lesson 2 resources 1- 4 green

© Royal Commonwealth SoCiety | www.theRCS.oRg/youth

Note - This lesson could be split into two for students to have more time to prepare and discuss: activities 1 and 2 in the first lesson, and activities 3 and 4 in the second lesson.

Lesson aims/key questions

1 » what is international development?2 » what are the millennium Development goals (mDgs)?3 » which kinds of development projects can contribute towards meeting the mDgs?4 » what are the benefits and challenges of consensus?

Learning outcomes and key processes

Students will be able to:a » Define the term ‘international development’b » identify three millennium Development goals (mDgs)c » Construct a practical idea for responding to the challenge of developmentd » evaluate different practical approaches to contributing towards the mDgse » analyse the benefits and challenges of reaching decisions by consensus f » express an opinion on the role of the Commonwealth Key processes: Critical thinking; discussion and debate; communicating ideas; listening to others; critically assessing your own view and others’ viewpoints; expressing an opinion; working with others to solve problems; arguing a viewpoint other than their own.

Key words/ concepts / terms

Commonwealth | international Development | millennium Development goals | consensus | eradicate | universal primary education | gender equality | child mortality | maternal health | malaria | hiV | aiDS | environmental sustainability.

Summary of activities and links to learning outcomes

activity 1 (starter): Call My Bluff (key word definition activity) a »

activity 2: Preparing for the MDG funding board (group preparation for activity 3)

b » c »

activity 3: MDG Funding Board (presentation activity) d »

activity 4 (plenary): Commonwealth Decisions by Consensus (snowball discussion)

e »

Assessment opportunities

» individuals could be assessed by the teacher on their group work skills, through observation of activity 2.

» Peer assessment is incorporated into activity 3, with students informally evaluating each other’s presentations. the teacher can also assess the groupwork and presentations.

Differentiation » activity 2: Students can support and challenge each other in their groups.» activity 3: to make this more challenging you could introduce a budgetary element

where students in their groups have to work out how much their project might cost to implement and the class as a funding board have to divide up a limited pot of money between the projects chosen.

» activity 4: the central question could be broken down into different elements to support those who need it in developing their discussion. in the feedback to class, the teacher can adapt the level and challenge of questions to the needs of individual students.

Homework or extension tasks

you could ask students to:» Carry out research into the mDgs – what is being done to meet them; what is

working; and whether they are on target to be met by 2015. the united nations website may be a useful resource, including the following pages: www.un.org/millenniumgoals; www.mdgmonitor.org

» write a report for the mDg Funding Board explaining the benefits and challenges of their policy of decision-making by consensus, and offering an alternative method if the student thinks this is necessary.

» write a letter to the government, to the leaders of the Commonwealth or to the un Secretary general asking for more to be done about meeting the millennium Development goals

» Prepare their group presentations for the funding board (if you choose to run this activity over two lessons)

Commonwealth SCHOOL RESOURCES » Lesson 2

» Development and the Commonwealth

23

2leSSon 2 oF 4


» Activity 1 (starter): Call My Bluff

Select 12 students (for example, by pulling names out of a hat or asking for volunteers) and distribute the Call my Bluff cards (2r1) to them.

ask them to silently read what is written on the card, but not to show it to anyone else. Divide the rest of the class into two teams. explain to each team that the aim of the activity is to identify the most accurate definition for four key terms.

they will hear three different definitions of each term (a, B and C), and they must decide as a team on the correct definition. to make this more exciting, you could put on a silly hat and hold a pretend microphone as the ‘game Show host’, or you could ask a student to do so!

ask three students with the same key term to begin, reading out their letter (a, B or C), the key term and their given definition to the rest of the class. Between each set of three terms, give each team time to confer, decide and announce the definition they think is correct. Keep a tally of both teams’ decisions on the board.

ask the students with the key definitions to decide if they think they have the correct definition – and when all four terms have been covered, reveal the correct answers. the winning team is the one with the most correct definitions! » there is also a tiebreaker in case teams have the same number of points at the end.

Before moving on to the next activity: make sure students are clear about the correct definitions of each term. you could do a quick spot test where you read out the definition and they write down the key word, or vice versa. you could also display the correct definitions around the room alongside the key words.

there are a number of other ways to run this activity.

For example, rather than working in teams, students could work individually to decide on and record the correct definition. you could just use three students to read out the cards for each definition if that would be easier.

» if you have more time, you could ask students to make up the definitions for these (or other terms) themselves. Display the key terms and allocate three or four students to each definition, asking them each to make up a meaning that is wrong, but believable. Collect in their definitions, add the correct definition to each set, and run the activity as above. 2r1

0-10m

» Suggested time allowance for activities


Resources needed » activity 1 (starter): ‘Call My Bluff’ cards (2r1)(one set cut into individual cards)» activity 2: ‘Millennium Development Goals’ cards (2r2) (one sheet for each of 5

groups, cut into cards if possible); ‘Preparing for the Millennium Development Goals Funding Board’ sheet (2r3) (one for each of 5 groups); large sheets of paper and thick marker pens for each group

» activity 3: Funding Board Feedback Sheet (2r4) (one for each student)

1r2

2 leSSon 2 oF 4

24



» Activity 2: Preparing for The MDG Funding Board

Start by introducing the class more fully to the mDgs. explain that they are eight international targets for development. members of the united nations and a number of other international organisations agreed that these goals are the most important ways of improving people’s lives and agreed to work towards achieving the mDgs by 2015. the Commonwealth Secretariat is one organisation that has committed towards achieving the mDgs. the Commonwealth Secretariat is the body that runs the Commonwealth on a day to day basis, working towards diversity, development and democracy.tell students that they will soon be representing the Commonwealth Secretariat at a meeting of the mDg Funding Board. at this meeting, the board will decide which development projects to fund out of a range of projects presented by different interest groups.Divide the class into five groups. Distribute the mDg sheet to each group (or if possible a set of cards produced by cutting up this sheet) (2r2). explain that each group will be presenting a development project to the board, but must first decide which mDg they want their project to contribute to. give the groups five minutes to discuss which mDg they think is most important and deserving of their time and attention.after five minutes, stop them, and ask each group to state which mDg they have chosen. » if you have time at this stage, you could also ask them to explain how they reached their decision. » Did everyone agree, by consensus? » Did they vote? or did one or two people make the decision for the rest of the group? each group is now ready to prepare for the Commonwealth Secretariat millennium Development goals Funding Board. Distribute the sheet ‘Preparing for the Commonwealth Secretariat millennium Development goals Funding Board’ (2r3) to each group. give the groups 10 minutes to prepare for their presentations, which must cover: » which millennium Development goal (mDg) they have chosen.» why they have chosen this goal – why they think it is the most important for improving people’s lives » a project they would start up that would work towards their chosen mDg.

they should include the following details about their project: • who would it be aimed at? (e.g. children, women, adults, people with a certain illness…) • what would it offer to these people? (e.g. medicine, education, the internet…) • how would it help meet their chosen mDg? • how it would work? (e.g. how would they make sure the lives of the people they are aiming their

project at are directly improved by the project; would the project be cheap or expensive to run; how might the project indirectly help other people around the world?)

let students know that the Funding Board have very limited time so each group’s presentation can be a maximum of 1 minute 30 seconds which will be strictly timed – but that they have large sheets of paper and thick pens (or a board) on which to display their proposal which will save them time during the presentations – they should display very clear information about their project using these materials, in case they run out of time in their presentation. Set up the room in the style of a formal meeting, so each group can present in turn.If you have more time or wish to run this activity over more than one lesson, you could do one or more of the following:» ask students to prepare their presentations for homework» give more time to the first part of activity 2 by asking each group to ‘bid’ for their chosen mDg. give

each group three minutes only to decide which mDg they think is most important, and then three further minutes to write down reasons why they think their chosen mDg is the most important. explain that each group will have 30 seconds to put forward their arguments. only one group can represent each mDg, so where more than one group wants to ‘bid’ for an mDg the teacher or a small group of students will select the group whose arguments they find most persuasive. where only one group ‘bids’ for an mDg they can be allocated that goal. where more than one group bids for the same goal, you will need to allocate the remaining goals to the remaining groups who did not get their first choice. one way to do this would be to have a set of mDg cards prepared using sheet (2r2). Remove the cards of the mDgs already allocated and then ask the remaining groups to pick a card at random. each group now moves onto the second part of the activity above, creating a project based on their allocated mDg.


leSSon 2 oF 4

2r32r2

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10-30m



» Activity 3: MDG Funding Board

give each student a Funding Board Feedback Sheet (2r4). the whole class now takes on the role of the mDg Funding Board, which must try to decide by consensus by the end of the lesson which two projects to fund.

with all the students watching, ask each group in turn to present their proposal for one minute thirty seconds. Keep time using a stopwatch (or get one of the students from another group to do so) and cut each group off quite strictly if they attempt to run over. During each presentation, students should make careful notes on their Feedback Sheet (2r4)in order to help them make a decision and feed back to the other groups.

» when the presentations are over, ask a number of students (particularly those who did not take a leading role in their presentations) to provide verbal feedback as members of the Funding Board, stating what they liked about each presentation and what could be improved.

» Activity 4 (plenary): Commonwealth Decisions by Consensus

ask students to move out of their groups and to get into pairs (with threes if there are an odd number of students), preferably with someone who was not in their group for activities 2 and 3.

give students two minutes to discuss the following question: » which two projects should the mDg Funding Board decide to fund and why?

tell students they should not just choose their own projects but really think about the merits of each one presented.

after 2 minutes ask each pair to join with another pair and share their discussion and decisions so far, for a further two minutes. During this time they should try to agree on the two projects they think should be funded. then repeat this exercise with students joining with another group of four or five, to make groups of eight or nine students. again, they should spend two minutes trying to reach consensus on the above question.

ask each group of eight/nine students to share with the class whether or not they were able to come to an agreement. » if they were, ask them to state the two projects they would fund. » if they were not, ask them to briefly explain why they think they could not reach an agreement.

Discuss as a class the benefits and challenges of reaching agreements by consensus. you could ask the following questions (orally or on the board for students to copy down and answer): » is consensus the best way for a Funding Board to make decisions? why/why not?

» what might be the benefits and challenges of other methods of making a decision, such as majority voting, or appointing one or two people to make a decision for the rest of the group?

» what kinds of qualities do people need to be good communicators and problemsolvers?

» how could you develop these qualities?

If you have time: Consider the mDgs the Funding Board would choose to support. » which ones were left out? » why might that be? » Do students think the mDgs are realistic?


30-45m

45-60

2 leSSon 2 oF 4

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» Call my bluff cards


Millennium Development Goals » Resource 2r2

28

Goal » 1 Eradicate extreme poverty and

hunger By improving poor people’s incomes;providing employment (jobs) for more

people; and reducing hunger.

Goal » 2 Achieve universal primary

education By making sure all girls and boys

are able to complete their primaryschooling

Goal » 3Promote gender equality and

empower women By making sure men and women are equally able to get an education, employment (jobs)

and take on roles of political power.

Goal » 4 Reduce child mortality rate

By reducing the number of childrenwho die before their fifth birthday.

Goal » 5 Improve maternal health

By reducing the number of womenwho die giving birth and providingmore contraceptives, better familyplanning and better medical care.

Goal » 6 Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and

other diseases By stopping the spread of hiV/aiDS,

malaria and other diseases andproviding treatments and drugs forpeople who are already infected.

Goal » 7 Ensure environmental sustainability By putting sustainability into government policies; reducing the loss of biodiversity

(different plants and animals); making safe drinking water and basic sanitation

available to all; and improving the lives of slumdwellers

Goal » 8 Develop a global partnership for

development By developing good systems for people

to reduce debt, poverty and manage trading around the world; addressing the

special needs of the poorest countries and small island states; and working with

private companies to make affordable and essential medicines and new

technologies such as mobile telephones, computers and the internet available

to everyone.

1 2

3 4

5 6

7

8Your Task » Your group will be presenting a development project to the board. » You must first decide which MDG your

group want to contribute to. Consider which MDG you think is most important and deserving of your time and attention.



» Preparing for the Millennium Development Goals Funding Board


Preparing for the MDG Funding Board » Resource 2r3

29

Your Task:the millennium Development goals (mDgs) are eight goals agreed by international leaders. members of the united nations and a number of other international organisations decided in the year 2000 that these goals are the most important ways of improving people’s lives and agreed to work towards achieving the mDgs by 2015. the Commonwealth Secretariat is one organisation that is committed towards achieving the mDgs. the Commonwealth Secretariat is the body that runs the Commonwealth on a day to day basis, working towards diversity, development and democracy.

you will soon be representing the Commonwealth Secretariat in a presentingon to the Commonwealth Secretariat millennium Development goals Funding Board on a proposed development project. the Funding Board only have enough money to fund two projects, so you will need to work hard to convince them to choose your project over other worthwhile projects.

you will only have one minute and thirty seconds to present to the Board so your presentation should be as clear and straightforward as possible. you can use the paper and pens provided to help show more information about your proposed project.

Your presentation should include the following aspects:

» which millennium Development goal (mDg) you have chosen.

» why you have chosen this goal – why you think it is the most important for improving people’s lives.

» a project you would start up that would work towards your chosen mDg. you should include the following details about your project:

• who would it be aimed at? (e.g. children, women, adults, people with a certain illness…)

• what would it offer to these people? (e.g. medicine, education, the internet…)

• how would it help meet your chosen mDg?

• how it would work? (e.g. how would you make sure the lives of the people you are aiming your project at are directly improved by the project; would the project be cheap or expensive to run; how might the project indirectly help other people around the world or contribute to other mDgs?)

once you have decided on your goals and programme / project idea, it might be useful to divide your group into subgroups to prepare and present the different elements listed above.

good luck!

co mmonwealth [kom-uhn-welth] • a group of 54 countries that have agreed to work together by sharing ideas and experiences, skills and knowledge. It promotes ideas such as diversity, democracy and development.

se cretariat [sek-ri-tair-ee-uht] • A group of people who organise meetings and communications for an international organisation.

mi llennium [mi-len-ee-uhm] • a thousand years. A new millennium began in the year 2000.

de velopment [dih-vel-uhp-muhnt] • International Development is a process of improving people’s access to health, education and technologies in countries around the world.

goals [gohls] • what we have decided to achieve; what we want to work towards.

funding [fuhnd-ing] • money that comes from a particular person, place or organisation.

board [bawrd, bohrd] • a group of people who make decisions on behalf of others.


» Your views matter!

m i l l e n n i u m D e V e l o P m e n t g o a l S F u n D i n g B o a R D

you are a member of the millennium Development goals Funding Board.

your aim is to help improve people’s lives by funding projects that support the

millennium Development goals. our first job is to listen to all the project presentations

and make an individual decision about the two projects you think should be funded.

listen carefully to each presentation and

watch how each group puts across their ideas.

use this sheet to write down your feedback and

your final decision for which projects to fund.

Group Which MDG did they choose?

How would their project help to meet the MDG?

What did I like about the presentation and why?

How would I change the presentation to make it even better?

1

2

3

4

5

Which two projects should the MDG Funding Board decide to fund and why?

1

2 to help you make your decision, think about which projects would:

• work well and get the promised help to the targeted people;

• be good value for money;

• start working immediately and continue working long into the future;

• make a contribution towards meeting the group’s chosen MDG and other MDGs.

when the presentations have finished you will discuss your suggestions with other members

of the Funding Board and try to come to an agreement by consensus of which two projects

to fund. Consensus is a way of making decisions, where an agreement is reached by a group

as a whole. to achieve consensus, everyone involved has to agree to the decision or action.

if you disagree with other members, you need to discuss your choices politely and maturely,

convincing the other Board members that you have thought carefully about your choices,

while also being prepared to listen, accept other views and compromise to make sure the

most good can be done.

name:

group:

Funding Board Feedback Sheet 2r4

CALL MY BLUFF » Resource 2r4


30

lesson 2 resources 1- 4 green

Documents

observation of activity

differentiation activity

b c activity

challenges of consensus

kinds of development

consensus f

commonwealth key processes

needs of individual