The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 partially meet the criteria that most questions, tasks, and assignments are text-dependent/specific, requiring students to engage with the text directly (drawing on textual evidence to support both what is explicit as well as valid inferences from the text).

The materials provide a consistent format for students to engage with text-dependent questions and/or tasks. However, text-dependent/specific questions, tasks, and assignments do not consistently support students’ literacy growth over the course of the school year. Many questions have students recall key details within texts and do not build to questions that ask students to analyze or infer based on what they have read. Questions do not grow in complexity across the course of the year.

Questions, tasks, and assignments can be found in Before and After Reading sections. The Before Reading section includes four subsections with questions embedded within the margins of the textbook: Build Background, Analyze Literature, Set Purpose, and Use Reading Skills. The After Reading section includes four subsections: Refer to Text, Reason with Text, Analyze Literature, and Extend the Text. The British Tradition curriculum also includes Differentiated Instruction, Common Core Assessment Practice, Meeting the Standards, and Exceeding the Standards guides that also provide text-specific questions. Each unit provides a variety of supports to text-dependent and text-specific questioning. Many questions that ask for student opinion require students to engage with the text directly as inferences are made, and students are required to provide support from the text in most of the work they complete within the unit.

In Unit 1, students read an excerpt from Beowulf, translated by Burton Raffel. Within the Annotated Teacher Edition, teachers are provided with a Using Reading Strategies section that encourages further student questioning: “Grendel’s mother is unable to kill Beowulf when she has him pinned down and attacks him with a knife. Ask students to reread this passage and explain in their own words why the knife is useless.”

Within the Student Edition, there is also a Text to Text Connection section that asks students to compare Gareth Hinds graphic novel of Beowulf to the epic: “This excerpt from the novel illustrates Beowulf’s speech to Hrothgar, King of the Danes, in Canto 6, beginning in line 116 on page 30. Why does Beowulf insist on fighting the monster Grendel with his bare hands? What is Beowulf’s one request if he dies in the battle?”

Students also answer questions in the After Reading Refer to Text and Reason With Text: “Describe Grendel’s interactions with humans. Why do the Danes consider him a monster? Compare and contrast the battles, identifying similarities and differences among them.”

In Unit 2, students read from L’Morte d’Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory. Students are asked in the After Reading Refer to Text and Reason With Text section: “In the excerpt from L’Morte d’Arthur with whom does Arthur spend his childhood? How is his royal heritage discovered? Describe Merlin’s influence on young Arthur, as described in L’Morte d’Arthur.”

In Unit 3, after reading the informational text, “Elizabeth I, Queen of England,” from The Columbia Encyclopedia, students are asked to answer review questions: “What happened to Elizabeth just before her mother was executed? Why did Elizabeth’s father, the king, have her mother, Anne Boleyn, killed?”

In Unit 4, students read The Tragedy of Macbeth Act II, a drama by William Shakespeare. Students are asked in the After Reading Refer to Text and Reason With Text section, questions: “At the end of scene ii, what voice does Macbeth imagine crying out. At the end of the act what does Rosse say about Malcolm and Donalbain?”

In Unit 5, Students read an excerpt from John Milton’s epic poem, Paradise Lost, and Genesis 1-3 from the Bible. In the After Reading Refer to Text and Reason With Text section, students are asked, “In lines 1-5 what does the speaker say the subject of the epic will be? How effectively does Milton portray Satan? Use details from the epic to support your opinion.”

Student also respond to the Analyze Literature section, which addresses motivation and apostrophe: “What motivates Satan to tempt Adam and Eve? What motivation does he reveal in the last section of the selection? How does this motivation compare to what motivated him to the actions that got him expelled from heaven?” and “Whom does Milton address in an apostrophe in line 17? What does Milton ask? How does this apostrophe relate to Milton’s purpose in Paradise Lost?”

In Unit 6, students read the poem, “To a Mouse,” by Robert Burns. Students are asked in the After Reading Refer to Text and Reason With Text section to answer the following questions: “In lines 37-42 what famous statement does Burns’ make about insight? List five examples of Burns’ Scots dialect.”

In Unit 7, after reading the poems, “My Last Duchess” and “Porphyria’s Lover,” both by Robert Browning, in the After Reading, Refer to Text and Reason With Text section, students are asked to respond to questions: “In lines 22-30 of ‘My Last Duchess,’ what about the Duchess bothers Duke? In lines 30-35 of ‘Porphyria’s Lover,’ what does the speaker discover? What does this lead him to do? Compare the speakers of the poems. What similarities do they share?”

In Unit 8, students read, “Shooting an Elephant,” by George Orwell. Students are asked in After Reading Refer to Text and Reason With Text section: “What steps does Orwell take as soon as he sees the dead man? In the end how does Orwell justify shooting the elephant?”

In Unit 9, of the Annotated Teacher Edition, students complete the Reading Assessment section for the following poems by Dylan Thomas, “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night,” “Fern Hill,” and “The Hand That Signed the Paper.” Students must respond to the following questions: “Line 10 of ‘Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night’ contains which of the following poetic devices? In lines 46-54 of ‘Fern Hill,’ to whom or what does him/his refer?”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 partially meet the criteria for materials containing sets of sequences of text-dependent/text-specific questions with activities that build to a culminating task which integrates skills to demonstrate understanding.

After every text selection in the After Reading, Refer to Text, Reason with Text section, there are text-dependent questions, and throughout each reading, there are strategies and activities that build students’ skills to complete the end of unit activities. Each unit includes three types of culminating activities: a Speaking and Listening Workshop, Writing Workshop, and Test Practice Workshop. The performance tasks that the students are asked to complete in these culminating activities correspond to the questions, discussions, and writing prompts that students have completed throughout the unit as they read the various selections. The lessons are detailed, follow a step-by-step process, have checklists to support students, and the Language Arts Handbook and the Exceeding the Standards Speaking and Listening Resource Guides support students by providing additional lessons on the skills necessary to complete each task. However, skills are often not integrated. Students complete each workshop independently of one another. Some tasks are loosely connected to unit texts, while others are not connected to texts. Students are often demonstrating mastery of the unit skills rather than demonstrating understanding or knowledge.

In Unit 1: Anglo-Saxon Period 449-1066, there are three culminating tasks for the unit:

• For the Speaking and Listening Workshop, students describe a place. Students choose a place, plan the description, use descriptive language, practice their delivery, and present the description. Activities throughout the unit that build to this culminating task include:

  • visualizing the story of Beowulf: “encourage students to use Hrothgar’s vivid description of the setting in lines 339-360 to visualize the place where Beowulf will encounter Grendel’s mother.”

  • writing a descriptive paragraph after reading “Anglo-Saxon Riddles”: “Imagine that you are writing to a friend who lives out of town. Write a descriptive paragraph about a particular setting - perhaps your bedroom or locker. Use sensory details to bring the description to life for your friend.”

  • These tasks builds students’ presentation skills, but does not integrate skills to demonstrate understanding.These tasks do not connect to a text and do not integrate skills to demonstrate understanding.

• For the Writing Workshop, students write a narrative poem about a modern-day hero. Students select their topic; gather information; organize their ideas; write their organizing statement; draft their poem with attention to conventions and structure of poetry; evaluate their drafts; revise their drafts for content, organization, and style; proofread for errors; publish and present their work; and reflect on their work. Activities throughout the unit that build to this culminating task include:

  • completing a piece of creative writing after reading “The Story of Caedmon”: Imagine that Caedmon has come to King Edwin’s court to perform his poetry. Wrote a one-page dialogue between King Edwin and Caedmon in which they discuss their experiences with religious transformation.”

  • writing a brief epic poem after reading “The Head of Humbaba” from Gilgamesh: “Choose a person from current society and write a brief epic poem that tells the story of a heroic episode from his or her life.”

• For the Test Practice Workshop, the first section asks students to make inferences through reading an excerpt from Beowulf, translated by Burton Raffel; answering reading comprehension questions on the text; responding to a constructed response prompt on the text: “What inferences can you make from the repetition of the phrase ‘as Beowulf had asked’?” and completing an extended writing prompt on an issue: “What type of clothing policy is best for students? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your perspective on this issue.” Activities throughout the unit that connect to this culminating task include:

  • making inferences while reading “The Story of Caedmon”: “Even though Bede says it is impossible to translate poetry without losing some of its original beauty, he still includes the verses of Caedmon’s song in his account. Ask students to infer why Bede might have decided to include these verses.”

  • making inferences while reading Beowulf: “In canto 6, Wulfgar tells Beowulf and his men to leave their weapons at the door and go in to see Hrothgar, but Beowulf orders a few of his men to stay with their weapons. Ask students to discuss what this incident says about the culture and customs of the times and about Beowulf himself.”

In Unit 6, Annotated Teacher’s Edition, the culminating activity is a “Writing Workshop, Write a Personal essay, Narrative Writing.” The "Assignment: Write a personal essay that captures an essential aspect of your character. Purpose: To preserve a picture of who you are now and to share your thoughts with others. Audience: A new friend who does not know much about you or perhaps a potential employer or college admissions officer.” This task is not connected to a text and does not integrate skills to demonstrate understanding.

In Unit 7, Writing Workshop, students must practice argumentative writing by reviewing a short story or book. The assignment is to “write a review of a British short story or novel, using examples from the text to support your opinions.” The objectives for this task are to “review a short story or book; begin with an introduction that draws the reader into the piece, states the title and author of the subject of the review, and includes a clear thesis statement; organize a body that supports the thesis statement with specific evidence, including details or quotations from the short story or novel; end with a conclusion that summarizes the analysis presented in the review.” Tasks that occur throughout the unit that support students in their endeavors with this culminating task include the following:

• Once students read Hardy’s “The Darkling Thrush,” they will compose a literary criticism: “Literary critics using the theory of biographical-historical criticism analyze a text within the context of the author’s life and historical period (see Understanding Literary Criticism, Unit 3, pages 266-267). Using the Author Focus on page 822 and other sources, apply biographical-historical literary theory to Hardy’s ‘The Darkling Thrush’ and write a short analysis of the poem. Identify events in the author’s life and time period that likely influenced his work.”

• Students will read Rudyard Kipling’s “The Mark of the Beast’; once students complete the text selection, they will compose a short piece of Argumentative Writing: “Your school is thinking of producing a play based on one of Rudyard Kipling’s stories. You want the drama club to perform ‘The Mark of the Beast.’ Write a one-paragraph plot analysis of the story to share with the club. After the plot analysis, write a persuasive paragraph about why this story would be a good one to dramatize.”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 partially meet the criteria for materials supporting students’ listening and speaking (and discussions) about what they are reading and researching (shared projects) with relevant follow-up questions and supports.

The materials provide the teacher with ample questions to engage students in thinking about and responding to the text; however, no explanation is given on how the students will share this thinking - be it verbal or written, individual, or in groups. There are few supports or follow up questions to support students' listening and speaking to deeper their understanding about what they are reading and researching.

Throughout the Annotated Teacher Edition there are many places that prompt teachers to have students discuss in the context of pre-reading. Since these discussion opportunities occur prior to actually reading the text, discussions are not evidence-based. For example, in The Launch the Unit section, questions for a whole-class discussion on the text type being studied in the unit are provided. The Speaking and Listening portion of the Exceeding the Standards resource provides opportunities for students to prepare projects, and to present information orally to the class through narratives, speeches, poems, dramatic scenes, and interviews, but these activities are not tied to the texts that are studied in the unit. In the Exceeding the Standards resource for speaking and listening, the majority of tasks are presentations--these supports tie to the speaking and listening requirements, but there are very few shared projects. Also, there are some relevant follow-up questions and supports, but the supports and follow-up questions are designed for students to respond to individually, rather than practicing through the Speaking and Listening standards with one another or in small and large groups.

Each unit includes a Speaking and Listening Workshop, but the emphasis is on the individual preparing for a particular presentation. There are collaborative research and discussion activities that can be found in the Teacher Edition, most notably as Teaching Note(s) that suggest activities for students to process the text they are reading through pair and small group work, often focused on generating questions about the text. Students may also take part in Collaborative Learning, which usually occurs in the After Reading section where students practice speaking and listening skills--this includes student planning for group activities, group skit presentations, short discussions, etc. There are other frequent questions and activities that are designed to have students speaking and listening, but they do not require the student to have interacted with the text being studied. Rather, they are based on personal thoughts and experiences and connections to themes.

The speaking and listening opportunities require students to provide evidence from what they are reading and researching. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Speaking and Listening Workshop, Describe a Place, students describe a place in an oral presentation. “If you were writing about a specific place, you would describe it in detail, using sensory images and vivid language to help your readers see, hear, smell, feel, and even taste it. You should use the same strategies when describing a place in an oral presentation, or speech. Students are given five steps to guide them in describing a place for or an oral presentation or speech:

1. Choose a Place

2. Plan the Description

3. Use Descriptive Language

4. Practice Your Delivery

5. Present the Description

Students are evaluated with a Speaking and Listening Rubric on Content, Delivery and Presentation.

• In Unit 8, students read The Rising of the Moon by Lady Augusta Gregory. The Teacher Edition provides a critical thinking discussion guide: “The play presents conflicting perspectives on duty and patriotism. In light of these perspectives, ask students which character appeals to them more - the Sergeant or the Ragged Man. Have students discuss and explain their choices.”

Frequently, questions and activities provide speaking and listening opportunities about what students are reading and researching, but do not require students to have interacted with the text being studied. Discussions are based more on personal thoughts and experiences and connections to the themes. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 6, students are introduced to the genre of the lyric poem. They learn the definition, its forms, and its elements. They are then asked to “work individually, in pairs, or in small groups to create one of the following: a ballad, an ode, a sonnet, or a lyric poem composed in dialect. When students have finished their poem, invite them to share it with the class as a whole.”

• In Unit 7, Speaking and Listening Workshop, Present an Argument, students present a viable argument to urge listeners to accept or reject a proposition. “An argument is not necessarily a nasty exchange between two angry people. The term argument, also refers to the evidence a writer or a speaker presents to readers or listeners, urging them to accept or reject a proposition (a statement of policy or belief) or a course of action. Legislators, for instance, would present an argument in support of a measure they want colleagues to enact into law.” Students are given three steps to guide their steps as they prepare to deliver their arguments:

1. Choose a Suitable Topic and Locate Supporting Evidence

2. Practice Your Delivery

3. Listen Actively to Arguments

Students are evaluated with a Speaking and Listening Rubric on Content, Delivery and Presentation.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 partially meet the criteria for materials including instruction and practice of the grammar and conventions/language standards for grade level as applied in increasingly sophisticated contexts, with opportunities for application in context.

The materials contain several workshops in grammar and style, as well as vocabulary and spelling. Within each unit, students experience between two and six Grammar and Style Workshops; all workshops have students practice various grammatical and syntactical tasks that apply directly to the texts they read within the unit. However, there is inconsistent support for students to practice in increasingly sophisticated contexts. The skills instruction does not include opportunities for application both in and out of context. Additionally, the materials do not promote and build students’ ability to apply conventions and other aspects of language within their own writing. There are minimal opportunities to practice skills taught in the unit with the selected readings in the Teacher’s Edition, therefore limiting opportunities for increased sophistication of the addressed standards. While the resource workbook, Exceeding the Standards, includes “comprehensive skills development lessons," the same language standards are not necessarily addressed during the Writer’s Workshop task or other possible places within the unit of study. Therefore, students are not consistently given opportunities to apply the lessons on grammar and conventions in context.

In Unit 1, within the Exceeding the Standards resource, students practice four different lessons. Within Lesson 4, which has three exercises, students practice Identifying the Parts of Speech. Students within exercise 2 practice writing “a sentence using each word as the designated part of speech.” The exercise provides two examples of how students should complete the activity, including the correct answers, and then students must practice on their own: “6. embittered (adjective); embittered (verb).”

In Unit 2, students experience three Grammar and Style Workshops. Within each Grammar and Style Workshop, students practice Understand the Concept and Apply the Skill sections.

• Sentence Variety: Students study the various types of sentences: simple sentence and complex/compound sentences. Once students go through the Understand the Concept section, students then practice applying the skill. Within the Apply the Skill section, students practice three sections: Identify Sentence Types, Improve Sentence Variety, and Use a Variety of Sentence Types. Within Improve Sentence Variety, students review the following items and “discuss with a partner how best to combine the simple sentences to create a compound or complex sentence. You may need to make minor adjustments in wording, such as adding a contraction or deleting extra words.” An example of a task item is as follows: “3. Serfs were at the bottom of the social scale. They usually worked the land.”

• Sentence Fragments: Students study the various types of sentence fragments: phrase fragments and clause fragments. Once students go through the Understand the Concept section, students then practice applying the skill. Within the Apply the Skill section, students practice three sections: Identify Sentence Fragments, Fix Sentence Fragments, and Use Complete Sentences. Within Identify Sentence Fragments students “Indicate which of the following items are sentences (mark S) and which are fragments (mark F).”

In Unit 4, Renaissance Drama 1485-1642, two Grammar and Style Workshops are included: Sensory Details and Allusions. It contains two Vocabulary and Spelling Workshops: Contractions and Synonyms and Antonyms.

• In the Sensory Details Workshop students read about how to identify sensory details in a piece of writing and use sensory details in their own writing. They then complete practice exercises such as using a scenario to write a short paragraph that incorporates at least four sensory details: “1. Jake took a walk in the cemetary on a September night.”

• In the Allusions Workshop students read about how to identify and explain an author's use of allusion in a text and use allusions in their own writing. They then complete practice exercises such as identifying who or what is referenced by the underlined allusion in a sentence: “1. Except they meant to bathe in reeking wounds,/Or memorize another Golgotha.”

• The Vocabulary and Spelling section of The Exceeding the Standards resource, includes practice exercises to support the context clues and syntax workshop: inferential context clues; using context clues in your own writing; and syntax.

In Unit 6, Grammar and Style, Understand the Concept, students learn the concept of using Parallelism or Parallel Structure. In Applying the Skill students Identify Parallelism in poetry. Students practice Fixing Errors in Parallelism by rewriting sentences to use parallel structure. Students also use Parallelism in Your Writing, by writing about the city or town you live in.

In Unit 7, there are two Grammar & Style Workshops. The first is about Coordination: “Understand the Concept. To coordinate things means to join them in an equal or a balanced way. In writing, coordination is a strategy for combining related ideas of the same importance. Students Apply the Skill: “Identify Coordinating Conjunctions, Identify the coordinating conjunctions in the following sentences.”

The second Workshop is about Appositives: “Understand the Concept, an appositive is a noun or noun phrase that is placed next to or near another noun to identify it or add information about it.” Students Apply the Skill: “Identify Appositives, For each of the following sentences from Jane Eyre, identify the appositive or appositive phrases. Then identify the noun the appositive identifies or renames.”

In Unit 8, there are three Grammar & Style Workshops: Commas, Colons and Semicolons, Hyphens, Dashes, and Ellipses. In the Comma Workshop, students “Apply the Skill Identify Uses of Commas, In the following sentence from “Birds on the Western Front,” identify how each comma is used.” The Colons and Semicolons Workshop begins with Understand the Concept. Examples are provided and then students Apply the Skill for each of these sentences from “Araby,”: "determine whether Joyce uses a colon to (a) introduce a list, (b) introduce a quotation, or (c) offer an explanation or summary or if he uses a semicolon to (d) join two independent clauses or (e) separate items in a series.”

In the Unit 9 Exceeding the Standards Resource, there are three lessons on Building Effective Sentences and Paragraphs and three lessons on Research Writing Skills. These lessons support the materials in the textbook, and provide ample opportunity for students to practice and apply the skills they are learning.