LAW IN EVERYDAY LIFE AND WHY WE NEED LAWS

by Avashnee Chetty (Street Law student 2001) 1. 1.1 1.2 1.3 2. (A) OUTCOMES: At the end of the lesson you will be able to EXPLAIN HOW LAW AFFECTS OUR DAILY LIFE EXPLAIN WHY WE NEED LAWS EXPLAIN THE ELEMENTS OF FAIR LAWS CONTENT:

EXPLAIN TO THE CLASS HOW THE LAW TOUCHES OR AFFECTS OUR EVERY DAY LIFE Like it or not, everything that an individual does that makes up his daily activities, is impacted or affected by the law. To an ordinary person, the realisation that laws touch his/her life every day is just not true. You will ask how can this be? And your answer will probably be Im not in trouble with the law. However, it is important to realise that law does not only kick-in once someone has broken the law. Many of us are under the mistaken belief that the law is there to punish offenders only. This is far from the truth. Law is more concerned with protecting people than punishing them. Do you realise that from the time you wake up in the morning right through until you go to sleep at night, the law is constantly working for you. Students will see from the activity how law affects our everyday life, that things like going to the toilet, taking a shower, having breakfast, smoking, being driven to school, to name a few activities are all affected by the law in some way or the other. Students will also learn the significance or reason for that particular law existing and whether they feel that the law should be changed in respect of that activity. (B) BE PREPARED TO RELATE THE PEN GAME TO THE CLASS This game helps to illustrate why it is necessary to have laws in society and more especially the need for fair laws. The game also raises the problem of discrimination, which is prevalent in many spheres of our lives. Firstly, the game is played in a way that emphasises the need for clear and consistent rules or laws. The class is told to begin playing the game without telling them what to do. Midway through the game the class is told to stop because they are playing the game wrong. Everyone would then complain that they did not know how to play the game in the first place. Once the game is resumed the same procedure is adopted. This leaves the class feeling frustrated and angry, as they dont know what to do. Thus the game can not be enjoyed without clear and consistent rules. Students will learn that in legal practice if laws are not clear or are too vague, the courts will not enforce it. Secondly, it shows that rules cant be changed in the middle of the game, without students becoming hurt. Students are told to imagine a society in which laws as they knew it suddenly changed without them even knowing about it. They would be punished for behaving in a manner, which they themselves did not know, was prohibited. This is known as retrospective laws. Whilst the game is being played certain students are picked on and asked not to play anymore example those students wearing glasses are excluded from playing. These students are unhappy about being left out of the game for no other reason except that they are wearing glasses. This exclusion aptly indicates unfair behaviour in the form of discrimination. During the apartheid era, laws discriminated against people on the grounds of race. Today this is unconstitutional because section 9 of the constitution states that everyone has a right to be treated equally. It encompasses the element of fairness and justness. Thirdly, during the game a certain group of students are chosen randomly as the winners of the game. The rest of the class is angry about it and dont think

its fair. They want to know why that group was chosen. The students are told to picture this happening in a court of law. If the judge is allowed to choose of the cuff, any one of the parties without giving the other side an opportunity to present their case and call witnesses, this unjust and incorrect. That behaviour of the judge can not be tolerated because a persons right to a free trial is taken away and innocent people can be punished for something they did not do. Therefore we need a fair legal system and it is important to have impartial, unbiased judges applying the law. 3. 4. FORMAT: FOCUSER GAME DEBRIEF GAME DISCUSSION ACTIVITIES:

20 MIN 10 MIN 20 MIN 10 MIN

(a) Students are asked to brainstorm a list of daily activities that they carry out and ask them whether they think any of these activities are affected by the law, if so how is it affected, the reasons for the law and whether they feel the law should be changed. Their replies are noted on the blackboard. It will resemble the following: ACTIVITIES AFFECTED BY LAW HOW REASON FOR THE LAW Health SHOULD THE LAW BE CHANGED? WHY/WHY NOT? No. Sanitation is necessary to prevent diseases No. Dirty water can cause diseases No. Toothpaste must not harm health No. Wholesome food is important for good health No. There is a need for censorship of certain material as young children could be listening No. Necessary for the safety of

Went to the toilet Took a bath Brushed teeth

Yes. Health Law Yes. Health Law Yes. Food and Drug Laws Yes. Food Laws

Sanitation is required Water must be clean

Health

Ate breakfast

Toothpaste, Health drugs must not be harmful to the health Food need to be Health wholesome and nutritious The Broadcasting authority prohibits the use of swearing on air The bus driver must have a Government control over type of material broadcast

Listened to the Yes. radio Broadcasting Laws

Caught the bus Yes. Traffic to school Law

Safety

license and the driver must conform with the rules of the road (b)

other road users

Students are asked to participate in the PEN-GAME. They must do the following: Divide themselves up into equal teams and elect names for their respective teams; Each team must appoint a captain; Each captain must have a pen with them; The teams must start playing the game by passing the pens to their neighbours; The teams are stopped and told that they are doing it wrong. They must pass the pen over their right shoulders to their partner; Teams start playing again; The teams are stopped again and the teams that have people wearing glasses are excluded from playing; The game is resumed with the exclusion of those wearing glasses; The game is stopped and Team B is chosen as the winners.

5. DEBRIEF THE GAME Students are asked what they thought about the game. Depending on their answers the students are told to give reasons why they felt the game was stupid, nice, irritating and so on. As their reasons are put forward, students will be told that the pen game is used to illustrate the need for rules or law in society and in a game, that these rules or law must be consistent and clear and should be changed sporadically without notice. Also a connection between the exclusion of certain members of the class during the game reveals unfairness and discrimination that is unconstitutional in light of the equality clause in the 1996 Constitution. At the end students are told that the Pen Game is used to make a person understand and experience a society where no rules or laws exist and how this has the effect of making people feel confused and lost because the whole of society would be in chaos and disharmony without laws. 6. DISCUSSION Students are asked what they understand about the word democracy. After their responses have been given, students are told that democracy involves the election of person as representatives of citizens. This occurs during general elections and the representatives make laws that are in keeping with the principles of fairness and represent the will of the people.

7. RESOURCES 7.1 STREET LAW BOOK TEACHERS MANUAL `WHERE WOULD YOU CHANGE THE LAW? (pages 31-2) 7.2 STREET LAW BOOK 1 TEACHERS MANUAL `THE PAPERCLIP GAME (PAGES 36-8) 7.3 BLACKBOARD 8. CHECKLIST QUESTIONS

Students are asked if they have understood the lesson and if there is anything that needs to be clarified. Questions are asked to ensure that the aims of the lesson have been achieved, that is whether students know how law affects our daily lives, the importance of having laws and whether they were able to under stand how a simple game can illustrate fundamental understanding about law and how it works.