Like it or not, government is one of those courses required to graduate high school in Indiana. It need not be a difficult course. It need not be boring. And whether you realize it, it practice. Government is going to be around for the rest of your life. It’s going to be shaping your life. Just how have Americans decided government should work?
We start with the individual. The woman. The man. Each has the right to control her/his existence. As Jefferson will state in the Declaration of Independence🔗, each has his right to life, liberty, and happiness. Life, liberty, and happiness are troublesome in a society where each individual pursues his interests without restraint🎞. No restraints means each individual can do what s/he wants. You only have to think on that idea of no restraints for a minute to generate a list of the problems it will create. Why not just and do that. Pause. Pull out your pen and a scrape of paper. Jot down the problems that will arise in a human community in which there are no restraints. No restrictions on what anyone can do.
Government is the institution that places restraints on people
Government has been something humans have thought about since the day it started. Questions abound. Why should we have a government? What should a government do? What should a government never be allowed to do? What is the best form of government. Must there be winners and losers when a government makes decisions?
… There are a lot of other questions that will pop up in time.
Word of Advice
You can spend hours mindlessly memorizing facts for government class or
You can ask and try to answer questions regarding government.
The question approach allows you to learn more in less time with less work. Need I ask, which might work best for you? Human minds are designed to learn stories (narrative). The “stories” that answer your questions organize what your need to remember. The stories allow you to make sense of facts you learned. The stories allow you to pull information from memory faster and more effectively. That’s learning the smart way.
Now, back to our topic: government
What are we going to investigate?
- Where did the idea of government come from?
- What is the purpose of government?
- Just what justifies government’s existence?
- How are governments created?
- What types of governments are there?
- What are the ideas that shape government in the United States?
- How have these ideas been put into action within the US form of government?
- What issues/problems arise between principles and practice? (Do our great ideas/ideals work out for people, all the people, in daily life?)
- How do we work to further perfect our system of government for all citizens.
And these are only the beginning of the questions you must ask yourself and others.
