Lesson plan of Enlightenment: Review

Objectives (5 - 7 minutes)

1. Understand the context of the Enlightenment: Students should be able to identify and explain the historical background that led to the emergence of the Enlightenment movement in Europe. This will include studying the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions, the roles of the Church, the State and the Ancien Régime.

2. Analyze Enlightenment ideas: Students should be able to analyze and discuss the major ideas proposed by Enlightenment thinkers, including the emphasis on reason, liberty, equality, and tolerance. This will include reading and discussing primary and secondary sources to understand the influence on the development of modern societies.

3. Relate the Enlightenment to contemporary concerns: Students should be able to identify and explain how Enlightenment ideals are still relevant today. This will include analyzing current events, and discussing how Enlightenment principles can be applied to understand and solve contemporary problems.

   Secondary Objectives:

   a. Develop critical thinking skills: Through the analysis and discussion of the Enlightenment ideas, students should develop critical thinking skills that are essential for students’ comprehension and evaluation of diverse perspectives and arguments, and to develop their own arguments.

   b. Enhance literacy skills: The study of the Enlightenment involves the reading and interpretation of complex philosophical texts, and students should continue to improve their literacy skills throughout this unit.

Introduction (10-15 minutes)

1. Review of previous knowledge: The teacher should start the class by reviewing relevant background information from previous lessons. This may include a brief discussion about the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions, a discussion about Absolutism and Monarchy and an exploration of power relations in Europe prior to the Enlightenment. This review can be done through a series of quick questions or a discussion to check students’ understanding and to make necessary connections to the upcoming topic.

2. Problematizing the topic: Introduce two or three problematic questions or scenarios that will frame the main discussion of the class, such as “How important was the Enlightenment? Was it really a period that marked a clear change in the way we think or was the influence of the Enlightenment exaggerated?” The use of open ended questions will allow for multiple answers, and encourage students’ active participation from the beginning.

3. Framing the importance of the topic: Explain to students the importance of understanding the Enlightenment. This is a turning point in Modern History, and most of our current values and institutions were deeply influenced or created during the Enlightenment. Mentioning specific examples of how Enlightenment ideas, such as Human rights, the freedom of speech or the emphasis of science and rationalism have influenced our world today, can help students understand its relevance.

4. Grabbing students’ attention: Share a couple of curiosities or anecdotes related to the Enlightenment to grab the students’ attention. For example, talk about how the Encyclopedia was banned by the Church and the State because it was considered dangerous, and how Denis Diderot and other intellectuals had to be very careful to be able to publish it. Another curiosity can be the story of how the ideas of Montesquieu influenced the development of the American and French Revolutions. Mentioning that some principles of the Enlightenment, such as freedom of thought and equality of rights, are still being challenged in many parts of the world, can also help students to connect with the topic.

Development (20-25 minutes)

1. Exploring the Enlightenment ideas (10-12 minutes): The teacher should introduce students to the Enlightenment ideas by giving them an overview of the major ideas proposed by the philosophers during this period. These should include the idea of reason as a source of knowledge to improve human life and society and the idea of liberty as an unalienable right of every human being. Use graphic organizers or diagrams to illustrate the concept and make it easier for the students to visualize the ideas.

   1. Reason as a Light: Explain that the Enlightenment thinkers saw reason as the true source of knowledge, able to illuminate the darkness of superstition and ignorance. Through the proper and systematic use of reason, human beings could understand the natural world around them and improve their own lives and societies.

   2. Liberty and Natural rights: Discuss the Enlightenment belief in liberty as a natural right that every human being possesses simply by virtue of being human, and that governments should protect these rights. Explain that for the Enlightenment thinkers, if the government fails in its duty to safeguard these rights, citizens are entitled to revolt and claim or reclaim those rights.

   3. Equality: Introduce the Enlightenment thinkers’ stance regarding the concept of equality. Equality was a more complex topic for the Enlightenment thinkers, as they recognized the natural diversity of human capabilities, but argued for the idea of equality before the law and the idea of equal rights for all, independently from social status or origin.

2. Discussion of philosophical texts (5-7 minutes): Discuss specific Enlightenment philosophical texts. This could include excerpts of works by Voltaire, Rousseau, Montesquieu, or from the Encyclopedia. Explain to students when these texts were written, what the main argument was the author was presenting and how these relate back to the main ideas and the problematic questions introduced at the beginning of the class.

3. Analysis of Images and Artifacts (5-6 minutes): Show students images and artifacts from the Enlightenment period and ask them to analyze what they see. This could include paintings, drawings or sculptures, portraits or representations from the time, that show the Enlightenment ideals in practice, and ask students how the images represent the ideas of reason and liberty, for example.

4. Hands on activity (5-6 minutes): Divide the class into smaller groups and assign them a specific Enlightenment thinker. Provide them with a specific primary or secondary source to read and have the groups prepare an oral presentation that explains the most relevant ideas of that thinker related to reason and liberty, identifying if they agree with their proposals and justifying their answers.

Returning (10-15 minutes)

1. Group discussion (5-7 minutes): Have students discuss their conclusions from the hands on activity. Each team presents their findings, explaining which Enlightenment thinker they were assigned, what their main ideas on the nature and scope of reason and the right to freedom and equality were and whether or not the team agrees with their ideas. The other groups will then ask questions or bring counter-arguments for the group presenting to answer or respond. The teacher will act as mediator to ensure that all groups have a chance to participate, that questions are clear, and that the arguments presented make logical sense.

2. Connecting theory to practice (3-5 minutes): Connect the hands-on activities the groups did to the theory introduced at the start of the lesson. Highlight the ways that Enlightenment thinkers put the ideals of reason, liberty, and equality into practice and how they continue to be important in modern society. Emphasize the importance of understanding theory in order to effectively analyze, discuss and debate the validity and relevance of complex ideas, such as the ideas presented in the Enlightenment and their influence in the development of our societies.

3. Individual reflection (2-3 minutes): Have the students individually think about their own interpretations of what was learned in the class. Ask a series of questions, for example: “What is one of the most important ideas you have learned today?” and “What questions do you still have?” Give the students a minute or two to reflect and allow for volunteers to quickly share their thoughts with the class.

4. Feedback and Closure (1-2 minutes): Ask students for any final feedback they have about the lesson. Collect anonymous feedback forms, or ask the students verbally if they have constructive feedback to share. Thank them for their participation and remind students of any homework assignments or readings for next class.

Conclusion (5-7 minutes)

1. Summary of Main points (1-2 minutes): Review with the students the main ideas covered in class today, including a brief summary of the ideas of the Enlightenment and how these ideas have shaped the world in which we currently live. Use this summary to help solidify student learning and to check their understanding of the material covered in the lesson.

2. Connecting theory, practice, and application (1-2 minutes): Discuss the ways that today's lesson connected theory, practice, and application. Explain how the analysis of philosophical writings and of the visual arts of that period helped illustrate theoretical concepts in more concrete ways. Explain that the hands-on activities and the discussion of the problematic question allowed students to test these ideas and apply them to their own lives and current events, and that this is one of the most important reasons for studying history.

3. Extension materials (1-2 minutes): Recommend supplemental resources for students who want to learn more about the Enlightenment and related historical topics. This could be a specific book, documentary film, website, article, or online resource. Explain briefly what the source is and how it relates or adds depth to what has been learned so far. Provide information about due dates and expectations related to the resources, and how the information can be used in future assignments.

4. Relevance to the present (1-2 minutes): Finish the lesson by discussing the relevance of the ideas of the Enlightenment in today’s world. Discuss examples of how Enlightenment ideals such as reason, liberty and equality are still very important in our own understanding and organization as a society, in the way we live our own lives and the way we organize our societies. Mention the fact that the study of history is not only about studying the past, it is also about the present, and that understanding how the past has influenced the present can give us tools and ideas to improve our own actions in the present and the future.