OST Civic Involvment

What do compromise, persuasion, negotiation, and consensus building all have in common?

• All of them are nonviolent methods of conflict resolution.

• All of them involve getting each party to make sacrifices.

• All of them typically produce unequal results for opposing parties.

• All of them involve enabling opposing parties to have their positions accepted

Which action describes a civic responsibility at the local or municipal level?

• Filing federal taxes

• Participating in school board meetings

• Launching a campaign to be elected to state office

• Worshiping at a local church, temple, synagogue, or mosque

Citizens engage in civic duties and political activities at the local, state, and national levels. Some types of activities often take place at one level but not at another. Which civic or political activity can citizens carry out at the state level?

• Organizing a neighborhood watch patrol

• Serving in the active-duty army or air force

• Testifying before Congress on a regional issue

• Signing a petition to place an issue on the ballot

Consensus building as a way of solving conflicts is an important tool for citizens of a democratic society. Which statement describes consensus building?

• Both parties sacrifice something they want in order to resolve a conflict.

• Both parties agree to a series of meetings in order to discuss solutions to a conflict.

• Both parties try to convince each other that their idea is better in order to solve a conflict.

• Both parties search for common ground or areas of mutual agreement in order to solve a conflict.

A town council faces budget cuts and can no longer afford to pay for landscaping in town parks. How could a citizen work within his or her own community to help the local government address this problem?

• by emailing Ohio’s congressional delegation to inform them of this issue

• by organizing a group of residents to volunteer for weekly park maintenance

• by requesting that the governor supply the town with state funds for park maintenance

• by running for a seat in the General Assembly with a promise to increase funding for local parks

A local, abandoned factory has been demolished and the land has been prepared for redevelopment. People disagree about what should replace the old factory on the vacant lot. Some propose a plan to construct a building combining apartments with ground-floor retail, and others want to build a large park. The final resolution featured a smaller building with a small park.

Which kind of solution does this outcome represent?

• Arbitration

• Compromise

• Judge’s orders

• Consensus building

How can a citizen become involved in addressing problems that affect the entire state?

• by joining a community watch group

• by volunteering for the fire department

• by signing petitions to place issues on the ballot

• by attending a meeting of the local school board