Subject Areas: secondary current events, social studies, political science, communication arts, and speech/debate classes

Estimated Time: Two to three 45-minute class periods

Grade Level: 9-12 (lesson can be modified for lower grades)

Lesson Objectives:
Students will:
1. Form opinions about topics related to the role of the Internet as a political campaign tool and support these opinions using reasons, facts, and examples in class discussion activities.
2. Work in small groups to brainstorm reasons why they agree or disagree with a statement related to the role of technology as an election tool.
3. Draw conclusions from the content of a news article and use this information and the conclusions they have drawn as part of a class discussion activity.
4. Utilize content from an Internet Web site and determine the effectiveness of a specific presidential candidate's use of technology as a campaign tool by recording specific data and opinions on a worksheet.
5. Collect examples of non-traditional campaigning and the impact of technology on the presidential race and share these with the class by discussing the items and posting them on a classroom bulletin board.

Correlation to National Standards

Materials Needed:

• Index card or piece of scrap paper for each student
• 2 large pieces of chart paper and 2 markers
• Copies of or access to the NewsHour article,
  "Presidential Campaigns Explore a New Medium" available at
  http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/jan-june07/online_01-22.html
  
  Note: NewsHour segments are available as text transcripts, streaming or downloadable audio and streaming video.
  
  
• Internet access
• Role of Technology in the Election Process worksheet (Printer-friendly PDF)

Background:
As the use of the Internet and other electronic mediums have become more widespread, political candidates have begun using Web sites, e-mail, blogs, podcasts, and other forms of electronic media to convey their campaign messages to an even broader sector of the population in an effort to win the presidency in 2008. This lesson will focus on the use of technology in the political and campaign process and examine how this new medium might impact the outcome of the 2008 presidential election.

Procedures:

1. Before class begins, place a piece of scrap paper or index card on each student's desk. Post two signs on opposite sides of the classroom. One should say "Agree", the other "Disagree". Post a large sheet of chart paper on the agree and disagree walls along with a marker. Write the following statement on the board or overhead.

"Technology such as the Internet plays an important role in the political process and a candidate's ability to connect with voters on a personal level, increasing the candidate's chance of getting elected."

2. Read the statement out loud for the class. Tell students to think about the statement carefully and decide whether they agree or disagree with it. Give students 20-30 seconds to decide how they feel, then direct them to write the word "agree" or "disagree" on their scrap paper/index card.

3. Have all students who wrote "agree" on their paper/card meet under the "Agree" sign. Those who wrote "disagree" should gather under the "Disagree" sign.

4. Instruct each group to take 2-3 minutes to brainstorm a list of reasons why they either agreed or disagreed with the statement. These should be recorded on the large piece of chart paper. At the end of brainstorming, both sheets of paper should be brought to the front of the classroom as posted. Be sure to label each accordingly as "agree" or "disagree" for clarity.

5. Facilitate a class discussion related to the statement about technology using the brainstormed ideas. Call on volunteers to explain the ideas presented by the two different groups, encouraging students to provide specific reasons, facts, and examples to illustrate their point of view.

6. Distribute and/or share the NewsHour transcript,
"Presidential Campaigns Explore a New Medium" available at
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/jan-june07/online_01-22.html with students.

Discuss the article using questions such as:

• Why is the Internet going to be an important tool for the 2008 campaign?
• Describe the segment of the population being targeted by Internet campaigning.
• Where do you think young voters (age 18-25) fit in to the Internet campaigning strategies?
• What role will the Internet play in fundraising for candidates, and why is this important to the candidates?
• Do you think interactive campaign tactics such as blogging by the candidates and live chat sessions with candidates will be effective campaign tools? Why or why not?
• As a voter, would you read candidate blogs or participate in live candidate chats? Why or why not?
• Do you think the Internet and the types of campaign options it offers will add a higher level of accountability for candidates to deliver on their promises? Why or why not?

7. Have students access various candidate websites such as:

"Hillary for President" at http://www.hillaryclinton.com/

"Join Rudy 2008" at http://www.joinrudy2008.com/

or any other candidate of your choice. Distribute the Role of Technology in the Election Process worksheet and have students use the questions on the guide to see how the candidate is using the Internet as part of the campaign process.

8. After students have completed the Role of Technology in the Election Process worksheet, take a few minutes to discuss student answers to the various questions.

9. Start a classroom bulletin board related to the role of technology in the election process. Have students bring in copies of nontraditional campaigning including emails, blogs, summaries of podcasts, etc. along with newspaper or magazine articles that address the use of technology on the campaign trail. Offer students extra credit for bringing in and sharing these examples of nontraditional campaigning. Post on the bulletin board and revisit the initial discussion questions from step 6 periodically throughout the election to analyze the impact of technology as a campaign tool.

Relevant National Standards:
McRel Compendium of K-12 Standards Addressed:

Civics
Standard 17: Understands issues concerning the relationship between state and local
governments and the national government and issues pertaining to representation at
all three levels of government
Standard 19; Understands what is meant by "the public agenda", hot it is set, and how it is
influenced by public opinion and the media
Standard 27: Understands how certain character traits enhance citizens' ability to fulfill personal and civic responsibilities

Language Arts
Writing
Standard 1: Uses the general skills and strategies of the writing process
Standard 4: Gathers and uses information for research purposes

Reading
Standard 5: Uses the general skills and strategies of the reading process
Standard 7: Uses reading skills and strategies to understand and interpret a variety of
informational texts

Listening and Speaking
Standard 8: Uses listening and speaking strategies for different purposes

Viewing
Standard 9: Uses viewing skills and strategies to understand and interpret visual media

Media
Standard 10: Understands the characteristics and components of the media

Working with Others
Standard 1: Contributes to the overall effort of a group
Standard 4: Displays effective interpersonal communication skills

Thinking and Reasoning
Standard 1: Understands and applies the basic principles of presenting an argument
Standard 6: Applies decision-making techniques

Technology
Standard 3: Understands the relationships among science, technology, society, and the
individual

Extension Activities:
1. Have students create their own blogs, podcasts, or websites related to their favorite 2008 presidential candidate. Allow students time to share this information with classmates monthly or quarterly as part of an ongoing discussion of the candidates and campaign issues.

2. Work as a class to create a set of survey questions related to the use of technology-based campaign tools. Assign each student to survey 20 people in a variety of age groups using the questions created by the class. Have each student tabulate and graph the responses s/he had to the survey questions, and draw conclusions about how the use of technology as a campaign tool is impacting various groups of voters as they decide who to elect for the next president.

About the Author:
Lisa Prososki is an independent educational consultant and instructional design specialist who taught middle school and high school social studies, English, reading, and technology courses for twelve years. Prososki has worked with PBS Teachers and has authored and edited many lesson plans and materials for various PBS programs over the past ten years. In addition to conducting workshops for teachers at various state and national meetings, Prososki works as an editor, creates a wide range of educational and training materials for corporate clients, and has authored one book.

To find out more about opportunities to contribute to this site, contact Leah Clapman at extra@newshour.org.

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