A Web Quest for
Global History & Geography Students
(Grade 10)
Spare the Child:
Evaluating
Introduction:
How do you define the term “family?”
For many people, a family includes parents, brothers,
sisters, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews, grandparents and in-laws. The Chinese government, however, has created
laws that, in effect, redefine the term “family.” These laws, collectively known as the “One
Child Policy,” have, as the name implies, limited married couples to no more
than one child in a lifetime. The
effects of such a policy can be far reaching: not only are children growing up
without siblings, but without aunts and uncles (if each parent was an only child)
and, therefore, without cousins as well.
“Family” would be limited to four grandparents, two parents, and one
child. After growing up and getting
married, such a child would be without brothers and sisters-in-law, because the
spouse would be an only child as well.
Eventually, such a policy could have dramatic and catastrophic
implications for the Chinese population as a whole. For such a policy to be conceived and implemented, there must have been an acute problem that the
Chinese government felt needed an immediate and drastic solution. What was the problem? Does it still exist? How was the policy enforced? Should it be continued? Should other countries adopt these
measures? These and other questions need
answering. And the Chinese government
has turned to you to find the answers.
You are a member of a committee that has been formed to evaluate
Task:
Your committee must create a presentation that summarizes your findings about the One Child Policy and makes recommendations to the World Health Organization and the United Nations Population Fund. Your presentation should attempt to respond to the following research questions:
Describe
the problem
Identify causes of the problem
Evaluate the seriousness of the problem
Offer
alternative steps
Analyze the of the steps taken to implement the policy
Evaluate the effectiveness of the policy
Suggest alternative solutions to the problem
Recommend “Next Steps” for the
World Health Organization and the United Nations Population Fund
Process:
Your group will work together to complete the following steps:
Steps
Research the internet sources listed in this Web Quest
As a public policy analyst you need to keep your research focused. Read the descriptions of the five steps of the Public Policy Analyst research process (Identify the Problem, Gather the Evidence, Determine Causes, Evaluate the Policy, and Do a Comparative Analysis) and complete all accompanying PPA Worksheets (At the bottom of each of the above-linked steps).
Access the sources identified below to assist you in responding to the research questions
Complete Worksheets from the TIPS Public Policy Analysis web site
Create a presentation that incorporates no fewer than 7 and no more than 12 Power-Point slides
Submit a disk and hard copy of your Power-Point presentation
Present your findings (accompanied by the slide presentation) to the World Health Organization
Research Questions
1. What was the problem?
2. Describe the policy that was enacted as a solution?
3. Who, in Chinese society, might support the policy?
4. Who, in Chinese society, might oppose the policy?
5. How was the policy enforced?
6. Should it be continued?
7. Should other countries adopt these measures?
Resources: Articles
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38033-2002Aug19.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/world/daily/graphics/china_082002.html
http://www.usembassy-china.org.cn/english/sandt/fertl21.htm
http://www.newaus.com.au/asia10.html
http://www.hhs.se/eijs/anomaly/COneKid.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/941511.stm
http://www.cato.org/dailys/05-15-99.html
http://www.oneworld.org/ips2/apr98/06_19_005.html
http://taipeitimes.com/news/2000/12/20/story/0000066234
http://chinadaily.chinadaily.com.cn/star/2002/0425/fo8-1.html
Resources: Search Engines
Evaluation with Rubric:
Your
group will be graded based upon the following rubric.
|
|
Needs Improvement
Excellent |
|
Research Do your responses to
the research questions reflect thorough, careful research? |
1 2 3 4 5 |
|
Analysis Process Do your PPA worksheets
reflect a well-thought-out analysis of the problem and development of policy? |
1
2 3 4 5 |
|
Power Point Presentation Does your Power Point presentation creatively present the required information, follow the appropriate procedure, and compel the audience? |
1
2 3 4 5 |
|
Public Policy Have you formulated
effective, feasible public policy in response to the problem? |
1
2 3 4 5 |
|
Group Work and Class Presentation Have you conducted yourselves professionally during class time while doing your research and while presenting your findings to the class? |
1
2 3 4 5 |
23-25
points A
20-22
points A-
17-20
points B
14-16
points B-
10-13
points C
5-10
points D
0-5
points F
Standards:
Urbanization,
Movement of People and Goods,
E1c Reads
and comprehends information materials.
E2a Produce a report of information.
E3b Participate in group meetings.
E6a Critique public documents with an eye to strategies common in public discourse.
E6b Produce public documents.
E7a Critique functional documents with an eye to strategies common to effective functional documents.
E7b Produce functional documents appropriate to audience and purpose.
Acknowledgements:
This
Web Quest was produced thanks to the TIPS Program (Teaching Interdisciplinary
Problem Solving through Educational Technology) of