Edexcel A Level USA Politics Lessons 86-104 (US Supreme Court)

Edexcel A Level USA Politics Lessons 86-104 (US Supreme Court)

LIST OF LESSONS IN THIS BUNDLE
Lesson 85a: To what extent is the US Supreme Court independent?
Lesson 85b: Is judicial review a positive or negative feature of the US Constitution?
Lesson 86ab [2-hour lesson]: To what extent does the appointments process make the US Supreme Court a political body rather than a judicial one?
Lesson 86c: Why is the composition of the Supreme Court so important?
Lesson 87: Why have the concepts of judicial activism and judicial restraint both been criticised?
Lesson 88abcd [4-hour lesson on case studies]: What impact has the Supreme Court had on public policy and how effectively has it protected rights?
Lesson 89ab [2-hour lesson]: Has affirmative action been effective?
Lesson 89c: Why is the USA not a ‘post-racial society’?
Lesson 90: How effectively has the Supreme Court protected voting rights?
Lesson 91a: Why do judges interpret the Constitution differently?
Lesson 91b: To what extent can the Supreme Court be described as a political institution, and is it too powerful?
Lesson 92a: How different are the powers and independence of the US and UK Supreme Courts?Lesson 92b: To what extent are rights better protected in the USA than in the UK?
Lesson 92c: How can we use comparative theories to analyse the US and UK judicial branches and civil rights?

Further to the 125 lessons I have created for the UK Politics components of the Edexcel A Level and the 50 lessons for the Political Ideas element of the course (Liberalism, Conservatism, Socialism, Feminism), I have created 104 lessons for the US and Comparative Politics element (Paper 3A). These lessons, designed to be taught over four terms (with spare time for mock exams) include:

LIST OF MATERIALS IN THE FULL 104 LESSONS ACROSS TOPIC BUNDLES

• A mastery-based approach dividing the course up into modules and components;
• Between 3 and 4 homeworks set per week;
• 15 assessment opportunities;
• 39 short knowledge tests, one at the end of each component (the aim of a mastery approach is to use these component knowledge tests to ascertain whether a high enough proportion of your students have ‘mastered’ the content (about 80% correct) before moving on);
• Further reading integrated (although you will need to purchase the relevant books yourself).

The core textbook for students to use is US Government and Politics (2021) by Anthony J. Bennett, David Tuck and Simon Lemieux. I recommend buying enough for all students.

Further reading homeworks make use of the following books (all easily found on Amazon):Robert S. Singh, ‘In Defence of the United States Constitution’US Politics Annual Update 2021 (also used in a lesson)Developments in American Politics, 8th EditionUS Politics Annual Update 2017 (also used in a lesson)US Politics Annual Update 2015Knock Down the House (a 2019 documentary film)The Presidency of Barack Obama, edited by Julian E. ZelizerBarack Obama, ‘A Promised Land’Robert A. Dahl, ‘How Democratic is the American Constitution?’US Politics Annual Update 2019US Politics Annual Update 2018US Politics Annual Update 2020Chris Whipple, ‘The Gatekeepers’

A very small number of tasks make reference to Politics Review articles, and so it would be useful to buy the back catalogue of this absolutely fantastic magazine. However, if you cannot afford this you can just skip these tasks.