Current Issues is a class designed
to help students think critically about news and events that are occurring
in the world around them. Many high school students do not watch
the news and only read the newspaper for the sports section. Because
of this, many students do not realize how much their everyday lives are
affected by what is going on around them.
In this course, I am simply a guide on your quest for knowledge. If students are not willing to ask questions and debate among themselves, this class will be very unproductive. It will be interesting, fun, even controversial if students are actively involved in the class. You may learn things about your classmates you didn't know before.
A notebook will be needed for this class. This notebook will be handed in occasionally with journals which will be written by students concerning certain stories. Also, there is a small fee for this class which will be determined by the first week in September. This fee is for Newsweek Magazine which we will be using as a basis for this year's class.
Class activities also include debate. We will debate many controversial topics throughout the semester. We will make a list of topics that students in the class would like to discuss. The list will be created in the first few class periods.
Every week a TV log will be turned in to me which will highlight the week's events on a local to global scale. They are only worth 5 points each, but can not be turned in late. They are due during the last class period of each week. This is a simple task. Make sure you earn these easy points.
I am willing to be flexible in this class. If a student can offer construction criticism or ideas for possible alternatives to the lesson plans, I am willing to take them into consideration.
Respect is the only rule in my classroom. As high school students, I feel the days of written rules are behind you. There is not one rule that has been written that does not fit under the definition of respect. This goes not only for your actions toward me, but toward other students as well. If you have any questions about this, I will be glad to answer them.
Grading will be based on your journals, daily assignments, group assignments, projects, and a class participation grade. Participating in class discussion and debate will be worth 25% of the final grade. This is the most abstract grade. It is basically my perception participation grade might be, come talk to me. The grading scale itself is the same as described in the Marquette Handbook.
