The Commonwealth

Preparation and Planning

The outlined activities and supporting stimuli provide sufficient material to cover at least one lesson. Extension activities could support a further three lessons, depending on student ability. The suggested timings in the Lesson Plan grid are only a guide and you may choose to increase the time allocated to particular activities.

Many of the activities involve multi-media; therefore if you are able, ensure you have access to a laptop and overhead or whiteboard projector. Access to an ICT suite will also support Episode 3: Defending a common purpose, as each case study has an associated video which should be watched in groups. These videos are not available for download from the Defence Dynamics site; instead, you should copy and paste the indicated URL into your browser to download.

Ensure that you photocopy enough of Student Worksheet 1 for the whole class and enough for a third of your class of Student Worksheets 2, 3, and 4. All Student Worksheets can be used in pairs or independently, depending on your preference.

This lesson will see students participating in a class debate and as a result, strong and confrontational opinions may come into play. You may want to brief students at the start of the activity to ensure they understand that this will be a constructive class debate and that they must conduct themselves in a calm, non-aggressive and mature fashion throughout. You could set up a list of rules, such as putting your hand up to speak and not talking over one another etc. to promote smooth running of this activity (Slide 20 presents a list of debate rules that you may want to use).

About the MOD Topic

This lesson will help students to develop an understanding of the Commonwealth and the role it plays in today's progressive and interdependent world. Information on MOD activities will demonstrate, with relevant and real examples, the different ways in which the UK's Government and Armed Forces support the Commonwealth. This lesson will close with a brief introduction to Commonwealth Day and the Commonwealth Games, and will highlight the importance of such events to Commonwealth countries.

The Commonwealth is an international association of 53 countries dedicated to co-operation and governed by mutual respect. Spread over every continent the Commonwealth includes countries from Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, North America and the Pacific. The 2 billion Commonwealth citizens account for 30% of the world's population, over half are young people aged 25 and under, and they are drawn from the broadest range of faiths, races, cultures and traditions. Apart from the United Nations it is the most inclusive international organisation of countries.

As the evolved successor of the British Empire, the modern Commonwealth and all its member states work together to promote equality, justice, democracy, human rights and sustainable economic and social development. Using English as the common language and following similar systems of law, public administration and education, the Commonwealth has become an expanding association of states, fostering the modern world whilst remaining considerate of its historic roots.

At the Imperial Conference in 1926, Britain and its dominions came to an agreement that 'they were equal in status, in no way subordinate one to another in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by common allegiance to the crown, and freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations.' This was formalised in 1931 through the Statute of Westminster which consequently gave independence to Australia, Canada, Irish Free State, Newfoundland, New Zealand and South Africa.

The modern Commonwealth was born out of India's desire, two years after its independence in 1947, to become a republic whilst remaining a part of the Commonwealth. In 1949, the word 'British' was dropped from the association's title to support the revival of the Commonwealth. India became independent of the British Monarchy and was accepted as the first republican member in a 'free' (voluntary) association. Commonwealth countries no longer had to acknowledge the British Monarch as the Head of their State, rather as a symbol of their free association and as such, Head of the Commonwealth. From then on the Commonwealth rapidly grew; committed to racial equality and national sovereignty, it became a natural choice for many new nations.

Every two years Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings (CHOGMs) are held to discuss world issues. Every country, big or small, rich or poor, has an equal say and decisions are made through agreement of all. Responsibility for deploying the policies and programmes agreed at these meetings sits with the Commonwealth Secretariat, which was established in 1965 and is based in London. The Commonwealth Secretariat is answerable to all member governments and is headed by the Commonwealth Secretary-General, who is elected at the CHOGM every four years. Mr. Kamalesh Sharma, an Indian diplomat, became Commonwealth Secretary-General on 1 April 2008. He was appointed to the post by Commonwealth Heads of Government at their meeting in Kampala, Uganda, in November 2007.

Visit www.thecommonwealth.org for further information on the Commonwealth.

The Ministry of Defence is strategically committed to world peace and security, which are key objectives outlined by the Commonwealth. With defence missions linked to Disaster Relief and Defence Diplomacy the MOD continually works to provide humanitarian relief and makes a contribution to conflict prevention and resolution (please see Student Worksheet 1 for further details). The MOD works with a number of other national and international organisations e.g. the United Nations (www.un.org), to help provide a worldwide and holistic solution for world peace and security. For more examples of organisations with which MOD works please refer to 'Further opportunities for learning'.

Student Worksheets 2 - 4 presents three case studies which demonstrate different ways in which the MOD works to support the Commonwealth and its member countries:

Student Worksheet 2, 'Commonwealth Sierra Leone', introduces how a Civil War decays a country, leaving it desperately in need of recovery and support. The MOD is committed to helping Sierra Leone rebuild its army and has been providing military training ever since the war ended in 2002. Visit www.mod.uk and search 'Sierra Leone' for further details on the military training activities in Sierra Leone.

Student Worksheet 3, 'The Commonwealth Caribbean', outlines the drugs transportation crisis which is hindering the development of many Commonwealth countries in the Caribbean e.g. Jamaica. The work of the MOD is highlighted through the drugs and maritime patrol activities carried out by the Royal Navy (RN), which has resulted in numerous tonnes of cocaine being seized. Visit www.royal-navy.mod.uk for further details on the Royal Navy's drugs patrol work.

Student Worksheet 4, 'Commonwealth Belize', describes how areas of Belize were ruined by Hurricane Dean when it hit in August 2007. The MOD supported Belize through a dedicated relief effort in which all functions of the Armed Forces took part. Visit www.mod.uk and search 'Belize' for further details on the MOD relief effort in Belize.

Further Opportunities for Learning

The topics discussed in this lesson present scope and opportunities for further learning across a number of subjects. The history of the Commonwealth, geographical breadth of Commonwealth members and the Commonwealth Games with its lessons on social inclusion and diversity can all be further explored and investigated to support additional lessons in History, Geography and Citizenship.

The MOD also works with and alongside other organisations to support the Commonwealth. The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), United Nations (UN), The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for International Development (DFID) are some of these organisations and they can be further discussed, within the lesson, to deliver the full curriculum (England - 1i.).

For further information on each of the named organisations please see the links below:
www.nato.int
www.un.org
www.fco.gov.uk
www.dfid.gov.uk

You may like to run a research activity getting students to further investigate the case studies in Student Worksheets 2-4. Get them to find out what the Governments of the countries in question are doing to tackle the problems highlighted in the case studies e.g. the measures that the Caribbean Governments have employed to tackle the drug problem in their area. This activity may help students build a stronger argument for debate.

There are many opportunities for writing activities. Using all the Student Worksheets you could task the students with writing a speech as if they were the Commonwealth Secretary-General, to go out to the MOD. Students can take any angle they choose, for example some students may choose to write a speech thanking the MOD for all their help, whilst others may like to outline further support the MOD could provide (further research may be required).

Student worksheet answers

Download the teachers notes PDF to access the answers for this lesson.