WORLD WAR I:

HOW AND WHY DID ALCOHOLISM INCREASE AS A RESULT THEREOF?

 

DESIGNED BY JOHN ELLSMORE

WALTON HIGH SCHOOL

 

A WEBQUEST FOR A GLOBAL HISTORY COURSE (10TH GRADE)

 

A STUDY OF WORLD WAR I: THE DARK AT THE BEGINNING OF THE TUNNEL THAT WAS THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

 

 

(One water bottle for 40 men by G.P. Hoskins)

 

(These carefree French troops would soon learn the realities of war in the industrial age.)

 

INTRODUCTION

(To be read while listening to Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring): World War I set the stage for modern times.  The causes of this long struggle were many and varied.  The effects, to state the obvious, touched the lives of men and women on every continent.  In this lesson you will be examining some of the people involved in the conflict and one specific social problem, such as alcoholism, with aftershocks that are still being felt today.   Alcoholism is a dependence that adversely effects behavior in social or work functions and produces withdrawal symptoms when intake is stopped or reduced.   If war was hell, and it was, the increased alcoholism lead to new hells: illegitimacy increased, marriages broke up, families’ dissolved and domestic abuse increased.

 

You are advisors to the President of the United States intent on addressing the reoccurring problem of alcoholism today.  Many wars after WWI have not decreased military dependence on alcohol.  By examining WWI and alcoholism then you will devise a series of policy recommendations to alleviate alcoholism today.

 

 

  

(Evacuating an early casualty 1-July 1916)

 

TASK

Your task will be, in groups of two to create a two page typed report and a 7-slide Power Point presentation that will be presented to the President of the United States and his cabinet.  This report will detail the negative effects of alcoholism during World War I on European society in general and propose specific solutions to solve the problem today.  For this project you must include the 6 Step Public Policy approach:

1.  Identify the problem. (Define and describe the social problem, players and public policy.)

2.  Gather evidence to identify the causes of the problem.

3.  Describe the existing policy.

4.  Evaluate the existing policy.

5.  Develop solutions for the problems in the existing policy.

6.  Select the best policy for the problem.

 

(German machine gunners take their toll on the morning of 1-Jul-1916)

 

PROCESS 

Refer to the following guidelines for the completion of your product.

Before completing your product:

            1.  Research the source listed below in order to respond to all the     following questions.

2. Complete the 6 step public policy worksheets found at the site listed below.

            3. Hand in the worksheets for evaluation.

 

Tips website.

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/tips.html

 

Guidelines for your 2-page typed report:

            1) Your two page typed report will be based on information from the          sources and the 6 step public policy analyst format.

            2) Your report will be typed, double-spaced, and in 14-point font.

            3) Your report will focus on the social problems caused by World War I     and how European society attempted to deal with them.  Public Policy     solutions should be explored with the obvious idea that history should not           repeat itself.  In other words how can some of these problems be solved            once and for all?

            4) A cover sheet with your name, group members’ names, class, teacher,    date, and title of report will be included.

 

Guidelines for your 7- slide Power Point presentation:

1)      Research the sources to create your presentation.

 

2)      All your slides must be original.

 

3)      Your slides will be based on the 6-step PPA (Public Policy Analysis).

 

4)      Focus your presentation on factual information rather than opinion.

 

5) Your presentation must include information showing the President and his cabinet how you came to your conclusions.

 

 

EVALUATION

The evaluation of your projects will be done in two parts.  The public policy worksheets and the two-page paper will be evaluated based upon the following rubrics. You and your group will present your project to the rest of the class and the class will submit rubrics based on your group’s presentation. The instructor will then combine these rubrics, along with your self-assessment, to determine a score.

 

Rubric

 

Inadequate

1

Fair

2

Good

3

Excellent

4

2-paged typed report

Does not follow PPA format or use English standards

 Minimal Analysis of PPA and usage of standards

 Decent Analysis of PPA and usage of standards

Excellent Analysis of PPA and usage of standards

7-slide Power Point Presentation

No Knowledge and Minimum Sources supporting  Public Policy

Minimum Knowledge and Few Sources regarding Public Policy

Good Knowledge and Adequate amount of Sources

Outstanding Knowledge of Policy and Significant amount of Sources

 

 

RESOURCES

General

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu.plegal/tips.html

http://www.worldwar1.com/

http://www.yahoo.com/

https://www.google.com/

http://www.lib.byu.edu/~rdh/wwI

http://www.pbs.org/greatwar

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/

 

Alcoholism

http://www.npr.org/programs/disability/ba_shows.dir/work.dir/highlights/ww1.html

http://www.asymca.org/history.htm

http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/BURGENLAND-NEWSLETTER/2000-07/0963662219

http://www.recoverylinks.com/

 

 

STANDARDS

This web quest focuses on the following Social Studies Standards:

S1:       History of the United States and New York:  use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United States and New York.

S2:       World History:  use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in world history and examine the broad sweep of history from a variety of perspectives.

 

This webquest focuses on the following English Language Arts Performance Standards:

S1:       Students will read, write, listen, and speak for information and understanding.

S3:       Students will read, write, listen, and speak for critical analysis and evaluation.

S4:       Students will read, write, listen, and speak for social interaction.

 

 

CONCLUSION

World War I opened the hot gates of hell and showed mankind that death; destruction and myriad social problems were only just beginning.  The lessons of World War I went unlearned as World War II, Vietnam and Afghanistan entered the public consciousness.  The social problem of alcoholism continues to tear at the fabric of society even today.  This webquest has attempted to find some solutions to the problem.  What these student advisors to the President and his cabinet have recommended may well become the new public policy of the United States with respect to war related social problems such as alcoholism.