Download TWS Propaganda Analysis 2015 - Institute of Texan Cultures

Introduction
Dear Educator,
Teaching with Stuff: Propaganda in the Classroom is an easy to incorporate primary source activity that was designed to
inspire inquiry-based learning and to help teach students how to analyze and interpret political cartoons and other
forms of propaganda. The contents of this guide are based on Social Studies TEKS for high-school level U.S. and World
History, but can easily be modified for lower grades depending on your individual classroom needs.
For additional resources and information on ITC exhibits and tours, please visit
http://www.texancultures.com/resources/
If you have any questions or would like more information on materials, resources and services for students and
educators, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Respectfully,
The Institute of Texan Cultures
Education and Interpretation
210-458-2281
[email protected]
Table of Contents
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................................ 2
Table of Contents .................................................................................................................................................................... 2
Tips for Teaching with Political Cartoons and Propaganda in the Classroom ........................................................................ 3
Propaganda Analysis Activity Instructions .............................................................................................................................. 4
Propaganda Analysis Activity .............................................................................................................................................. 6
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Social Studies ......................................................................................................... 8
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Tips for Teaching with Political Cartoons and Propaganda in the Classroom
1. Use modern-day political cartoons in conjunction with those found in your history textbooks to help your
students make important relatable connections to social studies concepts.
Compare and contrast the similarities and differences found in political cartoons and propaganda in recent
newspapers or magazines to those featured in primary source documents, your history textbooks, online, or in a
museum. Discuss the concepts of visual distortion, symbol and metaphor, and stereotype and caricature.
2. Consider the tools and techniques used by the author of the propaganda piece you are examining to help
students engage with abstract concepts.
What story are you hoping to tell your students through the study of political cartoons and propaganda?
Consider the following topics and discussion prompts to help guide you in integrating propaganda analysis skills
into your daily classroom activities:
o Analogy: Does the author or creator use analogy? What two situations does the propaganda compare?
Does this comparison make the author’s point more clear?
o Irony: Can you find any irony in the situation the propaganda piece depicts? What point is the irony
intended to emphasize? Does the irony help the author express his or her opinion more effectively?
o Euphemisms and name-calling: Does the propaganda image use any derogatory or negative words?
What persons or things are the author trying to disparage? Does the author use words to make
something awful less negative? How?
o Fear and bandwagon: Does the author use peer pressure? How? Does the author use fear as a form of
persuasion? How?
3. Inspire inquiry-based learning.
Allow students to discover the importance of information conveyed by political cartoons and other forms of
propaganda. Encourage them to examine modern-day cartoons and propaganda with a careful eye and critically
examine the imagery to identify the message and intended audience. Ask open-ended questions, and also
encourage students to create questions of their own to investigate.
4. Create home-school connections.
Extend the classroom experience by encouraging students to explore political cartoons and other forms of
propaganda on their own. Students can apply what they learned in the classroom by making connections to
current events and issues being discussed in mainstream media.
5. Visit a museum or historic site to enhance learning.
Consider visiting a nearby museum or historic site to help your students make connections to what they are
learning in the classroom. In addition to providing your students with real-life resources to examine, museums
and historic sites can also provide you with added context and background information.
6. Be creative!
This activity can be easily adapted and modified – the worksheet can be used as-is, integrated into a classroom
discussion, used to create graphic organizers, or guide students in conducting independent research projects.
Feel free to use our ideas or create your own lesson or unit based on our ideas.
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Propaganda Analysis Activity Instructions
In this activity, students will fine-tune their critical thinking skills in observation and inference by analyzing a political
cartoon or other piece of propaganda imagery.
Before you begin, you’ll need to gather the following materials:
o
o
o
Whiteboard or flip chart paper and markers for brainstorming
Copies of a political cartoon, propaganda poster, advertisement, article, or video found in a history textbook,
newspaper, magazine, book, or online
Enough copies of the “Propaganda Analysis Activity” handout to distribute to your students
Directions:
1. Identify the time period and topic you’d like to explore using propaganda imagery.
2. Tell students they will be observing and analyzing a political cartoon or other piece of propaganda to learn more
about the strategies and goals used to persuade and promote particular ideas, practices, or doctrines.
3. Introduce the topic of propaganda and the types of propaganda to your students. Propaganda has played a key
role in important social and political events throughout history, and is used today to persuade and promote
ideas. What are some examples of propaganda used today?
4. Display or distribute a sample political cartoon or other piece of propaganda for your students to examine as a
class. Model proper investigative techniques to prepare your students to examine images on their own. Use the
following prompts to engage your students in a class discussion:
o What objects or people do you see in the propaganda image?
o Is there a title or caption? Are there any words or phrases used in the image? Important dates or
numbers?
o Do the objects in the image function as symbols? What do you think they mean? Are any of the people
in the image exaggerated or visually distorted? Why do you think the creator of the image made the
decision to do this?
o What action is taking place in the image? What issue is the image about? Who is the intended audience?
o How persuasive is the image?
5. Distribute propaganda images or have students locate their own using the Internet, their textbooks, or books,
magazines, or newspapers. Distribute the “Propaganda Analysis Activity” worksheet to your students.
6. Have students complete the worksheet individually, in pairs, or in small groups. Monitor progress and provide
assistance as needed.
Closure:
1. Discuss the tools and techniques outlined in Step 2 of the Teaching Tips presented above. Which of these tools
or techniques were used by the creator or author of the images the students examined in the activity? Select
one of these items for students to examine in greater detail.
Extension Ideas:
o
o
Have students demonstrate what they have learned about the structure of propaganda imagery and the tools
and techniques used by the authors by creating their own propaganda poster on a political or social issue.
Students may also write a research paper on the types of propaganda used during a particular historical event
and present their findings to the class.
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Types of Propaganda
Propaganda is used to systematically promote certain ideas, practices or doctrines. Review some of the most common
types of propaganda below and use these definitions in conjunction with the tips outlined above for discussion.
Bandwagon: Most people have this or are doing this so
you should too!
Example: Peer pressure, joining a religious group or
political party
Fear: The propagandist warns that something horrible
will happen to a group or person if they do not follow a
specific course of action.
Example: WWII posters that indicated if you don’t
conserve bacon fat, soldiers will die
Name-Calling: The use of derogatory or negative words
connecting a person or thing to a negative image or
symbol.
Example: “People who oppose funding for a new family
recreation center are simply stubborn and narrowminded.”
Euphemism: This term describes a technique a
propagandist uses to make something awful seem less
negative.
Examples: Death is described as “loss,” lying is
“fabricating,” accidental deaths are “collateral damage,”
jails are “correctional facilities”
Plain Folk: This term refers to a technique in which a
propagandist uses ordinary people to sell something or
persuade you to support a person or idea.
Example: An ad or commercial that appeals to the
“Average Joe” or ordinary family and uses imagery such
as a park or home
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Name: ____________________________________________________________
Date: _____________
Propaganda Analysis Activity
Directions: Complete the questions below using the political cartoon or propaganda image you examined in class. Use
additional sheets of paper if needed.
Step 1. Make Observations and Collect Data
1. What objects or people do you see in the image?
Are any of the objects you listed symbols? If yes, what do you think they mean? Are any of the objects or people
visually distorted?
2. What words or phrases do you see in the image?
Note any titles, captions, labels, numbers, or dates that appear in the image. What text seems to be the most
important or significant?
3. Describe the action taking place in the image.
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Step 2. Analyze and Make Sense of the Data
1. What is the message of the image or what issue do you think this propaganda image is about? What clues tell
you this?
2. What is the author or creator’s opinion on this issue? What other opinion can you imagine another person
having on this issue?
3. Who is the intended audience for the image?
4. What tools or techniques does the author or creator use to make the image effective?
5. Did you find this propaganda persuasive? Why or why not?
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Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Social Studies
§113.41. United States History Studies Since 1877 (1 Credit), Beginning with School Year 2011-2012. (c) Knowledge
and skills. (29) Social studies skills. The student applies critical-thinking skills to organize and use information acquired
from a variety of valid sources, including electronic technology. The student is expected to: (A) use a variety of both
primary and secondary valid sources to acquire information and to analyze and answer historical questions; (B) analyze
information by sequencing, categorizing, identifying cause-and-effect relationships, comparing and contrasting, finding
the main idea, summarizing, making generalizations, making predictions, drawing inferences, and drawing conclusions;
(C) understand how historians interpret the past (historiography) and how their interpretations of history may change
over time; (D) use the process of historical inquiry to research, interpret, and use multiple types of sources of evidence;
(E) evaluate the validity of a source based on language, corroboration with other sources, and information about the
author, including points of view, frames of reference, and historical context; (F) identify bias in written, oral, and visual
material;(G) identify and support with historical evidence a point of view on a social studies issue or event; and (H) use
appropriate skills to analyze and interpret social studies information such as maps, graphs, presentations, speeches,
lectures, and political cartoons. (30) Social studies skills. The student communicates in written, oral, and visual forms.
The student is expected to: (A) create written, oral, and visual presentations of social studies information; (B) use correct
social studies terminology to explain historical concepts; and (C) use different forms of media to convey information,
including written to visual and statistical to written or visual, using available computer software as appropriate.
§113.42. World History Studies (1 Credit), Beginning with School Year 2011-2012. (c) Knowledge and skills. (29) Social
studies skills. The student applies critical-thinking skills to organize and use information acquired from a variety of valid
sources, including electronic technology. The student is expected to: (A) identify methods used by archaeologists,
anthropologists, historians, and geographers to analyze evidence; (B) explain how historians, when examining sources,
analyze frame of reference, historical context, and point of view to interpret historical events; (C) explain the differences
between primary and secondary sources and examine those sources to analyze frame of reference, historical context,
and point of view; (D) evaluate the validity of a source based on language, corroboration with other sources, and
information about the author; (E) identify bias in written, oral, and visual material; (F) analyze information by
sequencing, categorizing, identifying cause-and-effect relationships, comparing, contrasting, finding the main idea,
summarizing, making generalizations and predictions, drawing inferences and conclusions, and developing connections
between historical events over time; (G) construct a thesis on a social studies issue or event supported by evidence; and
(H) use appropriate reading and mathematical skills to interpret social studies information such as maps and graphs. (30)
Social studies skills. The student communicates in written, oral, and visual forms. The student is expected to: (A) use
social studies terminology correctly; (B) use standard grammar, spelling, sentence structure, and punctuation; (C)
interpret and create written, oral, and visual presentations of social studies information; and (D) transfer information
from one medium to another.
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