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Stolen Election? You Make the Call

Lesson Author
Griffin, Darren
Course(s)
U. S. History
Required Time Frame
Two or three class periods
Lesson Abstract
Evaluate the constitutionality and fairness of controversial Presidential elections.
Description

Evaluate the constitutionality and fairness of controversial Presidential elections

Rationale (why are you doing this?)

 

  • One of the main functions of social studies is to prepare students to become the responsible citizens of tomorrow.  To do that, students need to understand how the electoral process works and evaluate whether reforms or changes might be needed.

Lesson Objectives - the student will

 

  • Evaluate the constitutionality and fairness of controversial Presidential elections.

  • Draw conclusions as to what electoral reforms might be necessary.

District, state, or national performance and knowledge standards/goals/skills met

 

  • Missouri Learning Standards: 3a. I. Political Development in the United States: Analyze the evolution of American democracy, its ideals, institutions, and political processes, including Constitution and amendments. . .

  • Missouri Learning Standards 7a. Identify, select, use, analyze, and create appropriate resources for social science inquiry.
Secondary materials (book, article, video documentary, etc.) needed

 

Overview of the Electoral College System (Secondary Source)

http://www.fairvote.org/the_electoral_college#how_the_electoral_college_works_today

 

Election of 1824: (Secondary Sources)

http://constitution.laws.com/election-of-1824

 

https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/textbooks/boundless-u-s-history-textbook/democracy-in-america-1815-1840-12/the-monroe-and-adams-administrations-102/the-election-of-1824-551-9586/

 

Election of 1876: (Secondary Sources)

https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/textbooks/boundless-u-s-history-textbook/reconstruction-1865-1877-19/the-grant-administration-142/the-compromise-of-1877-757-2343/

 

http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3109

 

http://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/reconstruction/essays/contentious-election-1876

 

Election of 2000: (Secondary Sources)

http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/31/politics/bush-gore-2000-election-results-studies/

 

https://www.oyez.org/cases/2000/00-949

 

http://www.phschool.com/curriculum_support/interactive_constitution/scc/scc43.htm

 

Primary sources needed (document, photograph, artifact, diary or letter, audio or visual recording, etc.) needed

 

 

Constitutional and Legal Rules for Electing the President: (Primary Source)

http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/provisions.html


 

Text of Twelfth and Twenty-Third Amendments: (Primary Source)

http://www.fairvote.org/the_electoral_college#the_twelfth_and_twenty_third_amendments


 

Election Data by Year: (Primary Source)

http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/elections.php

 

http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/historical.html


 

Election of 2000: (Primary Sources)

http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/stats.php?year=2000&f=0&off=0&elect=0

 

 

Fully describe the activity or assignment in detail. What will both the teacher and the students do?

 

  • The teacher will assign the Fair Vote website to read for homework and also have students watch the Youtube video on the Electoral College as they prepare to play Kahoot. (The video should start automatically when the Kahoot Game is loaded.)  To play the Kahoot game, go to the following link:

https://play.kahoot.it/#/?quizId=6c004afd-4a13-4913-a1e8-b43438bb8ef6

 

If that doesn’t work, search the public Kahoots for the title “How Presidents Are Elected” Look for the quiz created by HistoryDog68

  • Students will play Kahoot game to learn how Presidents are elected.  The teacher will review the correct answers with them and answer any questions they may have about how the electoral process works.

  • Students will be assigned to research one of three “Stolen Elections” in American History (Elections of 1824, 1876, and 2000).  They will use the suggested resources in the lesson plan or find their own resources to analyze their assigned election using the questions provided.  They will be in cooperative learning groups of the teacher’s choosing to discuss and answer the following questions:

  1. What percent of the popular votes did each candidate receive?

  2. What number of electoral votes did each candidate receive?

  3. What controversies or complications emerged during the election?

  4. Who was eventually declared the winner of the election?

  5. Do you think the right decision was made based on the Constitution, election laws, and ethical practices?  Explain your position.

  6. What changes to our electoral system would you recommend based on the problems inherent in your assigned election?

 

The teacher should have each group share their findings with the class.

 

Assessment: fully explain the assessment method in detail or create and attach a scoring guide

 

Scoring Guide for questions 1 and 2:

3 points=Answer is complete and factually correct.

2 points=Answer is partially complete and/or contains some factual errors.

1 point=Answer is incomplete and/or contains numerous factual errors.

 

Scoring Guide for questions 3,4,5, and 6:

6 points=Question is fully answered and explained thoroughly with appropriate facts and logic.

4 points=Question is only partly answered and/or contains vague explanations.

2 points=Question is mostly unanswered and/or answers contain no explanations.