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Revitalize Civics Education This Election Season

Election season is upon us, and many young people are curious about the process of electing a U.S. president and what goes into the decision behind each vote. Now is a great time to capitalize on their curiosity and get them thinking about the democratic process with our problem-based learning (PBL) unit The Great Debates.

In this NACG curriculum award-winning PBL unit, students take on the role of media consultants for Richard Nixon in his 1960 election bid for president. John F. Kennedy has surged in the polls after his success in the first-ever televised presidential debates. The students are tasked with learning about both candidates’ campaign messaging strategies, conducting research on messaging, and presenting media messaging techniques to Nixon to help him win the presidency.

The Great Debates: Unit Set
$55.00 (ages 10-14)

The Great Debates: Teacher Manual
$40.00
85 pages

The Great Debates: Resource Book
$20.00
42 pages

The Great Debates: Problem Log
$8.50
24 pages

How can this unit help your students?

  • Critical Thinking: Students develop critical thinking skills by analyzing and comparing historical and current campaign strategies in the context of a real-world problem.
  • Engagement with Current Events: By relating historical events to the present, students stay engaged and better understand the significance of current political processes.
  • Understanding Media Influence: This unit will help students grasp how media, especially new technologies, impact public opinion and election outcomes.
  • Informed Citizenship: Learning about the role of media in elections prepares students to be informed and active citizens who can critically assess political information.
  • Historical Perspective: This unit provides a historical perspective on how media strategies have evolved, highlighting the ongoing importance of effective communications in politics.
  • Practical Skills: Students gain practical skills in research, analysis, negotiation, and presentation, which are valuable in many aspects of life beyond understanding elections.

Read more about problem-based learning here, and order this or any of our other excellent (and often timely) options—which include units on immigration, first-amendment rights, pandemics, and more—on our Problem-Based Learning (PBL) page. Don’t miss this valuable opportunity to integrate real-world current events with important learning!

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