Lesson Plan: Who Are Senators?

by Apathy is Boring — March 31, 2010

The Senate serves as a check on Parliament, ensuring that legislation is carefully examined and debated from a variety of perspectives. Canadian Senators are appointed rather than elected - something which has been both praised and criticized. This lesson will help students learn about Senators and the concept of checks and balances in Parliament.

Learning Goals

After this lesson:

• Students will be able to find their Senator through Citizen Factory
• Students will be able to contact their Senator
• Students will understand the role Senators play in Parliament
• Students will reflect on the differences between elected and appointed representatives

The goals of a lesson will obviously vary based on your classroom and curriculum, so feel free to adapt these suggestions to your students. You'll also find curriculum links at the bottom of this page, which can help you identify other learning goals for this lesson.

Pre-assessment and Resources

Take a moment to evaluate your students' current level of knowledge about the Senate. Also, try to identify connections that cans serve as your "hook" to introduce the lesson. Have your students ever met a Senator? Are there situations where your students can see the value of checks and balances? Can they think of a time when someone gave them advice to help make a better decision?

Citizen Factory has a page devoted specifically to Senators, along with articles explaining Canada's democratic process. There is also a PowerPoint presentation to accompany this lesson plan, which can help you present the material in a classroom setting. Feel free to alter it to suit your needs.

Introduction

Try to use your hook to introduce the lesson - see what experiences your students already have with elected representatives.

Activity: You're Fired!

The goal of this first activity is to help students the nature of appointed Senators by emphasizing the role of public pressure in decisions.

Ask students to imagine that there's a new rule: every month, students get to vote on whether or not teachers keep their jobs, or a new teacher takes their place. (If you're willing to face a potentially uncomfortable truth, you can ask - by show of hands - how many students would re-elect you as a teacher right now.)

Ask your students what aspect of electing a teacher appeal to them. How would they expect the teachers to respond if their jobs were in the line? Would students get better grades? Would any detention slips be handed out?

Ask your students to identify possible problems with electing a teacher. How much would they expect to learn? Would the elected teacher be fair to all students, or play favourites?

Have your students read Decoding: The Senate. Ask them to compare the elected teachers from this exercise with Senators. What would be the advantages of an elected Senate? What about the disadvantages?

Wrap up with another vote by show of hands, this time on whether Senators should be elected. (You can also ask your students to vote on your performance again, if you're feeling courageous.)

Activity: Take Action

It's letter-writing time! This activity can be either an individual assignment or a class exercise.

Have students visit Citizen Factory and find a Senator for their province (in Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario Prince Edward Island, and Quebec, there may be a Senator specific to your district). Ask them to find the contact information for their Senator.

Ask your students to identify an issue that matters to them. This can be based on the current events section of your class, if you have one. Also, the news feeds on the Senator's profile can provide examples of issues being debated by the Senate.

Ask students how they feel the Senate should influence this issue. Then, ask them to read How to Write a Letter to Your MP. You can now either write a letter as a group, or have students write individual letters.

Conclusion

Congratulate your students on taking action by writing a letter. You can also wrap up the lesson by having students read Historical Facts About Senate Seats. Ask your students to describe how the Senate has changed over time, and whether they feel that more change (or even reform) is necessary.

Assessment

Evaluate whether or not the lesson achieved its goals, as well as your specific goals:

• Were students able to find their Senator through Citizen Factory?
• Were students able to contact their Senator?
• Can students describe the role of Senators in Parliament?
• Can students explain the advantages and disadvantages of an appointed Senate?

Curriculum Links

The following links are drawn from the British Columbia Ministry of Education’s Civic Studies 11 curriculum, which aims “to enhance students’ abilities and willingness to participate actively and responsibly in civic life.” They provide examples of civics learning goals that can be integrated with this lesson plan, and Citizen Factory in general.

It is expected that students will:

• Apply critical thinking skills – including questioning, comparing, summarizing drawing conclusions, and defending – to a range of issues, situations, and topics
• Demonstrate effective research skills, including
  • Accessing information
  • Assessing information
• Demonstrate a knowledge of historical and contemporary factors that help define Canadian civic identity, including
  • Roles of individuals in society
  • Governance
  • Rights and responsibilities
• Identify historical roots of the Canadian political and legal systems, including
  • British parliamentary system
  • Political philosophies and parties
• Describe the division of powers in Canada among federal, provincial, territorial, First Nations, and municipal governments
• Describe Canada’s electoral systems and processes
• Describe the Canadian legal system, including
  • Legal processes
  • The enforcement and administration of laws
• Assess the application of fundamental principles of democracy (including equality, freedom, selection of decision makers, rule of law, and balancing the common good with the rights of individuals) with respect to selected to 20^th and 21^st century cases in Canada
• Evaluate the relative abilities of individuals, governments, and non-governmental organizations to effect civic change in Canada and the world, with reference to considerations such as
  • Power and influence
  • Circumstances
  • Methods of decision making and action
  • Public opinion
• Assess the role of beliefs and values in civic decision making
• Evaluate the citizen’s role in civic processes locally, provincially, nationally, and internationally
• Apply skills of civic discourse and dispute resolution, including consensus building, negotiation, compromise, and majority rule
• Evaluate the ethics of selected civic decisions
• Implement a plan for action on selected local, provincial, national, or international civic issue”

Source: British Columbia Ministry of Education. Civics Studies 11: Integrated Resource Package 2005. Victoria: Ministry of Education, 2005.