Subject: Social Studies Type of Lesson: Internet use, group work, discussion,

multimedia.

Grade: 10 CSEC OBJ: Students should be able to:

A24 Describe the relationship between
citizens and governments as stated in
the constitution

Term: 2 Unit Number #1 - Government

and Title:

Duration: 235 minutes Week Number: 9

Lesson Number #31 Role of the Ombudsman

and Title:

Objectives
As a result of this lesson, the student will be able to:
1) define the term ombudsman.
2) outline the duties of the ombudsman.
3) discuss the relevance of the post of ombudsman.
4) understand why the post of ombudsman was created.

Prerequisite Student Knowledge

The student should be familiar with:
1) the rights and freedoms and responsibilities of citizens.
2) the importance of the constitution in ensuring good governance.
3) the role of the legislative arm of government.

Important Points
1) The post of Ombudsman originated in Sweden and dates back to
the 1800s. It means a person or grievance man who has an ear to
the people. In other words someone who listens to the people.
Today it is use worldwide to designate impartial and independent
offices that receive inquiries and concerns from groups of people
and work to achieve fair solutions. Since the 1960s there has been
a dramatic growth of the institution of the Ombudsman all around
the world. The office of ombudsman can be found as part of the

Teacher Instructional Material 1

 constitution of many countries. The creation of the office of the
ombudsman will support the structure of good government.
2) The role of the ombudsman is to eliminate corruption and bias in
public administration. He supervises how judges, government
officers and other civil servants observe the law. He is independent
of Parliament or any political party. He decides what to investigate
and the action to be taken. However, he is required to report to
Parliament once each year. He presents a summary of the cases he
has made and the ruling for each case.
3) The ombudsman defends human rights, resolves conflicts between
citizens and bureaucracy and ensures transparency and good
governance.

Key Terms

good governance human rights ombudsman

parliament

Challenge Areas
a. Instruct students to design a short questionnaire to find out
what people in your community know about the role of the
ombudsman.

b. They should decide what age group, gender and social class
you will survey.

c. Include in their questionnaire whether persons know the name

of Jamaicas political ombudsman.

d. Compile the results and compare with those of other students in

the class.

e. They should try to answer these questions when they have

completed the survey:

i. Are the responses what you expected to get?

ii. Is there anything that surprised you?
iii. Is there a need for more persons to be educated
about the role of the political ombudsman?

Teacher Instructional Material 2

Equipment/Materials Needed
Multimedia equipment, computers and internet connectivity which
should be enough for individual or groups of students to use.

Note to Teacher
You need to be well informed about the ombudsman and his role in
contributing to good governance. Be prepared to answer questions
students may have. Make sure the computer stations are set up and
working before class and so that students can link to the internet
quickly.

Teachers Lesson Notes

Teacher Instructional Material 3

Introduction
1) Introductory Activity

We Want Justice! Multimedia projection, discussion.

a. Project the picture below unto the screen. Ask students to

study the picture and create a possible scenario leading up
to what they are seeing.

Figure 31.1:

b. Ask students these questions about the picture: What do

you think the protestors may do next? What do you think
the police may do next? Allow them to share their views
with the class and be prepared to answer any questions they
may have.
Expected answers: The protestors may block roads; get
violent; go home for fear of what the police may do. The
police may get violent if attacked, arrest some of them who
break the law or force them to go home.

c. Remind students that conflict like the one shown above

happens quite regularly between citizens and the police. At
times citizens may feel as if there is no one they can appeal
to for redress for any form of police brutality or other form
of injustice that is meted out to them. Many governments
are well aware that citizens rights are violated by those
who should be protecting them. It is for this reason that the

Teacher Instructional Material 4

 Parliament of several Commonwealth Caribbean countries
created the post of political Ombudsman.
d. Inform students that this lesson will take a look at the
ombudsman as indicated in the lesson objectives.

Body of Lesson
1) What is the role of the ombudsman? Multimedia, video,
discussion.

a. Direct students to read from the websites below and make

notes on the role of the ombudsman.

Try This! http://www.jis.gov.jm/news/109-justice/2536-justice-

Ask students to ombudsman-an-institution-protecting-the-rights-of-citizens
name the political
ombudsman for their
country? When was http://jamaica-
he appointed? Do star.com/thestar/20040705/letters/letters2.html
they know any
complaints that he
has investigated b. Answer any questions students may have about the articles
since taking office? they read. Then let them share with their classmates what
are the duties of the ombudsman.

2) What are some types of complaints made to the political

ombudsman? video, multimedia, group work, discussion

a. Instruct students to watch the video from the link below

and identify the complaint being made to the ombudsman.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rp2PKWhb9v4
Important Point

The duty of the

political ombudsman
b. Now place them in pairs and let them read from the links
is not to be partial to below to see what is the complaint being made.
any political party.
He is to protect the
rights of all citizens
http://rjrnewsonline.com/news/politics/several-complaints-
no matter the party intimidation-lodged-ombudsman
they belong to. If he
becomes political
then he is not
http://furiousproduction.com/news/?p=8691
carrying out his
constitutional duties http://www.yardflex.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-
and may be asked to
step down
search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&tag=Peter%20Phillips&limit=
20

Teacher Instructional Material 5

 c. Now allow students to report to the class what they have
learnt. Instruct students to list the type of complaints they
have identified in their notebooks. Ask them to also list any
other complaints they know about.

3) Is the post of political ombudsman necessary?- multimedia,

video, discussion

a. Instruct students to watch the video from the link below.

http://televisionjamaica.com/Programmes/SmileJamaica.as
px/Videos/17607
What do you
think? b. Next let students read the articles from the websites below.
Ask students if they
think the post of
ombudsman is http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Warmington-wants-
necessary in their political-ombudsman-s-post-chopped_10677705
country? Let them
share their views
with your teacher. http://jamaica-
gleaner.com/gleaner/20120427/lead/lead91.html

c. Now ask students to state what arguments are being put

forward for and against the relevance of a political
ombudsman. Answer any questions they may have and
encourage them to share their views with the class

Closure
In Class Assignment

1) Complete the passage by dragging the correct words from the list
below into the correct space.

citizens party official ombudsman

Sweden reports constitution Parliament
allegiance government investigates Caribbean

The ________ is a government ________ who ________

complaints made by _________ against _________ departments.
The post originated in __________ and is included in the
________ of many Commonwealth _________ countries.
__________ are made to ___________ annually and the person
chosen must not have any ___________ to a particular political
__________.

Teacher Instructional Material 6

 IT Specialist: Please make this interactive
Expected answers: Ombudsman, official, investigates, citizens,
government, Sweden, constitution, Caribbean, reports,
Parliament, allegiance, party

2) Ask students to write a paragraph stating their views on the

relevance of a political ombudsman in their country.

Supplemental
Out-of-Class Assignment
1) Suggest to students that they visit all the various websites in the
lesson and do their own readings on the role of the ombudsman.

2) Students should also read relevant sections in their textbooks.

Glossary of Terms

commonwealth countries in the Caribbean that were once

caribbean colonies of Britain

good governance the management of government in a manner that

is essentially free of abuse and corruption with
due regard to the rule of law. It is characterized
by transparency, accountability, effectiveness
and equity.

human rights basic rights and freedoms to which all human

beings are entitled

ombudsman an independent public official who investigates

complaints made by citizens who allege that they
have been unjustly treated or victimized by
government department and agencies

parliament the arm of government responsible for making or

amending laws, debating national budgets and
discussing any issue of national importance. It
consists of a Upper House called the Senate and
a Lower House called the House of
Representatives

political party a political organization that seeks to further

political ideology, and to influence government

Teacher Instructional Material 7

 policies by having party members elected to
political office and ultimately forming a
government.

CSEC Questions
a) Name a ministry or government department and state THREE
services that it provides to the public. (3 marks)

b) List THREE complaints that citizens may have about the officers
in a ministry or government department in relation to the
performance of their duties. ( 3 marks)

c) Give THREE reasons why citizens who have experienced a

problem with a ministry or government department may prefer
NOT to complain to the Ombudsman. ( 6 marks)

d) Suggest TWO actions that government may take to ensure the

office of the ombudsman is more effective. (4 marks)

e) Give TWO reasons why you think your suggestions will work.
(4 marks)
Total 20 marks

Recommended Materials
Websites to visit:
Suggest that students visit the website below and read about the ACT
of Parliament which brought into being the position of Ombudsman

http://moj.virtual.vps-
host.net/sites/default/files/laws/Political%20Ombudsman%20%28Interim%29
%20Act.pdf

Bibliography

Lunt, P., Buckle-Scott, L., Davis-Morrison, V. & Louis, A. (2012)

Social Studies for CSEC. United Kingdom: Nelson Thornes
Ltd.

Ramsawak, Rampersad. Umraw, Ralph. (2010) Modules in Social

Studies 5th Edition. La Romaine, Trinidad, W.I: Caribbean
Educational Publishers.

Teacher Instructional Material 8

Ruddock, L.C. and Robinson-Glanville, S. (1994) New Civics for
Young Jamaicans. New Edition. Kingston: Carlong Publishers.

Sandy, Mervyn C. (2012). Social Studies Essentials Kingston,

Jamaica, W.I: Carlong Publishers.

Waterman, Ivan. Fisher, J. (2007) Social Studies for CSEC

Examinations 2nd Edition: Oxford, Macmillan Publishers

Source:

[Picture of citizens protesting against police

brutality]. Retrieved June 18, 2012, from: URL

http://www.google.com.jm/imgres?q=citizens+jamaica+protesting+police+bru
tality&hl=en&biw=1152&bih=721&tbm=isch&tbnid=UUOWlhIiPfbpAM:&imgre
furl=http://constructedthoughts.wordpress.com/tag/police-
abuse/&docid=BUNoboRuRK6s7M&itg=1&imgurl=http://jamaica-
gleaner.com/gl

Websites used in this Lesson

Teacher Instructional Material 9