Social Studies 11
Review Guide for the Social Studies 11 Geog/Gov Exam
Population
eText reference: Counterpoints, Chapters 11
SPECTREM
Demography
migration
DTM
classifying countries- stages of DTM and pop pyramids
You should know
Demography
census
developed country
developing country
birth rate
death rate
infant mortality rate
immigration
emigration/net migration
natural increase
exponential growth
doubling time
life expectancy
demographic transition model (DTM)
population pyramid
age cohort
dependency ratio
population density
population distribution
You should be able to
Know the characteristics of the stages on the demographic transition model
Identify population pyramids and what they tell us about population trends!
Living Standards
eText reference: Counterpoints, Chapters 12
Topics
HDI- 3 main indicators
Standards of living
NGOs/UN/Aid
GDP
You should know
human development index (HDI)
life expectancy
malnutrition
globalization
multinational corporations (MNCs)
GDP (per capita)
HIPCs
Millennium Development Goals (MDG)
World Bank
International Monetary Fund
World Bank
UNESCO
CIDA
UNICEF
megaproject
commodity
structural adjustment program
bilateral aid
multilateral aid
tied aid
subsistence farming
bonded labour
subsidies
You should be able to
Indentify characteristics of both developed and developing countries
Identify the benefits of educating women and children
Identify how we can break the poverty cycle (apply SPECTREM)
Identify and describe diseases affecting those living in poverty
Government
eText reference: Counterpoints, Chapters 9, 10 and 11
Topics
Canada as a constitutional monarchy
Government structure including House of Commons/Senate
Rule of law
Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Electoral system
Canadian Constitution (1982).
A. Constitutional monarchy: Canada is ruled by its constitution but maintains a
ceremonial connection to Britain that means we also have a sovereign Head of
State. In Canada, the monarch is represented by the Governor-General (David
Johnston), who holds a largely ceremonial position. The Governor-General is the
representative of our Head of State, while the Prime Minister is the head of
government.
Terms to know:
House of Commons________________________________________
Senate________________________________________________
Senator _______________________________________________
Executive branch ________________________________________
Legislature_____________________________________________
Parliament
Cabinet _______________________________________________
Cabinet Solidarity________________________________________
Party caucus ___________________________________________
Riding/Constituency______________________________________
Representative democracy _________________________________
Minority/Majority government ______________________________
Minister _______________________________________________
Minister without portfolio _________________________________
Bill __________________________________________________
Order-in-council ________________________________________
Hansard ______________________________________________
Party Whip ____________________________________________
Sergeant-at-Arms _______________________________________
Leader of the Opposition __________________________________
Shadow Cabinet _________________________________________
Backbencher ___________________________________________
Royal Assent ___________________________________________
Free vote ______________________________________________
House of Commons: elected members, currently 308 in the House, elected for a
term not to exceed 5 years, represents a riding (roughly 100,000 people), the
House is run by the Speaker of the House who is elected by the MPs, sits from
September to June with some breaks.
Leader of the Party holding the most seats: Prime Minister
Leader of the Party with the 2nd greatest number of seats: Leader of the
Opposition
Senate: members are appointed, there are currently 105 members (48 seats
assigned to Ontario and Quebec), seats based on region of country (not strictly
population), controversial because placement is often a patronage appointment,
retirement age of 75, main focus to take a “sober, second thought” at all bills
passed by Parliament, can veto a bill but this rare, Triple E Senate reform has been
proposed and widely discussed (Elected, Equal and Effective), recently Harper has
suggested new Senators be elected through provinces.
Be able to:
Compare and contrast House of Commons and the Senate __________________
_____________________________________________________________
Explain Question Period__________________________ _________________
The Speech from the Throne _______________________________________
Know how a bill becomes law ________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
B. Levels of government. Some aspects of Canadian law and government are
federal and others are provincial. Sometimes these areas merge. Currently the
Federal government is responsible for taxation, immigration, currency, national
defense, foreign policy, Aboriginal affairs, and the postal system.
Provincial governments handle matters relating to education, health care, provincial
policing, natural resources, roads and bridges and housing.
Agriculture and farming, pension plans and environmental resources are shared
responsibilities.
Municipal (local) governments take care of things like libraries, local police, public
transportation and policing, local parks and recreation, and sanitation (garbage) and
recycling. A municipal government makes by-laws.
A Lieutenant–Governor represents the Queen in each province and territory. The
head of a province is a premier; a member of the provincial government is a MLA, a
Member of the Legislative Assembly.
C. The Electoral System
1. Dissolution: the Prime Minister asks the Governor-General to close
Parliament and to call an election
2. Nomination: political parties organize their representatives in all applicable
ridings
3. Enumeration: compiling the Voters’ List by the Chief Electoral Officer
4. Campaigning: the parties introduce their political platforms, some debates
are held.
5. Election occurs: this step is also called Balloting, voters cast ballots at their
local polling stations
6. Tabulation: votes are counted by hand and winners are soon announced.
The political party winning the most seats in the House of Commons forms the new
government. If the party holds more than half the seats, they will form a majority
government. If less than half the seats, they will form a minority government.
First past the post system: ________________________________________
Proportional representation: ________________________________________
Single Transferable Vote (STV):
Political Spectrum (parties and isms)
Left
Centre
Right
_____________________________________________________________
Liberalism ___________________________________________________
Conservatism _________________________________________________
Socialism ____________________________________________________
Fascism _____________________________________________________
Communism ___________________________________________________
Party platform _______________________________________________
Party Whip ___________________________________________________
Patronage ___________________________________________________
Pressure groups _______________________________________________
Human Rights
eText reference: Counterpoints, Chapter 11
In 1982, as a key part of the Canada Act, the Canadian Charter of Right s and
freedoms was entrenched in law and affirmed Canada’s commitment to protecting
human rights within our country.
Some parts of the Charter refer to all people in Canada and others, primarily those
connected to voting, are for citizens only. You should read the Charter carefully
and be able to explain the protections afforded in this document. Sample provincial
questions refer to mobility rights, minority language education rights, affirmative
action, fundamental freedoms and democratic rights.
You should also know:
Canadian Bill of Rights _____________________________________________
notwithstanding clause ____________________________________________
amending formula
fundamental freedoms
democratic rights
mobility rights
legal rights _____________________________________________________
equality rights
official languages of Canada _________________________________________
minority language/educational rights
enforcement rights
general rights
reasonable limits _________________________________________________
Indian Act (1876)
Aboriginal land claim issues
Rule of law: the law applies equally to everyone and everyone is equal under the law.
Think of the Charter as a balancing act – it is supposed to balance the rights of the
individual versus the right of society to be safe. For example, you have the
freedom of expression but the reasonable limit on this freedom is that you cannot
promote hate.
Link to the Charter: http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/charter
Environment-
, Chapter 13
Air
Water
Resources
UN Initiatives/Conferences to combat climate change
You should know:
acid precipitation
global warming
greenhouse gas emissions
fossil fuels
carbon sink
deforestation
desertification
ozone layer depletion
CFCs
HCFCs
Montreal Protocol
Kyoto Accord
carbon credit
Copenhagen Summit
Review Questions to get you started……
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What is demography?
Describe the living conditions in a developing country.
What are the characteristics of an expanding population?
What is doubling time?
What methods have some countries used to control the birth rate in their
countries?
6. How does rural differ from urban life in developing nations?
7. What are characteristics of stage 4 on the demographic transition model?
Which countries are currently at this stage?
8. What is population density?
9. How is globalizing benefiting the world as a whole?
10. How does tied aid differ from bilateral aid?
11. What is the role of the IMF?
12. What positive and negative effects do megaprojects have on developing
nations?
13. How is the Senate different from the House of Commons?
14. What is a riding?
15. Who is our current Prime Minister? Governor General? Premier? Lieutenant
Governor? Federal Opposition Leader?
16. What is the voting age in B.C.?
17. What is Royal Assent?
18. What is a Shadow Cabinet?
19. What is a Minster without Portfolio?
20. How are Aboriginal bands governed?
21. What are parts of the Canadian Constitution (1982)?
22. What is Hansard?
23. How does the Speaker of the House gain that position?
24. What are Charter mobility rights?
25. What is a patronage appointment?
26. What is a Crown Corporation?
27. How does a bill become a law?
28. What is a vote of non-confidence?
29. What are the problems faced by a minority government?
30. Who makes up the Executive Branch of government?
31. What are the duties of the Prime Minister (6 duties)?
32. What is a by-law?
33. What is the “first-past-the-post” electoral system
34. What are the arguments surrounding electoral reform?
35. What reforms have been suggested for the Senate?
36. What should Canada focus on in terms of its environmental protection?
37. Where to CFCs come from and what harm do they cause?
38. What new issues have emerged since Kyoto to Copenhagen?
39. What were the terms of the Montreal Protocol?
40. What is carbon credit?