3/5 Issues in the USA

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Turn the word cloud into a mind map by adding key words on what you know about the issues.

homelessnessprison

divide dele common vanlig/vanleg cart handlevogn belongings eiendeler/ eigedelar low-income lav inntekt / låg inntekt minimum wage minstelønn food stamps matkuponger/matkupongar

Similar to the UK, the USA is often divided into the stereotyped Likelihood of person born into upper class, middle class and working class. In addition, it is bottom 20% of income reaching top 20% common to speak of a lower class, or the working poor. We imagine the rich as wealthy celebrities and the poor as homeless Perseived Actual United States 12.1% 7.8% people pushing a cart with all their belongings. However, real life Italy 10.2 10.7 is not like what you see on TV. United Kingdom 10.1 11.4 France 9.2 11.2 Most poor people are not homeless, though many of them fear Sweden 9.2 11.1 homelessness and can be homeless at times; likewise, most rich Data: Alesina, Stantcheva, Teso (2016) in Kopf 2017 people are neither superrich nor famous. People in many lowincome families have minimum-wage jobs, meaning that a full-time position only pays around $15,000 per year. These people often have to work several jobs and rely on food stamps to get by. To make it even worse, factories are shut down and production moves out of the country. As a result, frustration is growing.

Search online and find the game “PlaySpent” to experience how to survive poverty. drugs immigrationwealth racism scandals success hall of fame illegal gun controlVurderingseksemplar WATCH Crash, a film that discusses various issues in the USA.

"Shallow men believe in luck or in circumstance. Strong men believe in cause and effect."

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)

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The spirit of the American Dream is to work hard and dream big. However, many Americans only see the benefits of the American Dream – for instance, access to education, healthcare and opportunity – on a TV screen. For instance, boys born in low-income families are 20 times more likely to go to prison than boys born in wealthy families. Healthcare is not free like it is in Norway; you need insurance, and the average American spends $10,000 every year on healthcare alone – almost the same as a year’s salary on minimum wage. Without insurance, a broken leg can set you back thousands of dollars. With this in mind, is it possible to claim that children from rich and poor families have equal rights and opportunities? SOURCE Kopf, D. 2017. Data shows the 'American Dream' is a . Quartz.

1 Make a list of important words from the text. Use each word in a new sentence. 2 Divide a document in two columns, one for being rich and one for being poor in the USA. Illustrate the difference by placing images and key words in each column. Find examples of housing, transportation, schools, hospitals and clothing. 3 Research the Dreamers and find Life of a Dream Act Student" (2017). Compare this to your life in a key word list of similarities and differences. 4 In groups, present and discuss your key words and images from task 2. 5 Discuss and explain your answers, first in groups and then in class: a Are boys from low-income families more likely to end up in prison?Vurderingseksemplar b How important is one’s background? Is everyone capable of working their way to the top like Chris Gardner? c What are possible challenges and opportunities as an American immigrant? Make a list. benefits fordeler/fordelar insurance forsikring claim påstå