10th Grade - Gateway 2

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 partially meet the criteria that materials contain sets of coherently sequenced higher order thinking questions and tasks that require students to analyze the language (words/phrases), key ideas, details, craft, and structure of individual texts in order to make meaning and build understanding of texts and topics.

Most of the questions focus on key ideas & details, structure, and craft. There are few questions that support students in analyzing author’s language and word choice. The questions that do focus on language and structure do not support students to analyze its effect on the text. The text keeps a consistent pattern throughout in regards to students’ work. Items continue to be found at the end of readings, within readings, and in the assessments located at the end of each part. Questions and tasks provide evidence of student understanding of the definitions and concepts of the components identified in each unit.The questions and tasks help students to make meaning and build understanding of texts and topics.

• In Unit 1, Part 3 students read the anchor text “Contents of the Dead Man’s Pocket”. Throughout the entire text there are key idea and detail, craft and structure, and integration of knowledge and idea text dependent questions for teachers to ask students. At the end of the story, there are Close Reading Activities where more literary analysis is presented, grouped by key ideas and details, craft and structure, and integration of knowledge and ideas. Some sample questions found in this text, “How does the choppy syntax, or structure, of the sentence beginning, ‘It was hard to take the first shuffling sideways step’ reflect Tom’s struggle between his fear and his goal?” “Tom thinks ‘wonderingly’ about his past. What does the word “wonderingly” suggest about Tom’s understanding of his previous choices? Explain. How does the author use repetition to reveal this change? Explain. “
• In Unit 2, Part 2 after students “The Sun Parlor” there is a Language Study activity of five words that were found in the story (lavished, subordinate, rejuvenation, convalesce, cajoling). The words are highlighted in blue for students to locate. In the activity after, students are provided a sentence where they could substitute one of these blue words in and re-write. For example, “I gave in to my brother’s wheedling and lent him my new game.” The new sentence would be, “I gave into her cajoling and let her borrow some money.”
• In Unit 2, Part 3 during “How to React to Familiar Faces”, one question asks, “Direct students to reread the passage and take notes on the words and phrases that make up Eco’s observations. Draw attention to the use of pronoun we and the familiar tone Eco develops.”
• In Unit 3, Part 2, during the poem “Glory” students are asked to identify one figure of speech in the lines of the poem and comment on why the poet may have used this comparison.
• Questions and tasks help students to make meaning and build understanding of texts and topics. For example, In Unit 3, Part 3 after reading the article, “Understanding Stonehenge: Two Explanations” there are three comprehension questions that ask, “What are the two main theories about Stonehenge? What discoveries about Stonehenge have researchers made using lasers? What is the ‘almost definitive proof’ that the builders of Stonehenge attempted to align the monument with the solstices?” Then students are to chose at least one unfamiliar detail from the text and briefly research it. Then, explain how the information they learned from the research sheds light on an aspect of the article. Finally, students write an objective summary of the article.
• In Unit 5, Part 1, in the Independent Practice portion, students read “Games at Twilight.” While reading, there are key ideas and detail questions and craft and structure questions in the teacher edition to help students make meaning of the text. Vocabulary words are defined in the margin of the student edition. After reading, in the Close Reading Activities, students have two sections of questions, Comprehension (key ideas and details) and Text Analysis (craft and structure). The comprehension questions build in an appropriate way, from basic comprehension to drawing conclusions, to interpretation. For example: “a) Infer: Why do the other children stop searching for Ravi? b) Draw Conclusions: What do the other children think of Ravi? Give details from the story to support your answer.” and “a) What mistake causes Ravii to lose the game? b) Interpret: What lesson does he learn at the end of the story? Support your answer with details from the text.” Next, the analysis questions on craft and structure are also organized in a sequenced way, requiring more depth of thought in students. For this story there are four questions, one example: “a) Interpret: What archetypal characters or plot patterns, if any, do you find in this story? Explain. b) Analyse: How might the story be different if it were told through Raghu’s eyes? Explain.” Besides giving students the option to say there are not any archetypes of plot patterns (“if any”), the questions build on knowledge of the text and elements of craft and structure.
• In Unit 3, Part 2, after reading the Poetry Collection 2, 3, and 4, students have two tasks for each collection, Writing to Sources and Speaking and Listening. After Collection 2, the writing activity does not require any connection to the meaning of the poems, but one specific structure that was read. It asks students to write own tanka - a japanese form of poetry. In the Building Knowledge section of the unit there is instruction on what a tanka is and the author is meant to express a strong feeling with the concise form. However, after they read two tankas, they did not analyze the tanka in any questions. The speaking and listening task is a poetry reading discussion in which they are asked to listen to a classmate read a poem and then discuss 5 questions. None of the questions are higher order thinking questions, but more evaluating how well the student read or emphasized different parts or if the listening was affected by the different readers.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 partially meet the criteria that the questions and tasks support students’ ability to complete culminating tasks in which they demonstrate their knowledge of a topic through integrated skills (e.g. combination of reading, writing, speaking, listening).

Some culminating tasks are multifaceted, requiring students to demonstrate mastery of several different standards at the appropriate grade level and some are not. Some culminating tasks do not provide students opportunities to demonstrate comprehension and knowledge of a topic or topics, specifically, the culminating tasks found at the end of each text throughout the units. The Assessment Synthesis at the end of Part 3 in each unit is the only place to show knowledge. There is no clear opportunity to demonstrate knowledge from Parts 1, 2, or 4 of each unit. Questions and tasks found before the culminating tasks do not give the teacher usable information about the student’s readiness to complete culminating tasks. The questions are text-dependent, however, they function more as stand-alone activities to fulfill a standard.

• Some culminating tasks are multifaceted, requiring students to demonstrate multiple standards. In Unit 2, Part 3, after students read the anchor text “How to React to Familiar Faces”, students have a culminating tasks where they debate the topic, mass media’s portrayal of reality. Then they write an argument, a persuasive essay on the effects of media on viewers’ perceptions of reality. Then they research the topic to learn what social scientists have to say about the influence of media on people’s perceptions. Lastly, they share their research findings in a multimedia presentation.
• Other culminating tasks may only require reading and writing. For example, In Unit 1, Part 3, students read a picture, “from the series Empire State (Laying Beams), 1930-31”. After they read this picture, they answer two comprehension questions and four critical analysis questions. Then they research the topic about the construction of skyscrapers in the United States beginning in the late 1800s. Then using that information researched, they write a monologue in the voice of a construction worker in this photograph. There are no speaking and listening opportunities in this tasks.
• Some culminating tasks do not provide students with opportunities to demonstrate comprehension and knowledge of a topic or topics through integrated skills. In Unit 3, the topic, or Big Question, is “Does all communication serve a positive purpose?” After reading the anchor text, “A Tree Telling of Orpheus”, the culminating task asks students to write a retelling of the story of Orpheus and the trees from the point of view of Orpheus. Then students research the similarities and differences in myths from a variety of ancient civilizations. The topic of communication is not integrated into this culminating task.
• In Unit 2, Part 3, in the Assessment: Synthesis students are to write an argumentative essay in which they state and defend a claim about the connections between people’s perceptions, knowledge, and actions. After reading, “Seeing Things” students have a research task to conduct research to learn more about the factors that shape what and how we see. They use an online search engine and key words such as “vision”, “perception”, and “interpretation”. This task is before the culminating argumentative essay supporting that task. Also in Unit 2, Part 3, students read “How to Look at Nothing”. After they read, they are to write an argument, position paper, defending a claim about the relationship between people’s perceptions, opinions, and actions. This too supports the Assessment: Synthesis task.
• In Unit 3, Part 3, in the Assessment: Synthesis section students write a narrative in which they tell a fictionalized account of a real historical event. They are asked to incorporate several characters in their narrative and use dialogue to demonstrate the role communication played in the events. The task mentions the topic, but does not provide an opportunity for students to fully demonstrate their knowledge of the topic.
• In Unit 4, Part 3, the Assessment: Synthesis activities include a Writing to Sources: Argumentative Text. The activity is an essay that relates to the readings around the topics of experience, perception, and conscience. Students are to write an essay in which they “state and defend a claim about the relationship between perception, individual conscience, and the good of society.” They are to use information from two or more texts in Part 3 of the unit. The Close Reading Activities after each selection in Part 3 do not ask this type of question to students to help them consider the relationship as they read through each selection. They may be asked to consider each of the three topics individually, but not as a collective like they are asked to do in the culminating writing task. This is a similar pattern in other units.
• In Unit 5, Part 2, the Assessment: Skill activities require students to read literature and informational excerpts and answer questions that are related to skills that are the focus of the unit. For example, there are questions about cultural context, narrative patterns, epic hero, and character traits. There is a timed write on universal theme. The Constructed Response section of the Assessment has Writing, Speaking and Listening and Research activities. Each of them could be considered culminating task for Part 2 since they require students to refer to stories in Part 2. However, they do not necessarily connect directly to the Assessment: Synthesis activities at the end of Part 3, nor do they help students complete those Synthesis activities. For example, there are three writing tasks that connect directly to a skill taught in this part of the unit. They connect to the question on the reading literature assessment: analyze archetypal narrative patterns, analyze theme, and analyze cultural context. Each essay prompt asks students to analyze the literary device or topic in one or two texts from the unit. The two speaking and listening tasks asks students to 1) deliver an oral presentation that compares two heroic characters from works of different genres in the unit, and 2) compare myth, epic, and legend genres and deliver a speech that analyzes the plot of the genres from the unit. The research task relates to the Big Question of the unit: Can anyone be a hero?

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 partially meet the criteria for providing teacher guidance outlining a cohesive, year-long vocabulary development component. Vocabulary is repeated in some areas of the texts, however not across multiple texts. Some attention is paid to vocabulary essential to understanding the text and to high value academic words. Students are not necessarily supported to accelerate vocabulary learning with vocabulary in their reading, speaking, and writing tasks. They are asked to refer back to lists when speaking and writing, in a blanket statement found throughout the texts. There are opportunities for students to learn and practice new vocabulary words, however these are stand alone tasks that mostly do not require the text. There are limited, opportunities to apply and transfer words into familiar and new contexts.

In Part 2 in each unit, each story has a preview of 4-6 words in blue that are defined in the text. The stories in Part 3 do not have vocabulary prior to text, but have approximately three defined within the text. All the vocabulary activities that deal with those words, either while reading the story or in the Close Reading Activities after the text, are stand-alone activities that have those same three words.

• In Unit 1, Part 2, “The Street of the Canon”, students copy the following words, nonchalantly, imperiously, plausibility, audaciously, disdain, and apprehension. Before reading they also complete a Vocab-o-Gram to help make predictions about the reading. They work with a partner or in a group making the predictions. Throughout the text, the target words can be found in blue text with a definition in the margin. However, there is no reference to have students interact with the blue words or look at their predictions. Mid-way through the text, students complete a word form chart containing the target words, nonchalance, imperiousness, plausibility. The text is not needed nor integrated into this activity. It is a stand alone vocabulary activity that could be completed without the text. At the end of the text, they return to the Vocab-o-Gram to review the words and their predictions. There is a Language Study activity after the reading containing the six words. In this activity students match each statement that follows with a word from the list of six. Again, there is no need for students to read the text in order to complete this activity. No text dependent questions related to vocabulary are present.
• During the “Developing Insights” (Part 3) portion of the units, the vocabulary practice is more limited. The text makes a statement throughout this portion of the unit which tells students, “Academic terms appear in blue on these pages. If these words are not familiar to you, use a dictionary to find their definitions. Then, use them as you speak and write about the text.” There are no opportunities for learning, practicing, applying, or transferring.

• In the Introductory Unit of the textbook, there are five Language Study lessons listed that occur throughout the textbook, one per unit. These include the following lessons: Using a Dictionary and Thesaurus, Word Origins: Etymology, Words With Multiple Meanings, Connotation and Denotation, and Idioms, Jargon, and Technical Terms. These activities are stand-alone activities to build knowledge around particular skills of vocabulary acquisition. Neither the activities nor the vocabulary connect to any readings or tasks later in the textbook, except that students are often asked to look up words in a dictionary and to find synonyms and/or antonyms for words. These activities could be seen as supports to help students accelerate their vocabulary acquisition, but there is never a reference to these Language Study activity that are in Part 2 of each unit later in the unit or textbook. There are no opportunities to intentionally transfer these skills to new or familiar contexts.

• In the back of the book, there are two glossaries that provide Tier 1 and Tier 2 vocabulary. One is a literary handbook which provides English specific literary terms and definitions. The second is a glossary (English and Spanish) of vocabulary. The Big Question vocabulary is in blue type and all other vocabulary from stories is in black type. These vocabulary terms are provided to students in the introduction to a text and then defined during the texts.
• In Part 2 of each unit, the Building Knowledge section before each selection introduces vocabulary that will be “key to understanding the text that follows.” In Unit 3, Part 2, students are told to copy the terms into the notebooks, write down another word that is an antonym. As students read the poems that follow, the words that they wrote in their notebooks appear on the side of the page and are defined. At the end of each text in Part 2 in the Close Reading Activity, a Language Study activity is provided. The same words that were given to students before and during reading the poems are then used in some type of vocabulary activity. In Unit 3, Part 2, in Poetry Collection 4, students are given blue words that appeared before and while reading the poems. Students are to explain if the word pairs are oxymorons. An oxymoron is defined for students and an example is provided. A Word Study section introduces the Latin suffix or and its meaning. In Part A, students are to explain how the suffix “contributes to the meanings of candor, compactor, and competitor. Consult a dictionary if necessary.” In Part B, they are to use the context of the sentence provided to answer and explain two questions: “Would you press an accelerator to make a car go slower?” If these activities are consistently included in lessons after each collection in Part 2, students would be regularly interacting with academic vocabulary and word relationships, however they also could be used as stand alone activities and no connections made to text. No interaction with word relationships and context.
• In Part 3 of each unit, each text has only 3 vocabulary words defined in the margin. The Close Reading Activities after each story has a Language Study section that uses the selection vocabulary in a different way each time. For example, in Unit 4 Part 3 after reading Act 1, Prologue, Scene1-2 of Antigone, (the anchor text), students are asked to “define each boldface word (it was defined for them in the text). Then, use the word in a sentence of your own.” After reading the end of the play, students are to define the 3 terms and “state whether it has positive or negative connotations. Then, provide another word with similar denotation but different connotations. Explain your choice.” The second vocabulary activity in the Language Study is centered on academic vocabulary. The student instructions: “The following words appear in blue in the instructions and questions on the facing page: contradiction, principles, practical. Copy the words into your notebook. For each word, find a related word or words on the same root (e.g. oppose, opposing, opposition).”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 partially meet the criteria that materials contain a year long, cohesive plan of writing instruction and tasks which support students in building and communicating substantive understanding of topics and texts.

The writing instruction is aligned to the standards for 10th grade and includes instruction on the different types of writing (argumentative, informative, narrative). The textbook includes models of different types of writing. Writing activities exist that require students to communicate their understanding of both texts and the Big Questions that are used for each unit. Students write over the course of the school year and many writing activities are offered in different ways, either after each selection, after a collection of texts and at the end of parts of units. Every Unit has a Writing Process lesson in Part 2 with mini-lessons on conventions, sentence fluency, voice, organization, word choice and idea lessons to accompany students writing. Each of these lessons also includes a student model, highlighting areas relevant to student’s writing. The Writing Process includes all components of the writing standards for students to practice and work with, however students are not writing about text They are writing about a personal experience Each unit has a Writing to Sources activity in the Assessment: Synthesis section at the end of Part 3. These activities do not vary over the year. In four of the five units, the process writing type matches with the assessment writing type; however, the specific type of writing is not the same. The writing instruction is not necessarily cohesive and there is no explanation as to why the type of writing activity is used in each unit. Students do not read texts that model how to write that particular type in the unit in which they are writing that type of essay. If a particular text within the unit has the same type of writing as the writing assignment, there are few analysis questions that require students to notice what the published author does in his/her argumentative, informative, or narrative writing.

• The Writing Process lesson in Part 2 of every unit is organized in a similar fashion. Unit 1 is outlined below. The assignment is “Write an Argument” (Analytic Response to Literature).

• Directions for students are to write an analytic response to a favorite piece of literature. Analyze a poem, a play, a story, or a screenplay. There are some elements listed that should be included (for example, an opening that introduces the topic and contains a thesis statement that clearly presents your position on an aspect of the work).
• Next, there is a prewriting/planning strategies page including suggestions for students; hold a group discussion, ask your own questions, consider your audience, go back to the source, consider counterclaims. Drafting Strategies is also included. Directions state, “ write a thesis statement that clearly expresses your claim, organize your response, use information from the text in various ways, address alternate viewpoints.”
• Then a convention mini-lesson on using pronoun-antecedent agreement is presented. Students are to circle the pronouns in two paragraphs of their draft, then draw an arrow to the antecedent for each pronoun. Next students evaluate whether or not the pronoun and antecedent agree and replace an incorrect pronouns.
• Revising Strategies are provided next for students including; how to use specific terms, clarify connections among ideas, cut excess writing, and peer review.
• Then another convention mini-lesson on subject-verb agreement. Students are instructed to practice this in their drafts.
• A student model is provided showing: A clear thesis statement in the introduction, accurate quotes of significant passages from the text, a point-by-point plan of organization focusing first on similarities and then moving onto differences, and the conclusion showing how to restate the thesis and provide an insight that takes the analysis further.
• Finally, there is an editing and proofreading section to guide students. This is followed by a publishing and presenting section, and a reflecting on your writing rubric.

• Subsequent units follow the pattern above, with the following assignments:
  • Unit 2 is “Write an Argument” (Persuasive Essay) Mini lessons focus on voice and sentence fluency.
  • Unit 3 is “Write an Explanatory Text” (Cause-and-Effect Essay) Mini lessons focus on organization and sentence fluency.
  • Unit 4 is “Write a Narrative” (Autobiographical Narrative) Min -lessons focus on finding an effective idea and revising to combine sentences using adverb clauses.
  • Unit 5 is “Write an Informative Text” (Comparison -and-Contrast Essay) Mini lesson is choosing strong, effective words, and revising to vary sentence patterns.

• In Unit 5, Part 3 the writing tasks include writing an explanatory text (literary criticism), an informative text (analytical essay), a narrative (fictional narrative), an argument (persuasive essay),and a narrative (reflective essay). The Assessment: Synthesis at the end of Unit 5, Part 3 has students write a fictional narrative and an informative essay. Neither of these two writings match any of the Writing Process lessons students were engaged in throughout the text in Units 1 -5.

• None of the Writing Process essays in any unit are directly connected to the texts or specific topics of the part. For example, the assignment for the cause-and effect essay in Part 2 of Unit 3 is “Write an essay in which you explain a cause-and-effect relationship.” Students are given a suggestion on the side of that page to read an excerpt from Collapse by Jared Diamond in Part 3 of the unit to see how a cause-and-effect essay could be written. Students have not yet read that part of the unit, nor is there any instruction connected to it.

• The process writing and independent writing activities at the ends of Part 2 and 3 in each unit do not build off each other and offer no cohesive instruction. For instance, in the Table of Contents Unit at a Glance pages for Unit 5, the Part 2 Writing Process activity is an Informative Text: Comparison-and Contrast Essay and the Part 3 Assessment Synthesis Writing to Sources activity is an Informative Essay. However, these two essays do not build off each other because they ask different types of questions. The Writing Process assignment is to “Write a comparison-and-contrast essay about two literary characters, two concepts, or two events” and all the related instruction is specific to that type of essay. The Writing to Source activity at the end of Part 3 asks students to “Write an essay in which you analyze the portrayal of heroism in Arthurian legends and consider why the stories have had such enduring power. Make important connections and distinctions suing at least two of the texts you have read.” This is not a cohesive connection between the practicing of this type of essay and the independent writing.

• In the Assessment Synthesis Writing to Sources essay, students would be able to communicate their understanding of the texts associated to the topic. In Unit 5, the prompt would have students show their understanding of heroism in Arthurian legends as they are connected to the texts they read in that part.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 10 partially meet the criteria that materials include a progression of focused, shared research and writing projects to encourage students to synthesize knowledge and understanding of a topic using texts and other source materials.

The textbook contains 51 different research activities. Students have the opportunity to conduct many short-term research tasks; these are often found in Close Reading Activities after each selection. Other research opportunities could be considered short or long term, depending on whether the teacher chooses to assign certain tasks that could relate to earlier research in a unit. Students are reminded that they may be able to use the short-term research in an essay at the end of the section. There is no clear progression of research skills. The same types of research projects are presented for different topics. The way students use or present their research varies throughout the textbook. Students may research to find more information or write a research summary or write a report or create a multimedia presentation. Students are encouraged to use multiple sources of research, both print and digital. The teacher edition offers instructions for teacher to provide access to a library with computers to research. Students are directed to use the texts they have read and digital research to answer a research question.

• In the Introductory Unit, Common Core Workshop, there is a section on Conducting Research with 10 pages of instruction including how to conduct short and long term research, followed by a Research Process Workshop. The Workshop takes students step-by-step through the process of writing a research report. In the margin are reading-writing connections to specific texts that appear in the textbook and sample research questions. The process includes prewriting/planning strategies, how to gather evidence, drafting strategies, revising strategies, documenting sources, editing, and proofreading. A student model research paper and Works Cited is included with annotations. A section on citing sources using MLA format is included.
• In Unit 4, Part 1, students complete a Close Reading Activity after reading “An Enemy of the People” which includes an “Integration of Knowledge and Ideas” section. The Discuss, Research, and Write tasks/questions in this section do not connect to one another, and therefore do not offer students an opportunity to synthesize standards or knowledge on a topic. For example, the Discuss question is “Do they ‘fight fair’?”, the research task is to “research spas and their popularity in 1880’s Europe”, and the writing prompt is “Which brother do you think is the real ‘enemy of the people’ of the play’s title?”. The research task serves no purpose for the speaking or writing tasks.
• In Unit 3, Part 3, in the Assessment Synthesis section, students complete a Writing to Sources essay where they explain, describe, and discuss one or more aspects of a question (choose one of 4 questions). In the margin, there is a reminder to students to incorporate research into their essay: “Strengthen your essay by pulling in facts, quotations, and data you gathered while conducting research related to the readings in this section. Make sure to cite your sources correctly.” Because students have a choice of four questions to complete essay task, they could choose a question that would not relate to any of the research that was conducted with the selections in Part 3, and, therefore, not use any research in their writing of a culminating task to synthesize multiple texts and their research.
• In each unit, at the end of each Anchor Text, is a Discuss-Research-Write section. The assumption is that these activities will fit together and require students to synthesize knowledge about a topic. Rather the tasks are all on different topics and stand alone. The research task could be considered more sustained research. In Unit 5, Part 3, Students are asked to conduct research about medieval knighthood. “Consult a variety of sources about the role of knights in the society, the equipment they used, and their portrayals in art and literature. Organize your findings into an illustrated dictionary with quotations of five key terms related to knighthood.” The finished product will be a digital dictionary. Students are gaining knowledge on a topic related to the text they just read, “Arthur Becomes King of Britain.”