Week of 3/22

Just one more week to Spring Break! But before we get there, we have a few more tasks to accomplish.

3/22 (Monday)--Health Insurance Reform Wrap-up; Exam Review. Yesterday the House voted to approve the Senate version of health insurance reform legislation by a razor-thin margin of 219-212. For the first time in modern history, a major piece of social reform legislation was passed without a single Republican vote in favor. What are the implications of this new bill? What work remains to be done before the final bill becomes law? How are the states responding to the prospect of additional mandates from the federal government? Today we will consider and discuss these and other issues.

Note--Due to the power failure, we were unable to go through the Exam Review worksheet. The Exam Review worksheet is posted online at Docushare (in the Unit II folder), along with a pair of "Jeopardy" review games. Look through these and be prepared for a fast-paced exam review tomorrow!

3/23 (Tuesday)--Review for Unit II Exam. Today we will play the "Jeopardy" review game. Come prepared with any questions, and make sure you turn in class participation dollars!!

3/24 (Wednesday)--Unit II Exam. The test will consist of 25 matching and 35 multiple-choice questions. The test will be open-note only. Note--A substitute will administer the exam today. I will be working with other Social Studies faculty on a project that will last all day.

3/25 (Thursday)--Bill of Rights, Vol. 1. Today marks the beginning of Unit III, in which we will examine the Judicial Branch of government, the Bill of Rights, and the general topic of law in America, including the very interesting subject of students' rights. We will begin with a two-part film series on the Bill of Rights. This will provide a foundation for our more detailed discussions that will take place after Spring Break. I will be out today on personal business. Mr. Wilson will show the film.

3/26 (Friday)--Bill of Rights, Vol. 2. Continuation of yesterday's film.

Enjoy your Spring Break!!

Week of 3/15

This week we will be finishing up Unit II with a series of lectures and discussions on the powers and duties of the Executive Branch:

3/15 (Monday)--Qualifications and Presidential Roles. Today we will examine the Constitutional requirements a person must meet to be eligible to serve as President, as well as some "informal" qualifications and characteristics that help define and identify potentially successful candidates. We will also look at eight significant roles fulfilled by the President, ranging from Chief of State to Chief of Party to Commander in Chief.

3/16 (Tuesday)--Electoral College-The Basics. Today's subject is the often misunderstood and confusing system that we use to select our President: the electoral college system. Why did the Framers of our Constitution reject direct selection by the people, or selection by the members of Congress, in favor of a complex and poorly-understood system? You will see that there were sound reasons behind their choice, but that unforeseen factors, including the rise of political parties, have altered the function of the electoral college system from the original concept. Nonetheless, with a few noteworthy exceptions, the electoral college system has tended to serve as a close proxy (approximation) for a national popular vote for President.

3/17 (Wednesday)--Electoral College Reform Proposals. Yesterday we learned about several elections in which the President did not receive a majority of the national popular vote, and a few in which the President actually received fewer popular votes than one of his opponents. Many citizens think the system is flawed and needs to be reformed. What proposals have been made to alter the electoral college system? Today you will learn about four such reform proposals: the District Plan, the Proportional Plan, the National Bonus Plan, and finally, the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. Each has advantages and disadvantages, and as you will see, each is a very long way from actually replacing the Electoral College system.

3/18 (Thursday)--Presidential Succession and Disability; Presidential Powers; The Vice-Presidency. Today we will conclude our notes on the Executive Branch by examining a number of very important topics. What happens if a President dies in office or resigns? What happens if he becomes disabled? Who decides if he is disabled? What powers does the President exercise? And what does the Vice-President do? We will discuss all of these subjects today.

For tomorrow, locate and read at least one article on the health insurance reform battle currently taking place in the House of Representatives. Tomorrow we will have a roundtable discussion on this very important current event.

3/19 (Friday)--Essentials Packet Review; Discussion on Health Insurance Reform. After going over the Essentials Packet for Unit II, we will watch a brief film clip that summarizes the year-long (and more) battle to adopt health insurance reform, and discuss the current bill that is likely to be decided in the House of Representatives this weekend. This real-world example of how Democrats and Republicans in the executive and legislative branches work to find solutions to problems in American society--sometimes collaboratively, but more often in a partisan fashion--serves as an excellent illustration of how lawmaking and government in Washington actually works.

Have a great week!

Week of 3/8

This week's plans:

3/8 (Monday)--"Clean Up" Day. Today is set aside as a "clean up" day for making up tests, retaking tests, completing outstanding assignments, etc. If you are not making up or retaking an exam, you may use the class period to work on completing your Final Position Statement for the Senate Debate simulation. Final Position Papers are due tomorrow!! Please review the sample Final Position Paper posted in the Senate Debate Simulation folder on Docushare if you are unsure about the requirements that should be included.

Reading Assignment: Read Chapter 6, sections 1 and 2, and Chapter 7, section 1 by Wednesday.

3/9 (Tuesday)--Congressional Reapportionment and Gerrymandering. This week most of your families will be receiving a census form in the mail. Did you know that one of the major purposes behind the census is to determine representation of each state in the House of Representatives? As we have previously learned, representation in the House is "proportional"--states with larger populations receive more seats than states with smaller populations. Because populations change over time, a census is conducted once each ten years to determine how many people live in each state. Seats in the House are then awarded according to a formula that we will study. Will Montana earn a second seat in the House? The census will help determine this, so PLEASE make sure your family completes and returns the census form!!

We will also discuss gerrymandering--the term used to describe the drawing of boundary lines for congressional districts that favor a particular group. We will look at how and why this is done, what limits apply to the practice, and consider how the problem might be dealt with.

3/10 (Wednesday)--Dynamic Legislative Process. Today we will go to the SSRC to complete an online interactive activity regarding the legislative (law-making) process. Your Essentials Packet outlines the steps by which laws are made, and we have simulated part of this process through last week's Senate Debate simulation. As today's lesson will show, the "real" legislative process is a bit more complicated, and not quite as "neat and tidy" as your book may suggest!

3/11 (Thursday)--Legislative Powers of Congress. Today we will take a closer look at specific legislative powers of Congress, including the expressed powers in Article I, section 8 and the implied powers under the Elastic Clause. You will learn about the very unique and important place of the "commerce clause" as a foundation for Congressional lawmaking.

3/12 (Friday)--Non-legislative Powers of Congress. Most people think of Congress as a body that makes laws. This is an accurate, but incomplete picture. Congress also fulfills many other important roles in governing our country that do not involve making laws. Today, we will learn about some of the more important non-legislative roles Congress performs, including investigations, oversight, and confirmation of treaties and appointments by the executive branch.

Next week, we will shift our focus from the legislative branch to the executive branch.

Have a great week!

Week of 3/1

Here are this week's plans:

3/1 (Monday)--Quiz on Federalism and the Constitution. The quiz is worth 30 points. Lecture notes are posted at Docushare under the Unit II folder, under these subfolders: "The Constitution" and "Federalism." Reading Assignment: Read Chapter 5, Sections 1-4 this week.

3/2 (Tuesday)--House and Senate--Structure, Organization and Operations. Today we will look at some of the "nuts and bolts" aspects of how Congress goes about making laws ... how leadership positions are filled, how committee appointments are made, how committees go about their work, and how Senators and Representatives decide how to vote on proposed legislation. Lecture notes for today's lesson are located on Docushare in the Unit II folder in the "Legislative Branch" subfolder. For tomorrow: Make sure you have read through Handout I of the Senate Debate simulation. We will begin the simulation tomorrow.

3/3 (Wednesday)--Senate Debate Simulation, Part I. Today we will complete Steps 1 through 4 of the Senate Debate simulation, as outlined in Handout 1. Step 1 has already been completed--determining party affiliation and experience. Step 2 is for the Democratic and Republican caucuses (groups) to meet and select party leaders. Each caucus will pick a floor leader and a "whip" (assistant to the floor leader). Step 3 is to assign senators to the three committees that are part of the simulation: Education, Environmental Affairs and Armed Services. There will be six Democrats on each committee and four Republicans on each committee, reflecting the approximate make-up of the real-life Senate. The committees will then choose a chairperson, who must be a member of the majority party (Democrat) and in most instances will be the most senior Senator on the committee (the longest-serving member). Finally, in step 4, each senator will make a preliminary determination of how he or she currently plans to vote on each of the three bills to be considered: S.1 (high school exit exams), S.2 (recycling for foreign companies), and S.3 (women in combat). A sample Preliminary Position Statement is posted on Docushare in the "Senate Debate Simulation" subfolder in the "Legislative Branch" folder. Use this sample as a guide to prepare your own statements. Be sure to consider your constituent profile, your personal views and those of your party leadership in deciding how to vote!! These preliminary positions are not binding when you cast your final vote. Complete your Preliminary Position Statement as homework and have it ready by the beginning of class tomorrow. The Preliminary Position Paper will be worth 20 points (out of 50 total) on this simulation.

3/4 (Thursday)--Senate Debate Simulation, Part II. Today is Committee Work Day. Each senator will meet with the other members of his/her committee (Armed Services, Education, or Environmental Affairs). Under the direction of your committee chair, you will consider the testimony of various experts, discuss the merits of the bill as written, consider possible amendments, and ultimately report a final version of the bill for consideration by the full Senate.

3/5 (Friday)--Senate Debate Simulation, Final--Today is the culmination of the Senate Debate simulation. We will spend approximately 10-15 minutes debating and voting on the final version of each bill. You may change your vote from that stated in your Preliminary Position statement if the amendments (if any), the expert testimony, or matters discussed during the debate have swayed your opinion. For the final graded component of the simulation, prepare a Final Position Statement. The final position statement should (i) restate the preliminary position, (ii) state how you finally voted, and (iii) explain how and why you voted as you ultimately did. If you changed your position, you should cite the specific reasons why (e.g., amended version of the bill was acceptable; persuaded by evidence presented during debate, etc.). The Final Position paper is worth 30 points, and will be due by next Tuesday (March 9).