Global+Issues+Class

This page supports the Global Issues Class at Hangzhou International School.

Class Goals:
 * Study how governments work
 * Study the efforts of governments to address global issues through the United Nations.

We will try to reach our goal by completing the projects listed below.

Debates
The following motions have been debated. The final vote on each motion has been recorded. Including the teacher, there are 11 people in each debate. Sometimes, a student is absent. The rubric used to assign a debate grade is given at the bottom of the table.
 * Date || Motion || For || Against || Abstain ||
 * September 5, 2012 || The ends justify the means. || 5 || 4 || 1 ||
 * September 11, 2012 || Debate is useful. || 6 || 5 || 0 ||
 * September 25, 2012 || In one month, the East China Sea Islands issues will be a crisis. || 5 || 6 || 0 ||
 * Debate Rubric || [[file:Global Issues Debate Rubric.pdf]] ||  ||   ||   ||

A Study of Human Trafficking
The students are preparing another chapter for our UN book. This chapter will describe human trafficking and the efforts being made by governments to fight the problem. A more complete description of the project is found on this page.

2012-2013 Timelines
Students have chosen issues to follow in the news. They studied these issues during the entire year. Colombia || Egypt || Iran Nuclear Program || Gaza Strip || South China Sea
 * Name || Timeline Subject ||
 * Flo Spiekerman || Mali ||
 * Maiti Rooth || Libya ||  ||
 * Sho Murphey || South Sudan
 * Spencer Curley || South China Sea Drug trade ||
 * Samuel Kim || Ethiopia
 * Sho Cremers || Senkaku/Dioyu Islands ||
 * Kimmy Kwong || East China Sea Islands ||
 * Ali Alawadhi || Iran
 * Isaac Bender || Syria Conflict ||
 * Ian Nugent-Head || Anti Muslim Film

Writing Assignment: December 11, 2012: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Paragraph one: Summarize the events that happened this quarter. Paragraph two: Predict three futures. Describe the best outcome to this conflict or crisis. Describe the worst outcome in this conflict or crisis. And, describe the more realistic outcome. Reality is usually somewhere between the best and worst possible situation.

Top Ten News Stories of 2012
On January 15, 2013, the class members helped generate a list of the top news stories from the past year.


 * 2011-2012 Quarter 4 Timelines**


 * Names || Timeline ||
 * Maiti || Egypt Presidential Elections ||
 * Maaike || Situation in Syria ||
 * Mohamed || Mali Coup ||
 * Flo || Putin Presidential Election Aftermath ||
 * Mr. Robinson || South China Sea Clashes ||

Assignment: Part 1 - Summarize the events in your timeline. Identify the key people or organizations. Describe the major events. Part 2 - Predict how this will situation will progress. Describe a few possible outcomes. In your description, identify how the important people or organizations will respond. Think about the good, the bad, and the ugly: what could be the best outcome, the worst, and a more realistic outcome? In all of your predictions, be as realistic as possible. Each part will probably require more than one paragraph. The whole assignment will require more than one page and might even take two pages.

Here is the rubric for the timeline assignment.
 * || Punctuality || Technology || Summary ||
 * Exceeding || Adds more than two events per month. || Explores the features of the timetoast website and uses them to enhance the timeline. || Writes a summary that reveals an advanced level of understanding of the key people, organizations, and events. ||
 * Meeting || Adds at least two events per month. || Manages to add events, summarize them, and link each event to an article. || Summarizes the events with a level of detail that reveals a realistic understanding of the key people, organizations, and events. ||
 * Approaching || Adds less than two events per month. || Does not include articles links or does not write a summary that reflects the actual events. || Summarizes the events but omits some of the major actors or trends. ||
 * Below || Adds only a few events to the timeline. || Neglects to include major events related to the issue. || Summarizes the events with very little regard for the important actors or trends. ||


 * Spring 2012: A Book introducing students to the United Nations.**

One year after creating this book, the new students in Global Issues Class studied it and created online quizzes about the UN.

The following topics will be covered by the students identified.
 * Maaike || Mohamadou || Maiti || Flo ||
 * History || Committee/UNOs || Rio+20 || Essential Vocabulary ||
 * Major Treaties || Builings and Sites || MDGs || Important People ||

Rough draft and final draft submission dates are:
 * = Topic || Date for Rough Draft || Date for Final Draft ||
 * = 1 || May 8 || May 10 ||
 * = 2 || May 18 || May 22 ||
 * = 3 || May 28 || May 30 ||

Euthanasia debate: start here for your research for this debate. It is sorted per country: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legality_of_euthanasia