9 minute read
What factors are necessary for a peaceful protest to be successful?” by Kyle Blackiston
C3 Framework Indicators
Staging the Compelling Question
Supporting Question 1
D2.His.15.9-12. Distinguish between long-term causes and triggering events in developing a historical argument.
D2.His.4.9-12. Analyze complex and interacting factors that influenced the perspectives of people during different historical eras.
D2.His.1.9-12. Evaluate how historical events and developments were shaped by unique circumstances of time and place.
Students will lead themselves through a visual tour of prominent locations from the Peaceful Revolution protests in Leipzig (GDR) in the fall of 1989. Based on provided information, it is up to students to decide what factors contribute to a successful protest.
Supporting Question 2 Supporting Question 3
What were the motivations and goals of the Leipzig protestors?
Formative Performance Task
Students lead themselves through the Google 360 tour of the Peaceful Revolution protest. They will use the information they find to complete the “Peaceful Revolution Outline“ (Handout 1).
Featured Sources
Source A: Peaceful Revolution Outline (Handout 1)
Source B: “Peaceful Revolution“ (Reiff)
Summative Performance Task
Taking Informed Action What factors affected the government’s decisions?
Formative Performance Task
Students will work with their table groups to complete the „Erich Honecker Leadership Face Map“ (Handout 2). This will help them understand the relationship between the protestors’ actions and the government’s response.
Featured Sources
Source A: Erich Honecker Leadership Face Map (Handout 2) What, if anything, can future protestors learn from the Peaceful Revolution in Leipzig?
Formative Performance Task
Students should complete a partner reading of the Local article “Over 200 ‘Fridays for Future’ climate demos taking place in Germany.”
Featured Sources
Source A: “Over 200 ‘Fridays for Future’ climate demos taking place in Germany“ (The Local)
Argument: Students will construct a written, essay-style argument, or create a digital PowerPoint-style presentation that addresses the compelling question.
Extension: Students will complete a “Letter of Advice“ (Handout 3) from the perspective of a German citizen to an American citizen.
Understand: Students will research a recent protest movement in their city, state, or country.
Assess: Students will determine which strategies their researched movement has used for their protest, what the government’s response has been, and whether or not they think the protest was/is successful.
Act: Students will write a letter to the leaders of the protest offering ideas for success or to the government offering their opinion about the government’s reaction to this protest.
COMPELLING QUESTION
What factors are necessary for a peaceful protest to be successful?
INQUIRY OVERVIEW
Students will lead themselves through a visual tour of prominent locations from the Peaceful Revolution protests in Leipzig (GDR) in the fall of 1989. The government debated using force to quell the protests, but ultimately decided not to. The success of the peaceful protestors helped contribute to the reunification of Germany. Based on provided information, it is up to students to decide what factors contribute to a successful protest. Students will also write a letter, from the perspective of a GDR citizen to an American citizen, suggesting best practices and hopes for achieving a peaceful outcome when using a peaceful protest.
TEACHER BACKGROUND
This lesson is primarily aimed at learning new information about the Peaceful Revolution of 1989, while using modern events as a means to apply that knowledge. To accomplish this goal, teachers should have a basic working knowledge of the Peaceful Revolution in Leipzig. They should be aware that this was at the end of the GDR and the USSR more broadly. Teachers should also consider (for the purposes of comparison) the general policies in the USSR of glasnost and perestroika. This is a signal (from our historical point of view) that the USSR was weakening and recognized a need for change, but ultimately would not be enough to satiate an increasingly troubled and outspoken populace. Teachers should be acutely aware of the intent of the protesters – namely non-violence and internal government reform. In the minds of the protesters this was not an effort to topple leadership – simply to force them to reform the structure and soften treatment of the people. Finally, educators should take note that these protests took place very shortly before the formal collapse of the GDR and the USSR. Peaceful Revolution Protests took place in Mid-October 1989, the Berlin Wall fell about a month later, and Germany was officially reunified by the end of November 1990.
SUGGESTED TIME FRAME: two to three class periods
INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCES https://tinyurl.com/y24cmebn
Peaceful Revolution Outline (Handout 1) Erich Honecker Leadership Face Map (Handout 2) Letter of Advice (Handout 3)
Google 360 equipped computer SMARTboard/Promethean board projector
All handouts can be found here
(VR goggles would also be acceptable if there are enough for multiple students)
INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY
To students: “You have decided Mr. B. (the teacher) is not doing the best he can for you anymore. You believe he is too strict, his timelines too short, his punishments unfair, and worst of all – he does not help students better themselves. As a class, it is decided that Mr. B. must dramatically change his ways. However, Mr. B. is resistant to change and will not change easily. With your table group, brainstorm at least five strategies (large or small) that you could use to help show your displeasure and enact change.”
Students will be given 5 minutes to come up with ideas. Another 5 minutes will be allocated to asking student volunteers from each table group to share ideas and discuss options with the large group.
Final Question to students: “Which strategy/strategies seem most likely to work? Which might cause more problems for you even IF they succeed? Why?”
Allow another 2-3 minutes to discuss this as well. Students should be nudged in the direction of peaceful solutions leading towards long-term success (Mr. B. will still be your teacher, after all) and away from things like “frame Mr. B. for murder, etc.” Students should be pushed to defend the ideas and they should (hopefully) arrive at the conclusion that while violence can be an effective short-term solution, it does not always set up success in the future. This is an ideal place to jump off to begin discussion of nonviolent protest movements and government response to them.
SUPPORTING QUESTION #1
Formative Performance Task #1: Students will lead themselves through the Google 360 tour of the Peaceful Revolution protest. The virtual tour on the board will guide students through the sites and major events of the Peaceful Revolution. This tour will give an overview of the catalyzing events of the protests, the major organizers and government officials, and conclude with information about the Stasi and their famous inaction at the conclusion of the protests.
During this presentation students will be asked to come up to the board and move the camera around the location and click on informational panels. They will use the information they find, in addition to the teacher answering student questions, to complete the “Peaceful Revolution Outline” (Handout 1).
➤ Featured Sources #1: • Peaceful Revolution Outline (Handout 1) • Reiff, Amanda. Peaceful Revolution. 1 August 2019, https://poly.google.com/view/5Yqa15NKTue
SUPPORTING QUESTION #2
What factors affected the government’s decisions?
Formative Performance Task #2:
Students will work with their table groups to complete the “Erich Honecker Leadership Face Map” (Handout 2). This requires students to label Erich Honecker with any information they know about him individually or the situation the government was in at the moment. Information provided in the Google 360 presentation, teacher comments, and individual research will allow students to complete the worksheet. At the bottom of the page students will complete a 1-10 ranking of the government’s power at the moment of the protests – based on the students’ own assumptions and analysis. This should help them to understand the relationship between the protestors’ actions and the government’s response.
➤ Featured Sources #2: • Erich Honecker Leadership Face Map” (Handout 2)
SUPPORTING QUESTION #3
Formative Performance Task #3: Students should complete a partner reading of the Local article “Over 200 ‘Fridays for Future’ climate demos taking place in Germany.” Upon completing the reading, the partners should discuss two things. 1. The importance of peaceful protests to the success of the Fridays for Future movement (or any social movement) 2. How using nonviolence as a strategy might affect the perception of a movement to casual observers on the outside.
➤ Featured Sources #3: • “Over 200 ‘Fridays for Future’ climate demos taking place in Germany.” The Local, Oct 15, 2020, https://www.thelocal.de/20190315/200-fridays-for-future.
SUMMATIVE PERFORMANCE TASK
Students will construct a written, essay-style argument, or create a digital PowerPoint-style presentation that addresses the compelling question: “What factors are necessary for a peaceful protest to be successful?”
Students will be expected to include: • Specific evidence from the Peaceful Revolution example • Ideas on the success of nonviolent protests generally • A brief discussion on the possible shortcomings/consequences of a violent movement (addressing an opposing view) • Students may also include evidence from sources outside of the lesson
EXTENSION (OPTIONAL) TASK
Students will complete a “Letter of Advice” (Handout 3) from the perspective of a German citizen to an American citizen. In their letter they will include: • Brief summary of the events of the protest and its result. • At least three reasons why they believe their revolution was successful. • Suggestions on what American organizers could aim to do to find success and a lack of violence (from protestors or government) in future demonstrations.
TAKING INFORMED ACTION
UNDERSTAND Students will research a recent protest movement in their city, state, or country.
ASSESS Students will determine which strategies their researched movement has used for their protest, what the government’s response has been, and whether or not they think the protest was/is successful.
ACT Students will write a letter to the leaders of the protest offering ideas for success or to the government offering their opinion about the government’s reaction to this protest.
MODIFICATIONS FOR DIFFERENTIATION
For students who have difficulty seeing/copying notes - copies of the information slides from the Google 360 tour will be printed. For students who have difficulty writing - computers for typing letters and notes will be provided with the requisite paperwork available for them on a Google classroom.
Students will have previously been grouped with others they can both work well with and who are differentiated for level – allowing for a more mixed classroom.
MODIFICATIONS FOR ONLINE LEARNING
Materials: • Supply students with all necessary links through the digital platform your school uses. • Combine the documents into a pdf so students can download/print and complete the paperwork. • Load the documents into a Google Word file that students can access and complete digitally on a cellphone or computer. • Articles could also be saved as a pdf and sent to students as a document if they require a hardcopy/printable copy.
Interaction: • Interactive portions of the lesson could be saved for a Zoom/video chat session. Students could be prompted on discussion topics with the teacher and then assigned a digital “breakout room” to talk. • Students could be instructed to record their questions and thoughts as they progress through the lesson on their own time.
When they come into a Zoom/video lesson there could be a designated time for answering and discussing questions that would otherwise be handled by the teacher in the classroom during the original lesson.
Kyle Blackiston is currently an ESOL instructor at International School Canada in Busan, South Korea. He was formerly a Government and World History teacher at Glen Burnie High School, Glen Burnie, MD and an AP Government teacher at Great Mills High School, Great Mills, MD, USA.
