Strategies

Evacuation of UK nationals from the Lebanon

Synopsis

The material for this lesson is based on the role played by the MOD (Royal Navy and Special Forces) in evacuating British nationals from the Lebanon following Israeli bombing. Over 10,000 nationals were believed to be at risk in and around Beirut, and on July 18 2006 the British Government gave the UK Armed Forces a mandate for their evacuation.

Firstly providing students with a brief overview of the situation in the Lebanon, and an understanding of the geography of the country, the lesson then presents them with a series of chronological events and objectives. Weighing up the available resources and limitations, students estimate the numbers of potential successful evacuations that might be achieved each day, what additional resources are required at each point and the time the exercise is likely to take. Activities progress from straightforward calculations where each step is clearly laid out to multi-step / unstructured exercises.

Students consider the importance of approximating and checking strategies in mental calculations and also of answers derived from a calculator, and at each point weigh up their answers against real-life results (where unexpected factors have had to be taken into account). Students debate the role of the British Armed Forces in protecting British nationals, and complete this activity listening to a first hand account of an evacuee.

MOD Topic

Evacuation of UK nationals from the Lebanon

Curriculum Checklist

4d.

Curriculum Links

• Geography
• Citizenship

Prior Knowledge

Mental arithmetic (simple figures, times and distances); awareness of 'estimating' as a concept; basic calculator skills; limited multi-stage problem solving skills.

Learning Outcomes

Lower ability students will:

• Employ checking strategies correctly when advised to do so.

Average ability students will:

• Be able to consider / calculate whether a result is 'reasonable'.
• Be familiar with inverse operations and use when advised to do so.

Higher ability students will:

• Be conversant with all checking strategies and able to employ the most appropriate to the task in hand.

Lesson code

M2