Brad Pillen, April 2005, grades 9-12, Geography

ACTIONS—Described prior to observation

 Goals and Objectives-

After completing this lesson, students will be better equipped to think for themselves on the current situation of the world and how everything is tied in together.  They will also be asked to think independently and to pick a position and defend it.

 Connections-

SS-H-4.3.2

Human migration has major physical and cultural impacts and can be the result of pressures or events that push populations from one place or pull them to another (e.g., push factors such as famines or military conflicts; pull factors such as climate or economic opportunity).

SS-H-4.3.3

Technology has facilitated the movement of goods, services, and populations; increased economic interdependence at all levels; and influenced development of centers of economic activity (e.g., cities, interstate highways, airports, or rivers).

SS-H-4.4.1

Humans develop strategies (e.g., transportation, communication, technology) to overcome limits of their physical environment.

SS-H-4.4.4

Group and individual perspectives impact these of natural resources (e.g., mineral extraction, land reclamation).

 

Context-

These objectives relate to my broad goals for teaching about the subject because the purpose of this subject and assignment is to understand how everything in the world is tied together.  How an action done here in the United States can have a drastic affect on people in different cultures around the world and vice versa.  This type of unit would most likely be taught in the beginning of a geography course because it gets students thinking about other places in the world and how we are connected to them. 

 Resources-

-Computer with internet access.

-Writing materials.

-View the National Geographic’s Globalization website.  Students will also visit the Vanishing Cultures Photo Gallery,  Xpeditions Activity, and Globalization101 sites. 

 Procedures-

To begin with, I will discuss the idea of globalization with students and have them share their initial thoughts or what they already know about the topic.  Students will then view the Globalization101 website to get a general overview of globalization and take notes on points they found to be important or interesting.  The students will then view the National Geographic’s Globalization site and take especial notice of the effects of globalization.  Then the students should view the vanishing cultures photo gallery to help them visualize some of the cultures that are disappearing. 

After viewing those websites and taking notes, the students in the classroom will be divided into small groups and asked to make a four column chart with the headings of American culture, European culture, Japanese culture, and Indigenous cultures.  Then they will come up with as many ways that globalization has affected those cultures as they can.  They will come up with both positive and negative points and distinguish which ones they feel are positive or negative.  Different group members may have different opinions of what is positive and negative.  After completing the charts and discussing what their groups came up with as a class, the students will have 3 days to write an informal 2-3 page paper on globalization.  This paper will include some facts about globalization, but mainly is intended for the student to write his/her opinion on whether they think globalization is a good or bad thing, or they could have a mixed opinion, and to also describe what they think globalization could lead the world to look like in the future.

 Student Assessment-

Students will be assessed on this subject based upon the paper that they will write.  By completing the requirements for the paper, they will show their knowledge of the characteristics, distribution, and complexity of Earth’s cultures, the changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources, and their understanding of how to apply geography to interpret the present and plan for the future.
 

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