South Carolina ETV

South Carolina ETV
1101 George Rogers Boulevard
Columbia, SC 29201-4761
Phone: 803-737-3545

Vote for Me! (Grade 10)

Master Teacher

Fran Doolittle

Time Allotment

One 90-minute block

Overview

Another election year is here! Using video and the Internet, students will analyze voter trends in South Carolina and discover techniques candidates and their parties use to convince us to vote their way.

Subject Matter

Government-Elections-Political Science

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to:

Locate voting statistics for their county;
Compare the number of registered voters and active voters;
Identify techniques used by candidates to solicit votes.

South Carolina Standards

View the SC Standards Web site

12.4.11 identify and give examples of ways in which discrepancies between the reality and the ideals of American constitutional democracy can be reduced by individual action, social action, and political action.

12.5.10 evaluate and take and defend positions on the influence of the media on American political life.

12.5.11 analyze how political parties, campaigns and elections provide opportunities for citizens to participate in the political process.

Media Components

Video

Interview with former Congressman Floyd Spence.

Web Sites

Voter Registration in South Carolina

South Carolina (Voting) Statistics

Alternatives for TV Ads

New York Times article on the decline of television's effectiveness in political campaigns and the return to old-fashioned methods like going door to door.

Materials

Activity Sheet 1: Voter Registration Requirements
Activity Sheet 2: Voting Statistics
Activity Sheet 3: New York Times Article Questions
pen and paper

Equipment

Internet access for each student or group

Prep for Teachers

Prepare copies of Activity Sheets for use in computer lab.
When using media, provide students with a Focus for Media Interaction, a specific task to complete and/or information to identify during or after viewing of video segments, Web sites or other multimedia elements.

Introductory Activity

Step 1: Provide the students with introductory discussions of the platforms of the major political parties in South Carolina. The platforms are found at the Web sites for each political party registered with the state.

The Democratic Party Web site is and the Republican Party Web site.

Step 2: Ask the students if they get angry when decisions about them are made without their consent. Present to the students the fact that driving ages, drinking ages, school attendance, tax rates, marriage requirements, etc., are decided by state officials that fewer than half the people voted for in the last elections. However, these officials make decisions that affect us all on a daily basis.

Step 3: Have students connect to the Web site for Voter Registration in South Carolina. Provide your students with a Focus for Media Interaction, asking them to answer the questions on state voting requirements found on Activity Sheet 1. Also, ask students why people aren't more active voters when registering and voting are usually such simple tasks.

Learning Activity

Step 1: Instruct students to access the South Carolina Statistics page on the South Carolina Election Commission Web site.

Students can access voting statistics of their county.

Ask the students, "Why people would register but then decide not to vote?" Numerous answers may be given such as time problems, not interested in the candidates; maybe they forgot it was election day, or had no transportation to the polls. Ask students to answer the questions on the activity sheet comparing the number of registered voters to the number of people that voted in the latest primary election and the 2000 general election. Quiz students for possible reasons these statistics are so low. Compare Democratic Party voter turnout to Republican, using the directions on Activity Sheet 2. This serves as the students' Focus for Media Interaction.

Step 2: Provide students with a Focus for Media Interaction by asking them, "How would you begin to run for public office? How do you get voters to vote for you?"

Step 3: Then have students watch the six-minute video of an interview with Congressman Floyd Spence at Knowitall.org. Tell students to listen for Congressman Spence's suggestions for beginning a political campaign.

Follow these directions to the video clip:

Type in http://www.knowitall.org
Click on Search ETV
Click on the word "Government" (not "View")
Click on "view Elections"
Scroll down and click "next"
Scroll down to the 8^th picture on that page
Click to watch the video

After the clip ask: "How does Congressman Spence suggest a person get started in running for office and getting support?" Lead students to list items such as asking friends and relatives to support you, asking the political party to support you, or starting with a few neighbors and friends as a base of support.

Step 4: Provide a Focus for Media Interaction by having the students read the article from The New York Times at the Web site: http://www.med.sc.edu:1081/
polalternatives.htm. Give the students the sheet of discussion questions on the article. Questions should include why TV is not as effective as it once was as a campaign tool and what strategists believe are the most effective techniques.

Culminating Activity

Step 1: Direct the students to map out a plan for running in an election in their county. They are to consider themselves candidates and specifically design three-week campaigns. Campaign strategy should include poster design, where to strategically place them to be the most visible, where to campaign and meet people, and the best methods of fund raising.

Cross-Curricular Extensions

Math: Use voter registration numbers to calculate percentages of non-voters.

Math: Calculate percentage of residents of the state that are not registered to vote. Calculate the number of people in your county that are not registered to vote

Language Arts: Write an editorial to the newspaper expressing concern over voter apathy and encouraging more voter participation.

Community Connections

Have a candidate for local office come and speak to the class about motivation to run, costs involved, etc.
Have students volunteer for a candidate of their choice.
Have the county voter registrar come and speak to the class.

Student Materials

Activity Sheets 1, 2 and 3

access to Internet