The Library of Congress

The Great Depression and the 1990s
A teaching unit by Douglas Perry and Wendy Sauer

Unit Overview

Students frequently echo sentiments such as, "The government is too big," or "The government should make welfare mothers pay for their own needs." It seems that many citizens, high schoolers included, have begun to believe in reduced government combined with increased personal responsibility. Such sentiments suggest a move away from belief in the welfare state, created largely by the New Deal in the 1930s and reinforced by the "Great Society" legislation of the 1960s. By using the American Memory's American Life Histories, 1936-1940 documents, personal interviews, and the Library of Congress's on-line legislative information (THOMAS), students will be able to gain a better understanding of why the government takes care of its people and how this type of welfare state started. Armed with this knowledge, they can then evaluate the current need of government programs, such as welfare, Medicare and Social Security, on the federal and state level.

Objectives

By participating in this project, the students will:

• Understand the connection between past and present history, particularly related to government funded programs.
• Research legislation from the Depression era and legislation currently proposed on the federal and state levels.
• Use the resources from the Library of Congress American Memory collection, THOMAS, local libraries and personal interviews.
• Learn to research different viewpoints on controversial issues using the American Memory collection, THOMAS, e-mail and local libraries.
• Write clearly, speak articulately and think critically.
• Present their work publicly in a debate, through e-mail or in a forum.

Time Required

Two to three weeks. Estimated time for each lesson is stated at the end of lesson description.

Recommended Grade Level

Grade 11 American History or American Studies. Adapt for other grade levels.

Curriculum Fit

The unit integrates American history and English. More specifically, it is designed to use with an integrated American Studies examination of the Great Depression.

Standards

McREL 4th Edition Standards & Benchmarks

Historical Understanding
Standard 1. Understands and knows how to analyze chronological relationships and patterns
Standard 2. Understands the historical perspective

Language Arts
Standard 4. Gathers and uses information for research purposes
Standard 7. Uses reading skills and strategies to understand and interpret a variety of informational texts
Standard 9. Uses viewing skills and strategies to understand and interpret visual media

US History
Standard 23. Understands the causes of the Great Depression and how it affected American society
Standard 24. Understands how the New Deal addressed the Great Depression, transformed American federalism and initiated the welfare state
Standard 31. Understands economic, social, and cultural developments in the contemporary United States

Student Resources Page

On-line resources for students to use during the unit.

Lesson Descriptions

Lesson One: A Variety of Perspectives on the Welfare State
(Estimated lesson time: 2-3 days class days.)

Students participating in this lesson will consider their own and their classmates´ opinions on the modern welfare state. To help them, they will read selections from Jonathan Kozol's book, Amazing Grace. The lesson concludes with the writing of a newspaper article on welfare.

Lesson Two: Understanding the Times -- the 1930s
(Estimated lesson time: 5-6 days class days.)

This lesson focuses on the 1930s. In groups, students will investigate, using Studs Terkel's book, Hard Times, and online resources, either one group of people effected by the Great Depression or the government programs designed to help the people. The culmination of the lesson is a piece of creative writing.

Lesson Three: The New Deal's Legacy
(Estimated lesson time: 5-6 days class days.)

The culminating lesson of the unit asks students to research a modern government program with its roots in the New Deal. Following their research, students participate in a Congressional forum where they debate which programs should be continued and which should be eliminated.

Evaluation

An overview of the unit's assessments.

Bibliography

An extensive list of resources to help both teachers and students with the unit.

Extension

To enrich classroom discussion, a teacher could connect with a willing colleague from another school. Students from each school could share their pieces of writing and respond via e-mail to the viewpoints expressed by their electronic classmates.