US Constitution and federal/state relationship

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This lesson is most appropriate for High School classrooms.

Theme: What does the U.S. Constitution say about the relationship between state and federal governments

MCF Benchmark: Explain the advantages and disadvantages of a federal system of government.

Other benchmarks this lesson targets include: none

Materials needed:

  • Copies of US Constitution with amendments
  • Student in-class access to the Internet would be very helpful.

Methodological procedure:

Anticipatory Set (for the night before):

Have students think about the following three questions. On the day of the lesson, have some students share their stories. (This activity is preparation for examining the constitutional guarantees and powers that affect the national-state relationship.)

  1. Think of a time in which you had to deal with a store or a manufacturer based on a product's guarantee. How did that situation turn out? Did the store or manufacturer follow through on that guarantee?
  2. Think of a time in which you felt powerful because you had the power to decide something? (For example, about your clothes, what you would do on vacation, whom you could be with, etc.) What was the situation? What were the circumstances? Why did you feel the way you did? What was the outcome?
  3. Think of a time in which you felt powerless because you did not have the power to decide something? What was the situation? What were the circumstances? Why did you feel the way you did? What was the outcome?

Transition:

These situations reflect part of the relationship between the national government and the states as established by the US Constitution. The Constitution allows states to have power over some matters but does not allow them to have power in other matters. The Constitution also defines the powers over and responsibilities to the states that the national government has.

The US Constitution is not the only determiner over the relationship between the national government and the states. The US Supreme Court plays a major role in determining this relationship.
There are significant disagreements about what the national-state relationship should be.

Gathering Facts from the Constitution:

Divide the students into six groups and have them look in the US Constitution to answer the following questions. Each of the groups can further divide to split up the sections of the Constitution being examined.

  1. What guarantees did the US Constitution give the states?
  2. What things did the US Constitution decide for the states?
  3. What powers and roles are given to the states?
  4. What things can the national government decide for the states?
  5. What are some limitations on the national government's power over the states?
  6. What powers are denied the states?

Tell students the answers are found in the following sections of the US Constitution. (See 'US Constitution - Federalism Topics and Location' at end of lesson for teacher use.)

  • Article I, Section 2
  • Article I, Section 8
  • Article I, Section 9
  • Article II, Section 1
  • Article II, Section 2
  • Article IV, Section 1
  • Article IV, Section 2
  • Article IV, Section 3
  • Article IV, Section 4
  • Article IV, Section 10
  • Article V
  • 10th Amendment
  • 12th Amendment
  • 14th Amendment
  • 17th Amendment
  • 21st Amendment

Have the groups quickly share their findings with the other students.

Get quick responses to this question: Would you like to see any changes in these powers, in which level of government gets to do what? (This previews the activity in which they develop their philosophy on this issue.)

For Homework:

Find a newspaper article from a Michigan newspaper (either actual or from its website) [see links below]) or videotape a segment from a local TV newscast that talks about the power of the national government, the power of the state government or the relationship between the national government and the states.

Write a brief summary of that article or newscast. Include the name of the newspaper or TV station. Also include which topic of the US Constitution this news story connects to.

(One example of a usable article is "Stem-cell funds OK'd" from the August 10, 2001 issue of the Detroit Free Press.)

DAY 2

Have some students share their reports.

Ask the following questions:

Did you have any problems connecting your story to a specific part of the Constitution?

What happens if the Constitution doesn't directly speak to an issue or if there is a disagreement whether or not something is constitutional?

Who decides this? (Answer: the US Supreme Court.)
[It would be good to remind students that the Supreme Court's power of judicial review is not specifically mentioned in the Constitution but was established by the 1803 Marbury v. Madison decision.]

Examining a US Supreme Court Case:

In pairs, students will receive information about a US Supreme Court case that deals with judicial review and/or the relationship between the national government and the states. The teacher should decide if they want to use recent cases or stick to historical cases. Write up a summary of each case to give the students. If they want more information, they are free to do additional research. Some examples follow.

Current cases - see the US Supreme Court website (see link below)

Recent cases:

  • Case 99-1964, Hunt v. Cromartie (Did North Carolina unconstitutionally use race when drawing congressional district lines?)
  • Case 99-1908, Alexander v. Sandoval (Did the Alabama Department of Public Safety violate the 1964 Civil Rights Act?)
  • Case 98-1161, City of Erie v. Paps A.M. (Did Pennsylvania's law against nudity violate the 1st and 14th Amendments?)
  • 1997 decision about a portion of the Brady Bill
  • 1995 decision about the federal gun-free school zone law
  • 1995, U.S. Term Limits v. Thornton (Can states limit terms of members of Congress?)
  • 1987, South Dakota v. Dole (state challenged constitutionality of 1984 National Minimum Drinking Age Act passed by Congress)
  • 1987, Puerto Rico v. Branstad (a governor was unwilling to extradite a fugitive)

Historic cases

  • 1810, Fletcher v. Peck (Was a state law about contracts constitutional?)
  • 1819, McCullough v. Maryland (Could a state tax the Bank of the US?)
  • 1954, Brown v. Board of Education (Can state and local governments have segregated schools?)

Assignment:

  • Each pair prepares a written presentation for the class.
  • Each partner chooses a side and prepares a short argument for their side of the case as if he/she was a lawyer arguing that side of the case before the US Supreme Court.
  • Include in the report what the Supreme Court actually decided and what the pair believes is the significance of that decision.
  • The pairs will then orally present this information.

Author's notes:

Prerequisites to this lesson:

  1. Basic knowledge of federal, confederate, and unitary governments
  2. Awareness of the establishment of the Articles of Confederation government
  3. Awareness of the constitutional convention and the adoption of the Constitution
  4. Have studied the basic powers and role of the US Supreme Court, especially its power to interpret the US Constitution.

Assessment strategies:

Based on the arguments they have heard, each student writes a paragraph expressing his/her political philosophy expressing the proper relationship between the national government and the states. The paragraph should include what powers each level of government should have (that is, which actions are best handled by which level) and how those powers should be limited. Their opinions must reflect reality however, and therefore must be within the limits of the Constitution.

Available downloads:

  • US CONSTITUTION - FEDERALISM TOPICS AND LOCATION, (25 K)
    Here are some examples of places where the federal/ state relationship is mentioned in the US Constitution. This can be a good starting point for the 'Gathering Facts From the Constitution' section of this lesson.
  • Movie, (1 K)
    This is a movie meant to supplement this lesson. It includes interviews with government officials regarding relevant topics.

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