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Conflicts in Government Policy Objectives - Lesson Plan: 3 x 1 hour lessons

A series of 'off the shelf' lesson plans and resources for use in the classroom. These lessons deal with Conflicts in Government Policy Objectives and are relevant to the following specifications:

• AQA: Module 6, 15.3
• Edexcel: Unit 6
• OCR: Module 2887

Aim:

These lessons seek to encourage students to consider a series of arguments for a particular set of policy proposals that have wide ranging implications not only to the non-economic objectives of a government but also to the wider efficiency and equity of the economy as a whole.

The Activity is centred around two groups, each of whom have a particular task - one section will act as a panel of Treasury ministers assessing the strengths of the proposal and the other section will consist of three groups working on presenting the case for a slice of the funds available for their particular project.

There is a series of simple guidelines for students but it should be emphasised that these are by no means exhaustive and that the strength and quality of the argument is what is likely to win them the lion's share of the funds!

Students should be encouraged to look in depth at the issue and not just follow the obvious argument - the Activity is meant to raise awareness of the wider implications of such policy decisions; the benefits of a healthy population on productivity, government spending, etc. for example, should all be explored.

Within each topic area there might be further areas for analysis - for example, should the emphasis be on health prevention or health care? Should resources be devoted to heart disease, cancers, obesity or asthma? Should there be different proportions of resources put into primary education, secondary or higher education? Should those over 75 be treated differently than those aged 65+?

The three groups will have time to prepare their argument and presentation, during which time the panel will do some research into current government spending levels and policy on these areas.

After the groups have presented their arguments, the panel will be given time to consider their decision. During this time, the three groups should be given the opportunity of reflecting on their presentations together in an informal discussion.

After the panel has presented its verdict, there can be a whole class discussion on the verdict and basis on which the decision was made.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the sessions, students should be able to demonstrate:

• An awareness of the main economic and non-economic objectives of government policy
• An awareness of the nature of the conflicts between these different objectives
• An appreciation of the wider implications of different policy initiatives and policy objectives
• An ability to research and synthesise relevant information to the topic area
• An ability to contribute to the development of a coherent argument using relevant evidence to support the argument
• An ability to present the argument to peers in a clear and logical manner using appropriate presentation media

Resources:

• PowerPoint Presentation - Conflicts in Government Policy Objectives [145 KB]
• PowerPoint Presentation - Macroeconomic Policies [292 KB]
• Mind Map - Conflicts in Government Policy Objectives
• Activity - Conflicts in Government Policy Objectives
• PCs for student research
• Appropriate presentation media
• Digital projector

Lesson Structure:

Lesson 1

1. Introduce the topic area by asking students to draw up a list of the top ten policies that the government should focus on - spending on health, etc. Get students to rank these in order of their priority. (10 minutes)
2. Discuss the class outcomes - highlight the conflicts that arise on the board. (10 minutes)
3. Use the PowerPoint Presentation/s to go over the main themes in this area. (If the more detailed Presentation is used, users may choose to edit these as appropriate.) (15 minutes)
4. Give out the Activity and divide the class into the different groups. Emphasise the learning outcomes. (5 minutes)
5. Give students 15 minutes to plan out how they are going to tackle the task. (15 minutes)
6. Outline the plans for the next lesson. (5 minutes)

Lesson 2

1. Remind students of the focus of the task. (5 minutes)
2. Give students the lesson to plan and prepare their argument. (50 minutes)
3. Provide an overview of the plans for the final lesson. (5 minutes)

Lesson 3

1. Remind students of the format of the lesson. (2 minutes)
2. Get each group to present their case. (24 minutes)
3. Provide the panel with 15 minutes to debate their conclusions and get the groups to reflect on their presentations and their arguments. (15 minutes)
4. Panel present their judgment. (10 minutes)
5. Bring class together for final discussion of the outcomes. (9 minutes)