Create your own Political Party
Create your own Political Ideology and Party
Your assignment is to create a political party with a defined political platform (ideology), and then to launch an aggressive election campaign that will culminate in a class-wide election.
Here are examples of the political parties that exist in Canada right now. The key will be to create a party that is true to your values, but that will also win the votes of the other people in our community.
Political parties play a major role in Canadian democracy. A political party is an organized group with similar ideas about government and politics who run candidates for office and who seek to form a government.
Each political party develops a statement of ideas, policies, and beliefs called a political platform (aka – ideology), which tells what the party plans to do if it forms the next government.
PART A: Creating the Political Party
Task 1 – What does your party believe in?
Each group will build a political party platform reflecting a distinct political ideology for a Canadian federal election. You and your group members must research and formulate policies on at least three major issues facing Canadians. You are welcome to use the ones below, or to develop your own policies.
Your party’s political platform can be presented in a variety of ways, for example:
Task 2
Choose a name and logo for your party reflecting your platform and policies on different issues.
Task 3
Create a party leader to run for student Prime Minister of Canada. Provide a detailed explanation of why this person was chosen to lead the party. This information should be included on your presentation in Task 1.
PART B: Mounting the Political Campaign
The Governor General (Ms. Underwood) will dissolve Parliament, signalling the beginning of the official election campaign. As a result, each party will need to begin competing for voter support. In order to inform the public of each party’s platform and ideas, each party will design a number of strategies for gaining voter support. Each party, must have the following tasks completed:
A campaign poster containing: the name of the party, name of the party leader and a brief biography, party’s logo, and party’s slogan.
An election speech: to be delivered on Election Day. It should be persuasive and informative (maximum 2 minutes). The speech must be submitted in written form. All group members should participate.
PART C: Election Day
REGISTERING
Every student in the class must register to vote the day before the election. If a student does not register, then she/he must bring student ID and show it to the teacher on Election Day or they will not be able to vote.
ELECTION DAY
Each political party will present their campaign products (give platform speech, show. logo, leader, poster, flyer).
THE POLLS OPEN
Those students who registered will have the opportunity to vote for the political party they feel will best represent their needs and the needs of the country. One rule that is different from reality (but will help with the competitive aspect of the activity) is that you may not vote for your own party.
THE POLLS CLOSE
The votes are counted, and the winning party is declared!!
Assessment
Curricular Competency: Use Social Studies inquiry processes and skills to ask questions; gather, interpret, and analyze ideas and data; and communicate findings and decisions
Focal points of assessment
Your assignment is to create a political party with a defined political platform (ideology), and then to launch an aggressive election campaign that will culminate in a class-wide election.
Here are examples of the political parties that exist in Canada right now. The key will be to create a party that is true to your values, but that will also win the votes of the other people in our community.
Political parties play a major role in Canadian democracy. A political party is an organized group with similar ideas about government and politics who run candidates for office and who seek to form a government.
Each political party develops a statement of ideas, policies, and beliefs called a political platform (aka – ideology), which tells what the party plans to do if it forms the next government.
PART A: Creating the Political Party
Task 1 – What does your party believe in?
Each group will build a political party platform reflecting a distinct political ideology for a Canadian federal election. You and your group members must research and formulate policies on at least three major issues facing Canadians. You are welcome to use the ones below, or to develop your own policies.
- Economy – What is the role of government? How do business function (free-enterprise, or state control)? Should there be a minimum wage? What do you think about tax?
- Environment – Should there be more environmental protection in place? What about pipelines? How will you address climate change?
- Health Care – What do you think about universal health care? Should everyone have access? What are the major issues in health today? Mental-health?
- Immigration – Should we accept fewer or more immigrants? What do immigrants have to do to obtain visas/permanent residency? What about refugees?
- Marijuana – Should it be illegal or legal?
- Criminals – Rehabilitation or the death penalty?
- Other
Your party’s political platform can be presented in a variety of ways, for example:
- Video
- Poster
- Presentation (Prezi, PPT, etc)
- Other (you choose, but let me know)
Task 2
Choose a name and logo for your party reflecting your platform and policies on different issues.
Task 3
Create a party leader to run for student Prime Minister of Canada. Provide a detailed explanation of why this person was chosen to lead the party. This information should be included on your presentation in Task 1.
PART B: Mounting the Political Campaign
The Governor General (Ms. Underwood) will dissolve Parliament, signalling the beginning of the official election campaign. As a result, each party will need to begin competing for voter support. In order to inform the public of each party’s platform and ideas, each party will design a number of strategies for gaining voter support. Each party, must have the following tasks completed:
A campaign poster containing: the name of the party, name of the party leader and a brief biography, party’s logo, and party’s slogan.
An election speech: to be delivered on Election Day. It should be persuasive and informative (maximum 2 minutes). The speech must be submitted in written form. All group members should participate.
PART C: Election Day
REGISTERING
Every student in the class must register to vote the day before the election. If a student does not register, then she/he must bring student ID and show it to the teacher on Election Day or they will not be able to vote.
ELECTION DAY
Each political party will present their campaign products (give platform speech, show. logo, leader, poster, flyer).
THE POLLS OPEN
Those students who registered will have the opportunity to vote for the political party they feel will best represent their needs and the needs of the country. One rule that is different from reality (but will help with the competitive aspect of the activity) is that you may not vote for your own party.
THE POLLS CLOSE
The votes are counted, and the winning party is declared!!
Assessment
Curricular Competency: Use Social Studies inquiry processes and skills to ask questions; gather, interpret, and analyze ideas and data; and communicate findings and decisions
Focal points of assessment
- Clearly developed, detailed, and communicated political ideologies and platform.