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Inquiries Filed Under:

New Deal

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About the inquiry

By asking the compelling question “Was the New Deal a good deal?” students take on a topic with a long history and plenty of relevance for today. The inquiry uses the New Deal and the expansion of federal government programs designed to stimulate the economy and support citizens in need as a context for considering the larger question about the proper role of government. Students examine a wide range of historical sources while focusing on questions concerning the extent to which government should take care of its people.

Compelling Question

Staging Question

1
Supporting Question

What conditions existed at the onset of the Great Depression?

Formative Tasks

List the conditions that existed at the onset of the Great Depression.

Sources

Source A: Excerpt from "Rugged Individualism" speech
Source B: Excerpt from “Stock Prices Slump $14,000,000,000 in Nation-Wide Stampede to Unload”
Source C: Chart of loan activity in the years leading up to the Great Depression

2
Supporting Question

What kinds of programs did the New Deal create?

Formative Tasks

Construct a graphic organizer depicting New Deal programs.

Sources

Source A: Excerpt from “Outlining the New Deal Program” fireside chat

3
Supporting Question

What were positive effects of the New Deal?

Formative Tasks

Create the first half of a
T-chart listing potentially positive effects of the New Deal.

Sources

Source A: “Unemployment in the United States, 1910–1960” graph
Source B: Image bank: New Deal Public Works Administration projects
Source C: Source bank: Social Security programs
Source D: ”Roosevelt Is a ‘Damned Good Man’”

4
Supporting Question

What were negative effects of the New Deal?

Formative Tasks

Complete the T-chart by listing potentially negative effects of the New Deal.

Sources

Source A: Image bank: Anti–New Deal political cartoons
Source B: “National Debt as Percentage of GNP, 1929–1950”
Source C: ”The New Deal Was a Failure”

Summative Performance Task

Argument: Construct an argument (e.g., detailed outline, poster, essay) that addresses the compelling question using specific claims and relevant evidence from historical sources while acknowledging competing views.

Extension: Pursue arguments further by creating a campaign-style commercial putting forward a position on the role of government in the United States.

Taking Informed Action

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