Using NewsHour Extra Feature Stories

Overview: NewsHour Extra feature stories can help students identify and interpret key issues in current events. This activity anticipates one class period, but the follow-up essay might be assigned as homework, or in another period.

Warm Up: Use initiating questions to introduce the topic and find out how much your students know.

Main Activity: Have students read NewsHour Extra's feature story and answer the questions on the reading comprehension handout.

Discussion: Use discussion questions to encourage students to think about how the issues outlined in the story affect their lives and express and debate different opinions.

Follow-up: Students can write an 500-word editorial on the topic expressing their views and send it to NewsHour Extra [extra@newshour.org] for possible publication.

Evaluation: Students are graded on their answers to reading comprehension questions and/or their editorial.

Story: Congress Considers Requiring Photo ID to Vote, 10/25/06
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/july-dec06/voterid_10-25.html

Initiating Questions:

1. What is an identification card? Do you have one?

2. When do you need to show an ID card? Why?

3. Do you need to show an ID card to vote?

Reading Comprehension Questions: (click here for printout)

1. On what election issue did the Supreme Court recently rule?

The House of Representatives has passed a bill that would require people to present a photo identification to vote, and the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled on the matter that is gaining steam as the midterm elections approach.

2. Why are some people critical of rules that require voters to show photo IDs?

Critics charge that the added requirements are an unfair burden on voters and disproportionately affect minority, poor and elderly voters, who they say are less likely to have photo IDs.

3. Why do others think requiring photo IDs is necessary?

Many Republicans argue that illegal immigrants, felons and people posing as the deceased can vote with little difficulty.

4. How did the Supreme Court respond to Arizona's law that requires voters show photo IDs?

Weighing in on the controversy just weeks before the Nov. 7 elections, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an unsigned, five-page opinion Oct. 20 temporarily upholding Arizona's new voting rule.

Though the court declined to judge the constitutional merits of the case just yet, it argued that with so little time remaining before the election, striking down the law at this point would cause too much confusion for voters.

5. Describe the variety of voting requirements in regards to identification among different states?

This has resulted in a patchwork of laws that varies from state to state.

According to the Election Reform Information Project -- a nonpartisan, non-advocacy group -- 24 states require first-time voters who register by mail to show some sort of identification when voting for the first time.

Two states require the same of voters regardless of how they register.

Another 18 require voters to show some sort of identification every time they go to the polls.

Six states -- Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Louisiana and South Dakota -- have the most stringent voting laws, requiring photo IDs from all voters.

6. How much voting fraud is there according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission?

Though little objective data exist to bolster either side's case, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission -- a federal body established by Congress to aid the administration of elections -- commissioned a report in May that concluded: "There is widespread but not unanimous agreement that there is little polling-place fraud, or at least much less than is claimed, including voter impersonation, 'dead' voters, non-citizen voting and felon voters."

Discussion Activity (more research might be needed):

1. What do you think? Should you have to show a photo ID to vote? Why or why not? Explain your reasoning.

2. What kinds of photo IDs are out there? How and why do you get them? Why do you think certain groups of people are less likely to have photo IDs?

3. What are the rules for who can vote and who can't? Do you think these are fair? Why or why not?

4. Senator Hillary Clinton said the requirement to show an ID was equivalent to a "poll tax." What were poll taxes? How has voting in the United States changed over time?

Write a 300-500 word essay on either of these topics providing clear examples. Send your completed editorial to NewsHour Extra (extra@newshour.org). Exceptional essays might be published on our Web site.