Resources

Student Resources:

• Internet-enabled device with access to President Obama’s YouTube and President Trump’s Twitter accounts (or printed off/screenshots from Teacher Resources)
• President and Communication Technology Graphic Organizer

Teacher Resources:

• President Obama YouTube
• President Trump Tweets

Facilitation Notes

• The focus of this lesson is President Obama’s and Trump’s official social media accounts, which have been preserved by the National Archives and Records Administration. Teachers may choose to curate a set of screenshots and video selections for students to use instead of real-time social media use in the classroom.

Engage

• Ask students to define the phrase “communication technology.”
• Answers are likely to include examples (such as the printing press, newspapers, radio, television, and streaming podcasts). Be sure students arrive at social media examples as well. A sample definition could be: “devices or systems that send or receive information.”
• Transition: Say to students: Today, we will look at how Presidents Obama and Trump used social media to communicate with the people while fulfilling their roles as president.

Explore

• Review the official and unofficial roles of the president (such as Commander in Chief, Head of State, Chief Executive, Chief Diplomat, and Political Party Leader) so students can focus on the separate roles the president might be filling while posting
  on social media. (A lesson on presidential roles is available if needed.)
• Transition: We will look at Presidents Obama’s and Trump’s social media posts to see how they used them to communicate with the public about policies. We will also look at how that communication might differ for the supporters and opponents of those presidents and those who cannot vote or live outside of the U.S.
• Scaffolding notes:
  • Remind students that the “The response from” column of the organizer does not include comments on the post. (Reading the comments to social media posts would often be inappropriate for students and detract from the main purpose of the lesson.)
  • Depending on class situations, students can work individually, as partners, or in small groups. Teachers can determine how many examples to use or assign.
• Media Communication Column: It is suggested that students look at three posts per president. Looking for posts that fulfill a different role of the president while focusing on policy will also help extend students’ understanding. In this column, they will link, screenshot, or describe the communication. For example, “On Tuesday, January 1, 2019, President Trump tweeted…”
• Purpose from Public Official Column: For each post, students will summarize the purpose of the communication as it relates to their policy agenda (including giving instructions to members of another branch or voters, outlining plans, offering inspiring words about a policy, sharing a congratulatory message about the success of a policy, or responding to criticism).
• Meaning to/Reaction from Column: Next, students will reflect on how that communication could be received by the public, by those who support and do not support the views of the president.
  • This gives students a chance to think about how a 16-year-old in the United States (someone who cannot vote now but might one day) or an eligible voter who is an independent or undecided respond to the same communication.
  • Scaffolding note: This column can be more guided or open-ended. You may need to nudge students to consider people under 18, people not registered to vote, or those who are unable to vote for another reason.
• Remind students to consider throughout their work that the president is filling many roles (such as commander in chief, Head of State, Chief Executive, Chief Diplomat, and Political Party Leader) and to look for that in communication.

Assess & Reflect

• After students have completed the organizer, there are reflection questions.
• Scaffolding note: If needed, have students select a limited number of questions to answer. Teachers may select “must answer” questions and then let students self-select other questions to answer.

Extend

• Students can select a different public official (such as a governor, representative, or senator) to complete the assignment again.