Assisted Dying Perspectives

Overview

Lesson 2 continues “Exploring Assisted Dying Perspectives” by investigating the key features of assisted dying as a contemporary ethical issue. Students practise guided inquiry to collect facts, identify competing viewpoints, and prepare to analyse how traditions respond in later lessons. This lesson utilizes a range of resources including articles, case studies, discussion prompts, and structured templates to support student engagement and understanding.

---

Skills Needed

• Critical thinking: evaluating arguments and evidence related to assisted dying.
• Ethical reasoning: understanding and applying moral principles to complex issues.
• Respectful discussion: engaging with diverse perspectives thoughtfully and courteously.
• Empathy: appreciating the human experiences and emotions involved in assisted dying debates.

Learning intentions

• Students will be able to describe what assisted dying is and identify key features of the debate.
• Students will be able to distinguish ethical viewpoints from facts, using evidence from provided articles.
• Students will be able to explain why people hold different perspectives on assisted dying.
• Students will be able to summarise two perspectives clearly and respectfully.

Success criteria

• I can define assisted dying in my own words and name at least three key features/terms people use in the debate.
• I can sort information into “facts”, “ethical claims”, and “viewpoints”.
• I can explain two perspectives and give one reason each for why someone might support or oppose assisted dying.
• I can summarise both perspectives in 6–8 sentences using accurate, age-appropriate evidence.

Curriculum links

• Understanding Religion: Number — Analyse the response of a religious tradition to a contemporary ethical issue will be built later using today’s issue investigation.
• Health Education perspective: Analyse a contemporary ethical issue in relation to well-being supports thinking about impacts on individuals and society.
• Religious Studies skill: Analyse key beliefs and evaluate viewpoints to prepare for later “in depth” and “with perception” analysis.
• Key competencies: thinking critically and using language/symbols to communicate ethical reasoning.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Do Now. Teacher prompts: “Assisted dying—agree or disagree? One reason why.” Students write a quick response in their workbook, then share with a partner.

2. 5–12 min · Whakataukī meaning check + launch. Teacher displays the whakataukī and asks: “How might focusing on people shape how we talk about assisted dying?” Students turn-and-talk, then contribute one sentence to a class list of “values we might be considering”.

   Whakataukī/Bible Verse/Proverb: "He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata." (What is the most important thing in the world? It is the people, it is the people, it is the people.)

3. 12–20 min · Guided inquiry: what counts as ‘assisted dying’? Teacher gives a short, neutral explainer using the provided articles (no preaching), focusing on definitions and commonly debated features (e.g., eligibility, consent, intent, safeguards, and outcomes). Students complete the first column of the Facts and Viewpoints table: “Key features I noticed”.

4. 20–35 min · Fact-collecting activity (group work). In groups of two (or one group of four), students use articles to collect evidence into three categories:

• Facts (descriptive details about the issue)
• Ethical claims (what should/shouldn’t happen)
• Viewpoints (who supports/criticises and why, in simplified terms) Teacher circulates with a checklist: Are you using evidence from the text? Are claims labelled as claims?

5. 35–47 min · Perspective sorting + reasons. Teacher models one example of sorting, then asks groups to label each perspective as “supporting” or “opposing” and write one underlying reason for each (e.g., autonomy, compassion, protection from harm, quality of life, dignity, religious/moral principles, trust in healthcare). Students complete two labelled rows in the table: “Perspective A—reason” and “Perspective B—reason”.

6. 47–55 min · Critical thinking mini-debrief. Teacher asks three structured questions on the board:

• What facts did both sides agree on?
• Where did the ethical reasoning change?
• What assumptions might be driving the differences? Students respond using sentence starters: “I think the difference comes from… because the article suggests…”

7. 55–60 min · Exit task (assessment for learning). Students submit an exit summary: “Summarise two different perspectives on assisted dying.” Minimum 6 sentences, maximum 8, including one reason for each perspective and at least two key features/terms.

Teaching Strategies

• Guided Discussions: Facilitate open conversations where students can share and explore different viewpoints on assisted dying.
• Case Study Analysis: Use real or hypothetical scenarios to help students apply ethical concepts and evaluate perspectives.
• Debate: Organize structured debates to encourage critical thinking and articulate arguments for and against assisted dying.
• Reflective Activities: Incorporate individual reflection tasks to deepen understanding and personal engagement with the topic.

Resources

• Teacher-selected, age-appropriate articles on assisted dying
• Facts and Viewpoints table template (one per student)
• Workbook or printed notes page for definitions and key terms
• Sentence starters for ethical reasoning (e.g., “One reason someone might… is…”)
• Timer and projector/board for guided questions
• Case studies illustrating different assisted dying scenarios
• Discussion prompts to facilitate respectful debate
• Handouts summarizing ethical principles relevant to assisted dying
• Technology access for video clips or online research as needed

Assessment

• Formative check: teacher listens during Do Now and Whakataukī discussion for respectful, reasoned engagement.
• Formative check: table completion—students correctly separate facts from ethical claims and include evidence from articles.
• Exit ticket: two-perspective summary meets success criteria (accuracy, reasons, key features, respectful tone).

Differentiation

• Support: provide a partially completed Facts and Viewpoints table for one key feature; offer sentence starters and a glossary of key terms from the articles.
• Support for reading: highlight key sentences in one article; allow students to annotate in pairs before writing independently.
• Extension: ask students to add a “tension” statement (e.g., “How does compassion conflict with safeguarding?”) and cite which feature it relates to.
• EAL/SEN: allow responses using shorter sentences, and accept paraphrase as long as key meaning and evidence links are present.

Exit Task Prompt (student-facing)

Summarise two different perspectives on assisted dying. Your summary should include:

• one key feature for each perspective
• one reason for each perspective (using information from the articles)
• accurate, respectful language (no slogans)