Lesson
The Great Society
Guiding question
What was the purpose of the Great Society?
Guiding Questions
- What was the purpose of the Great Society?
- How did the civil rights movement shape the scope of the plan?
- What effect did it have on education, consumer protection, and infrastructure of the nation?
Objectives
- Students will gain an understanding of the purposes of the Great Society.
- Students will explore laws passed to improve cities, protect the countryside, and improve education.
- Students will consider the debate regarding the short and long term results of the plan.
Materials
Lesson Components
The Progressive Era charted a course away from the Founders’ design of limited government to secure individual rights toward the entitlement state that guarantees benefits. Essentially, the Progressives put in place government interference to protect people from corporations. The New Deal sought to make the people more equally economically. The Great Society championed by President Lyndon Johnson continued that trajectory, focusing on protecting minorities. Under LBJ’s leadership, the national government took on the project of building a “Great Society” based on the progressive vision of wise and sophisticated leaders guiding the populace towards enlightenment. By providing basic needs and more, the view went, the government would be freeing people to pursue higher goals and achieve self-actualization. The 1960s saw the institution of sweeping new powers for the national government in the areas of civil rights and affirmative action, education, environmental protection, and many others.
Lesson plan
Key Terms
- Civil Rights
- Affirmative Action
- Progressive
- Poverty
- Medicare
Standards
Related materials
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