTEND KNOWLEDGE

This section includes ideas to “wrap up” the inquiry or apply concepts explored. This section may also include additional reflective questions to promote student connection to the topic.  This forms the “You do” section – extend thinking beyond the classroom discussions and inquiry experiences.  Pose additional reflective questions that have been raised to encourage critical and creative thinking.  
  • Organize a camping trip for the class with the goal of spending time in the outdoors and on the land. What do they think about the environment and their responsibility to it?
  • Visit a local thrift store to look for clothing that might meet your daily needs. Estimate the savings a person could make by subsidizing their regular shopping with second hand clothing.
  • Visit kijiji.ca to find household items, among other things, that one could purchase online. Estimate the savings a person could make by subsidizing their regular shopping with second hand purchases.
  • Research political viewpoints through the Kyoto Protocol, Keystone Pipelines, Mackenzie Pipeline. Share your understandings in a classroom discussion.   What are the similarities and differences?  What themes are emerging?
  • Discuss the exports of Canada and possible future markets.
  • Arrange a class visit with a resource based professional learning about the current state of the markets in Saskatchewan. (Chamber of Commerce)
  • Brainstorm resources that come from the land. Discuss the value of those resources for sustainable living in Canada.

EVIDENCE OF LEARNING

This section suggests ways in which students may demonstrate their understanding.  Ideal demonstrations will be in authentic performance tasks.  Each citizenship study may have its own smaller assessment piece or be compiled to support one larger performance task assessment.  Assessment pieces vary, but should allow students to demonstrate their understanding in a variety of ways.
Connect back to essential questions 

Consumerism

  • How does the impact of the natural environment affect the consumer choices you make? / How is your relationship to the natural environment reflected in your consumer choices?
  • What responsibility do you have to balance personal needs with the global community’s needs?
  • What do you believe is your Citizenship responsibility to the land/environment?
  • How does the natural environment affect the development of society?

Students can indicate how they will demonstrate an understanding of:

  • The social and emotional consequences of living in a mixed market economy.
  • The implications of personal consumer choices and excessive consumerism.
  • Ways in which beliefs and values may be shaped by culture, language and cross-cultural interaction.
  • What is your definition of responsible consumerism? How could you support responsible consumerism?  What personal changes would you have to make to become a more responsible consumer?
  • Assess the advantages and disadvantages of:
    • buying locally
    • buying fair-trade products
    • buying mass-produced products.
  • Include the state of factories in places like Bangladesh, and discuss a Canadian’s responsibility to ensure a safe working place for all. (connection to common good)
  • Have students create a graphic or representation that demonstrates their understandings of the various parts of the mixed market economy and the inter-relationships between consumer, producer, government, and marketing/advertising.

Environmental Stewardship

  • What kind of environmental steward is Canada?
  • What is common good with respect to environmental stewardship?
  • What is the responsibility of the government to address issues of common good?
  • Identify examples of opposing cultural beliefs and values about the treatment of the environment and show how they are demonstrated/exemplified in policies and procedures of those respective cultures.
  • As a citizen, give your opinion on the importance of being aware of the government’s stance on environmental issues.
    • Identify the federal government’s policy on environmental issues.
    • What is the government’s responsibility to use the environment in a sustainable fashion?
  • What is your Canadian citizenship response toward environmental sustainability?  What should Canada’s role be regarding environmental sustainability?

STUDENT CITIZENSHIP JOURNAL OPPORTUNITIES

Students will continue to explore their understanding of their role as a Canadian citizen and reflect on their perspective in an Ongoing Journal.  Art should be included throughout the journal; some to accompany the journal entry and some that are random drawings and sketching. The journal entries are a record of the student’s thinking and chronicle the student’s reflection on their citizenship.

Students are keeping a Citizenship Journal to reflect upon their developing views of citizenship.  This section provides prompts for student journals.  Students are invited to choose one that interests them or propose their own.  Encourage students to include a variety of representation methods including artwork, drawings, and sketches

  • Canadians are part of their environment and cannot be separated. Agree or disagree? Why?
  • What role does empathy play in Global Citizenship?
  • I can defend the choices I make to support my lifestyle because…
  • Respond to any of the essential questions
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Grade 8 Self, Community, and Place Part B Learning Plan