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Teaching the Federal Bureaucracy

Cut through the red tape.

  • Activities: 4
  • Quiz Questions: 39

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When we think of bureaucracy, we think of…nothing happening. The federal government isn't often the most efficiently run machine, but that doesn't mean your class has to grind to a standstill while teaching it. Grease the wheels with this teaching guide.

In this guide you will find

  • resources and activities about the legislative, executive, and judicial branches.
  • essay questions exploring bureaucracy's bad rap.
  • opinion articles both pro- and anti-bureaucracy.

Our teaching guide cuts through all the red tape, so dive in.

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Shmoop is a labor of love from folks who love to teach. Our teaching guides will help you supplement in-classroom learning with fun, engaging, and relatable learning materials that bring civics to life.

Inside each guide you'll find quizzes, activity ideas, discussion questions, and more—all written by experts and designed to save you time. Here are the deets on what you get with your teaching guide:

  • 4-10 Common Core-aligned activities (including quotation, image, and document analysis) to complete in class with your students, with detailed instructions for you and your students. 
  • Discussion and essay questions for all levels of students.
  • Reading quizzes to be sure students are looking at the material through various lenses.
  • Resources to help make the topic feel more relevant to your 21st-century students.
  • A note from Shmoop’s teachers to you, telling you what to expect from teaching the topic and how you can overcome the hurdles.

Want more help teaching Teaching the Federal Bureaucracy?

Check out all the different parts of our corresponding learning guide.



Instructions for You

Objective: Over the past decade, calls for increased government regulation of the internet have increased. Yet for the most part, the internet remains largely unregulated. In this exercise your students will explore and debate the following question.

Should the federal government increase it regulatory oversight of the internet?

Length of Lesson: 1-2 class periods.

Materials Needed: 

Step One: In 2015, the FCC established net neutrality rules which were then upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals in June of 2016. In order to understand the background here, have your students read this New York Times articleon the FCC Rules and the Net Neutrality Ruling of 2016.

Step Two: Discuss the ruling and the essential reason for it—the idea that the internet should be regulated as a utility, not as a luxury, like, say, Cable TV. You may use the questions below to help guide your discussion.

  1. What is the meaning of the phrase "net neutrality?"
  2. What is the definition of a "utility"? 
  3. What other utilities do people pay for regularly? 
  4. Was the court correct in deciding that the internet is a utility rather than a luxury, like cable TV?
  5. How is the internet different from cable?
  6. Do you think this ruling will stand? Why or why not? 
  7. How do you use the internet? 
    • For you, is it a necessity or a luxury? Explain.

Step Three: Another area in which internet regulation is sometimes considered is with regard to the content that is available and who should be able to access it. To introduce this topic, have your students watch this video on COPPA, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (6:30). After the video, discuss COPPA with your students to make sure they understand who is affected by this legislation and how. You can also ask them if they think the legislation is fair and necessary. 

Step Four: Finally, with your students, read through this explanation of CIPA (Children's Internet Protection Act). Again, you can ask your students follow-up questions such as the ones below.

  1. Who is affected by CIPA?
  2. Why was CIPA put into place?
  3. Are there any aspects of CIPA that cause you concern? Explain.
  4. Overall, do you think CIPA is fair? necessary? helpful? Explain. 

Step Five: After reviewing and discussing these materials, ask your students to write an essay in response to the following prompt:

The internet has profoundly changed American commerce, entertainment, and even dating rituals. But it remains largely outside government regulation. Is it time for the federal government to increase its regulatory oversight of the internet? If so, how? If not, why not? 

Step Six: Give students a chance to share excerpts or ideas from their essays in class before handing them in. 

(Lesson aligned with CA 12th grade American government standards 12.2.1, 12.8.2)

Instructions for Your Students

What's black and white and read all over? 

The answer to that riddle—which is best delivered orally, so that people mistake the word read for the color red—used to be "the newspaper." Alas, printed newspapers aren't necessarily read all over these days. Why? Largely because of the the internet. 

The internet has profoundly changed American commerce, entertainment, and even dating rituals. But it remains largely outside government regulation. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Do we need more regulation of the internet? Less? 

Today you'll get an overview of the regulations and protections that are currently in place. Then you'll have a chance to weigh in: 

  • Is it time for the federal government to increase its regulatory oversight of the internet?

Step One: In 2015, the FCC established net neutrality rules which were then upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals in June of 2016. In order to understand the background here, take some time to read this New York Times article on the FCC Rules and the Net Neutrality Ruling of 2016 with your teacher and classmates.

Step Two: When everyone is done reading, discuss the ruling and the essential reason for it—the idea that the internet should be regulated as a utility, not as a luxury, like, say, Cable TV. You may use the questions below to help guide your discussion.

  1. What is the meaning of the phrase "net neutrality?"
  2. What is the definition of a "utility"? 
  3. What other utilities do people pay for regularly? 
  4. Was the court correct in deciding that the internet is a utility rather than a luxury, like cable TV?
  5. How is the internet different from cable?
  6. Do you think this ruling will stand? Why or why not? 
  7. How do you use the internet? 
    • For you, is it a necessity or a luxury? Explain.

Step Three: Another area in which internet regulation is sometimes considered is with regard to the content that is available and who should be able to access it. To better understand this topic, watch this video on COPPA, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (6:30). 

After the video, discuss COPPA with your teacher and classmates to make sure everyone understands who is affected by this legislation and how. You can also discuss whether or not the legislation is fair and necessary. 

Step Four: Finally, read through this explanation of CIPA (Children's Internet Protection Act). Again, you can discuss some follow-up questions, such as the ones below, with your teacher and classmates.

  1. Who is affected by CIPA?
  2. Why was CIPA put into place?
  3. Are there any aspects of CIPA that cause you concern? Explain.
  4. Overall, do you think CIPA is fair? necessary? helpful? Explain. 

Step Five: Now it's time for you to weigh in with our opinion on internet regulation. Write an essay in response to the following prompt:

The internet has profoundly changed American commerce, entertainment, and even dating rituals. But it remains largely outside government regulation. Is it time for the federal government to increase its regulatory oversight of the internet? If so, how? If not, why not? 

Step Six: Before handing in your essay, take some time to share excerpts or ideas from your essay and listen to what others came up with.