Activity 4
The World in Your Closet

Introduction: The growing importance of international trade in our economy is reflected in the origins of many of the everyday items we buy and consume, such as clothing. For example, most firms that produce jeans, a distinctly American product, now manufacture their product outside the U.S. Labels telling where the garment was made actually only hint at the international background of the article. Many “Made in the U.S.A.” garments, although sewn in the U.S., may have been manufactured from textiles, fibers, and/or raw materials produced abroad. With the growth of international trade comes growing international economic interdependence. Some people find danger in increasing dependence on foreign countries; others find encouraging possibilities such as expanded world production and greater hope for world peace and cooperation. Objective: The overall objective for this activity is to focus on the significance of the interdependent nature of international trade, using clothing as an example. Students should also come to understand that there are pluses and minuses to such trade. Discussion of the role of trade agreements such as NAFTA is integral to the topic. Procedures: Teachers should be prepared to use a wide variety of observational, testing and authentic achievement evaluation measures in judging the progress of students. By having students make a survey of his/her clothing and identify at least ten items made in other countries abroad, students are encouraged to become aware of the global nature of the clothing they wear. They will gain an initial realization that such items are a part of international trade. By associating each of their items of “international” clothing with a specific country and locating that country on a map of the world, the students will not only reinforce their knowledge of geography, but will recognize the specific areas of the world from which most of their items of clothing are derived. They will begin to generalize about clothing sources and the nature of the manufacturing relationship to the U.S. companies. Students will also become conscious of the nature of and the debate about, “outsourcing” (U.S. companies going to other countries for manufacturing because of (1) location of raw material; (2) cheap labor; and (3) reduced transportation costs) and the nature of “balance of trade.” By encouraging the class to develop a composite map of all countries that manufactured clothing of members of the class, you will reinforce the activity. At the end of the activity, students should be able to generalize about and analogize with other common daily items in terms of their origin, manufacture and the implications for international trade. Suggested Material: Copies of Handout 4: "Data Chart" Initial Data for Consideration and/or Process: The teacher should invite discussion about the results of the student surveys. Students should see their clothing as the result of a global production system. Stimulating questions might include the following: What countries were involved in manufacturing clothing for this class? What countries may have been involved in the production of the raw materials for the fibers used to make clothing for this class? What are some reasons that your clothing comes from many countries? Why isn’t it all produced entirely in the U.S.? What are some benefits of getting clothing from other countries? Some problems? Extending the Activity: Surveys of items besides clothing can be conducted to find out where they were manufactured. Items within the school that could be surveyed include sports equipment, office equipment, food products, etc. Such a survey can reinforce student conceptions of the importance and the extent of international trade in their daily lives. The growing importance of international trade in consumer goods can be illustrated by the increasing imports of automobiles into the U.S. An individual student or a group of students may want to survey automobile advertisements in magazines, looking for cars manufactured abroad or by a foreign-owned company in the U.S. What percentage of the automobile advertisements is for foreign cars? This could be compared with a survey of automobile advertising in magazines from twenty years ago. The students can report to the class, giving survey results and showing examples of the advertisements. Exercises: This series of exercises will help students begin to understand the monetary system that undergirds international trade. Exercise, Currency Equivalents and Changing Money Exercise, Asian Economic Crisis Updated from "The Global Economy: The Clothes in Your Closet," in New York and the World. New York: The American Forum for Global Education, 1998. View the Handout for this Lesson