Activity (Week 1 & 2) – Teachers’ Handout - The ACTiZENS' Club Programme by Desh Apnayen

Global Political System

Political participation is one of the best ways for citizens to make a substantial positive change to their society and country. If people are engaged with the politics of their country, they will better understand the functioning of the government. Once they understand the political system, they will be better equipped to engage with the government to solve civic issues.

Therefore, an increase in political participation should result in a vibrant democracy with an active citizenry. This is the foundation of Democracy 2.0 which we envision at Desh Apnayen and would like all our ACTIZENS to understand. When we say that in the present scenario, it is important to act as global citizens, it is also important to learn about global political systems. Not only to better understand but also to actively participate in the political system of one’s own country.

Expected Outcomes

Students will become aware of the political system in India and in various other countries.
Students will learn to analyse various political systems, critically.
Students will gain knowledge of different features of political systems through experiential learning.
Students should be able to make their opinion on the best form of government and why.

Executive Summary of the Activity

The activity is divided into the following 3 parts

Activity Heads	Mode	Tasks	Time Required	Responsibility
Section 1 -Explanation Session	Online class	1. Explain the activity to the students. 2. Play the given video in your online class. 3. Take up a few follow-up questions and discuss with class. 4. Explain the research, presentation and role play tasks to the students with timelines. 5. Share link for reading material with the class.	30 minutes	Teacher
Section 2 – Preparation – Research, Presentation and Role Play	Offline (Home assignment)	1. Read the material provided by the teacher. 2. Watch the given videos to understand the different political systems better. 3. Discuss in your group and make a 5 minutes presentation on the given topic. 4. Prepare for a 2-minute role play.	2 hours	Students
Section 3 -Presentation, Role Play and Submissions	Online class	1. Invite each group to present their research work. 2. Ask each group to role play their political system after the presentation. 3. Invite questions from rest of the class after each presentation. 4. Debrief the session with the help of the given questions. 5. Summarise the session with a closing statement. 6. Fill up the Feedback Form and upload pictures and videos of the activity. 7. Ask students to fill up the Reflection Sheet.	1 hour	Teacher and group leaders

Section 1 – Explanation Session

Steps for the Activity –

Read the introduction, expected outcomes and material in advance.
Explain the topic to the students in brief.
Play the video in your online class - POLITICAL SYSTEMS 101: Basic Forms of Government Explained 
Ask follow-up questions to assess their comprehension about the topic and the video. You can select a few questions from the below list or ask your own questions –
1. What are the prominent types of political systems?
2. Which political system is followed in India?
3. Which political system did you like the most and why? 
4. Why is it important to know about the political systems?
Explain the presentation and the role play activity to the class and share the link of handouts for reading and preparation.
Divide the class into 4 groups and assign a different political system to each group.

Instructions –

Presentation and Role Play –

Instruct the students that in the next class, they are going to showcase the assigned political system through a Presentation + Role Play activity.
Each group will prepare as per these timelines – Presentation – 5 minutes | Role Play – 2 minutes | Q&A – 1 minute
Each group will research on the assigned political system and prepare a presentation based on below pointers.
1. Names of 2 countries where this political system is present
2. Head of the State
3. Main features of the political system
4. The process to pass any law/act in the political system
5. Pros and cons of the assigned political system
6. Is this political system the best to implement rules? Yes/No and why? 
After each presentation, each group will be doing a role play for 2 minutes. Take help of Handout 2 and prepare for the same.
Equally divide the responsibilities within all group members (For eg. If 6 team members are in the group, 3 can work on the presentation and the remaining 3 can prepare for the role play. Or you can divide research, presentation and role play tasks equally, if possible.)
After each presentation and role play, there will be a Q&A session, where other students will ask questions and the group that is presenting will answer those questions.

Section 2 - Preparation: Research and Presentation

Offline Tasks for Students –

Connect with group members through WhatsApp, Google Meet, phone - whatever is suitable and an available medium.
Discuss the research task and the role play, divide the responsibilities and work for the same as per directions given by the teacher. 
Prepare for the presentation and the role play and get ready for the role play.

Section 3 – Presentation, Role Play and Submissions

Ask students about their readiness for the class. How did they work collaboratively? Are they ready for the session?
Invite groups one after the other to present the political systems.
Encourage other students to observe carefully and ask questions at the end of each presentation.
Appreciate efforts of each group at the end and debrief the session with the below questions.
1. How did you feel when you saw the representatives of other political systems presenting/announcing the rules?
2. Which political system was more inclusive and why?
3. Which political system was the best and why?
Summarise the entire activity with the help of the following note – Hope this activity gave you a better understanding and experience of global political systems. We hope this will help you to form an opinion about different political systems. Do you believe in this statement? ‘Democracy is the best form of government for India?’ If yes, then start taking interest in the governance structure, the functioning of the government, their roles and also start reading and watching news about current happenings. Thank you for your valuable time and support. Hope you enjoyed the activity too.
Share your feedback, pictures, videos of the activity with us by filling up the Teachers’ Feedback Form given below.
Ask students to fill up the Reflection Sheet during the online class itself and submit it.

Global Political System

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