Transcript Chapter 1 How Effectively does Canada’s Federal Political

Chapter 1
How Effectively does Canada’s Federal
Political System govern Canada for all
Canadians?
Prime Minister
Stephen Harper
Liberal Leader
Michael Ignatieff
NDP Leader
Jack Layton
Bloc Quebecois Leader
Gilles Duceppe
Green Party Leader
Elizabeth May
Create a KWL chart in your notes
about Canada’s Federal System
K= “What do I know
about Canada’s
Federal
Government?”
 W= “What do I want
to learn about
Canada’s Federal
System?”
 L= “What I learned
about Canada’s
Federal System

K
What do I know
about Canada’s
Federal
Government?
W
What do I want to
learn about
Canada’s Federal
System?
L
What I learned
about Canada’s
Federal System
Walk In Assignment #1
If you were old enough to vote in a
federal election, what would be the most
important issues to you that you would
want the Federal government to address
and why?
 After
writing your response in complete
sentences, rank order your top 5 priorities
for the Federal government.
Focus Questions of this Chapter
 What
is the structure of Canada’s federal
political system?
 How do bills become laws?
 How do the media connect Canadians to
their government?
 What do lobbyists do?
Read Intro to Chapter 1 as a class
page 16

After reading the intro get
into groups of 2 and
create a chart to organize
your thoughts during the
group discussion.
Complete the chart in
point form.
”What challenges does the
government of Canada have
when they make decisions that
reflect the needs of all
Canadians?”
Possible Group Responses



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It is impossible to govern to all Canadians. The government is likely to make
decisions that represent the majority opinion. They Govern to the majority
so they get re-elected.
The decisions that governments make will never please every single
Canadian; all Canadians have different POINTS OF VIEW…therefore not
everyone will be satisfied with government decision making.
The government is in office for 4 years at a time…in this time they cannot
possibly deal with all the concerns that Canadians have.
The government is located in Ottawa so they may not be in touch with what
is happening is all parts of Canada. Some voters feel “left out” of the
political process even though they have the right to vote.
If the government has a minority in the House of Commons, they may
having difficulty passing legislation for fear that opposition parties will vote
against them in the House of Commons (This is called a non-confidence
vote). If this happens the Prime Minister would be forced to call an election
before they are ready for one.
Viewing
Comic Rick Mercer explains Canada’s
Federal System
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yi1yhp_x7A
Critical Thinking Challenge
 Look
at the pictures on page 17 in your
textbook. Then answer the Critical
Thinking Challenge in your “Walk in
Assignments” section of your binder and
label it #9.
To what extent might the different experiences
of the Canadians on this page affect their
views or perspectives?
Chapter 1 Assessment…
Your Task
 Create
a comic book in groups of 3 that
show the responsibilities and challenges of
the Executive, Legislative and Judicial
branches of Canada’s Federal
Government.
This will be taken in and evaluated as a term
1 mark.
Getting Started

Read page 21-35 in
your text. Make a
brainstorming chart in
your notes similar to
the one in your text to
organize your group
discussion.
Inquire
What is
the issue
about
Canada’s
governm
ent?
What
challenge
s and
opportunities
does the
issue
create for
Canadians
?
How will
you use
what you
know
about the
political
system to
respond
to the
issue?
Example
Example
Example
What is the structure of Canada’s
federal political system?
The Queen
The Executive
Branch

The Legislative
Branch
The Judicial
Branch
Read page 22 in your text and fill out this chart. In point form write
down what each branch of government is responsible for doing.
Viewing: What is the structure of
Canada’s Federal System?
1.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNIrum
rrdGM
2.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGfYO
mz_FSE&NR=1
CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY
Add term to Glossary

Canada is a CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY,
the head of state being a monarch (a king or
queen). The monarch’s representative in
Canada is the Governor General who fills the
role of approving laws made in Canada and
other formal functions. The representative of the
monarch in the provinces is the Lieutenant
Governor.
Governor General
Add term to Glossary
 The
Governor General is appointed by the
monarch (Queen) on the recommendation
of the Prime Minister. The Lieutenant
Governor is appointed by the Governor
General following a recommendation by
the premier of a province to the prime
minister.
Governor General
Michaelle Jean
Governor General

The Governor General has the power to appoint
the Prime Minister, who is the leader of the
political party that holds the most seats in the
House of Commons. The Governor General and
Lieutenant Governor generally acts on the
advice of the prime minister or premier of the
province.
 No bill gets passed in either parliament or a
provincial legislature without ROYAL ASSENTfrom the Governor General or Lieutenant
Governor.
The House of Commons

Is made up of 308 elected
Members of Parliament
 Is the principal law
making body in Canada
 Members devote most of
their time to debating and
voting on bills
They also….
 Represent constituents
views
 Discuss national issues
 Call on the government to
explain its actions
The House of Commons
Lower House
The Executive Branch
The Prime Minister and the Cabinet
1.
Read page 23-25 in your text to find out
more about this branch of government.
2. Add the terms Executive Branch, Political
Party, Prime Minister, Cabinet into your
glossary sheets.
Note: The terms political party, prime minister and
cabinet are not bolded, but you can create
your own definition by reading page 24.
Walk in Assignment# 2
What factors do you think the prime
minister takes into account when
appointing the members of cabinet?
Tip: Look on page 25 at the list of portfolios that cabinet
ministers have. What kind of experience do you think
cabinet ministers need to do their jobs?
Walk in Assignment #3
As Prime Minister, how could you use
cabinet positions to respond to issues
about government that concern
Canadians?
The Legislative Branch
Parliament
1.
Read page 26-33 to learn more about
this branch of government.
2.
Add the terms legislative branch,
House of Commons, constituents,
popular vote, into your glossary sheets.
Note: If the words are not bolded, then make
the definition up based on your readings.
Walk in Assignment #4
If you were prime minister, to what extent
would you work with the opposition?
You could use your answer, supported with facts and
reasons, as a step toward completing your chapter task.
Members of Parliament
MP’S

Read page 29-30 in your text and answer the following
questions.
1.
What are the 2 key roles of MP’S?
Look at the graph and map on page 30, and respond
to the question:
2.
“What if the votes in the 2006 election had been
counted by popular vote instead of by riding? How
would the way Albertans are represented in the
House of Commons be different?
Answer to Question #2
 In
the 2006 election all of Alberta’s 28
ridings were won by the Conservative
Party. If the election was determined by
popular vote, then other political parties
would have won seats in Alberta.
The Senate
The Upper House

1.
2.
3.
Read pages 31-33 to
find out more about the
Senate. Then do the
following tasks:
Add the terms: Senate,
senators, minorities to
your glossary sheets.
Answer question #1 on
page 33 Connect to the
big ideas.
Answer the 3 Critical
challenges on page
31,32,33, in your Walk
in Assignments.
Viewing
1.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i
SZnK_28_sQ&NR=1
2.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
mdSVRYC04YU&NR=1
3.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r
Sjq72k4TpM&feature=related
Walk in Assignments
#5 - Page 31
Why might the role of the Senate to represent minorities
be important to governance in Canada?
#6 -Page 32
Why might Canadians have different views and
perspectives on the role of the Senate in Canada’s
political system? What evidence can you find on this
page?
#7- Page 33
How does the structure of the Senate represent
Canadians in a different way than the House of
Commons? How does this structure help the Senate act
in the interests of regions and minority groups?
The Judicial Branch
1. Read page 34-37 to find out more about
this branch of government.
2. Add the terms: judicial branch, judge,
accountable, civil service,
assimilation into your glossary sheets.
Walk in Assignment #8
How does the judicial branch connect
to peace, order and good government
for all Canadians?
Note: Canada’s motto is peace, order, and good
government. The motto in the United States is
Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
How do laws become laws?
 Read
pages 38-45 to find out how bills
become laws.
 Take
down notes in point form on:
How bills become laws.
Case Study
The Federal Accountability Act

Read the case study on page 39, then answer
the Critical thinking challenge on this page in
your Walk In Assignments.
Walk In Assignment #17
How might making Canada’s government
more accountable contribute to good government
for all Canadian’s. What other measures might
contribute to good government?
Federal Accountability Act

Look at the diagram on page 40-41.
Answer the following question.
1.
How many readings does it take for a
bill to become a law in each house?
2.
What would be the advantages and
disadvantages of this process?
Record them down in a chart like
this.
3.
The Senate is not democratically
elected by the people; instead they
are appointed by the government.
What would be some advantages
and disadvantages of the senate.
Who is the Senate suppose to
represent in Canadian society?
Note: To help you answer question
#3 Read page 44 “What voice
do First Nations, Metis, and
Inuit people need?
Advantages of the
Process of Bills
Becoming Laws
Disadvantages of
the Process of
Bills becoming
Laws
Connect to the Big Ideas
Page 45
• Answer question #1 and 2 on
page 45. These questions
will help you to prepare for
you Chapter Task. Which is
due at the end of this
chapter.
How do the media connect
Canadians to their government?
 Take
the short
survey “Is digital
my first or second
language?”, then
respond to the
questions that
follow the survey.
Is digital my first or second language?
Survey
Below is a set of preferences. For each set, rate your preference by choosing one from
either A or B
Column A
•Telephone
•Edmonton
Journal
•Face to face conference
•Book Stores
•Daily Planner
•Cd’s
•Internet is second choice for
information
•Televised government debate
Column B
•Text
Messaging
•www.canada.com
•E-mail exchanges
•www.amazon.com
•Blackberry
•Mp 3’s
•Internet is first choice for
information
•You Tube
Class Discussion Questions

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What role does the media play in keeping you informed
about your government?
Why is the information shift (the digital age) important for
governments to be aware of?
Are we more informed today about politics then people
were 30 years ago?
What are the challenges that governments face because
of increased media scrutiny?
What are the positive aspects of more media scrutiny on
politicians, for the Canadian voter?
Media and Government
 Read
pages 47-50 in your text to learn
more about how the media impacts
government decision making.
 Add
the terms slogan and bias to your
glossary sheets.
 Answer
question #3 on page 50 Connect
to the big Ideas.
Walk in Assignment # 9 and #10
Page 47 and 48
#9 How do different types of media cover
government decision making? How do
journalists get information? What is the
relationship between politicians and the media?
#10 Why do you think groups in Canada want
media outlets that serve their communities?
What do Lobbyists do?

Read pages 51-53 to find out how lobby groups
can influence government decision making.

Add the term lobbyist to your glossary words.

Take a look at the clip art below to help you with
examples of lobby groups in our society.
Walk in Assignment #11 and #12
Page 51and 52
#11 How might lobbyists affect political
decision making and the lives of
Canadians?
#12 To what extent do lobbyists represent
Canadians? In what ways do they help or
hinder effective government decision
making around issues?
Connect to the big ideas
Page 53
Do questions #1,2,3 on page 53. Do this in
the section of your notes under the divider
Governance and Rights.