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Real lives

Fact file and photostories introducing two dairy farmers, John Lougher from Wales and Mary Malcolm from Jamaica.

The fact file is a list of brief facts about Wales or Jamaica. Together with the first section of the case study, this forms an introduction to the country concerned, presenting the location and other brief details. The case studies are suitable for pupils to read on line with little additional help. The two quizzes in the Activities section (You're the farmer! and 'Cowsequences') will help to reinforce what they have learned in the case studies. By reading about real people, pupils will perhaps take more of an interest in the global issues which have an impact on their lives.

Each case study is divided into six sections. Within each section, pupils can click on captions, headlines or photos to reveal more detailed information.

1. Welcome to Jamaica/Wales Provides a geographical context and includes a brief introduction, map and fact file for each country.
2. Meet the family Clicking on the photos provides a brief introduction to each family member.
3. Plan of the farm Interactive farm plans, on which pupils can click to reveal more information about animals, crops and other features. They could compare farms in the two countries.
4. Mary's/John's day A photostory which provides an insight into the daily life of each of the families.
5. Problems! Both Jamaican and Welsh farmers are suffering as a result of complex problems. This section identifies them as a set of 'headlines'.
   Pupils are asked to rank the problems as an offline activity and to discuss their answers with a partner. There are no 'right' or 'wrong' answers. The exercise simply aims to stimulate debate and discussion. This could be followed up with whole-class discussion.
6. Solutions? There are no straightforward solutions. Again, students need to look at each in turn and discuss them. Can they propose any other solutions?

The issues

An introduction to global trade – the theory and the practice.

This section is intended for more able pupils, or those studying the issues in greater depth. It provides useful information about the global trading system, the theory on which world trade is supposedly based and the economic reasons why small farmers are at a disadvantage compared with others in society.

The issues is an introduction to these questions. At the bottom of the page, there are links to two more detailed sub-sections, The agricultural problem and Free trade. These are not listed on the homepage of the resource, in order to discourage pupils from visiting them before they read the more accessible sections of the resource.

Teachers may wish to encourage pupils to discuss the ideas or they may simply use this text as a reference source.

The agricultural problem

An explanation of the economic theory which explains why farmers are poorer than those who produce manufactured goods. This section and Free trade are set out as questions and answers, and they contain diagrams to illustrate the points made.

Most of the poorer nations in the world depend on agriculture. The agricultural problem explains why processed food, manufactured goods and services are more profitable than food. In the current world trade system, dependence on agriculture is a kind of poverty trap, and developing countries are prevented by trade rules, debt, lack of infrastructure and high tariffs on processed goods from exporting more profitable goods, and thereby from trading their way out of poverty.

The agricultural problem affects farmers in richer countries to a certain extent, but they are largely protected from its effects by subsidies.

Free trade

An outline of the economic theory underlying today's trading system.

Like the agricultural problem, the free-trade section is set out as a series of questions and answers. It is intended to explain what free trade is, and why the theory does not match the practice – trade has never been free.

Below are statements suitable for discussion or class debate.

• Countries should be allowed to take any measures necessary to protect their markets.


• Trade should not be hampered by rules and regulations.


• Poorer countries should be given more protection than richer countries. (For example, they should be allowed to impose tariffs on certain imported goods.) That way, everyone competes on a level playing field.


• International trade is a bad thing.

International organisations

Information about three of the key players controlling and influencing international trade: the European Union, the World Trade Organisation and the International Monetary Fund.

This section consists of a brief introduction, followed by more details of the organisations above. For each organisation, there is a short historical overview, a list of advantages and disadvantages, and an interactive diagram of the structure of the organisation. The section is meant to stimulate pupils to think about international democracy. More able pupils may consider the ways in which large organisations take decisions (majority vote, consensus etc.). Some pupils may reach the stage where they can propose solutions themselves. What sort of international organisations should there be in today's world? Who should vote on decisions? What relationship should these organisations have to citizens / governments?

The content is designed to be differentiated. Pupils with limited time or lower ability levels could simply discuss the 'advantages and disadvantages' table. Extension activities could include using the interactive diagrams to reveal the more advanced text beneath, in order to read in more detail about how decisions are taken in these organisations. The 'Decisions, decisions...' box is intended to stimulate discussion.

For teachers with more time to spend on this section, there are other possibilities. Pupils can write to people in these organisations, or find out more about them and their decisions. There are instructions for writing to your MEP in the Take action! section.

You're the farmer

An interactive quiz which gives pupils the chance to test their knowledge about life as a small farmer. Incorrect answers lead to links back to the Real lives case studies to enable pupils to check for information.

'Cowsequences'

An online game designed to help pupils learn about the unpredictable nature of farming in both Wales and Jamaica. They can also make comparisons which will highlight injustices in the global trading system.

News and views

Online activity simulating a 'summit on world trade' which brings together delegates with differing perspectives. Clicking on each delegate will reveal extended text. Pupils act as reporters for the Daily News and write an article or opinion piece.

This section gives pupils the chance to compare a variety of views, analyse them, and, if appropriate, give their own views. There is a newspaper template which pupils can use to do a piece of writing on this.

A list of suggestions of the various ways in which pupils can take action, and make their views on international trade heard.

These include organising events, designing posters, doing research and writing to MPs and MEPs.

Twenty-five words throughout the site are linked to a glossary page which provides a full definition. Words and terms explained include CAP, tariff and quota.

All pages within Milking It are printable, although some background colours will not be shown. Some computers have their default margins too narrow to print out the complete page. If this is the case you can change your margin settings by doing the following:

At the top of your Internet window, go into the File menu and select the Page set-up option. Check to make sure that you have A4 selected. Reset your left and right margins to around 0.4 cm.

Alternatively, you can use the PDF versions on certain pages if you have Adobe Acrobat reader installed on your computer.