Introduction
The Internet gives students and teachers access to an enormous volume of information. Because of the broad range of resources available, students can gather materials which represent multiple perspectives and then analyze and debate significant global issues. This activity can be used in an economics class or in a global studies class.
Student Objectives
Procedure
Place the following statement on the chalkboard. Ask students what this statement means to them. Discuss.
"More wealth will be created in 1997 than in any previous year in history and, since the rate of population growth is coming down, this new wealth will go further." The Economist
Briefly review the fundamental concepts of free trade and free markets. Some of the questions we want to be able to answer are as follows:
Working in groups, students will identify a topic that they would be interested in researching. It may be a topic based on one of the questions listed above, or it may be on a related subject. For example, the group might want to look at child labor laws around the world and see if there are connections between the economic system and protections. Or students may want to compare the "safety nets" for children in industrialized nations.
Each group will be responsible to produce a written presentation designed to inform classmates about their findings. The format of the presentation may include overhead transparencies, handouts and computer-generated graphs and/or charts. Information technology must be used to assist in gathering, organizing and presenting the information.
Enrichment
Students might research the responses to technology through the ages. This topic could form the
basis of an extended interdisciplinary unit which may include literary works (e.g., Charles
Dickens, H.G. Wells, Karel Capek, Jules Verne and Mary Shelley); paintings and music.
Return to Activity #2.
Return to the introduction, A Global Perspective on Virtual Reality.
Return the American Forum's On-Line Materials page.