Introduction
For this task, students will use a webquest to gather information on refugees and migration to the US in 2018. Students will use statistics to see the countries of origin of accepted refugees in the US. They will then choose a country from each region and find newspaper articles and other media to determine how these movements are being perceived in the global community. Finally, students will develop a comparison piece on how various situations are being perceived based on the specific situation of that movement.
Task
Students should work in teams of 2-3 for the duration of this webquest.
Task 1: Use the US refugee statistics website to determine the country of origin of the refugees being accepted into the US in 2018.
Task 2: Students will then choose 5 case studies, from specific countries. Each case study should from a different region of acceptance. Students should use various media outlets to collect articles, videos, etc. to determine how these refugees are being perceived by the global community.
Task 3: Students should then develop a comparison piece in the form of a newscast, podcast or some other sort of visual that analyzes the differences between the various refugee movements.
Process
Break students into ability groups of 2-3 for the duration of the webquest.
Task 1: Use the US refugee statistics website to determine the country of origin of the refugees being accepted into the US in 2018.
Activity: Ask students to view the website below and choose 'Refugee Arrivals By State and Nationality."
Students should browse the data to see the origins of refugees accepted into the United States for the 2018 fiscal year (starting in October 2017).
http://www.wrapsnet.org/admissions-and-arrivals/
Ask students to record their observations in their OneNote.
Task 2: Students will then choose 5 case studies, from specific countries. Each case study should from a different region of acceptance. Students should use various media outlets to collect articles, videos, etc. to determine how these refugees are being perceived by the global community.
Activity: Ask students to choose 5 countries, one from each region, to do some additional research on.
Students should conduct research by gathering newspaper clippings, videos, news reports, etc. on each of the 5 countries they have chosen.
Ask students to use images and recordings in their OneNote to track their observations on how refugees from these countries are being perceived in the eyes of the greater community.
Task 3: Students should then develop a comparison piece in the form of a newscast, podcast or some other sort of visual that analyzes the differences between the various refugee movements.
Students can use a variety of resources here to develop a comparison piece between their case studies.
Students should note similarities and differences in the following areas:
- The basis of the refugee crisis.
- The perception of the refugee crisis from media outlets.
- The perception of the refugee crisis from US citizens.
Students should complete a final analysis of the differences. The should discuss the following:
- Do the perceptions of the local community reflect that of the media? If so, why is this?
- Do the perceptions by either the media or local community reflect the nature of the refugee crisis?
- Final conclusions: Why are different refugee crises viewed differently?
Evaluation
Refugee Analysis
| Criteria | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Knowledge and Understanding: Students uses details and accurate facts to support arguments made within the analysis. | ||||
| Communication: Students speak clearly and loudly within their presentation while smoothly transitioning between ideas. | ||||
| Critical Thinking: Students develop well-supported arguments to explain the factors that influence perception of different situations. |
Conclusion
The purpose of this task would allow students to see how different refugee crises are viewed and the factors that influence how they are portrayed in the media as well as how they are perceived by the local community.
The idea is for students to think about the concept of perception and how our perception can be influenced and altered by media outlets and further connect this to history and how depending on who writes history, the perspective will look quite different.