Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Part A: Watch, think, write

20 minutes

Part B: What are the numbers?

40 minutes

Part C: Identifying Solutions

10 minutes

Reflection: Sustainable human development goal 10

Part A: Watch, think and write

Step 1.

Provide students with the Student Worksheet and read aloud the thought-starter below:

Inequality in Australia in terms of income and wealth is extensive. Those in the highest 20% by household income have over 5 times the income of those in the lowest 20%.
Even though the average wealth in Australia was relatively high, it was distributed extremely unequally. Those with the highest 20% of wealth had 90 times the wealth of those with the lowest 20%.
(ACOSS, 2021)

Once you have read the statement, allow the class a moment to think and respond before moving onto step 2.

Step 2.

Play the video:

KAREN SBS World News Oct 2020 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBkL6Jy3yww)

The video is about a real-life scenario and how the JobSeeker Coronavirus Supplement in 2020 has impacted people’s lives. Let your class know that this activity does not require them to take notes. They simply need to listen and watch.

Step 3.

Once the class has watched the clip, invite them to write down their thoughts (in the column titled 'think'. There are some prompts on the worksheet to help students with this section; however, let them know that they can write down any thoughts that popped into their minds while watching the clip.

Step 4.

Lastly, ask your class to complete the 'write' column of the worksheet. Here, they are asked to reflect on the inequalities experienced by Karen in the clip and suggest possible solutions.

You may wish to explain to your class that inequality is directly affiliated with a person’s socioeconomic status. Someone’s socio-economic status (rights, income, class, education and opportunities) determines their place in society, often revealing inequalities in access to resources, opportunities and choices in the quality and standard of living.

Income inequality is an ever-present issue in Australia, with the current distribution of wealth data showing that 20% of the population has more than 90 times the wealth of the lowest 20%. For further information regarding wealth and inequality, see the infographic accompanying the Inequality in Australia 2020 Overview.

Part B: What are the numbers?

Step 1.

Ask your class to read through the information about the poverty gap under part two of the worksheet, including figure 1. You may wish to take the time to reinforce some data analysis skills here by encouraging students to carefully read the bar graph and pay particular attention to the information on both the X and Y axis, as well as the title and source notes.

Step 2.

Once the class has taken the time to read the graph, encourage them to complete the associated questions; alternatively, you may wish to work through the answers to these questions and present them on an interactive whiteboard.

Step 3.

The final question (f) asks students to watch the video:

JobSeeker increase made them feel human again. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGfyclF9A9k)

You can choose to either view this as a class OR allow students to view it individually on their own devices.

Step 4.

After viewing the video, ask your class to complete the two flow charts that illustrate the links between poverty and impacts on the greater economy.

Students can refer to an example flowchart in the Student Worksheet if they are unsure how to complete the activity.

To assist your class further, you may wish to ask some prompting questions such as:

If you are receiving government payment that eventually leads you to poverty, what are the types of sacrifices you will have to make?
How may the sacrifices you identified positively or negatively impact your health (physical, social, emotional, mental, and/or spiritual)?
What other government or community resources may individuals need to access because their income is not enough to enable a decent standard of living? Is this enough?

Part C: Identifying solutions

Step 1.

As you move into the last task, remind the class that whilst the issues of poverty and inequality may seem insurmountable, with the right solutions and assistance, people and communities can thrive. It is possible to address the issues of poverty and inequality.

As a class, watch the video:

Glen’s Journey - Escaping Poverty (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEPLmBpYHVY)

Step 2.

At the conclusion of the clip, lead students in a short class brainstorming session, focusing on Glen’s story and the prompt; “It’s a lot of hands in the pot that makes the difference to someone living on the streets”. Invite students to share their ideas about how Glen’s health (physical, social, emotional, mental or spiritual) was affected and what community health resources (individual, government or non-government) would have been of benefit to Glen. As the class discusses their ideas, students can write their answers in the ‘summary pot’ on the Student Worksheet.

Step 3.

Once students have an understanding of the issues associated with poverty and inequality, ask them to use their own devices to navigate to the Causes and Solutions sections of the Poverty and Inequality website. (http://povertyandinequality.acoss.org.au/causes-and-solutions/). Encourage students to read through the information thoroughly.

Step 4.

Allow each student to choose one of the income support payments to focus on, to develop a digital presentation (infographic, podcast, song, script or video) that articulates what they have learned about poverty and inequality and what actions could be taken to reduce the poverty gap.

Ensure students include the following:

What do poverty and inequality mean
Why is it important to reduce poverty and inequality?
What actions can we take as individuals and as a country?

Encourage students to present their work on the school website, newsletter or Facebook page as part of a student-led information campaign to show how we can help support people living in poverty and encourage further action in the wider community.

Reflection

Allow students to reflect on the impacts of poverty and inequality in Australia. The reflection questions posed here are framed with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - of which Australia is a signatory - in mind.

You may wish to share with your class that the SDGs have been developed to achieve a more sustainable future for all. They address the global challenges we face, including poverty and inequality. Taking action through advocacy and policy change is a vital aspect of the SDGs. In this reflection, students connect what they have learned about poverty and inequality to the critical changes aiming to be achieved at both a national and global level. For further resources and information about the poverty and inequality SDGs, view the following pages:

Goal 1: No poverty - United Nations Sustainable Development
Goal 10: Reduce inequality within and among countries – United Nations Sustainable Development.

Differentiated learning

Extension - For Part B, students could research a graph relating to poverty, the poverty gap, or inequality in Australia and formulate their questions based on the data. Following these, they might swap these with a partner or present them to their family or friends.

For Part C, students could complete further research on income support payments, poverty and inequality and write a letter to their local MP about changes they think are needed to the current income support payments.

Provisions for Learning Support - For part B, you could have students work in small groups or pairs to complete the questions.

For Part C, students could create a simple table to summarize all income support payments and write statements about how the health or economy would improve if income support payments increased.

Teacher reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

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

Poverty and Inequality in Australia - What Are the Facts?

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Summary

Learning intentions:

Students will...

Success criteria:

Students can...

Lesson guides and printables

Lesson Details

Skills

Curriculum Mapping

Resources Required

UN Sustainable Development Goals

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