Exploros | The Role of Active Citizens in Government

The Role of Active Citizens in Government

Students examine the rights and responsibilities of Texas citizens and the need for civic participation. They read the Texas Bill of Rights, summarize some of the rights included, and explain one that is important to them. Next they examine how voting is both a right and a responsibility and explain how to be a more responsible voter. Finally, they examine statistics about Texans' civic participation and derive a definition of civic participation.

This learning experience is designed for device-enabled classrooms. The teacher guides the lesson, and students use embedded resources, social media skills, and critical thinking skills to actively participate. To get access to a free version of the complete lesson, sign up for an exploros account.

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Overview

In this experience, students examine the rights and responsibilities of Texas citizens and the need for civic participation. They read the Texas Bill of Rights, summarize some of the rights included, and explain one that is important to them. Next they examine how voting is both a right and a responsibility and explain how to be a more responsible voter. Finally, they examine statistics about Texans’ civic participation and derive a definition of civic participation.

Note that there is no quiz at the end of this experience.

Objectives:

Identify rights and responsibilities of Texas citizens.
Explain the importance of civic participation.

a mailbox painted like the American flag

In this experience, you are going to learn about a Texas citizen’s rights and responsibilities, two words that often get misused.

Evaluate the following statements. Is each statement generally true or not?

In Texas, I have the right to my own opinion.

a) true
b) false

In Texas, I have the right to access public beaches.

a) true
b) false

In Texas, I have the right to hunt and fish wildlife.

a) true
b) false

In Texas, I have a responsibility to house soldiers in my home.

a) true
b) false

In Texas, I have a responsibility to vote in local and state elections.

a) true
b) false

Objectives:

Identify rights and responsibilities of Texas citizens.
Explain the importance of civic participation.

Turn to a partner and discuss the terms rights and responsibilities. You can look them up in a dictionary. There may be many definitions; focus on the rights and responsibilities of citizens in a community.

Write definitions in your own words.

Discuss the different definitions with students and come up with a classwide definition. Encourage students to give examples of rights and responsibilities.

right: a legal privilege to have or obtain something or to act in a certain way

responsibility: an action that one should do to fulfill one’s obligations

This experience does not deal with duties and the differences between duties and responsibilities. Duties are something that one is required to do; responsibilities are something one has moral, ethical, or social accountability to do. Ensure that students understand the definitions.

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