Tommy Douglas, Famous Canadian
Tommy Douglas
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When Kiefer Sutherland was a child
he asked his grandfather, Tommy Douglas, what defined Canadians.
He got two answers: Canadian winters and medicare. The cold and brutal winters toughened the national
character and medicare made all Canadians equal in our ability to care for ourselves.
Lesson Plan
Aim: To
practice reading techniques, increase vocabulary, and develop some critical thinking
Warm-Up : 1. Describe picture of Tommy Douglas. Where is he standing?
(On a platform in front of a podium and microphone) What kind of job does this man do? Do you think he
is famous? Is he tall or short, good looking
(maybe cute)
2. What qualities does he
appear to have, that many politicians lack? (wit, good
humour, integrity) Would you trust this
man?
3. What is
another word for someone who speaks well in public? Any
examples of great orators? What is an
adjective for someone who speaks from the
heart and convinces you? (eloquent)
This man was a politician who learned his speaking skills as a
preacher, a Christian minister, and as an actor and debater in college. He never intended to go into politics. Yet he became premier of
Saskatchewan and head of the
federal(NDP) New Democratic Party.
4. This is a picture of his grandson. Anyone recognize him?
(Kiefer Sutherland)
Pre-Reading: Quote
from Kiefer
Pre-Reading 2:
What is medicare (medical care and hospital insurance). Show OHIP cards.
Has anyone had to use their card lately?
Was the service satisfactory?
Reading Activity: Read the biography quickly to find the connection
between Tommy Douglas and medicare.
Scanning Exercise (1)
Comprehension exercises (2, 3)
Verb and name forms (4, 6)
Brainstorm on Medicare
Topics for discussion(5) and
Homework (7)
Preacher, premier of Saskatchewan, first leader of the New
Democratic Party, (NDP) and father of Medicare. http://www.thememoryproject.com/heroes_poll.cfm
Canadians never have to worry about the cost of going to a doctor
or hospital when they need medical care. Doctors
also do not worry whether patients will be able to pay their medical bills. For this we
have to thank Tommy Douglas, who introduced medicare, or publicly funded
medicine, http://en2.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicare_(Canada),
into Saskatchewan in 1961. Later, as leader of
the NDP in the federal Parliament, he fought for programs like universal medicare,
public pensions and welfare assistance for all of Canada.
Tommy was born in Falkirk, Scotland in 1904, and came to Winnipeg,
Manitoba with his parents when he was fourteen years old.
He went to work for a printer almost immediately, because the family was
very poor and could not afford to educate him.
Tommy and his family were religious Christians. At the age of 20 Tommy went to Brandon Manitoba to
study to be a minister in the Baptist Church, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baptist
. He learned about religious socialism and
wanted to reduce poverty and injustices through political action. http://archives.cbc.ca/400d.asp?id=1-73-851-4956He
began to preach and discovered a talent for oratory spiced with humour. A small man, he could hold an audience spellbound
with his eloquence and wit. www.canadianheritage.org/images/large/21018.jpg.
http://archives.htcbc.ca/400d.asp?id=1-73-851-4969
His first position was in Weyburn http://www.sasktourism.com/regions/city_weyburn.htm,
Saskatchewan, http://atlas.gc.ca/site/english/maps/reference/provincesterritories/
in 1930. The townsfolk were suffering
because of the drought and the great economic depression, http://en2.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Depression. Many families could not afford to go to the doctor
if they were sick. Tommy buried two young men
from his congregation. They died because they
could not afford hospital care, and left young families with no support. He joined the CCF, the democratic socialist party,
and was elected to Parliament in 1931. In 1944
he returned to Saskatchewan to lead the CCF to victory.
As Premier of Saskatchewan, he pioneered many innovative
social programs. He also administered them efficiently, even frugally, and
managed to reduce the province=s
debt. He introduced universal medicare in his
last term, but the opposition to it was fierce. A
bitter doctors’ strike lasted 23 days. In
the end medicare came into force. By
1971 it had been adopted in all parts of Canada.
Tommy used radio and television to great effect http://slais.ubc.ca/courses/arst593b/02-03-wt1/Assignment2%5CBoylan%5Cpage1.html.
In 1948, when his opponents hinted he was a
communist, he fought saying: “Don’t let them deceive you again. If you let them
fool you once, shame on them, twice shame on you.@
After four terms as premier, he was chosen
leader of the New Democratic Party and came to the federal Parliament in 1962.
His daughter, Shirley Douglas, carries on his talent for the spoken
word on the Canadian stage. His grandson,
Shirley=s
son, Kiefer Sutherland, is also an actor, in Hollywood films and on the TV show 24. Both
have fought publicly to uphold and enlarge the principles of universal medical coverage. Kiefer will star in a television biography to
celebrate the 100th anniversary of Tommy’s birth. Further readings: www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/
Exercise
1
Scan the biography to answer the following
questions
1. Where was Tommy born?
2. In which cities in Canada did Tommy live?
3 When will the 100th anniversary of his birth occur?
4.
How old was he when he first went to work?
5. Where did he study for the ministry?
6. What political party did Tommy join?
7. When was he elected to Parliament?
8.
When did he come back to Saskatchewan?
9.
How many terms did he serve as premier of Saskatchewan?
10. Which programs did Tommy start?
11. Why did he fight so
hard for medical insurance?
Exercise
2
Mark T for true or F for false after each statement. Correct the
false statements. Example: At the age of 14, Tommy went to work on
a wheat farm. F. Tommy went to work for a
printer
1. Tommy was born in Glasgow, Scotland
2. Tommy wanted to
study for the Catholic priesthood.
3. His first home
in Canada was in Brandon, Manitoba.
4. Tommy had a
brilliant sense of humour.
5. His full name was Thomas Kiefer Douglas.
6. As a young minister
he found his congregation’s biggest problem was poverty.
7. He left his church
to run for Parliament , saying that it’s
hard to listen to preacher talk about your soul when you’re suffering from a
toothache”.
8. He was elected
premier of Saskatchewan in 1931.
9. As premier he
introduced hospital insurance but increased the province’s debt.
10. Medicare has given
doctors a stable income.
Exercise 3
Match
the words that occurred in the text with the sentences that have words with similar
meanings. Example: Eloquence. Tommy
could move an audience to tears or laughter with his moving
public speeches.
Oratory
I
had to wait three months after applying to qualify for OHIP.
Innovative
If
we deserve the leaders we elect, we should be embarrassed by some of our recent leaders.
Spiced
The
law was in effect by 1971.
Spellbound
The
audience was so captivated by his speech that not a sound was heard.
Pioneer
He
was thrifty with his own money and positively frugal with the taxpayers’.
Shame on
She
made her speeches more interesting and exciting by adding jokes.
Medical coverage Now that
television is so important, the art of public speaking is in decline.
Preacher
Farmers
were breaking new ground on the Prairies up to the late nineteenth century.
Minister
Canada
is proud of its publicly funded, universal, medical insurance plan.
Come into Force
We need fresh ideas and programs
to match.
Administered
A
religious leader spoke from the pulpit.
Frugally
Tommy
also managed the province’s finances efficiently.
Funded
Most
of my medical expenses are paid for by the government.
Medicare
The
leader of a church who looks after his congregation from birth to burial.
Congregation
People
who come together to worship feel part of a community.
Exercise
4
Fun
with prepositions
The addition of a preposition
can change the meaning of a word . Write sentences illustrating the different meanings of
the following verbs. Example: Go to, It’s
time to go to sleep
Verb
Meaning
Go on
continue
Go up against
meet
with opposition
Go to work
start
at a job
Go into politics, acting etc.
begin
a career
2.
Keep up
continue
Keep up with
keep
the same pace as
3.
carry
take
in your arms
Carry on
continue
Carry forward
hold
or keep for the future (business term)
4.
Use
employ
Use up
use
all of
5.
Hold
grasp
Hold up
armed
robbery, stopped; also continue satisfactorily
Hold out
insist
on getting more before agreeing
Uphold
support,
defend
7.
Dress
wear
Dress up
put
on fancy clothes
Dress down
put
on casual clothes
8.
Speak
talk
Speak up
speak
more loudly
Speak out
speak
publicly for what you believe in
9. Stand
place
in an upright position
Stand in for
stand
in someone’s place, replace
stand up for
support
Stand by
be
loyal to
Stand out
be
noticed
10.
Set
put
Set out
list,
go on a trip
Set off
cause
to start
Exercise 5
Topics for Further Discussion
With your partner, discuss the following topics:
1. Tommy Douglas became
a socialist politician and leader of the New Democratic Party. What kind of socialism did he practice?
2. How are his daughter
and grandson continuing what he started?
3. Are they similar to
him in any other ways?
4. What were
Tommy’s successes?
5. What were his
failures?
Exercise 5a
With your partner, discuss the following topics:
1. Medicare provides that every Canadian and landed immigrant could
go to a doctor or hospital without charge. What
are some of the problems with medicare today? What
are some of the solutions?
2. Compare and contrast the Canadian medicare system with the
system in your countries.
Exercise 6
Fun with
Diminutives
Tommy’s full name was Thomas Clement Douglas. Tommy is a diminutive or short form of
Thomas, usually used for children or in family settings.
Some politicians, particularly those of Scottish origin keep their
diminutives. While William Jefferson Clinton
is Bill, James Carter was always Jimmy, and T.C. Douglas was Tommy. Give the name the following are best known by:
1. Anthony Blair
8. Jacqueline Kennedy
2. Paul Martin
9. William Lyon Mackenzie King
3. Pierre Elliot Trudeau
10. Michael Harris
4. Ronald Reagan
11.
Stephen Harper
5.William Robert Thornton
12. Mac Harb
6. Robert Kennedy
7. John F. Kennedy
Exercise 7
Pick one of the websites mentioned in the biography and write a
short report on the information you found there.
Lesson Courtesy of
Judith Weinman of
Ottawa, ON.
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