Learning by Hearings Resources
We want to inspire students to value fact-finding, good governance, and bipartisan cooperation as well as to sharpen their investigative skills and their ability to engage in public policy debates with civility.
Defining Congressional Oversight
This three-part lesson can be used to introduce students to the concept of Congressional Oversight or to further investigate the concept using case studies.
US Civics Standards:
3.1.1 Identify and describe the purposes, organization, powers, processes, and election of the legislative branch as enumerated in Article I of the Constitution.
3.1.4 Examine and evaluate the role and effectiveness of the separation of powers and checks and balances regarding to the distribution of power and authority between the three branches of government.
Snapshots
Our “Snapshots” are the classroom friendly versions of our “Portraits in Oversight” gallery. Written to be suitable in high school US Civics or US History classes, each entry contains a summary, comprehension questions, and discussions questions. An audio and Spanish version is also available for each “Snapshot”. More topics coming soon!
Congress’s First Investigation: General St. Clair’s Defeat
Ferdinand Pecora and the 1929 Stock Market Crash
McCarthy’s Oversight Abuses
The Watergate Investigation
Congressional Oversight Hearing Simulations
Combine public speaking, research skills, and real-world historical thinking by having students participate in a simulation of a historic legislative oversight hearing. Students will be a reporter, witness, or legislator. These activities help students meet the following Social Studies Skills as outlined by the MI Social Studies Content Standards:
- P2.1 Apply methods of inquiry, including asking and answering compelling and supporting questions, to investigate social science problems.
- P2.3 Know how to find, organize, evaluate, and interpret information from a variety of credible sources.
- P3.1 Clearly state an issue as a question of public policy, gather and interpret information about that issue, analyze various perspectives, and generate and evaluate possible alternative resolutions.
- P3.2 Discuss public policy issues, by clarifying position, considering opposing views, and applying core values or Constitutional Principles to develop and refine claims.
- P3.3 Construct claims and refine counter-claims that express and justify decisions on public policy issues.
Experience the McCarthy Hearings
US Civics Standards:
2.2.2 Analyze how influential historical speeches, writings, cases, and laws express Democratic Values and influenced changes in American culture, law, and the Constitution.
6.4.4 Equip students with the skills and knowledge to explore multiple pathways for knowledgeable, civic engagement through simulations and/or real-world opportunities for involvement.
US History Standards:
8.2.2 Policy Concerning Domestic Issues – analyze major domestic issues in the post-World War II era and the policies designed to meet the challenges by:
- describing issues challenging Americans, such as domestic anticommunism (McCarthyism)
- evaluating policy decisions and legislative actions to meet these challenges.
Experience the Watergate Hearings
US Civics Standards:
2.2.2 Analyze how influential historical speeches, writings, cases, and laws express Democratic Values and influenced changes in American culture, law, and the Constitution.
6.4.4 Equip students with the skills and knowledge to explore multiple pathways for knowledgeable, civic engagement through simulations and/or real-world opportunities for involvement.
US History Standards:
8.2.4 Domestic Conflicts and Tensions – analyze and evaluate the competing perspectives and controversies among Americans generated by U.S. Supreme Court decisions, the Vietnam War, the environmental movement, the movement for Civil Rights (See U.S. History Standards 8.3) and the constitutional crisis generated by the Watergate scandal.
Submit Feedback
Educators and Education Professionals, please help us continue to improve and expand our content resources by completing the survey posted below after downloading any of the above material. Learning by Hearings is still an emerging program. If you have any questions or would like to play a role in building our content, please contact our Civic Education Specialist, Lauren Jasinski, at ljasinski@wayne.edu.
Additional Educational Resources
Portraits in Oversight
Scholars, educators, the public, and even legislators are not always sure what is meant by the term “oversight.” To help explain, we’ve compiled short portraits of important congressional oversight investigations as well as Members of Congress who set key oversight precedents or otherwise left their mark on the oversight world. Join us for a quick history walk!
Levin Center YouTube Channel
We have a broad library of recorded events, panel discussions, and interviews accessible on our YouTube channel.
"Oversight Matters" Podcast
Our “Oversight Matters” podcast interviews the people behind oversight investigations, journalists, oversight experts, and scholars. Listen now or subscribe in your preferred podcast app.
People-Centered Oversight
We are evaluating strategies and mechanisms that empower people to share their lived experience with government programs, and to provide direct data input and feedback to state legislative committees, agencies, and other oversight partners about the real-world impacts of government policies.
