• Provide students with an overview of the activity prior
to viewing The Corporation so that they can take appropriate
notes. Consider providing a template to assist them in recording relevant
information.
• After viewing The Corporation , ask students to
identify issues that caused dispute between different people. Generate
a class list of possible topics that might be suitable for a debate based
on issues identified.
• Relate these issues to specific topics in class (e.g.,
social change and poverty in HSB4M, values and ideologies in CPC3O, government
regulations in business courses, etc.). Select two to three issues (depending
on the size of the class) particularly relevant to the class for debates.
• Form teams of four or five students to debate against one
another. Distribute assessment criteria (e.g., BLM 2) to class and ensure
they understand the process and expectations. Assign topics to groups,
and provide time for preparation. Ensure that students research perspectives
on their issue. The "Electronic Resources" provided in this package provides
a starting place. Encourage students to use BLM 3: Argument Analysis
Sheet when looking at positions, as well as to help them form their own
sound arguments.
• Conduct debates, allowing for debriefing and class discussion
after each. Some potential areas for debate might include (but certainly
are not limited to):
- Labour practices in developing countries - while some argue
that paying workers pennies a day to manufacture goods for export actually
benefits developing countries and their citizens, others feel that this
practice is unfair.
- Ownership of "commons'-some argue that natural resources
such as water or air should be publicly-held (i.e., by governments and
citizens), others argue that privatizing them (i.e., shifting ownership
to private companies) will actually contribute more to their care and
protection.
- Advertising to children - while some argue that advertising
to children is taking advantage of their lack of cognitive development,
others feel it is fair game to help them satisfy needs and wants.
- Social responsibility and accountability - some argue that
corporations who do not act responsibly will be "punished by the market"
(i.e., consumers will not make purchases if they act unethically), while
others feel that governments or citizens should regulate industries and
businesses.
- Corporate involvement in government - some argue that corporations
are legitimate stakeholders and citizens who are entitled to their say
in the democratic process, while others feel that corporate involvement
can lead to unfair influence.
- Advertising and public space - Naomi Klein expressed concern
that certain forms of advertising and promotions compromise public space,
while others (specifically branding) are "invasive." Others feel that
advertising is fair game, and even desirable to consumers.
- Influence of corporations on society - some (Chomsky, Klein) have charged
corporations, through years of advertising and public relations, with defining
people's social roles as consumers and creating beliefs that corporations
are responsible for prosperity. The concern is that people are disassociated
from one another, and preoccupied with fulfilling needs and wants at the
expense of democratic participation, human development, interaction, etc.
Those who dispute this claim feel that it is either inaccurate, not a result
of corporate actions, or both. |
