8th Grade - Gateway 3
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Usability
Gateway 3 - Partially Meets Expectations | 76% |
|---|---|
Criterion 3.1: Teacher Supports | 8 / 9 |
Criterion 3.2: Assessment | 8 / 10 |
Criterion 3.3: Student Supports | 3 / 6 |
Criterion 3.4: Intentional Design |
The grade 8 materials do not meet expectations for usability. Materials include guidance to assist teachers in presenting the student and ancillary materials, providing sufficient and useful annotations and suggestions within the context of specific learning objectives. While the materials include this general teacher guidance, they only provide limited adult-level explanations and examples of the more complex grade-level concepts that the teachers can improve their own knowledge of the subject; however, they do not contain adult-level explanations and examples of concepts beyond the current course. The Teacher Tools includes explanations of the instructional approaches for the program, including references to the research behind them and bibliographic credits connected to the research.
The materials include correlation information for the ELA standards addressed throughout the grade level in both regular content and assessments. There are various types of assessments in the program, including unit content assessments, formative and summative assessments. While an answer key is provided for all assessments, there is insufficient guidance for interpreting student performance beyond the answer key. The materials do not offer accommodations for the assessments.
Materials include general support throughout the program for all students; however, the materials do not share specifically which supports would benefit or target specific special populations. In addition, there are opportunities provided for grouping students. Still, the groupings do not vary in type and take place at the same part of each lesson, as the variation of the structure in lessons is limited.
The program does not include digital technology or interactive tools for students to interact with. Although the teacher materials are presented in a digital manner, student materials are printed materials. Because the materials for students are printed, teacher guidance on incorporating technology is limited.
Criterion 3.1: Teacher Supports
The program includes opportunities for teachers to effectively plan and utilize materials with integrity and to further develop their own understanding of the content.
The grade 8 materials include guidance to assist teachers in presenting the student and ancillary materials, providing sufficient and useful annotations and suggestions within the context of specific learning objectives. While the materials include this general teacher guidance, they only provide limited adult-level explanations and examples of the more complex grade-level concepts that the teachers can improve their own knowledge of the subject; however, they do not contain adult-level explanations and examples of concepts beyond the current course. The Teacher Tools includes explanations of the instructional approaches for the program, including references to the research behind them and bibliographic credits connected to the research.
The materials also include correlation information for the ELA standards addressed throughout the grade level. The Unit Prep section contains a list of the standards covered in each unit and in each lesson for teacher use. Materials and lessons provide a list of texts needed for the unit. In every unit folder, the materials provide student handouts for all instructional activities.
The materials do not include provisions for informing parents, students, or caregivers about the ELA program. The materials include a suggestion to inform parents about sensitive content in the unit; however, there is no letter template provided.
Indicator 3a
Materials provide teacher guidance with useful annotations and suggestions for how to enact the student materials and ancillary materials to support students' literacy development.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for Indicator 3a.
The materials include guidance to assist teachers in presenting the student and ancillary materials, providing sufficient and useful annotations and suggestions within the context of specific learning objectives. In each unit, links in the Enhanced Lesson Plan allow teachers to download student materials for use in the lessons. These materials include a vocabulary package and the option to turn the Key Questions, Target Task, and Exit Ticket into student handouts. The Enhanced Lesson Plan also includes specific suggestions for how to incorporate materials within the lesson plan, including explanations for use, directions for how to frame and utilize supports, reminders, sentence stems, and key places to stop in texts for all sections of the lesson. These key stopping points include the Comprehension Review and Vocabulary, the Close Read, the Target Task, and the Class Discussion sections. Each lesson contains one or more Objectives for students to meet and a list of core and supporting Common Core Standards covered in the lesson.
Materials provide comprehensive guidance that will assist teachers in presenting the student and ancillary materials. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
Materials include a Unit Summary with explanations of how the anchor text was selected and how the supplemental texts support the anchor text and themes in the unit. Each modules includes a Unit Launch to help the teacher understand the unit. The Unit Launch includes five steps: Introduction, Understanding the Text, Unit Essential Content, Key Reading Standards, and Key Writing Standards.
The lessons offer guidance for teachers to support all students by Building Background and Accessing Prior Knowledge, and guidance is available consistently around the Target Tasks across the grade level. An example of additional support is when the materials offer Sentence stems and Scaffolding Questions for teachers to utilize when following the Close Read procedures.
Each non-writing lesson includes a Comprehension and Vocabulary review at the onset of the lesson. This section includes specific teacher guidance on how to introduce vocabulary words, including the use of word walls, vocabulary logs, and vocabulary cards. Students review key vocabulary from the previous lesson. Materials provide links to specific strategies to teach vocabulary words. Materials also differentiate words into content-specific academic categories and provide guidance explaining the difference to students and the teaching of each. The Unit Summary includes a comprehensive list of the vocabulary for the unit, including part of speech and definition.
In the Unit Launch, Understanding the Text, the goal is to “build [teachers] understanding of how students might experience the unit text(s) based on these interconnected aspects of text complexity.” For example, Unit 2 includes the following subsections with descriptions, examples specific to the unit, and reflection questions for the teacher:
What Makes the Text Complex
Understanding the Supplemental Texts
Your Students and These Texts
Reflections on the Author
Materials include sufficient and useful annotations and suggestions that are presented within the context of the specific learning objectives. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In Unit 1, Facing Prejudice: All American Boys, Lesson 17, the materials offer guidance for Supporting All Students in the form of a Close Read Procedure and include specific Key Moments to Analyze, connecting to the text, All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely: “‘This is a roll call! Sean Bell!’ Then she followed with, ‘Absent again today! Oscar Grant! Absent again today! Rekia Boyd! Absent again today!’ (p. 308).” There are Scaffolding Questions available to support students in providing specific evidence from the text to explain the impact of the use of repetition, such as “Whose names are they reading? What does ‘absent’ mean in this context, and how is it different from when they said that Rashad was ‘absent’?”
In Unit 2, Encountering Evil: Night, Lesson 4, students read the play, The Diary of Anne Frank by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett. Materials contain a Key Understandings section that includes Skills and Strategies and Knowledge that will be gained in the lesson. Each section of the lesson includes directions on how to present the content. For example, in the Target Task section, teacher guidance is as follows: “Explain to students: ‘Direct address’ is a dramatic device in which a character appears to speak directly to the audience. In this play, direct address is done as a ‘monologue.’ A monologue is when a character gives a speech or otherwise speaks for an extended period of time without interruption. This is in contrast to ‘dialogue,’ where two or more characters speak to one another. With students, reread Anne’s monologue that begins halfway down page 26 and ends at the top of page 27. Make sure that students read the stage direction before the direct address begins so that they understand that this is done while Anne is sitting at her desk, writing in her diary. Have students reread the passages where the playwrights have used direct address monologues: pages 30 and 39. Then, give students approximately ten minutes to independently answer the Target Task question. Circulate to gauge student understanding. Consider a Show Call. Provide two examples: one that almost meets expectations and one that meets expectations. Have students assess the quality of the example or provide batch feedback based on observations and have students revise their work based on that feedback.” Additionally, directions for the teacher include having students reread Anne’s monologue, “making sure students read the stage directions” so that they understand a key point of the text, giving students time to independently answer the Target Task question and then referring them back to their editing checklist, and also considering a show call as an example of how to give and receive feedback on answers. Scaffolding questions, key moments to analyze, language supports in the form of sentence stems, and opportunities for enrichment are also included as options for the teacher to draw on.
In Unit 4, Surviving Repression: Persepolis, Lesson 10, the Comprehension Review and Vocabulary section provides the following review question for teachers to pose to students: “Do the people of Iran think that their future is bleak at this point in the text? Explain your thinking.” Bleak is introduced as a vocabulary work through direct instruction in Lesson 9. A second question provides a guided question for reviewing the vocabulary word tumultuous taught in Lesson 1: “Rick Steves, whose video we watched in the first lesson, describes Iran’s history as ‘tumultuous.’ What events have we learned about so far that support this idea?” Within the same lesson, teachers are provided a link to specific guidance on explicit instruction of vocabulary to teach the word clandestine.
Indicator 3b
Materials contain adult-level explanations and examples of the more complex grade-level/course-level concepts and concepts beyond the current course so that teachers can improve their own knowledge of the subject.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 partially meet the criteria for Indicator 3b.
The materials contain limited adult-level explanations and examples of the more complex grade-level concepts that the teachers can improve their own knowledge of the subject; however, they do not contain adult-level explanations and examples of concepts beyond the current course. Each unit provides a Unit Prep section with Notes for Teachers that include some additional contextual background; however, it does not provide support in teaching grade-level concepts within the lesson plans. Explanations are included in the Teacher Tools of different aspects of the curriculum and teaching techniques or different strategies related to the knowledge demands of each unit. Still, they are not lesson- or text-specific. The explanations of the concepts are specific to the approaches taken by the materials and do not provide any additional opportunity for teachers to expand their understanding of a concept within the curriculum. Occasionally, teachers are directed to do their own research to understand information for a unit.
Materials contain limited adult-level explanations and examples of more complex grade/course-level concepts so that teachers can improve their own knowledge of the subject. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In Teacher Tools, multiple sections present specific information on how to prepare the unit, internalize a unit, and understand the different components of an ELA lesson.
In the Teacher Tools, Writing, there are specific full-length explanations of Learning to Write and Writing to Learn.
In the Teacher Tools, Supporting English Learners, there are explanations of Intellectually Preparing a Unit, Intellectually Preparing a Lesson, Scaffolds for English Learners, Engineering Texts, Oral Language Protocols, and Using Graphic Organizers as Scaffolds.
In the Teacher Tools, Progress Monitoring and Assessment, there are explanations of Categories to Progress Monitor and Types of Assessment for Progress Monitoring, including Formative Assessments and Summative Assessments.
In the Vocabulary section of the Teacher Tools, there is an explanation of how the vocabulary is built into the units and an explanation of how students build vocabulary through interacting with Tier II and Tier III words. There is then an in-depth explanation of how to teach the words within the text. There are no specific examples or modeling provided. There is further instruction for teachers on how to teach vocabulary through both an implicit and explicit approach with guidelines and strategies but no specific examples or modeling.
In the Teacher Tools, Providing Access to Complex Texts section, there are detailed explanations of what makes a text complex and how to provide access and support for more complex texts being used by students.
In the Teacher Tools, Routines for Active Reading, there is an explanation of what active reading is and then more in-depth explanations of various forms of active reading, including Interactive Read Aloud, Shared Reading, Partner Reading, Small Group Reading, and Independent Reading.
In the Unit Launch section of the curriculum, materials provide the teacher with an opportunity to internalize the essential questions of the unit. The teacher has opportunities to explore the questions as well as sample answers to the questions. In the section “Considering Who and Where You Are,” the teacher has an opportunity to reflect on biases or gaps in knowledge that might impact the teaching of the unit.
Materials contain limited adult-level explanations and examples of concepts beyond the current course so that teachers can improve their own knowledge of the subject. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In Unit 5, Facing Prejudice: All American Boys, Unit Summary, Notes for Teachers, the teacher is provided with additional resources to build background and engagement on the topic of racial injustice. The following note is included: “This unit is built on these premises: (a) your students are already aware of the conversation around racial justice/injustice taking place in our country; and (b) it is essential that students—regardless of their racial background—are having discussions about race and racial justice in their schools. A number of resources are listed below that provide guidance around having conversations about race with students.” Multiple articles are included for teachers to read as a starting point, including “How Should I Talk About Race in my Mostly White Classroom?” by ADL, “Uncomfortable Conversations: Talking About Race in the Classroom” by Elissa Nadworny (NPR), and “Facing Race” by Leah Shafer (Harvard Graduate School of Education.”
Indicator 3c
Materials include standards correlation information that explains the role of the standards in the context of the overall series.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for Indicator 3c.
The materials include correlation information for the ELA standards addressed throughout the grade level. The Unit Prep section contains a list of the standards covered in each unit and in each lesson.
Correlation information is present for the ELA standards addressed throughout the grade level/series. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
For each unit, the Lesson Map table includes a list of addressed standards. At the beginning of each unit in the Unit Prep, there is also a section titled Common Core Standards, where the core and supporting standards are listed.
The end of each lesson in every unit includes a list of Common Core Standards and Supporting Standards, which are defined as “Standards that are practiced daily but are not priority standards for the unit.” All are hyperlinked to a pop-up window with the full text of the standard.
In Unit 2, Encountering Evil: Night, Lesson 11, materials list Common Core Standards L.8.6, W.8.4, W.8.10, W.8.5, W.8.2.d, W.8.6, W.8.2.e, W.8.2.f.
Explanations of the role of the specific grade-level/course-level ELA standards are present in the context of the series. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In the Unit Launch section of the curriculum, materials provide an explanation for the key reading and writing standards. The teacher works through unpacking the essential standards by answering questions concerning the standard and how it connects to the unit. Questions include: “Why is this standard important for understanding the key ideas and themes of this unit’s core text(s)? What are students likely to notice and learn as they build proficiency with the standard?” Once the teacher enters a response, they are given the opportunity to view the publisher’s answer. The next step is to “Apply the Standard.” In this section, the teacher is provided with a set of tasks that are included in the unit and answers the question, “Reflect on how understanding this standard helps students better analyze the section of text and correctly answer the task.” In Step 3, “Define Mastery,” the teacher reflects on the skills that students must develop to answer the target tasks successfully. Each step in this internalization of the unit has publisher exemplar responses to help deepen understanding.
The Unit Launch for each unit includes a section entitled Unit Essential Content. Guidance notes, “The goal of this section is for you to review and fully understand the key content knowledge of a unit prior to teaching. Doing this work prior to teaching the unit will help you endure that students internalize the key content knowledge by the end of the unit.”
In the Unit Essential Content section, materials describe Key Reading Standards: “For each unit, we have identified the key reading standards of the unit. These key standards are among the most important in helping students understand this unit’s texts. These standards represent a subset of the reading standards covered in the unit and work in conjunction with the other standards noted at the unit level. For each standard, you will reflect on why the standard is particularly useful for making meaning of the unit’s core and supplemental texts. You will apply the standard to specific Target Tasks from this unit and analyze how the standard helps students better analyze the section of text and correctly complete the task. Finally, you will reflect on what students will ultimately need to know and be able to do to demonstrate mastery of this standard. This work will help you ensure that students are interacting with the texts and tasks at the right level of rigor and depth.” For each standard, teacher guidance includes the following prompts and materials provide a mastery response after submission:
Step 1: Unpack the Standard
Read and analyze the language of this key reading standard.
Considering the language of the standard above, answer the questions below and record your thoughts in the provided fields or in the provided note template:
Why is this standard important for understanding the key ideas and themes of this unit’s core text(s)?
What are students likely to notice and learn as they build proficiency with the standard?
Teachers can then check their answers by expanding the “View Our Response” section in which they are provided with the curriculum writers’ rationale as to the importance of this standard and what students are likely to notice and learn as they build proficiency with the standard.
Step 2: Apply the Standard
Below are a set of tasks from this unit that require students to have a strong understanding of this key standard in order to answer each question correctly. Read each task, the appropriate section of the text, and our sample response. Then, reflect on how understanding this standard helps students better analyze the section of text and correctly answer the task.
After the task, a reflection question is provided.
Consider the question below and record your thoughts in the provided fields or in the provided note template:
How does applying this key standard help students better understand this section of text and correctly answer this Target Task?
Teachers can then check their answers by expanding the “View Our Response” section in which they are provided with the curriculum writers’ rationale on how this key standard helps students better understand this section of text and correctly answer this Target Task.
In the Unit Essential Content section, Key Writing Standards are described.“In this section, you will explore the key writing standards of this unit and what mastery of these standards looks like in the context of the unit. These standards represent a subset of writing standards covered in the unit and were selected because they are among the most important in helping students write in response to the text(s). First, you will closely read the language of the standards in tandem with the unit’s culminating writing task. Then, you will examine an exemplar response to the task and reflect on how the standards help students proficiently complete the writing task.”
Step 1: Unpack the standards
First, read and analyze the language of the key writing standards.
What are key understandings of these standards? What do they ask students to know and be able to do?
Step 2: Apply the Standards
Now, read this unit’s culminating writing task, followed by our example of an exemplar response. While reading the exemplar, notice and annotate for evidence of the standards.
Use the following questions to guide your annotations:
How does this exemplar show mastery of the standards?
What do students need to know and understand in order to complete the writing task?
Indicator 3d
Materials provide strategies for informing all stakeholders, including students, parents, or caregivers about the program and suggestions for how they can help support student progress and achievement.
Indicator 3e
Materials provide explanations of the instructional approaches of the program and identification of the research-based strategies.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for Indicator 3e.
The materials explain the instructional approaches of the program and include an annotated bibliography that references the research-based strategies. The Teacher Tools includes explanations of the instructional approaches for the program, including references to the research behind them and bibliographic credits connected to the research. Materials provide a concise explanation of each ELA component and explain how the program is designed to teach the components to accomplish the stated goals. The Our Approach section emphasizes the flexibility of the program and its focus on being culturally relevant.
Materials explain the instructional approaches of the program. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In the Our Approach section, the materials explain the approach taken in general terms, including a focus on texts over skills, criteria for content selection, the foci for writing instruction, and approaches to discussion and word knowledge.
In Teacher Tools, materials provide an explanation of how the materials approach each ELA component:
In Writing, Approach to Language and Grammar Instruction, the explanation states: “Language and writing instruction are embedded within all Fishtank ELA units from K-12. Language instruction is a powerful tool to help students understand the decisions authors make and how they impact the effect their writing has on readers. Learning grammar and mechanics is about studying the intentional decisions authors make, noticing the power of different punctuation, sentence structures, and craft choices, and then trying out those strategies in their own writing. When learning different grammatical structures, students zoom in on sentences to notice the connection between mechanics, craft, style, and meaning. Language instruction isn’t separate from reading instruction because the connection between language and the author’s craft is integral. Because language instruction is so deeply connected to reading instruction, it should not be taught in isolation. And as far back as 1936, the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) found that formal teaching of grammar and mechanics had little effect on students’ writing and even had deleterious effects on student writing when it displaced writing time. Instead, language instruction should be organically embedded into all aspects of reading and writing so that students can authentically grapple with and understand how different structures impact meaning.”
In Reading Structures and Routines, the explanation states that the goal of the curriculum is to build independent and strategic learners. The approach is explained as providing students with multiple opportunities to interact with a wide variety of texts independently, with the goal of having students read the core texts independently with little support.
In Vocabulary, the explanation states: “Vocabulary development is intentionally built within all Fishtank ELA units. Within units, students build their academic vocabulary by learning and interacting with Tier II and Tier III vocabulary words that are essential for unlocking the meaning of the text, task, or topic. Throughout the unit, students have multiple opportunities to engage with words orally or in writing. Depending on the word, vocabulary words are taught both directly or indirectly. Fishtank ELA does not rely on a single vocabulary instructional method; rather, instruction happens strategically within units so that students learn vocabulary indirectly and unconsciously through daily reading, writing, listening, and speaking routines.”
In Writing, the explanation states: “Fishtank ELA includes opportunities for students to both learn to write and write to learn. Students will be immersed in reading, writing, discourse, and idea-generation cycles in each unit. There is no separate writing block and no separate writing curriculum; all writing instruction is embedded directly into lessons and units. Through embedded on-demand and process-writing assignments, students build powerful, evidence-based arguments and develop their voices in various genres. Because students need solid knowledge and understanding of a subject matter to write, all Fishtank ELA writing assignments are connected to a core text or ask students to write about content knowledge from the unit, ensuring that all students have equal access to the assignment.”
In the Fishtank guiding principles, materials provide the following information: “In Literature units from Kindergarten through 8th grade, students read texts that explore themes applicable to their lives while also building knowledge of historical events and time periods. Most of the literature units focus on developing identity, diversity, justice, and activism, which are key components of Learning for Justice’s Social Justice Standards. The content of all of our K–8 units, both Literature and Science & Social Studies, aim to provide students with windows and mirrors to ensure students see their own identities, experiences, and motivations in texts (mirrors) alongside texts that allow students to gain insight and build empathy for the identities, experiences, and motivations of others (windows) (Style, 1996). And, wherever possible, our units aim to engage students in discussions of current events. We also frequently update our units to incorporate articles and discussion topics that reflect current issues in the world around them.”
The Fishtank guiding principles also include the following reference: “Rather than organizing lessons around specific skills (e.g., how to find the main idea) and teaching these skills in isolation, we organize our curriculum around carefully-selected texts that will engage students and facilitate deep thinking and strategy development. The text, and the demands of the text, drive the focus of a particular unit or lesson. Text-dependent questions in each lesson are sequenced in order to build a deeper understanding of the key ideas and themes presented by the text. Units across the curriculum require students to read a combination of longer texts to build stamina and engage in discussions about the full text, as well as close readings of specific passages or excerpts. Text-dependent questions and close readings push students to pay close attention to the author’s craft and text structure, word choice, and challenging vocabulary and syntax (Coleman and Pimentel, 2012). All grade-level Common Core Standards are carefully woven into the units and lessons, introduced and reinforced through text-dependent questions and close reading moments, and work in service of deep understanding of the text.”
Materials include and reference research-based strategies. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In Teacher Tools, Writing, bibliographic references to multiple sources used in the development of their program include:
Reading Reconsidered: a practical guide to rigorous literacy instruction by Doug Lemov
Writing Next: Effective Strategies to Improve Writing of Adolescents in Middle and High Schools: A Report to Carnegie Corporation of New York by Steve Graham and Dolores Perin
Writing for Understanding: Using Backwards design to help all students write effectively by J. Hawkins, E. Ginty, K. LeClaire Kurzman, D. Leddy, and J. Miller
The Writing Revolution: A Guide to Advancing Thinking Through Writing in All Subjects and Grades by Judith C. Hochman and Natalie Wexler
In Teacher Tools, Academic Discourse, bibliographic references to multiple research sources in the development of their program include:
Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain: Prompting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students by Z. Hammond
Reading Reconsidered: a practical guide to rigorous literacy instruction by Doug Lemov
Academic Conversations: Classroom Talk that Fosters Critical Thinking and Content Understandings, by J. Zwiers and M. Crawford
Common Core Standards in Diverse Classrooms: Essential Practices for Developing Academic Language and Disciplinary Literacy by J. Zwiers, S. O’Hara, and R. Pritchard
In Teacher Tools, Text Selection, bibliographic references to multiple research sources used in the development of the program include:
Revised Publishers’ Criteria for the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts and Literacy, Grades 3–12 by D. Coleman and S. Pimentel
“Toward a Theory of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy,” by Gloria Ladson-Billings
Why Knowledge Matters by E.D. Hirsch, Jr.
Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework and Historically Responsive Literary, Gholdy Muhammad, and “Curriculum as Window and Mirror” by Emily Style
In Teacher Tools, Reading Structures and Routines: Close Reading, bibliographic references to multiple research sources used in the development of the program include:
Notice & Note: Strategies for Close Reading by K. Beers and R.E. Probst
Text-Dependent Questions, Grades K-5: Pathways to Close and Critical Reading by D. Fischer and N. Frey
Close Reading: Lessons for Analyzing Texts--and Life by C. Lehman and K. Roberts
In Teacher Tools, Supporting English Learners: Scaffolds for English Learners, bibliographic references to multiple research sources used in the development of the program include “Essential Actions: A Handbook for Implementing WIDA’s Framework for English Language Development Standards” by Margo Gottlieb.
In Teacher Tools, Vocabulary, bibliographic references to multiple research sources used in the development of the program include Bringing Words to Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction by Isabel Beck and Common Core Appendix A.
In Teacher Tools, the explanations of the Match Fishtank approach to writing, vocabulary development, and language and grammar instruction are followed by “resources referenced in the development of” each section.
Additional reference sections include Qualitative Complexity of Fiction Texts, Providing Supports for Text Complexity, How Texts are Selected in the Teacher Tools, Academic Discourse, Close Reading, and Foundational Skills.
The Foundational Skills section and its subsections entitled Teaching Reading Fluency and Assessing Reading Fluency, as well as the subsections of Academic Discourse entitled Types of Academic Discourse and Tiers of Academic Discourse, the Subsections of Supporting English Learners entitled Scaffolds for English Learners and Oral Language Protocols, and the subsection of Progress Monitoring and Assessment entitled Formative Assessments include embedded footnotes with references.
Indicator 3f
Materials provide a comprehensive list of supplies needed to support instructional activities.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for Indicator 3f.
The materials and lessons provide a list of texts needed for the unit. In every unit folder, the materials provide student handouts for all instructional activities.
Materials provide a comprehensive list of supplies needed to support instructional activities. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
Each unit plan contains a list of the texts being read throughout the unit with hyperlinks to the texts (either for reading or for purchase).
Each lesson folder contains all the handouts students will need for the lesson.
For example, for Unit 1, lesson 1, the lesson folder contains separate student handouts for the key questions and target task.
Indicator 3g
This is not an assessed indicator in ELA.
Indicator 3h
This is not an assessed indicator in ELA.
Criterion 3.2: Assessment
The program includes a system of assessments identifying how materials provide tools, guidance, and support for teachers to collect, interpret, and act on data about student progress towards the standards.
The grade 8 materials include assessments that measure the expectations of the standards regarding rigor and depth. The program includes unit content assessments that contain a variety of item types, including short and long-constructed responses, text-based discussions, written reflections, and essays. Each unit also includes standards-based formative and summative assessments.
The materials provide an answer key for each assessment in the program with the corresponding assessed standards. While an answer key is provided, there is insufficient guidance for interpreting student performance beyond the answer key provided. In addition, the materials do not offer accommodations for the assessments.
Indicator 3i
Assessment information is included in the materials to indicate which standards are assessed.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for Indicator 3i.
The materials include Content Assessments that cover the standards and practices for the grade level. Each assessment includes a teacher answer key which lists the standards the assessment addresses.
Materials consistently identify the standards and practices assessed for formal assessments. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
Each unit contains an assessment that addresses the content covered during the unit. The answer key document includes a table that contains an answer key and the standards that each assessment question addresses.
Indicator 3j
Assessment system provides multiple opportunities throughout the grade, course, and/or series to determine students' learning and sufficient guidance to teachers for interpreting student performance and suggestions for follow-up.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 partially meet the criteria for Indicator 3j.
The materials include limited opportunities to determine students’ learning and insufficient guidance for interpreting student performance beyond the answer key provided. Most support occurs through a series of protocols and questions that teachers can use to respond to student data.
Assessment system provides multiple opportunities to determine students' learning and some guidance to teachers for interpreting student performance. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
Each unit contains one formal assessment that covers the content of the unit.
In the Teacher Tools, the Progress Monitoring and Assessments section includes a data analysis protocol. Materials provide probing questions for teachers to use to assist in discussing the assessment. Categories covered in this protocol include the Teacher Preparation Unit, Teacher Preparation Lessons, and Lesson Execution.
In the Teacher Tools, the Summative Assessments section contains the Data Meeting Protocol Guide, which includes a step-by-step process on how to conduct a Data Meeting. The guide has two parts. Part 1 explains how to use data to identify strengths and growth areas; Part 2 explains how to use data to reflect and plan next steps.
Assessment system provides multiple opportunities to determine students’ learning and no suggestions to teachers for following up with students. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In the Teacher Tools, Progress Monitoring and Assessment, the Formative Assessment section provides several frameworks that teachers can use to monitor and respond to various types of student work.
In the Teacher Tools, Progress Monitoring and Assessment, the Summative Assessment section provides a data meeting protocol that teachers can follow to identify instructional next steps.
While the Teacher Tools in the program provide a framework for teachers to use, materials do not include clear, codified suggestions for certain student misunderstandings.
Indicator 3k
Assessments include opportunities for students to demonstrate the full intent of grade-level/course-level standards and shifts across the series.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 meet the criteria for Indicator 3k.
The materials include assessments that measure the expectations of the standards regarding rigor and depth. The materials include unit Content Assessments that contain a variety of item types, including short- and long-constructed responses, text-based discussion, written reflection, and essays. Each unit includes standards-based formative and summative assessments. Summative assessments include standards-based constructed responses aligned to culminating discussions, presentations, or on-demand writing. Each unit includes instruction and assessment opportunities aligned to anchor writing standards. Students write essays to inform or to express a claim, or they write narratives. When used as a summative assessment, students complete these on-demand writing tasks independently.
Assessments include opportunities for students to demonstrate the full intent of grade-level/course-level standards and shifts across the series. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In Unit 2, Encountering Evil: Night, Lesson 24, the Content Assessment requires students to cold read a passage and answer multiple choice questions, including determining what the plot reveals about a character, how the text reveals the speaker’s perspective and the theme developed in the short story. Another question requires students to identify if sentences are written in active or passive voice. An additional task requires students to write an answer the prompt about how Nazis dehumanized Jewish prisoners in concentration camps.
In Unit 4, Surviving Repression: Persepolis, Lesson 23, the Content Assessment requires students to cold read a passage and answer questions, including how images work to communicate the meaning of the text. Another section requires students to determine what aspects of a character are revealed by the passage. Another task requires students to define words based on context. An additional section requires students to write about the key idea of the passage.
Examples of formative assessments include:
In Unit 1, Facing Prejudice: All American Boys, Lesson 12, students answer: “Explain the ways that characters’ lives are shaped by race and racism in All American Boys.”
In Unit 3, Abusing Power: Animal Farm and Wicked History, Lesson 3, students answer: “Identify the events, ideas, and social conditions that led to the Russian Revolution, and explain Stalin’s role in the establishment of a new communist society and government.”
In Unit 5, Facing Calamity: Climate Change Facts and Fictions, Lesson 5, students respond to the Target Task question: “What tone does Jetñil-Kijiner develop in lines 60 through 88? Select at least three words and phrases that help develop tone and explain how this tone reinforces the overall message of her poem.”
Examples of summative assessments include:
In Unit 1, Facing Prejudice: All American Boys, Lesson 21, students participate in a Socratic Seminar answering the following questions: “Who changes more over the course of the text: Quinn or Rashad? Are Quinn and Rashad equally responsible for standing up against injustice? How does race influence the way that people see others? How does this shape behavior? Do people have a responsibility to stand up when they see injustice occur? Is this true in all circumstances? Does protest divide or unite us? How does gender influence the movement for racial justice? What can individuals do to fight racism and stand up for racial justice? What is the relationship between race and fear in this country?”
In Unit 3, Abusing Power: Animal Farm and Wicked History, Lesson 28, students complete the end-of-unit Content Assessment (L.8.6, L.8.1, RL.8.3, RI.8.1, RI.8.2, W.8.1, L.8.2, RL.8.6, RL.8.4, RL.8.2, RI.8.6, W.8.2).
In Unit 5, Facing Calamity: Climate Change Facts and Fictions, Lesson 20, students complete the end-of-unit Content Assessment (L.8.6, L.8.2, RI.8.1, RI.8.5, RI.8.8, RI.8.9, RI.8.6, RL.8.4, RL.8.2, W.8.1).
Indicator 3l
Assessments offer accommodations that allow students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills without changing the content of the assessment.
Criterion 3.3: Student Supports
The program includes materials designed for each student’s regular and active participation in grade-level/grade-band/series content.
The grade 8 materials include general supports throughout the program for all students; however, the materials do not share specifically which supports would benefit or target specific special populations. While the materials include suggestions on how materials can be scaffolded for multi-lingual learners or for students who read, write, and/or speak in a language other than English, these suggestions are general and leave the implementation and development of these scaffolds to the teacher. The materials do include some opportunities for students to engage with literacy content and concepts at greater depth for students who read, write, speak, and/or listen above grade level; however, many of these opportunities require students to complete more assignments than their classmates.
Throughout the program, there is limited variation in structure. Students have many opportunities during lessons to express their understanding and respond to literature, but the opportunities are not varied. In addition, there are opportunities provided for grouping students, but the groupings do not vary in type and take place at the same part of each lesson.
The materials include characters from different genders, races, ethnicities, and with other physical characteristics in the texts.
Indicator 3m
Materials provide strategies and supports for students in special populations to work with grade-level content and to meet or exceed grade-level standards that will support their regular and active participation in learning English language arts and literacy.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 partially meet the criteria for Indicator 3m.
The materials include general supports throughout the program for all students; however, the materials do not share specifically which supports would benefit or target specific special populations. Materials include instances that provide opportunities for enrichment which “can be used with advanced students or students who have demonstrated readiness for enrichment as a way of exploring texts, topics, and more complex concepts in depth.” The Additional Supports section should assist students when working with grade-level content to meet or exceed grade-level standards that will support their regular and active participation in learning English language arts and literacy; however, teachers will need to determine which supports to utilize specifically for special populations.
Materials provide limited strategies, supports, and resources for students in special populations to support their regular and active participation in grade-level literacy work. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
The Unit Summary consistently provides a general statement: “In order to ensure that all students are able to access the texts and tasks in this unit, it is incredibly important to intellectually prepare to teach the unit prior to launching the unit. Use the intellectual preparation protocol and the Unit Launch to determine which support students will need. To learn more, visit the Supporting all Students teacher tool.”
In Unit 2, Encountering Evil: Night, Lesson 3, students answer the questions, “What does the incident with Peter’s shoes reveal about Anne? What does it reveal about Peter? What does it reveal about their relationship? Provide evidence from pages 18-19 to support your answer.” The Supporting All Students section identifies supports while Running the Close Read, such as Scaffolding Questions: “Why does Anne take Peter’s shoes? How does Peter respond to this? What is Anne’s tone in this scene? Read their conversation on page 18: Can it be interpreted as Peter being playful? Can it be interpreted as Peter being truly frustrated?”
In Unit 5, Facing Calamity: Climate Change Facts and Fictions, the materials provide a Supporting All Students section that includes a question mark icon that populates the following guidance when clicked: “These supports can be used to help Multi-Lingual Learners and students with learning differences access the demands of the text or the task. See Supporting All Students with Fishtank ELA for more guidance.” An example of general support includes Sentence frame(s) to assist with the task of identifying claims made in an informational article and assessing the relevance and sufficiency of evidence provided to support those claims in the text “As Rising Heat Bakes US Cities, The Poor Often Feel It Most” by Meg Anderson and Sean McMinn: “The writers of this article make the claim that low-income areas ________________. They support their claim with _____________________, which demonstrates _______________________. This evidence they provide [is/is not] sufficient because ___________________. It [is/is not] relevant because _________________.” The supports do not provide additional guidance for teachers to make decisions.
The Supporting All Students teacher tool provides general support scaffolds for supporting English language learners; however, these scaffolds are broad and not specific to any lesson or text.
Indicator 3n
Materials regularly provide extensions to engage with literacy content and concepts at greater depth for students who read, write, speak, and/or listen above grade level.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 partially meet the criteria for Indicator 3n.
The materials include some opportunities for students to engage with literacy content and concepts at greater depth for students who read, write, speak, and/or listen above grade level; however, many of these opportunities require students to complete more assignments than their classmates. The number of lessons that contain an “Opportunities for Enrichment” section is limited. Some of the lessons provide specific scaffolds intended to enhance lessons by providing additional depth through many activities for students, such as reading an extra text or portion of a text or completing an additional assignment for the text.
Materials provide some opportunities for advanced students to investigate the grade-level content at a higher level of complexity. Materials include instances of advanced students doing more assignments than their classmates. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In Unit 1, Facing Prejudice: All American Boys, 17 of 26 lessons contain specific supports for enrichment that could be used for advanced students.
In Unit 2, Encountering Evil, Night, multiple lessons include enrichment opportunities. For example:
In Lesson 3, teacher guidance includes the following suggestion for enrichment: “Ask students to think about the way that the inhabitants of the Secret Annex are affected by sounds—both inside and outside the annex. How does noise/sound control their lives and emotions?”
In Lesson 5, teacher guidance includes the following suggestion for enrichment: “Ask students: What do the red high heels represent for Anne? How has Anne’s relationship with her mother changed?”
In Lesson 9, teacher guidance includes the following suggestion for enrichment: “Ask students: What motifs do you notice in today’s reading? Ex: Fire, speaking out, doubting messengers, insanity, silence, denial. Do you think that Mrs. Schäcter was just hallucinating? Or was she somehow seeing into the future?”
In Lesson 12, teacher guidance includes the following suggestion for enrichment: “Ask students: What do you think Wiesel means when he says that God is “hanging here from this gallows”? Is this a statement of despair? Anger? Or Hope? The word hunger begins to take on a new meaning. What does the word hunger mean to Eliezer? What other words have new meanings for him? Carefully explain your thinking.”
In Unit 3, Abusing Power: Animal Farm and Wicked History, 16 of 28 lessons contain specific supports for enrichment that could be used for advanced students.
In Unit 4, Surviving Repression: Persepolis, multiple lessons include enrichment opportunities. For example:
In Lesson 2, enrichment opportunities include: “For additional practice with language usage, NoRedInk offers substantial digital activities for students to practice grammar fluently.”
In Lesson 5, enrichment opportunities include: “To extend the lesson, ask students to identify the type of shift present in the problem sentences above (tense, voice, or mood). Add: 4. Shifts in number: Using singular pronouns that connect to singular antecedents or using plural pronouns that connect to plural antecedents. 5. Shifts in person: There are three main points of view -- first person (I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, ours), second person (you, your, yours), and third person (he, him, his, she, her, hers, it, its, they, them, their).”
In Lesson 8, enrichment opportunities include: “Ask students: Do you think that adult Satrapi has a different perspective on the revolution than young Marji? How do you know?”
In Lesson 18, enrichment opportunities include: “Read the following article and choose one woman to focus on. Why does this woman choose to wear a hijab? ‘Women discuss what it’s like to wear a hijab’ by Nara Schoenberg (The Detroit News).”
In Unit 5, Facing Calamity: Climate Changes Facts and Fictions, six of twenty lessons contain specific supports for enrichment that could be used for advanced students.
Indicator 3o
Materials provide varied approaches to learning tasks over time and variety in how students are expected to demonstrate their learning with opportunities for for students to monitor their learning.
Indicator 3p
Materials provide opportunities for teachers to use a variety of grouping strategies.
Indicator 3q
Materials provide strategies and supports for students who read, write, and/or speak in a language other than English to meet or exceed grade-level standards to regularly participate in learning English language arts and literacy.
The materials reviewed for Grade 8 partially meet the criteria for Indicator 3q.
The materials provide some language supports for students who read, write, and/or speak in a language other than English; however, materials miss opportunities to label specific protocols for these learners. The included language supports provide support with meaning, context, and understanding. These supports are also helpful to students who speak, write, and/or speak languages other than English with accessing the text or responding to the text. Materials provide additional supports in Teacher Tools that provide general guidance in preparing lessons for multilingual learners; however, they are not lesson specific, are broad in application, and would require teachers to prepare materials for specific lessons within the curriculum.
Materials provide some strategies and supports for students who read, write, and/or speak in a language other than English to meet or exceed grade-level standards through regular and active participation in grade-level literacy work. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
In Supporting All Students, the materials provide a question mark next to Language Support, which indicates the following: “These supports can be used to help Multi-Lingual Learners and students with learning differences access the language demands of the text and the task. See the Supporting English Learners Teacher Tool for additional guidance.”
In Unit 1: Facing Prejudice: All American Boys, materials include two lessons that specifically provide support for multilingual learners. In Lesson 5, Language Supports, a specific notation states that figurative language may be especially challenging for multilingual learners. Teacher guidance provides a suggestion that students could be paired when working with figurative language to provide additional support.
In Unit 3, Abusing Power: Animal Farm and Wicked History, materials include one lesson that specifically provides support for multilingual learners. In Lesson 10, Language Supports, guidance includes keeping the closed captions on during a video for students who struggle with auditory processing and multilingual learners. Guidance also suggests providing a transcript of the video for students who may benefit, including those who are multilingual learners.
In Unit 5, Facing Calamity: Climate Change Facts and Fictions, materials do not include lessons that specifically provide support for multilingual learners.
In Teacher Tools, materials include multiple folders providing guidance for teaching multilingual learners. They include guidance on providing scaffolds that are divided into areas of light support and heavier support. Suggestions include providing illustrations, images, photos, providing videos, films, or audio to support a lesson, using real-life or physical objects, text clues, various graphic scaffolds, and interactive scaffolds, including pairing and working with the student’s home language, and increasing supplemental texts and noticing cognates. These are explained and provided as general guidelines and are not lesson specific.
In Teacher Tools, materials provide suggestions on preparing lessons with multilingual learners in mind, including unpacking the units and texts with a look to analyzing language demands, knowing the language and content goals of the unit, planning for assessment and mastery, and taking ownership of teaching the unit with multilingual learners in mind.
In Teacher Tools, materials include a document on Engineering the Text that provides guidance on how to physically alter a text to make it more accessible to multilingual learners, including adding questions, proving genre tips, defining vocabulary, explaining key background knowledge, adding illustrations and headings, and including stop and jot questions.
In Teacher Tools, materials include a document on using oral language supports with multilingual learners. These include the use of various groupings to assist with comprehension and expressing ideas.
In Teacher Tools, materials provide teachers with general scaffolds for multilingual learners. These include:
In the Sensory scaffolds, materials include a list of scaffolds for Light EL Support and Heavier EL support. For example, in illustrations, images, and photos light supports suggested are: “Add illustrations to literature texts that do not include illustrations. Illustrations could be used to break up long sections of text or to clarify tricky plot events.” Heavier supports include: “Strategically engineer the text to include illustrations that align with specific features of text complexity. Multiple illustrations could be added to make the text easier to digest. (For example, when reading the Brer Rabbit folktales about the well, include an illustration of a well.)
In Interactive Scaffolds, materials include a list of scaffolds for Pairs, Small Groups, Discussion, Cooperative Structures, and Home Language. For example, in Home Language, materials state: “For lighter EL support: Have students use translanguaging by using some words and phrases from their home language when discussing or writing about content. For heavier EL support: Have students have entire conversations in their home language or have students write answers in their home language. Provide additional instruction on a particular concept or idea in students’ home language. Provide students with texts and problems written in their home language. Have students write an answer in their home language. Then have students transfer their answers to English.”
In Additional Supports, materials provide the teacher with suggestions for “Supplemental Text” support and “Noticing Cognates.” In the “Noticing Cognates” support, materials provide the following: “For lighter EL support: Teach students strategies for identifying cognates and have students self-identify and interpret examples of cognates in texts and tasks. For heavier EL support: Before reading a text, find examples of cognates and have students break them down. Focus on the meaning and intonation of the words. Teach students Greek and Latin roots that are cognates in English and Spanish. Have students create cognate reference guides.”
In Oral Language Protocols, materials provide the teacher with protocols for the following: Turn and Talk, Think-Pair Share, Write-Pair Share, Timed-Pair-Share, Think-Pair-Share Revised, Partner A Partner B. An example of the “Think-Pair-Share Revised protocol states: “Students are given a chance to refine their thinking and ideas based on their partner’s ideas and discussion. The teacher or student poses a question worthy of discussion. Teachers give students time to think about how they will answer. Students pair up. Students take turns sharing their answers. Students revise their original theories or ideas.”
In Engineering Texts, materials provide the teacher with a three-step guide to support planning. The explanation includes, “When you engineer a text, you add text supports to ensure all students have access. This does not mean changing the text or lowering the rigor of the task. An engineered text anticipates possible student misconceptions, gives vocabulary cues, provides additional background knowledge, scaffolds questions, and creates opportunities for discussion.”
In Graphic Organizer, for multilingual learner support, materials provide the teacher with “suggestions on how to adjust the organizers to provide light or heavy EL support.” Some examples include:
Adjusting graphic organizers to provide light EL support:
Provide blank templates for students to use when reading a text, brainstorming, or solving problems.
Adjusting graphic organizers to provide heavy EL support:
Provide students with partially filled-out graphic organizers.
Provide guidance on where in the text, resources, or problem students can find a particular answer. (For example, if students are looking to describe a character, provide specific paragraph numbers where students can find key evidence.)
Have students work in partners using an oral language protocol.
If applicable, allow students to complete the graphic organizer in their home language.
Indicator 3r
Materials provide a balance of images or information about people, representing various demographic and physical characteristics.
Indicator 3s
Materials provide guidance to encourage teachers to draw upon student home language to facilitate learning.
Indicator 3t
Materials provide guidance to encourage teachers to draw upon student cultural and social backgrounds to facilitate learning.
Indicator 3u
This is not an assessed indicator in ELA.
Indicator 3v
This is not an assessed indicator in ELA.
Criterion 3.4: Intentional Design
The program includes a visual design that is engaging and references or integrates digital technology, when applicable, with guidance for teachers.
The grade 8 materials do not include digital technology or interactive tools for students to interact with. Although the teacher materials are presented in a digital manner, student materials are printed materials. Because the materials for students are printed, teacher guidance on incorporating technology is limited.
Materials are provided in one format with a visual design that supports learning. The design is not distracting or chaotic, and it neither adds to nor distracts from the subject matter.
Indicator 3w
Materials integrate technology such as interactive tools, virtual manipulatives/objects, and/or dynamic software in ways that engage students in the grade-level/series standards, when applicable.
Indicator 3x
Materials include or reference digital technology that provides opportunities for teachers and/or students to collaborate with each other, when applicable.
Indicator 3y
The visual design (whether in print or digital) supports students in engaging thoughtfully with the subject, and is neither distracting nor chaotic.
Indicator 3z
Materials provide teacher guidance for the use of embedded technology to support and enhance student learning, when applicable.