Are your students concerned about the economy? The $787 billion economic recovery act is a great moment to teach what happens in a recession and how the government hopes to get the economy back on track.
Now that the recovery bill has passed what is a creative way to use the stimulus data in the classroom?
Now that the recovery bill has passed what is a creative way to use the stimulus data in the classroom? How can teachers make the stimulus seem important to students? What historical readings would you assign to students now?
Bruce Damasio responds:
I would suggest having students hunt for articles on how it
would be spent on state and local issues that impact them. Look for examples of
spending on improving schools, infrastructure and projects for road, bridge and
other such improvements. Make a collage of them on the bulletin board or debate
their impact in class (both in the short and long run).
Students could also look for examples of past government
action by presidents , starting with FDR in the 1930's and do a timeline to 2009
and place them on the timeline and look for their impact over time. The History
Channel has shows you could use with a classroom reading as an example for you
to do.
Peggy Pelt responds:
A variety of charts could be used to illustrate:
1. How the money will be used nationally
2. How the money will be used for education
3. What money the classroom's state might receive (and for
which programs)
Gather data on local unemployment increases to determine the
number of people who have lost their jobs.
Have students research the impact of unemployment on an
individual or family (perhaps do interviews.)
Readings
about the Great Depression, especially the impact on daily life, would be
revealing.
David Tucker Responds:
One way to use stimulus data is to use the new government
website Recovery.gov. This website has the text of the full bill available. One
interesting thing to note is which states are getting the lion's share of the
stimulus money. One activity I may use in coming weeks is to give students an
index which compares state populations as a percentage of the national
population. Then overlay that data with two additional layers:
1) states which voted heavily Obama, slightly Obama, and states
that voted for McCain
2) percent of the stimulus each state received although I know this
has not been finalized as of yet.
As for historical readings, perhaps comparison to financial
crisis from former presidents FDR and Reagan would be suitable. A positive
class discussion could ensue from there. When dealing with politically
indifferent students, it would be interesting to see how students of different
backgrounds react.
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