We The People 5V

We The People 5V

Introduction

The system's broken. Nothing changes. All politicians are the same. Why vote? It's a voguish refrain, particularly among the young. People feel disenchanted with the political process and unrepresented by the political elite. Just 16 percent of Britons say they trust politicians - that's even worse than bankers. 'We're living through a crisis of mainstream politics,' says Carl Miller at London-based think tank Demos. Voter turnout has been steadily declining in established democracies in Europe, Latin America, and the US for the past few decades. Turnout for the last three general elections in the UK, for example, has been the lowest since the 1940s.

The Power of Voting

With your partner read the introduction and write a 150 word paragraph in which you describe your group's opinion on the following questions:

- What drives people to go to the polling stations and voting booths at the time of elections?

- Why is there a low voter turnout at many elections?

- Where does your group stand on the power of voting?

Future Voting

Read the article and with your partner write a 150 word paragraph in which you describe your opinion on the following questions:

- Would giving voters more say in the political decision-making process benefit the workings of democracy as we know it?

- Will the growing digital component of the voting process increase voter turnout? Why (not)?

- Predict what voting will look like 30 years from now. Use your futurist imagination!

Politics and the Passive Voice

Politicians often give vague answers to questions, so that they cannot be pinned on specific answers at a later point in time. They have coaches, personal assistants and speech writers; they go about the business of answering questions very carefully. One way of being evasive is by using the passive voice without mentioning the agent.

Money will be elocated to the Department of Education.

Since it doesn't say who will allocate the money, it is an action that nobody specific has been assigned to.

a) Rewrite the following statements using the passive voice and avoid the mentioning of agents.

b) Write five more passive statements of your own, which have to refer to politics.

 

1 The Secretary of State made a terrible mistake by underfunding the troops in Afghanistan.

2 The Republicans ousted Donald Trump.

3 The following three Members of Parliament voted against same-sex marriage.

4 The King declared war on terrorism.

5 The Prime Minister took advantage of his secretary.

Letter to a Legislator

In the US it is very common for people to write to their legislators to express their opinions or to urge those legislators to do something about certain issues, to vote a certain way, or to lobby for a certain cause. These legislators can be working at the local level, state level, or federal level.

You are going to write a letter to a legislator in your District. Political affiliation does not matter. The topic is curfew for teenagers under 16.

A Bill (HB 2178 Curfew; written by Rep, Paul Jones) has gone to the House of Representatives that would keep teenagers under 16 off the streets after 9:00 p.m. In addition, home-schooled students cannot be out and about themselves betwen 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Both the House and Senate have to vote on the Bill before it can become an Act.

You are writing to your legislator to urge him/her to vote against the Bill. You will need to negate the following arguments for the Bill: if there is no curfew, crime rates will go up and truancy rates will rise drastically. Write your letter in 500-550 words.

Address your letter to:

The Honourable State Representative (name; see sources)

State Capitol

City (choose city: use the capital city of your choice of state)

Summary

 

 

With your partner hand in 1final project containing:

0) Front Page with title, names, class

1) Paragraph on the Power of Voting

2) Paragraph on Future Voting

3) Voting and the Passive Voice

4) Letter to a Legislator

Sources

Original Article

Thoughts on Democratic System

Young Voters

Sample Letters

State Representatives

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    Auteur
    Marra Aarsen Je moet eerst inloggen om feedback aan de auteur te kunnen geven.
    Laatst gewijzigd
    2017-06-29 14:58:34
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    Aanvullende informatie over dit lesmateriaal

    Van dit lesmateriaal is de volgende aanvullende informatie beschikbaar:

    Toelichting
    Writing Skills
    Leerniveau
    VWO 5;
    Leerinhoud en doelen
    Engels; Publieke sector; Dagelijks leven; Correspondentie; Aantekeningen, berichten, formulieren; Schrijven; Verslagen en rapporten (Engels);
    Eindgebruiker
    leerling/student
    Moeilijkheidsgraad
    gemiddeld

    Bronnen

    Bron Type
    Original Article
    https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22630180-400-better-than-a-ballot-box-could-digital-democracy-win-your-vote/     		Link
    Thoughts on Democratic System
    https://humanview.org/2015/05/10/rebooting-democracy/     		Link
    Young Voters
    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/universityeducation/student-life/11244173/To-engage-young-voters-the-system-must-reform.html     		Link
    Sample Letters
    https://www.nlacrc.org/modules/showdocument.aspx?documentid=272     		Link
    State Representatives
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Current_members_of_the_United_States_House_of_Representatives     		Link

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