Core Beliefs of Government & Political Ideology

Announcements:

Welcome back! Hopefully, you enjoyed your break and were able to get some rest. We have a very busy 2nd semester with lots to discuss and cover before the AP test on May 4th. Here are a few topics that we will be covering:

• Election 2020--the Democratic Party will try to determine who their party nominee will be this spring through a series of primaries and caucuses
• Impeachment--with the impeachment of President Trump by the House the focus now shifts to the Senate and the impending trial
• Tension in the Middle East--President Trump's recent use of military force killing one of the top Iranian officials illustrates the tension between the military powers of the President and Congressional authority (i.e. War Powers Resolution)

From a curriculum standpoint, we will cover three units (although not necessarily in the order of the College Board)

• Unit 4: Political Beliefs & Public Opinion
• Unit 5: The Political Process (Participation, Campaigns & Elections, Interest Groups, Political Parties, the Media)
• Unit 3: Civil Liberties & Civil Rights

And, we will be working this semester to pass HB 1508 to make AP credit more equitable and accessible for Missouri students and families. Representatives from the College Board will be meeting with us next week to discuss some legislative strategies to help us pass this bill.

We have a lot to cover in the next four months. Be prepared to work hard, learn more than you ever thought possible about our government, and have fun along the way. Let's do this!P

HOMEWORK: Complete tasks #3 and #4 

Task #3: Take the Pew Political Typology Quiz, another political ideology quiz.

• Record your results, including a description of that typology.
• Do you agree with the results or not? Why or why not?

Task #4: Take a look at this recent report from the Pew Research Center on partisanship and polarization. Answer the following questions based on the data presented:
1. What is the "take away" from this report? (What's the main point?)
2. What is one possible reason for this change?
3. What is one possible consequence of this change?

READING: 162-189 in Edwards

UNIT Four Identification Terms 

QUIZ: Thursday over liberal/conservative beliefs

Today's Question: How do citizens' core beliefs and attitudes about the proper role of government affect their views on various policy issues?

Learning Standards:

MPA-1.A: Explain the relationship between core beliefs of U.S. citizens and attitudes about the role of government.

PMI-4.A: Explain how the ideologies of the two major parties shape policy debates.

MPA-1.A.1: Different interpretations of core values, including individualism, equality of opportunity, free enterprise, rule of law, and limited government, affect the relationship between citizens and the federal government and the relationships citizens have with one another.

PMI-4.A.1: The Democratic Party (D or DEM) platforms generally align more closely to liberal ideological positions, and the Republican Party (R or GOP) platforms generally align more closely to conservative ideological positions.

Core Beliefs & the Role of Government

Over the next week, we will be looking at political ideology, political socialization, and public opinion. There are two main ideologies--liberal and conservative. However, there are other lesser known ideologies and variances among liberals and conservatives.



Today we are going to take several ideology quizzes.

IDEAlog instructions:

1.  Go the the IDEAlog web site

2.  Read the introduction

3.  Read the tutorial

4.  Take the quiz

5.  Record your ideology by creating a matrix (see below) and placing a dot on the graph on where you fell in the matrix.

6.  Answer (in your notes) the questions below:

• Which did you value more, freedom or order?

• Which did you value more, freedom or equality?

• According to IDEAlog, what political ideology do you have? 

• Describe that ideology.  Do you think it is correct in its description of your beliefs?

Today we are looking at political ideology, or the consistent set of beliefs and attitudes about government that people have. The two main ideologies are liberal and conservative. Here is a chart that illustrates some of these differences.

Task #1: Watch these two videos for an overview of political ideology and/or read this article from Diffen on the comparisons of conservatives and liberals.






Task #2: Create a t-chart in your notes with one side labeled Liberal and the other side labeled Conservative. Organize the following terms/phrases below into their proper placement on the chart. Each term should have a opposite--please organize your answers with opposite pairs.

• change
• collectivism
• Democrat
• diversity
• environment
• equality
• exclusivity
• free market
• gun control
• individualism
• industry
• labor
• larger, more active government
• law and order
• left-wing
• less spending=less taxes
• management
• merit
• more government regulation
• more power to the national government
• more power to the states
• oppose government healthcare
• oppose same-sex marriage
• pacifism
• private sector
• pro-choice
• pro-life
• public sector
• Republican
• redistribution of wealth through taxes
• religion
• right-wing
• rights of the accused
• science
• smaller government
• strong military
• support government health care
• support same-sex marriage
• support the 2nd Amendment
• tradition

Task #3: Take the Pew Political Typology Quiz, another political ideology quiz.

• Record your results, including a description of that typology.
• Do you agree with the results or not? Why or why not?

Task #4: Take a look at this recent report from the Pew Research Center on partisanship and polarization. Answer the following questions based on the data presented:
1. What is the "take away" from this report? (What's the main point?)
2. What is one possible reason for this change?
3. What is one possible consequence of this change?