A Webquest

1
The Rhetoric of National Crisis

• A Webquest

2
Introduction
In times of crisis and natural disaster, heads of
state are often called upon to address the
situation and allay the fears of the people.
These public statements made in the hours and
days following a natural disaster are crucial
components to the nations ability to collectively
survive and move on.
3
This Just In
A terrorist organization has just bombed Wrigley
Field in the middle of the World Series.
Thousands of people are presumed dead. Massive
smoke clouds have made the investigation and
recovery process difficult. No individuals have
come forward to claim responsibility for this
action yet. The nation is looking to the
President for a response.
4
Your Task
With your group, you have to write and deliver a
newscast covering the crisis as it unfolds, the
history of national crises and presidential
responses to them and finally, the Presidents
address to the nation on the current state of
emergency, as well as the planned recovery
efforts. The nation is relying on you
5
Group Roles

• President will give the speech written by the
  team
• Newscaster 1 will give information on 4
  historical terrorist acts or times of national
  crisis
• Newscaster 2 will give information on current
  terrorist act and its impact
• Political Analyst will analyze and compare how
  different presidents have responded differently
  in times of crisis
• Member of the Public will comment on the impact
  of the presidents disaster speech on their
  thoughts
• Cameraman will be in charge of all equipment
  checked out by the group and will also videotape
  the groups presentation

6
Procedure
1. Research Any Four of the Following Natural
Disasters or National Crises

• Pearl Harbor
• The Great Depression
• The Challenger Explosion
• The Assassination of John F. Kennedy
• The Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Oklahoma City Bombing
• Hurricane Katrina
• 9/11

7
Procedure

• Find the Presidents Response to each of the
  National Crises you have chosen
• Research previous terrorist attacks and their
  impact on the economy and people
• Research speech techniques

8
Final Product
Using the information you have gathered, your
group will give a 20-30 minute taped newscast
to the class. The presentation must include each
of the roles and will end with your groups
President giving the speech you have created.
9
Historical Event Websites

• Pearl Harbor
• http//www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq66-1.htm
• Great Depression
• http//www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/dustbowl/index.html
• http//memory.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpedu/features/timel
  ine/depwwii/depwar.html
• Challenger Explosion
• http//www.tsgc.utexas.edu/archive/general/ethics/
  shuttle.html
• http//www.life.com/Life/space/challenger.html
• JFK Assassination
• http//www.jfk-assassination.de/
• MLK Assassination
• http//www.stanford.edu/group/King/about_king/biog
  raphy/index.html
• Oklahoma City Bombing
• http//www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/hist.h
  tm
• http//www.u-s-history.com/pages/h2048.html
• Hurricane Katrina
• http//www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/08/29/hurricane.ka
  trina/index.html
• http//www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2005/katrina
• 9/11

10
Presidential Speech Websites

• Pearl Harbor
• ttp//www.history.navy.mil.photos/events/wwii-pac/
  pearlhbr/pearlhbr.htm
• Great Depression
• http//www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/fdrfirsti
  naugural.html
• Challenger Explosion
• http//www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/rreaganc
  hallenger.htm
• JFK Assassination
• http//www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/lbjletusc
  ontinue.html
• MLK Assassination (speech not given by President)
• http//www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/robertken
  nedyonmartinlutherking.html
• Oklahoma City Bombing
• http//www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/wjcoklaho
  mabombingspeech.htm
• Hurricane Katrina
• http//www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20
  050831-3.html
• 9/11
• http//www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/gwbush911
  addresstothenation.htm

11
Other Websites

• Speech Techniques
• http//teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/speech
• http//wps.ablongman.com/ab_public_speaking_2/0,96
  51,1593249-,00.html

12
Learning Advice

• Make sure that all members of the group
  participate equally. Every member is valuable
  and has something to contribute identify member
  strengths and use those to enhance your
  presentation.
• Use critical thinking skills to analyze
  presidents previous responses to crisis. What
  methods did they use to allay fears, calm
  citizens, and focus the nation on recovery?
  Apply these techniques to your speech.
• Pay special attention to historical accuracy.
  Good news stories are accurate and include
  information that has been correctly incorporated
  into the story.
• Be creative and unique! Look for ways to make
  your presentation different, interesting and
  engaging to your audience.

13
Evaluation
You will be receiving two grades for this project
an individual grade for group participation and
contribution and a group grade for your newscast
presentation. The rubrics used to calculate these
grades are included in the slides that follow.
Both grades will be test grades for this six
weeks.
14
Individual Participation Rubric
15
Group Presentation Rubric
16
Conclusion
By the end of this project, you should have a
better understanding of some historical times of
national crisis and the importance of
presidential leadership and response to these
events. You will also have a working knowledge
of speech techniques, the basic elements of
newscasts, and some interesting facts about
terrorism. Hopefully, you have also learned
how to work in a group and be a more effective
group member. You may have even learned a little
bit about yourself, your work habits and your
ability to work cooperatively with others. Now
you will be able to take these skills and apply
them in your other classes and outside of school
as well. Finally, you may be more aware your own
reactions to crisis and have a better
understanding of the enormous amount of planning
and work that is required by our leaders when an
event of this magnitude occurs.
17
Teachers Page

• Disciplines addressed in this Webquest (not
  intended to be an exhaustive list)
• United States History
• The Great Depression
• Presidents and Presidential Rhetoric
• Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Terrorism
• Historical Events (including circumstances
  preceding and following them)
• English / Language Arts
• Informative Writing
• Writing Scripts
• Speech
• Speech Techniques
• Presidential Rhetoric and Rhetorical Analysis
• Government / Economics
• The Great Depression
• Presidents and Presidential Rhetoric
• Media and Media Technology
• Elements of Newscasts
• Use of video equipment