human progress lesson

Your Life in Numbers

In this lesson, you’ll learn how these measures have changed during your lifetime and compare your results with people in other countries.

By Sean Kinnard

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Centers of Progress

14-part unit
  • A man, two women, and a little girl talking
    Centers of Progress, Pt. 37: Dubrovnik

    Dubrovnik is a beautiful walled city on the Dalmatian coast of Croatia, once home to one of the freest and most cosmopolitan societies in Europe and one of the first societies to implement comprehensive public health measures to contain disease.

  • Ships on the ocean coastline
    Centers of Progress, Pt. 36: Seville

    Today we know Seville as the sunny capital of the region of Andalusia, but during the century following the Iberian conquest of America, Seville was one of the most important cities in Europe.

  • Two men playing Mesoamerican Ball Game
    Centers of Progress, Pt. 6: Chichen Itza

    In this lesson, you will learn about Chichen Itza—a sprawling ruined city in the Yucatán Peninsula in modern Mexico—and the oldest continuously played ball sport in the world variously called Pok‐​A‐​Tok, Ulama, or simply, the Ball Game.

  • Two women purchasing fish from a man
    Centers of Progress, Pt. 16: Amsterdam

    In this lesson, you’ll learn about how a unique set of cultural values that emphasized openness and tolerance helped lead Amsterdam to the pinnacle of European commercial success during the Dutch Golden Age

  • Two women tending to crops
    Centers of Progress, Pt. 1: Jericho

    Why did our ancestors turn their backs on a nomadic way of life that was thousands of years old? Why did people begin to live in farming communities about 10,000 years ago? This article answers those questions by discussing the history of Jericho—the world’s oldest city and possibly the birthplace of agriculture.

  • A royal man and woman drinking in front of the Taj Mahal
    Centers of Progress, Pt. 35: Agra

    In this lesson, students will learn about the Mughal Empire and its rulers by exploring the theme of monumental architecture. They will also have the opportunity to research other “new wonders of the world” and examine their own beliefs about memorials in contemporary society.

  • Three intellects sitting in an office having a conversation
    Centers of Progress, Pt. 18: Edinburgh

    In this article, Chelsea Follett describes why the small university city of Edinburgh, Scotland, was such an important intellectual center in the Enlightenment.

  • Two men and a teenager looking over a newspaper
    Centers of Progress, Pt. 15: Mainz

    In this lesson, students will learn about the city of Mainz, Germany and the man responsible for Europe’s rapid adoption of the printing press, Johannes Gutenberg.

  • Computer code overlapping people walking in the street
    Your Life in Numbers

    In this lesson, you’ll learn how these measures have changed during your lifetime and compare your results with people in other countries.

  • three women standing in a circle holding a long sheet of paper
    Centers of Progress, Pt. 10: Chang’an

    In this lesson, you’ll learn how the Silk Road greatly expanded the international flow of goods and ideas and how Chang’an both benefited from and contributed to that exchange.

  • An illustration of a woman working on a loom.
    Centers of Progress: Manchester

    In this lesson, you’ll learn about the city of Manchester, England, the first center of textile production in Great Britain as well as how industrialization there helped spark a revolution in living standards over the past 200 years.

  • Clock turning to dust in hand
    Your Life in Numbers: Student Work Document

    Interpret interactive, data‐​driven tools, and compare and contrast international results to make inferences and draw conclusions about changes and improvements over time in the quality of life: locally, regionally, and globally, and more.

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Is life getting better or worse?

— Human​Progress​.org

“Is life getting better or worse?” That is the question posed by the site Your Life in Numbers by Human​Progress​.org

How do you measure progress? One way is by looking at the data: examine average longevity, infant mortality, income, food supply, years of schooling, and level of democracy.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how these measures have changed during your lifetime and compare your results with people in other countries.

Warm‐​Up

Is life getting better or worse? Why do you think so?

Where did your opinion about the state of the world come from? Has it been influenced by the news? By family, friends, teachers, or others?

Make a prediction. Write this sentence: “The average income of a person in __________ (your country) increased/​decreased in the last 15 years.” Fill in the blank and choose one: increased or decreased.

Questions for Reading, Writing, and Discussion

Go to Your Life in Numbers. Read the first section and answer these questions:

  • What does ‘average’ mean? Write the definition in your own words and then check it here.
  • When thinking about people’s lives, what are some of the advantages and disadvantages of looking at averages?
  • Examine the data in the first section. In worldwide terms, how have circumstances changed on the following measures since 1950? Circle either increased or decreased.
    • Average life expectancy: increased/​decreased
    • Average infant mortality: increased/​decreased
    • Income per person: increased/​decreased
    • Food supply per person: increased/​decreased
    • Average years of schooling: increased/​decreased
    • Level of democracy: increased/​decreased
  • Which worldwide development cited in the first section surprised you the most? Which development were you already aware of?

    Complete Step 1: Select Birth Year and Step 2: Select Your Country of Birth
  • On which of the six measures, if any, has life improved on average in your country over your lifetime? Be specific.
  • On which of the six measures, if any, has life gotten worse on average in your country over your lifetime? Be specific.
  • On which of the six measures has there been no change in your country during your lifetime? Be specific.

    Complete Step 3: Select a Country to Compare. Look at the differences and similarities between your country and the other country on the graph. Read the statistics in the table below the graph. (Countries may also be assigned by your teacher)

Extension Activity/​Homework

Option 1: Write an essay in which you address these questions:

  • How has life changed in your country over your lifetime?
  • How do the changes in your country compare to changes in another country of your choice during the same period?
    In your essay, be sure to answer these questions:
  • With which country are you comparing your experience? Name the other country.
  • Answer these questions about that country:
    • On which of the six measures, if any, has life improved on average in that country over your lifetime? Be specific.
    • On which of the six measures, if any, has life gotten worse on average in that country over your lifetime? Be specific.
    • On which of the six measures has there been no change in that country during your lifetime? Be specific.
    • Which institution, norms or principles helped account for the progress, or lack thereof, in the countries you examined?
  • What conclusions can you draw from making these comparisons between your experience and that of a person born in the same year in __________ (name of country)?
  • What surprised you about these results? How have your views of your own country changed? How have your views of the other country changed?
  • What do you think accounts for the differences and similarities between your country and __________ (name of country) over your lifetime?

Option 2: Create a presentation using above essay criteria as a guide and present to class.

Option 3: Create a presentation using essay criteria and make a short video. Post on class discussion board and then view and comment on another classmate’s presentation.