Lesson Notes By Weeks and Term - Senior Secondary 1

Term: 3^rd Term

Week: 7

Class: Senior Secondary School 1

Age: 15 years

Duration: 40 minutes of 2 periods each

Date:       

Subject:      Government

Topic:-       Pressure groups II

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES: At the end of the lesson, pupils should be able to

1. State the functions of pressure groups
2. Mention the problems of pressure groups
3. Differentiate between pressure groups and political parties

 INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNIQUES: Identification, explanation, questions and answers, demonstration, videos from source

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS: Videos, loud speaker, textbook, pictures

INSTRUCTIONAL PROCEDURES

PERIOD 1-2

NOTE

PRESSURE GROUPS

FUNCTIONS OF PRESSURE GROUPS

1. Pressure groups aim to inform and educate both their members and the overall population about political issues.
2. They provide an organized channel through which individuals may participate in the political process and seek to influence policies of government. Increasingly also some pressure groups seek to influence the activities of multinational corporations.
3. Pressure groups serve as a pool of talent for political recruitment in that many party politicians begin their careers as pressure group activists.
4. Pressure groups provide opportunities for individuals to influence government policy between elections which obviously strengthens the overall democratic process.
5. Pressure groups scrutinize the activities of government and publicize cases of government mismanagement and government activities which may be “ultra vires” [i.e. actions which exceed the powers granted in current legislations. They therefore provide an important mechanism for the limitation of excessive executive power.
6. Pressure groups may provide governments with useful information although, at the same time, a government will wish to take account of possible bias in this information.
7. They serve as a powerful link between the people and the government. This is done by officials of the pressure group consulting with the representatives of the government and presenting the views/demands of the people to the representative of the government.
8. They assist the government in the execution of some of its functions. Government do delegate pressure groups that are expert in certain fields to handle its programme e.g. Nigerian Medical Association gives government inputs on the reduction of the dreaded AIDS and HIV ravaging in some parts of the country.
9. Pressure groups help legislators and officials of the government with statistical data, inputs on some important and technical issues which they cannot ordinarily handle for the implementation of government policies.
10. Even though pressure groups are not elected by the people, they give support to the government so that they may be acceptable by the people.
11. They criticize unpopular government policies and prevent maladministration and checks dictatorial tendencies of any government.
12. Pressure groups like the Chambers of Commerce, Industry, and Mining, etc. contribute greatly to the growth and development of the country.
13. They also serve in different arms of government, e.g. on tribunals, committees, etc.
14. They educate people about their fundamental rights and also provide political education to the public and in some cases; they promote welfare services to the public especially Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) and Nigeria Bar Association (NBA).
15. They also represent diverse interest of the society since membership of such groups comes from different background which may not be represented in the government.
16. Pressure group may influence member of the executives, who have law making input and who can rightly decide the effectiveness of law enforcement.

PROBLEMS OF PRESSURE GROUPS

1. Biased

One of the most frequent criticisms of pressure groups is that they tend to be biased towards their own goals, as you might expect. This can be a case of them promoting their own interest or cause above all others, which can lead to other, equally important issues going unnoticed.

2. Overrepresent Minority Opinion

Another problem with pressure groups is that they can sometimes give a disproportionate amount of attention and power to a minority opinion. 

3. Offensive Views

Some pressure groups also hold views that would be offensive to most. The very fact that they are offensive often gets them disproportionate media coverage, meaning that the views of the population are misrepresented. Their campaigning can also be distressing to others and cause tension within a community

Differences between Pressure Groups and Political Parties

1. Political parties aim at winning elections and controlling government while pressure groups aim at influence government policies to benefit their members.
2. Political parties submit candidates that contest elections while pressure groups do not.
3. Political parties are better organized than pressure groups.
4. Some pressure groups may cease to exist especially after achieving their aims but political parties have unlimited aims and they will continue to exist.
5. Pressure groups pursue narrow interests which are those of their members but political parties pursue national interests.
6. Political parties are organized to reach large number of people while pressure group activities are intended to reach few people.
7. Pressure groups usually do not have elected members like political parties which must have elected candidates.
8. Pressure groups may seek to raise controversial issues and to support minorities which political parties neglect for fear of electoral unpopularity.
9. In terms of participation in politics, political parties are more politically-oriented than pressure groups.

EVALUATION:    1. State four functions of pressure groups

2. State and explain three problems of pressure groups
3. Outline four differences between pressure groups and political parties

CLASSWORK: As in evaluation

CONCLUSION: The teacher commends the students positively