| Lesson
Overview
The Great Depression and the 1990s
Lesson Three: The New Deal's Legacy
(Estimated lesson time: 5-6 class days.)
Procedure
Students will begin this lesson by reviewing the New Deal measures.
After this review, the class will discuss the question:
Do these programs still exist today and, if so, in what form?
The teacher will guide the students here, suggesting modern welfare
programs, farm subsidies, Americorp, minimum wage, FDIC,
the Columbia River Reclamation Project, and Social Security as
modern day programs with their roots in the New Deal. In groups,
students will be assigned one of the existing programs.
Using THOMAS, the Library
of Congress's on-line legislative site, students will identify at
least two current pieces (one provided, one researched) of proposed
legislation dealing with their program.
After examining and researching these pieces of legislation, student
groups will prepare a position paper on their program. The position
paper should contain two main elements. First, a brief overview of
the contemporary program should be given. Second, the position paper
needs to address the following questions:
- Who does this program benefit?
- Given the budgetary restrictions of the government, should the
existing program remain intact, be reduced, or be expanded?
- What is your opinion on the pieces of legislation that you investigated?
After the group position papers are completed, the students will participate
in a Congressional Policy Forum. One student from each group will directly
participate in the forum as a Congressperson. The remainder of the students
will serve as Legislative Assistants. These Legislative Assistants (LAs)
will advise their Congressperson when needed. During the forum, the
Congresspersons, with help from their LAs, will each justify the need for
their piece of legislation. After all policies are heard, all students
will debate the pros and cons of each policy. Finally, the class members
will vote on which three pieces of legislation they will recommend to Congress.
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