Desert Island Artifact

About the project

For this project, we were given a scenario in which our entire class was stranded on a desert island and our task was to create an efficient form of government for the group to follow to ensure everyone’s survival. We began by creating different units to delegate tasks to, as well as a leading unit (Justice Unit) that was responsible for enforcing laws and keeping order. We also set out the general rights of everyone on the island, the laws they must abide by, and the corresponding punishments for misconduct. At the end of the project, we reflected on what other types of government and how previous legal codes influenced the creation of the system, such as the Justinian Code and Magna Carta.

Core Competency Reflection

I can take on roles and responsibilities in a group; I do my share.

Due to the substantial amount of work that the project required, my partner and I had to both do a lot of work to ensure that we had something that we were happy with. I took on the responsibility of developing and explaining the different units.

I can work with others to achieve a goal.

This project was done by myself and a partner. We worked together and collaborated to brainstorm ideas, which worked well as we could point out when there was a discrepancy in what we had written. Talking with another person helped in making sure our form of government was solid and had as little holes as possible.

I can form new ideas to create new things. I can also build on the ideas of others.

This desert project took a lot of creative thinking due to the fact that we were creating a whole new government system on our own. My partner and I were able to build on each other’s ideas while we wrote to create new ideas.

I can persevere over time to develop my ideas, and I expect setbacks and failure, but use that to develop my ideas.

We faced many setbacks while developing our government system, as we had to take into account the limited amount of people we had, their own interests, what laws to enforce and who would get the authority to enforce them, and it was a daunting task for two people. However, we worked through these setbacks and used our knowledge of law to create an effective government system.

I can analyze my own beliefs and consider views that do not fit with them.

This statement is something that I want to work on because, while I am able to analyze my own beliefs, I want to continue to work towards ignoring my own biases/beliefs and my ability to put myself into other’s shoes to understand their thought process and how they came up with their conclusions. I want to become more flexible in my thinking and instead of automatically jumping to conclusions, be able to think about other’s logic first.

Curricular Competency Reflection

Our government system took a democratic approach, with elected leaders to enforce laws that were created and agreed upon by the majority of the group. Although there were leaders, people that were considered “regular citizens” still had many freedoms and rights, such as the right to challenge laws and authority. The government system was structured but did not feel authoritarian and everyone was expected to do their share and contribute to the welfare of the group. My partner and I used our own ethical views to create the laws and punishments, such as murder being illegal but the death penalty not being used.