Page 7 of 7

Posted on

Election Day Nov 6

Today is election day in the US and the battle is over Congress, the US legislative branch. The midterm elections are important and are seen as a referendum on Trump’s presidency. Although the voter turnout is usually lower than at a presidential election,  this year seems to be different. Many influential Americans have encouraged Americans to vote. Will the Republicans keep the majority of seats in the House of Representatives and the Senate? What issues are at stake? Today we will look into the US midterms. Find out:

midtermelections-600_1bMNtrd

what political issues are important for the Democrats and the Republicans?

why is there so much interest in an election that does not involve electing a President?

how will the election results affect the average American?

Post your findings on your blog!

Some useful links: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2018/sep/17/midterms-2018-vote-election-date-senate-house-who-will-win-candidates-all-you-need-to-know-explained

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46106086
https://edition.cnn.com/2018/10/27/politics/us-midterm-election-explainer-intl-trnd/index.html
Posted on

British Politics

Theresa May

British politics is quite fascinating these days, as the UK is negotiating with the EU on how to leave the European Union.  Prime Minister Theresa May of the Conservative Party represents the government and I think we can all agree on the fact that she has a challenging job, which was seen at the Salzburg summit in September. At the Tories’ annual conference this week in Birmingham she pledged for unity among the Conservatives.  Perhaps she was referring to her Foreign Secretary’s Soviet jibe?  On our subject day in Social Studies, you will find out more about British politics and make a presentation. These are the tasks you can choose from:

What is Scotland’s position on Brexit?

The Conservative Party and the challenging Brexit

The Labour Party, political ideology and current issues

The Liberal Democratic party, political ideology and current issues

UKIP (UK Independence Party)­­­­­

Devolution: An explanation

First past the post: Fair or unfair?

Why did Britain say no to the EU?

An explanation of constitutional monarchy

Posted on

The UK and the War on Terror

After 9/11, the US and the UK initiated the War on Terror, represented by the US President George Bush jr. and the British  PM Tony Blair. The US and the UK became close allies during this time and both parts argued that Iraq had to be invaded to not only remove the country’s alleged weapons of mass destruction, but to overthrow the dictator Saddam Hussein as well. Other countries such as Canada, France, Germany, Russia and China opposed the invasion of Iraq and in the aftermath of the war, it became clear that Iraq did not have any weapons of mass destruction. Intelligence reports were mistaken. However, the dictator Hussein was removed, but at the same time, thousands of innocent civilians were killed in the war in addition to British personnel. Tony Blair has apologized for relying on incorrect intelligence reports.

Assignment: Do some research on the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan and the UK involvement. What were the consequences of British involvement in the wars? List your sources.  Wikipedia could be a good starting point, but you should find other sources that are reliable and trustworthy.

war on terror
Posted on

Edward Snowden

A consequence of 9/11 was the establishment of the Department of Homeland Security and the Patriot Act. Today we will look more into this and learn about the whistleblower Edward Snowden. Some see him as a traitor, others as a hero.  Watch the videos shown in class and in groups, discuss whether you think Snowden is a hero or a traitor. List your arguments in a padlet. Can Snowden’s  actions be justified? Why? Can you think of other people who have revealed classified material- who are they and why did they do it?

snowden.jpg
Posted on

9/11- 17 years after

Sept 9

9/11/01 is the day most people remember and many recall what they did that day and where they were, be it in the US or Norway. Thousands of innocent people were killed and many lost their loved ones.  What many may not be aware of is that several people who were near the sites or at the sites have been diagnosed with severe illnesses in the years after such as cancer. The terror that affected NYC also had implications affecting not only the US society but the world in general. Today you will find out how 9/11 affected US society by reading and discussing these articles:

https://ndla.no/en/node/185208?fag=71082
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/sep/06/impact-9-11-america
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/11/911-health-crisis-a-new-york-cleaner-fights-cancer-15-years-later
Posted on

Immigration and multiculturalism

Between 1948 and 1962 Britain had an open door policy in terms of immigration. After WWII, Britain turned to the colonies for workforce and people from the Caribbean were invited to come and work in Britain in exchange for British citizenship. The arrival of the Empire Windrush has been considered the beginning of immigration and contemporary multiculturalism. Many immigrants faced challenges, which you can read about here.

The British poet John Agard has written a poem called “Remember the Ship”. Write a blog post where you comment on:

-the speaker of the poem

-the references to ships and journeys

– why we must “remember the ship”

-locate references to race and discuss how this term is used in the poem

-why do you think this poem is relevant today?

the windrush
Posted on

The UK, Great Britain and Britishness

keep calm

It is easy to confuse the various names used to explain the countries comprising the British Isles. Here you can watch a video explaining what the UK is, Great Britain and the British Isles.

In order to get a better understanding of the British, you are going to answer these questions:

  • Explain the term “devolution”
  • What is The Irish Problem?
  • Explain what Britishness and the different identities within the UK is
  • What role does the monarchy play in the UK? What power does it have?
Posted on

Welcome to English Social Studies

Welcome to a new school year at Fagerlia!

I am excited to have this class with you and hope we can all learn a lot and have some fun throughout the school year.

Most of you will already have your blog from last year (international English) and may continue to use this. If you don’t have a blog, or would like to create a new one, ask someone in the class to help you get started. Use wordpress.com and choose a free account. When making your account you can choose whether to have a public, private or hidden blog, but no matter which you choose you have to share the link with me. Remember, this is an educational blog, which will be evaluated, so keep it tidy and professional I will read all your blogs and they will count towards your final grade, but you will be notified which assignments will be graded. These you always have to hand in on itslearning as well.

Your first blog assignment will be to create a text in which you discuss what “politics” means to you, and where you mention some of the political events and developments in the USA and Great Britain that you are already familiar with. Do some of these intrigue you, and what would like to learn more about?

Good luck with the new school year! Make new friends and broaden your horizons:)

Ingunn