Overview
My motivation for developing this curriculum unit was to have the students to fully understand the Supreme Court's role in American political history, in relation to individual rights and public opinion. They will interact as peer teachers to gain insight into their thoughts regarding the Supreme Court's role in shaping policy. This will provide a deeper understanding of the thought processes of Supreme Court justices as they prepare "briefs" on important legal issues regarding student individual rights. The Curriculum plan will be a vehicle used to infuse the ideas shared from the seminar, heading straight into the classroom, in unit lesson plan format. For example, I plan to have lessons focus on certain cases (Brown v Board of Education and Gideon vs. Wainwright) focusing on individual rights. I want the students to focus on the Constitution's protections of individual freedoms at school and how the Supreme Court has interpreted these freedoms to specific cases. I want to define, refine and refocus the role of the Supreme Court and disseminate the Court's role. Within the unit plan, students will complete assignments ("briefs and group teaching") and share their findings in the group classroom setting. The interaction of shared ideas and thoughts from the students will spark introspective thought. The unit topic question can also signify irony, to suggest that maybe we should reexamine the Supreme Court and its role in shaping core values in society. In our American Government course and American History courses, we touch on many facets of our Government. This Unit Lesson will add focus to a subject (Supreme Court) that does not get much attention, but needs to have more attention.
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