Is losing cultural traditions the cost of social progress, or should people make stronger efforts to preserve these traditions? High schoolers watch a short film about the native Yup'ik people in Alaska and how they handle the shifts in their local ecosystem. Next, they take sides in a philosophical debate before presenting their points of view to classmates.

Concepts

alaska, native american tribes, native american culture, native peoples, ecosystems, discussion skills, group discussions, debate

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Additional Tags

social studies

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Instructional Ideas

• Have learners watch the video at home and come to class prepared for discussion
• Assign a short journal period right after showing the video for class members to collect their thoughts
• Use in conjunction with a science lesson on ecosystems or a social studies unit on native populations

Classroom Considerations

• Lesson is designed to work with a seven-minute video, which is included on the first page of the resource

Pros

• Connects to several different subjects, including earth science, social studies, and language arts
• Debate question is thought provoking and engages pupil interest
• Includes a version of the lesson in Spanish

Cons

• None

Common Core

SL.11-12.1.c