Lesson 4: How did we do – what’s the plan?
Living Democracy » Textbooks » Lesson 4: How did we do – what’s the plan?Students reflect on their activities and decide how to continue
| Learning objectives | To end this unit, the students try to switch perspectives in order to understand what taking responsibility means in other positions. This is a further step towards a deeper understanding of democratic participation. |
| Student tasks | The students transfer the experiences they have had working in small groups to other situations. |
| Resources | Handout. |
| Methods | Plenary discussion, group work. |
Lesson description
This fourth teaching sequence can be used to conclude Unit 4, but teachers can also decide to begin practical work at this stage. As already mentioned, the practical work can involve the students working together in small groups or as a class, or it can take the form of a school project.
The lesson should begin in the same way as lesson 1. The students should sit in a circle and think about what they have learned from all the previous lessons.
They should start by presenting the results of their research:
- What was achieved?
- What didn’t work?
- What was improved or changed?
- What does it mean to take responsibility for ecological projects?
- Am I ready to take responsibility for something that “is not my fault”?
- How do I see myself?
- What disappointed me? What made me happy?
To help the students reflect on what they have achieved, experience has shown that it is helpful to use the “eco-wall”, which was developed and expanded on during the course of the unit.
As part of this discussion, it should become clear how important the topic “taking responsibility” is for a well-functioning community. The following questions could be used to stimulate the discussion:
- What kind of communities are there?
- Who takes on what kind of role?
- How does this work in a state?
- What do we know about democracy and how does a democracy function?
- What do you understand by the following quote from John F. Kennedy: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country”?
Even though analogies can sometimes be problematic, it may be an interesting step to use them to encourage the students to use more complex thinking processes at this stage. They do not have to arrive at any definite conclusions. It is more important to encourage them to think in more complex ways and this process will continue in later units.
Students (working in small groups) should be given a handout on which to write their own experiences:
| Taking responsibility, sharing responsibility | ||
| Example: ecology | ||
| Place/situation | What kind of responsibility does this person have? | |
| Class | Teacher | Student |
| School | Head teacher: | Teacher/student |
| State | Head of state | People |
| ? | ||
The students should think about when responsibility should be taken in each situation.
After a set timeframe, one group member should present the results of the group’s thinking. During the final discussion, the teacher should ensure that the parallels between the experiences in class and the situations described are evident. It is also his or her task to show that there are possible limitations to this.
Finally, a “flashlight” (where every student says one sentence) can show what the students have learned from this unit, for example:
“Explain in one sentence what you think the most important thing in this unit on ‘taking responsibility’ was.”
The students should have a few minutes to think about what they want to say and should make their statement even if others have already said the same thing or something similar. The teacher should also participate in the flashlight exercise. He or she should thank the students for their active participation but should not comment on their statements.
