INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN RIGHTS (part 2)

DAY TWO:

1. The Daily Reflection was 'Should we enforce the UDHR in countries not our own? If so, how? If not, why?' (A preview for Segment Two)
2. Students were put into balanced groups of four or five to share their thoughts about the headlines reviewed last night. Students chose as a group one headline to teach. Students created a poster which illustrates the headline and lists two Articles from the UDHR relevant to the headline. And teacher students should relate the rights issue to intra-national conflict in discussion of the issue.
3. Before students are put into groups, distribute the outline and instructions for the first Human Rights term paper which will be due in four weeks. The Introduction and Thesis is due next week, the Body is due the following week and the Conclusion and Bibliography are due the two following weeks. If students complete their group project well ahead of the rest of the class on Day two they should begin research on the term paper.
4. This term paper is preparation for the UN session, students research and write about one of the several countries which will bring policy opinions to the UN session. The teacher should prepare minimal research packets for the papers, these can be done in folders and in hyper-linked files on the computer. These should contain a fact sheet, a map, and some information about the country's policy positions on Human Rights issues. There will be several students on each country's team.
5. The proposed list of countries is: India, China, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, South Africa, and EU. The proposed issues for this year are: women's rights, specifically in India and/or Iran, reopening the amnesty cases in the Dirty War in Argentina/the disappeared in Chile/and post-Apartheid in South Africa, the accusations of child slave rings on the coast of Western Africa, the attempts toward democracy and independence in East Timor and Indonesia, the trials on 'crimes against humanity' out of Rwanda and Croatia, and one or two gleaned from the year's Human Right's watch on line.
6. Student groups present their posters and headlines. Use the next class to finish presentations. (Before presentations begin distribute the rubric and checklist to the groups so they begin to understand what is expected in presentations.) Have each student take notes and evaluate in two sentences or so each of the presentations in their journal.
7. Stop presentations with ten minutes left to list on the board every Human Right discussed or written about or any students can think of from their own knowledge. Have students collect the lists each day in their journal.
8. Once presentations are completed have students write a three-paragraph essay for homework discussing whether and how or why not a particular Human Right will affect the occurrence of war or violent conflict. Instruct students to choose Rights from the list of Human Rights collected in the journals and to discuss in the essay at least one relevant Article of the UDHR (using correct citation form for the use of the Article in the essay.) Also get each student to complete a project-debriefing sheet (attached) to inform your practice.
9. Throughout your next few units you will be collecting drafts of the Human Rights term papers, setting some time for peer review, and teaching and guiding research.