Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

Optional Preparation – Ground Rules For Classroom Discussion
30 minutes – Part A: Social Issues
40 minutes – Part B: Government Policy – Reducing Homelessness
40 minutes – Part C: 2008 to Now – Any Change?
10 minutes – Reflection

Part A: Social Issues

Step 1.

Introduce the lesson by reminding students of their learning from the Tuning In lesson: society and its institutions are in place to support people to be happy, healthy and treated in a fair way.

Engage in some explicit teaching to inform students that the phrase ‘social issue’ describes when not all people in society are being supported in the way they should be. Institutions (such as the government) can respond by changing the way they are doing things to better support people in society.

Step 2.

Invite students to sit where they can see the screen, and introduce the following clip by explaining that it features the story of Emma, who was being supported by The Oasis Youth Support Network when The Oasis documentary was filmed 10 years ago. Before you begin watching, remind students that the clip they are about to see features real people courageously sharing their stories.

Show this clip from Life After The Oasis:

Emma's Story (https://vimeo.com/347210687/d9e3ffb66b)

Step 3.

Clarify students’ understanding of the clip and its link to the social issue of homelessness by facilitating a quick class discussion, using the questions below as a guide.

What is the social issue highlighted in this clip?
Is the person/people being supported by society’s institutions?
Can you name any institutions that should be supporting this person (but aren’t)?
Can you suggest some things that could help this person (for example, mental health services, affordable housing, drug and alcohol treatment, family counselling)?

Step 4.

Explain to the class that for the rest of this lesson, they will be examining how the Australian Government (social institution) made changes (developed a policy) to address the social issue of homelessness. They will also have a chance to share their thoughts about whether or not that policy was effective in addressing the issue of people experiencing homelessness.

Part B: Government Policy – Reducing Homelessness

Step 1.

Start this part of the lesson by showing the Understanding Policy Presentation to engage in some explicit teaching to explore these questions:

What is a government policy?
How does the government make decisions about policies?
What is a White Paper?

To help develop your understanding of what public policy is, click here.

The slideshow contains information on each of the questions, then leads to the lessons’ next step by introducing the Australian Government’s 2008 White Paper, The Road Home: A National Approach to Reducing Homelessness.

Step 2.

Explain to students that they now have the opportunity to deepen their understanding of how the Australian Government set out to reduce how many people experience homelessness. Invite students to form groups of 4-5. They will be working together to read through specific sections of the White Paper to build an overview of what it set out to achieve.

Distribute a copy of The Road Home Excerpts (this includes the foreword, background and executive summary) to each student, and ask group members to divide the reading up between them. This could be divided in the following way: one student reading the foreword, one reading the background, and the executive summary divided among the remaining group members.

Step 3.

Direct students to the set questions on the Student Worksheet (they should aim to respond to each as they are reading) then, invite students to begin reading their section of the paper.

Students are asked to respond to the following questions:

Note down the key points in the section that you read (at least three).
Note down one thing that surprised you.
Note down one thing that you didn’t understand.
In your opinion, what was the intended impact of the White Paper?

Step 4.

Once students have completed their reading and responded to each of the questions, invite them to help their classmates build a deeper understanding of the White Paper by taking turns to share what they have discovered with their group.

Part C: 2008 To Now – Any Change?

Step 1.

In this part of the lesson, students will evaluate the impact of The Road Home, White Paper by reading the 2019 National Report Card On Youth Homelessness through the Jigsaw Classroom Method. The steps for this activity are as follows:

If they are not already sitting together, invite students to form a 5-person jigsaw group. The groups should be made up of students with different experiences and viewpoints.
Distribute the National Report Card document to each group, with each member of the group being allocated two report card areas for action.

Ask students to move their seats so that they form temporary ‘expert groups’. This means that one student from each jigsaw group joins other students assigned to the same report card actions.
Encourage students to read and understand the information in their report card. Students should be encouraged to focus on only what they are reading and learning about.
Give students time to read over their report card information at least twice and become familiar with it.
Inform students that they don't need to memorise it, and that they could annotate and write some notes that summarise the basics of what they have read.
Give students in their 'expert groups' time to discuss the main points of their information. It is important to remind students that each person is an 'expert' and will need to present their findings/what they learnt from the report card information back to their jigsaw group.
Ask students to reform into their original jigsaw groups.
Invite each student to present the information they have learned to their original group. Encourage others in the group to ask questions for clarification, and to take any notes on points they find interesting or challenging.
Float from group to group, observing the process. If any group is having trouble (e.g. a member is dominating or disruptive), make an appropriate intervention.

Find more information about jigsaw classrooms at the Jigsaw Classroom website: https://www.jigsaw.org/

Step 2.

While still seated in a group formation, ask students to summarise their understanding of the impact of The Road Home, White Paper by using the space provided on the Student Worksheet. Invite students to list three things that have worked to reduce homelessness, and three things that require further work. Then, encourage students to share their thoughts in a quick discussion with their jigsaw group.

Reflection

Invite students to complete the reflection activity outlined below. Guide them to note their responses on the space provided on the Student Worksheet.

"In relation to the Australian Government policy on reducing homelessness…
- I used to think…
- Now I think…"

Differentiated Learning

Extension – In a class discussion, or working independently invite students to think back to Emma who featured in the Life After The Oasis clip at the start of the lesson. Do they think that Emma’s life has been affected by the 2008 Australian Government policy on homelessness, as outlined in The Road Home: A National Approach to Reducing Homelessness, White Paper? If yes, why? If not, why not?

Provisions for Learning Support – Ensure that student groups are of mixed ability, so that those requiring encouragement and clarification around the content covered throughout the lesson, can do so with their peers. When distributing the sections of The Road Home, White Paper and the reading material for the Jigsaw activity, ensure that students are given material that is appropriately challenging.

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

Life After The Oasis - Changing Government Policy

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