Global Issues 40S Course Outline

2016-2017
Teacher: Susan Lawrie, M.Ed.
susan.lawrie@wsd1.org
204-477-0164
Objectives: In this course students will acquire knowledge and understanding, and think critically about our
complex and changing world. In doing so, we will learn to participate in local, national and global communities.
We will also build self-knowledge and be conscious of connections to nature and society and finally, to learn to
live peacefully with others and to care for our common homeland. Students will:

Acquire knowledge and understanding, and think critically about our complex and changing world
Learn to participate effectively in local, national, and global communities
Build self-knowledge and be conscious of connections to nature and society
Learn to live peacefully with others and to care for our common homeland

Topics of Discussion:
Approximately one topic will be covered each week. The following are topics of discussion: Media; Consumerism;
Environment; Indigenous Peoples; Peace & Conflict; Oppression and Genocide; Health & Biotechnology; Gender
Politics; and Social Justice & Human Rights.
Response Papers:
Throughout the course, students will be presented with different articles from which you will write a response
paper. Generally these will be critiques to present different sides to current global issues.
Take Action:
A take action research project will be part of this course. The goal of this project is to move you from awareness
through questioning, inquiry and dialogue, to critical consciousness and, ultimately, to engagement in informed
reflective action for positive change. Successful projects will make a difference in your lives and the lives of our
communities. Understandings for these projects include:

Our ecological footprint is exceeding Earths capacity to sustain biodiversity and human life
Our decisions and actions matter; they have social, environmental, economic, and political consequences
Individuals, groups, governments, and corporations have the power to effect change and the responsibility to
contribute to a sustainable future
The media do not provide neutral reflections of reality; they affect our decisions and actions
A global economic system that depends upon and perpetuates unrestrained consumerism is unsustainable
Economic and technological development has contributed greatly to society, but often with harmful human and
environmental consequences
Indigenous knowledge and world views offer alternatives to prevailing assumptions about how to live with one
another within the environment
Political systems distribute power, privilege, and wealth in different ways, some more justly than others
A just society respects human diversity and recognizes universal, equal, and inalienable human rights
There is no them or over there; we all belong to the human species, our concerns are interdependent, and we are
part of the natural world

Presentations:
One key component of the Global Issues course is the study of current affairs. Current affairs are accessible
through many different forms of news media, whether its internet, radio, television, or others such as podcasts.
Inquiry:
Inquiry will comprise a part of this course. A textbook will be used, Exploring Global Issues: Social, Economic, and
Environmental Interconnections by Skelton, Jacob, Hendrickson, and Shaw, copyright 2013. This text is available
for classroom use, but cannot be taken home. There is no need to purchase a text for this class. Regular and
punctual attendance will allow for ample time to use the textbook.
Attendance:
Daily attendance is directly linked to student success. Students are expected to attend all classes and keep up to
date with all coursework. Your education is your responsibility. The following steps will be taken to address poor
attendance:

Informal meeting with teacher

Plan for Success formal contract prepared with administration
Withdrawal from class/school

*WAEC reserves the right to review each situation individually to determine the appropriate action.

Grading:
This course is scheduled for a very fast ten weeks, and your work will be assessed weekly, with the intention of
determining how your work demonstrates that you are working towards becoming a responsible, global citizen,
conscious of social justice and sustainability issues that threaten to tear our world apart. Attendance and
punctuality are imperative to your success in this course, especially due to the fast pace of this ten week course.
Every class is a double period, so when you miss one day, you are missing two classes. Missing two days means
you have missed nearly an entire week in school. One week is one tenth of the course; two weeks missed would
mean you have been away for one fifth of the course. You are responsible to find out what you have missed if you
are absent by asking two students who were in attendance, plus you need to check up on any instructions
assigned online. I will explain the online accessibility in class. If you miss three consecutive classes, you will be
required to seek admittance back into the course by meeting with the administrators at WAEC.

Please note that plagiarism will not be tolerated!

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Academic Honesty:
The staff at WAEC believe it is our job to teach students how to be honest researchers and users of information.
Plagiarism means copying ideas, sentences, paragraphs and pictures you find on the internet, in books or
magazines, and submitting them as your own work. This also includes copying the work of another student. Any
form of plagiarism is unacceptable. The staff will take the following steps in dealing with instances of plagiarism.
These are cross curricular:
First incidence: conversation with teacher and opportunity to re-do assignment. Formal documentation will be
added to student file
Second incidence: a mark of zero on the assignment, meeting with administration
Third incidence: loss of credit
****WAEC reserves the right to review each situation individually to determine the appropriate action.

Assignments:
Response Papers/Take Action/Inquiry 20%
Each class ends with a few lines to one page of what you did during class. Journals will be checked
every Friday, and marks allotted for each entry completed. Here you share your thoughts and ideas
about as well as reflections regarding topics being covered.
Presentation 30%
One way to show your interest and critical understanding in becoming a global citizen is to explore
areas of global significance, either inspired by what happens in class or in your own specific areas of
passion and interest using written, oral, and multi-media tasks. You are expected to prepare two
presentations, one in November, and one in December. Self-reflection, self-assessment, and peer
assessment will occur. Typically, they take about 10 minutes, can be worked on in groups or alone,
are done in class time, and simply seek to inform the class about something you have been thinking
about. You can present by talking, asking for a discussion which you will lead, making a PowerPoint
slideshow, or showing a clip of something that caught your attention. You will sign up for these on
specific dates, on a sign up sheet in class.
Activities 20%
There will be opportunities to engage in extra activities, such as field trips to the Human Rights
Museum, and the University of Manitoba. These are easy marks, where attendance alone allows you
to achieve the marks. You must be punctual and present to get these marks. Other activities may
include: a class website & blog; Facebook; quizzes; article analysis; role plays; debates; and
audiovisual or multimedia presentations.
Final Exam 30%
Details to follow in class.

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