12th Grade - Gateway 2

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 meet the criteria that texts are organized around a topic/topics or themes to build students’ knowledge and their ability to read and comprehend and analyze complex texts proficiently.

The materials for Grade 12 are organized into four topic-based units of study with a heavy emphasis on using critical and theoretical lenses for analysis. Each unit is centered around a topic or text genre, and students build knowledge through inquiry via a variety of literary genres and different types of informational text. Units are designed for students to utilize the texts to comprehend complex texts/topics. Activities within each unit develop students’ knowledge through structured learning activities that provide scaffolding of content leading students towards independent and proficient comprehension. Students also read independently and are required to complete tasks in response to their independent reading texts to build their knowledge about topics/themes within complex texts.

The opening page of each unit features a visual prompt and a quote aligned to the topic to initiate a classroom conversation. The first activity of each unit is a preview of the unit that includes Essential Questions linked to the topic of the unit. Additionally, the units contain connected sub-topics that build upon one another as the instructional year progresses. The design of the materials supports students’ comprehension of complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently due to scaffolding, gradual release, and increasingly demanding texts and tasks as the units progress.

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit: 1 Perception is Everything, students “apply Reader-Response and Cultural Criticism in determining author’s purpose, audience, and message.” Students read a variety of texts to answer the Essential Questions “Why do writers make particular choices when composing a text?”; “How does the interaction between a reader and a text create meaning?”; and “What does it mean to be a stranger in a village?” The texts in this unit include both informational and literary texts. After analyzing poetry, novel excerpts, arguments, and speeches, students write a rhetorical analysis essay to “critique and evaluate how the author of ‘Tipping System Exacerbates Unfair Pay at Restaurants’ builds an argument to convince her audience that restaurant workers deserve fair wages from their employers instead of tips.” The second part of the unit shifts to Cultural Criticism as students read various poems and essays to complete tasks such as Activity 1.13, What is Cultural Criticism. Students read the poem “Speaking with Hands” by Luis J. Rodriguez and “write a paragraph analyzing one stanza of the poem through the lens of Cultural Criticism.” For the second Embedded Assessment, students “write and present a reflective essay that illustrates an event in which you or someone you know felt like a ‘stranger in the village.’”
• In Unit 2: The Collective Perspective, instruction builds upon the first unit and continues with literary criticism of texts including myths, novel excerpts, folktales, and a full length drama. The Essential Questions for the unit include “How do writers develop great characters?”; “How does a person’s environment affect his or her identity?”; and “How does power affect people’s interactions and relationships?” The first part of the unit introduces students to Marxist Criticism as they read the drama Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. The first Embedded Assessment requires students to “write a script that transforms a scene from Pygmalion so that it reflects one of the critical perspectives.” The second part of the unit shifts to Feminist Criticism through modern and traditional folktales, children’s stories, and short stories. For the second Embedded Assessment, students apply literary criticism across two short stories, “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin and “The Chaser” by John Collier.
• In Unit 3: Evolving Perspectives, students must “apply multiple critical lenses to various texts and genre types” as they answer the Essential Questions “What role does literature play in examining recurring social issues?” and “How can an original text be adapted for different audiences?” The first part of the unit engages students with The Tragedy of Othello by Shakespeare and includes film adaptations and several introductory texts. For example, Activity 3.3 reviews the elements of Cultural Criticism and presents the song “The Right to Love” by Gene Lees and Lilo Schifrin and the poem “The Canonization” by John Donne. The activity prompts students to use criticism to answer the question, “Is the point of view of the speaker from a marginalized or dominant perspective?” After reading the play, students write a literary analysis essay on Pygmalion. Though much shorter, the second part of the unit looks at Othello across time and prepares students to write a stage handbook and present an interpretation of a scene from the play using a critical lens.
• In Unit 4: Creating Perspectives, instruction integrates the year-long focus on criticism and perspectives. Unit texts are informational and include articles, speeches, law, infographics, editorials, and reports about social issues. The unit’s Essential Questions include “How do media sources influence our understanding of the truth and significance of an issue?” and “How are media texts constructed to cater to media consumers’ interests, experiences, assumptions, and biases or to promote a particular agenda?” During the unit, students choose a topic or issue to research for their final argumentative presentation. During Activity 4.7, students read a series of informational texts on the social and political issues of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Students analyze each of the seven texts and culminate the lesson with an informational essay that synthesizes all the texts in the activity. This prepares students for the first Embedded Assessment which requires them to “write an argumentative essay that argues for the use of a particular critical lens to interpret an event.” The second part of the unit presents several speeches and support for students to prepare their final assessment during which they choose a medium such as a film, broadcast, podcast, or persuasive speech to present an argument on their chosen topic or issue.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 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.

Across the four instructional units, there is a common pattern to activities within and across lessons. The lessons are organized into recurrent sections that require students to draw on texts directly multiple times over the course of a lesson and unit: Making Observations, Focus on the Sentence, Returning to the Text, and Working from the Text. Students work from initial thoughts about key details in a text, to focusing on specific sentences in the text. Then, students answer a series of text-dependent/specific questions about the text. The majority of these tasks almost always include an analysis of the key ideas, structure, craft, and language, and require students to seek evidence from the text to support their thinking. The Teacher Edition also includes multiple text boxes per lesson titled Scaffolding the Text-dependent Questions which provides a sequence of questions teachers can ask during the reading.

For most texts, students are asked to analyze language and/or author’s word choice (according to grade-level standards). Examples include, but are not limited to:

• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address language and/or word choice.
• In Unit 4, Creating Perspectives, Activity 4.7, students examine author’s word choice as they read multiple texts about Hurricane Katrina. Questions include “What is the ‘favor’ in the editorial’s title? What does describing displaced New Orleanians as ‘in exile’ suggest about how they view themselves? What effect does describing the looters as ‘a tide of law breakers’ have on readers? What impact does the author’s use of words like hoodlums, animals, thugs, and looting have on the tone of the article?” Once students read all of the texts, students work in groups to respond to their assigned Essential Question. Students use the information they glean from their peers’ presentations to respond to the other Essential Question listed in the provided chart. Students work with various organizational approaches before responding to an informational writing prompt.

For most texts, students analyze key ideas and details, structure, and craft (according to grade-level standards). Some examples include:

• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address key ideas and details.
• In Unit 1, Perception is Everything, Activity 1.13, students read the poem “Speaking with Hands” by Luis J. Rodriguez to examine how cultural context and literary devices in poetry contribute to meaning. After reading, students work through a series of tasks that contain text-specific and text-dependent questions. For example, right after reading, students consider the Making Observations section which asks “What is Mama’s experience in the corner store?” and “What details from the poem can you visualize?” Students reread the poem and answer a sequence of questions for Returning to the Text. These include “In stanza 3, why does the speaker's mother start ‘an argument at the cash register’? Use details from the text to make inferences about what she wants.” To complete the reading, Check Your Understanding asks students “How do you think different cultural backgrounds can influence how a reader understands Rodriguez's poem?” The lesson culminates with a Writing Prompt: “Write a paragraph analyzing one stanza of the poem “Speaking with Hands” through the lens of Cultural Criticism. Does the author’s work speak to larger cultural and societal issues?” Tasks and texts like these help students prepare for Embedded Assessment 1 in which students write a reflective essay that illustrates a time when students or someone they know “felt like a ‘stranger in the village’ or were perceived as a stranger by some group.”
• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address structure.
• In Unit 2, The Collective Perspective, students analyze how the structure of the play Pygmalion: The Sequel by George Bernard Shaw incorporates or departs from a traditional dramatic structure. Students examine Shaw’s sequel to see if the play follows a traditional five-act structure, what elements are presented to orient the reader to the story, whether the play has a clear rising and falling action, and how the elements advance the plot. Students answer questions such as “What is the climax of the story? How does it advance the plot? Is there a clear conclusion to the play’s plot? Why do you think Shaw chose to structure the play the way he did? What purpose does this allow him to achieve?” Students respond to a literary writing prompt by writing “a script that reflects Shaw’s version of the play’s ending.”
• The materials contain coherently sequenced questions and tasks that address craft.
• In Unit 3, Evolving Perspectives, Activity 3.4, students demonstrate their understanding of dramatic, situational, and verbal irony through the performance of a scene. Prior to developing the scene, students examine the definition of the types of irony, and consider questions such as: “How can you make irony a significant part of your plot? How is dramatic, verbal, or situational irony, used in the scenario?” When students begin to collaboratively draft their scene they must consider: “Is the language and word choice precise and engaging enough to keep listeners interested?” At the end of the activity students’ overall understanding is assessed by responding to the following question: “What did you learn about analyzing irony, writing dialogue, and performing a short scene?”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 meet the criteria that materials contain a coherently sequenced set of text-dependent and text-specific questions and tasks that require students to build knowledge and integrate ideas across both individual and multiple texts.

The materials provide sequences of texts and accompanying text-dependent tasks that promote the building of knowledge and integration of ideas within texts and across texts. The Shared Instructional Vision of the materials is rooted in four principles that are designed to promote this type of learning: close observation and analysis, evidence-based writing, higher-order questioning, and academic conversations. Each unit follows a similar pattern to build student knowledge through close attention to a series of texts that when synthesized help students address the unit Essential Questions.

Within each unit activity there are sequences of text-specific and text-dependent questions designed to continuously bring students back to a deeper engagement with the texts. The sequence of questions first appear in the Working from the Text section. Additional sections such as Returning to the Text, Focus on Sentences, Writing Prompt, and Check Your Understanding also include text-specific questions and writing prompts to deepen students’ understanding of individual texts and genres. Certain features of the text encourage the integration of knowledge within and across texts such as the Knowledge Quest section that requires students to read a collection of texts on a specific topic, build knowledge and vocabulary on the topic and develop new understandings and considerations as they progress through the reading selections. Essential Questions at the beginning of each unit also provide students the opportunity to integrate and develop ideas across texts as they return to these questions throughout the unit and examine how their thinking has changed. Tasks throughout the unit require students to demonstrate this evolving understanding across texts. The tasks also prepare students for the two Embedded Assessments in each unit.

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 1: Perception Is Everything, students read the poem “I Remember” by Edward Montez and evaluate the author’s use of imagery, sensory details, and diction during Activity 1.5. Students read the poem, make observations about the poem then reread the poem before answering a series of text-specific questions that include “How does the poet’s diction affect your understanding of the memories described?” Students then complete a graphic organizer on the different types of imagery in the poem followed by two prompts that require them to evaluate and critique the author’s craft: “Now that you have evaluated some of the key elements of the poem, evaluate the poet’s use of language. Use the following questions to guide your discussion with a partner: Which lines might evoke an emotional response in readers? Which lines illuminate a theme found in the poem? How effective is the poet’s diction in helping the reader understand the speaker’s memories?” Students then complete a Quickwrite: “Do you think Montez’s use of imagery, specific details and diction is effective? Use specific evidence from the text to support your commentary.” The Activity concludes with a Check Your Understanding question: ”Think about Edward Montez’s poem ‘I Remember’ and write a new response to the unit Essential Question: Why do writers make particular choices when composing a text?”
• In Unit 2, The Collective Perspective, students learn “to understand and apply Archetypal, Marxist, and Feminist critical perspectives to drama, nonfiction, and narrative texts.” The anchor text is the drama Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw accompanied by the original myth from Ovid, literary criticism, a folktale, a fable, and a short story. Students review what they learned about Feminist Criticism in Activity 2.15, then answer questions about the lens such as, “If a matriarchal society is the opposite of a patriarchal society, what is the basis of the difference?” and “What assumption does Feminist Criticism make about the treatment of female characters in literary texts?” During Activity 2.18, teachers read the class the picture book The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein while students listen for evidence that supports a feminist critique of the book. Students then use two column notes to record a quote on one side and their analysis of the quote through a Feminist lens on the other. Finally for the Writing Prompt, students focus on the last line of the story “And the tree was happy” to write an explanation of why the tree would or would not be happy. Students then answer “How could a feminst analysis of this story give the reader a new or different understanding?”
• In Unit 3: Evolving Perspectives, during Activity 3.9, students complete a Knowledge Quest based on the Knowledge Question “How do stereotypes affect the social issue of racial prejudice?” Students read a piece of literary criticism, “The Moor in English Renaissance Drama” by Jack D’Amico, that examines the topic of stereotypes. After reading, they answer a series of Knowledge Quest questions: “Which of the author’s claims stand out to you the most? What questions do you have after reading this essay? What are your first thoughts about the relationship between stereotypes and racial prejudice after reading the article?” These questions are followed by a series of text-specific questions and a Knowledge Quest prompt that requires them to write an essay, bringing knowledge of an outside source into the conversation: “The author of this essay explores the way theater can lead ‘the individual spectator’ to look closer at stereotypes and re-examine prejudices. Think about a contemporary film and write an informative text explaining how the film uses stereotypes to affect racial prejudice. Be sure to: Provide a well-reasoned claim that is clearly stated. Use significant and relevant examples, details, or quotations from the film that thoroughly develop and support your claim. Provide an engaging conclusion that supports the claim and examines its implications.”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 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).

Each grade level contains four units of study that have two Embedded Assessments each. These assessments serve as culminating tasks for a skill set driving the unit instruction. They require students to demonstrate their learning through interpretation, synthesis of research, and various types of analysis. Students may be prompted to present their work through a variety of ways: dramatic interpretation, creative writing, analysis essays, arguments, media presentations, or debates. The unit tasks and texts build student knowledge and capacity to complete the assessments which include reading, writing, research, speaking, presenting, and listening over the course of the year. The assessments and daily tasks within the unit include collaborative group projects along with independent work. To prepare for the assessments, students answer constructive response questions, annotate texts, complete graphic organizers, and write both short and longer essay responses.

Within units, students also complete Knowledge Quests in which they read collections of texts to build their knowledge around a topic and its related vocabulary. Each Knowledge Quest begins with a central question and supporting questions that focus on student learning. After reading the collection of texts, students return to the knowledge question in order to synthesize what they learned through the readings and associated tasks, thus demonstrating their accumulated knowledge on the topic. This is accomplished through a writing prompt or academic discussion. Both the Embedded Assessments and the Knowledge Quests provide opportunities for students to demonstrate what they learned through reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 2, The Collective Perspective, students read the central text Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw to practice using different types of criticism learned in Unit 1. In Activity 2.3, students complete a Knowledge Quest in response to this Knowledge Question: “Why do people believe the price of playing creator outweighs the gains?” Students read a myth “Orpheus Sings: Pygmalion and the Statue” from Ovid’s Metamorphoses and an excerpt from the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley that examine the theme of humans “playing God.” As students read the selections, they answer the knowledge question and participate in a class discussion of text-dependent questions about the readings. Lastly, they discuss their thoughts on the knowledge question with a partner then complete a culminating task on the set of texts: “Think about the two texts. Which was greater: the price of playing creator or the gains? Write an argumentative text answering this question.” Tasks like these prepare students for Embedded Assessment 1: “Work with a partner to write a script that transforms a scene from Pygmalion so that it reflects one of the critical perspectives you have studied.”
• In Unit 3, Evolving Perspectives, students read The Tragedy of Othello by William Shakespeare. Embedded Assessment 1 requires students to use what they have learned about Feminist, Marxist, Cultural, Histocial or Archetypal literary criticism to write a literary analysis of one character from Othello. Activities leading up to the Embedded Assessment take students through each of the types of literary criticism. For example, in Activity 3.5: Viewing a Cast of Characters through a Marxist Lens, students read background on Marxist Literary Theory, then use what they have learned about Venetial social hierarchy of the 1600’s to assign each to a social class. Students must identify text evidence to support their choices. The activity ends with students writing an informational paragraph explaining how Marxist Criticism can inform analysis of characters in a play. These tasks and the first assessment comprise the majority of the unit which builds student capacity for Embedded Assessment 2: “Your assignment is to interpret a scene from Othello to emphasize the principles of one of the critical perspectives you have studied, and then plan, rehearse, and perform the scene. With your acting company, write a letter to the audience explaining the message your interpretation is trying to convey.”
• In Unit 4, Creating Perspectives, the materials prompt students to collaborate to “present an argument in a medium of your choice (persuasive speech, short documentary film, video news broadcast, podcast)” in a five to seven minute presentation during Embedded Assessment 2. Students then complete a Juror Ballot while watching each other’s presentations with the task of assessing “the quality of the presentation” and “the degree to which you believe it will successfully persuade the intended audience.” Students use research from earlier in the unit as the basis of their argument. For example, in Activity 4.13, students work with their group to create a plan for their presentation. The group completes such steps as reviewing their guiding questions and choosing a common question broad enough for individual questions, writing a strong thesis statement for the common question, synthesizing research, choosing organizational options, defining roles, identifying conventions, deciding to use or not use digital media, and creating a plan for the presentation.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 meet the criteria that materials include a cohesive, consistent approach for students to regularly interact with word relationships and build academic vocabulary/language in context.

In the opening pages of the text, the publisher explains the year-long, embedded approach to vocabulary incorporated in all grade levels. It explains, “Students are given ample opportunities to read and hear new words, explore their meanings, origins, and connotations, and use them in written and oral responses.” Students practice their vocabulary learning throughout lessons, activities, and assessments across the school year. Students not only learn the meanings of new vocabulary, they learn origins and connotations, and they apply their new knowledge through written and oral applications. The materials call out literary and academic vocabulary in boxes, and difficult vocabulary terms found in reading selections are glossed. Word Connections boxes also provide information for a “word with multiple meanings and nuances, an interesting etymology, a telling root or affix, a helpful Spanish cognate, a relationship to another word, or a connection to another content area.” At the beginning of each unit, there is a list of the literary and academic vocabulary for students, and the Teacher Wrap includes detailed information about vocabulary development including the importance of learning new vocabulary, what types of vocabulary students will encounter, and suggestions and resources for instruction. The Resources section at the conclusion of each grade level also contains a few strategies for working with vocabulary—Guided Reading, Question Heard Teach (QHT), Cloze Reading, Cognate Bridge, and Visual Prompts—as well as Graphic Organizers for working with vocabulary—Definition and Reflection, Verbal & Visual Word Association, and Word Map.

Attention is paid to vocabulary essential to understanding the text and to analyzing the purpose of word choices. Examples include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 1, Perception is Everything, Activity 1.5, the prompt for Activity 1.5 states: “Analyze the way a poet uses imagery and diction to create particular effects. Evaluate and critique how an author uses language to convey a sensory experience to readers.” Teachers then “help students define the terms imagery, sensory language, and diction. Then discuss the purpose and function in writing.” Students “mark any imagery or sensory language they notice in the poem.” Teachers finish by reviewing the vocabulary with students and “ask them to work with a partner to brainstorm words to define the term diction.”
• In Unit 4, Creating Perspectives, Activity 4.11, students read “Remarks by President George W. Bush at Warren Easton Charter High School on the 10th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina” by George W. Bush. The Teacher Wrap suggests that students pause at the end of Paragraph 5: “After paragraph 5, pause to discuss the Word Connection box. Select a few compelling words from the text, such as status quo, and ask students about the author’s possible intent for using them. Elicit other words that the author could have used.” The Word Connection box provides the etymology of the vocabulary term status quo: “Etymology: The term status quo comes from Latin and literally means ‘the state in which.’ In English, the term refers to the existing state of something, and it is often used negatively in political discourse to criticize acceptance of current conditions and the slow pace of social or political change. Reread paragraph 5 of the speech and look for Bush’s use of the term status quo. What does he mean by it in this context?”

Opportunities are present for students to learn, practice, apply, and utilize vocabulary in multiple contexts. Some examples include:

• In Unit 1, Perception is Everything, the Word Connections box for Activity 1.6 reviews the etymology of the word allergy. In the Teacher Wrap, a Teacher to Teacher tip includes this guidance, “Use the Word Connections features throughout the student book to help students identify and internalize patterns in the formation of English words.” It goes on to explain how to discuss words to help students go beyond the instruction and activities in the book to acquire new vocabulary they can use fluently.
• In Unit 2, The Collective Perspective, students analyze and compare two texts from different literary periods during Activity 2.3. In the Teacher Wrap, teacher guidance indicates the need to “review the meaning of the term myth with students.” Additional directions instruct teachers to “have students work in pairs to define the term in their own words and think of both examples and non-examples.”
• In Unit 2,The Collective Perspective, Activity 2.6, students read Act III of Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. At the beginning of the Activity, the academic vocabulary term faux pas and its definition are introduced. Students also learn the etymology of the term in a Word Connections box: “The term faux pas is an example of a ‘loan’ phrase—one borrowed from another language that becomes, over time, adopted into common use. The literal translation of faux pas from French is ‘false step,’ but it has been used in English since the 17th century.” The Teacher Wrap suggests that teachers have students make connections to other readings as they read: “Have students review the annotations they will make as they read Pygmalion Act III. Engage students in a brief discussion about other transformative characters they have recently encountered in their reading who also face early challenges and commit significant mistakes.”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 meet the criteria that materials include a cohesive, year-long plan to support students’ increasing writing skills over the course of the school year, building students’ writing ability to demonstrate proficiency at grade level at the end of the school year.

The materials provide year-long comprehensive writing instruction throughout the four units of study via formative practice, frequent writing prompts, performance-based assessments, language checks, research tasks, and optional Writing Workshops. Writing tasks range from formal to informal, on-demand to multi-draft, and expressive to analytical. This includes short and full-length research tasks that require finding, analyzing, and synthesizing sources for evidence. Writing activities are incorporated daily for students to respond to texts for a variety of purposes such as making observations, analyzing content and author’s intent, and preparing for discussion or group work. Language and Writer’s Craft and Language Checkpoints give students practice in utilizing language and conventions in writing.

Each unit contains multiple writing prompts that build to the two Embedded Assessments in which students have the opportunity to write across multiple genres. Guided instruction, modeling, opportunities for practice, protocols, and rubrics help students build the skills necessary to complete tasks of increasing difficulty and for teachers and students alike to monitor growth. Supplemental materials include ten additional Writing Workshops that provide a closer look and additional practice of various writing genres. However, it is important to note that these are not a part of the core materials and will require additional time and teacher planning.

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 1, Perception Is Everything, students examine rhetoric and literary analysis to practice criticism. For example, in Activity 1.5, students evaluate and critique poets’ use of imagery, sensory details, and diction and choose one poem they have studied to write an evaluation of how that poet’s choices create an effect: “Revisit any of the poems you have read so far in this unit. Write a paragraph explaining how the poet purposefully uses language in the poem to convey meaning or to create a specific effect on the reader. Be sure to describe key genre characteristics such as precise language, structural elements, and the use of poetic devices.” For Embedded Assessment 1, students write a rhetorical analysis essay on the article “Tipping System Exacerbates Unfair Pay at Restaurants” by Kathleen Kingsbury. Students must “explain and evaluate how Kathleen Kingsbury uses one or more of the features in the directions that precede the passage (or features of your own choosing) to develop her argument.” In the second part of Unit 1, students study Cultural Criticism and analyze several essays and poetry on personal experiences. In Embedded Assessment 2 students complete a similar task with an original piece: “Write and present a reflective essay that illustrates an event in which you or someone you know felt like a ‘stranger in the village’ or were perceived as a stranger by some group.”
• In Unit 2, The Collective Perspective, the focus on criticism and analysis continues with attention to more literary works. For the first part of the unit, students practice applying criticism such as Marxism to Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. For Embedded Assessment 1, students work with a partner to write a transformed scene from Pygmalion to reflect one of the criticisms they studied. In the second half, attention shifts to Feminist criticism using a blend of literary works. For example, students read Madonna Kolbenschlag’s literary criticism “Cinderella, the Legend” and Zora Neale Hurston’s folktale “Why Women Always Take Advantage of Men.” During Activity 2.17, students form discussion groups and use a Venn diagram compare and contrast the ideas about men and women presented in both texts. While considering some of the key ideas of Feminist Criticism, students “decide whether Kolbenschlag and Hurston would tend to agree or disagree with the ideas here,” using evidence from both texts to support their responses. This task also grants students the opportunity to share whether they agree or disagree with the same statements as they record their views in the last column of the table. After writing a paragraph summarizing some of the significant points of their group’s discussion, students respond to an informational writing prompt: “Write a detailed response explaining a key idea of Feminist Criticism from the graphic organizer you completed in this activity. Evaluate how Kolbenschlag and Hurston explore this idea in their writing.”
• In Unit 3, Evolving Perspectives, students engage in more independent practice with criticism as they make choices about the type of criticism they want to use. While students read Othello by William Shakespeare and study other adaptations, they write multiple literary critiques such as in Activity 3.7: “Write a character analysis of Othello that describes him from the Cultural Criticism perspective.” Prior to the first assessment, Activity 3.15 prompts students to “select one of the themes presented in Othello. Write an argumentative essay explaining which film adaptation of Othello best illuminates one of the themes presented in the play through its use of dramatical elements.” For Embedded Assessment 1, students transition through the writing process to answer this prompt: “Select a character from Othello and write a literary analysis about him or her using one of the critical lenses that you have studied (choose Feminist, Marxist, Cultural, Historical, or Archetypal for this assignment). You will support your analysis with valid reasoning and sufficient evidence from your reading, observations, and previous work.” These and similar tasks prepare students to complete Embedded Assessment 2: “Your assignment is to interpret a scene from Othello to emphasize the principles of one of the critical perspectives you have studied, and then plan, rehearse, and perform the scene. With your acting company, write a letter to the audience explaining the message your interpretation is trying to convey.”
• In Unit 4, Creating Perspectives, students study a variety of reports, articles, films, and speeches to analyze how the media presents different perspectives including bias. In Activity 4.3, students respond to the question “Who holds more responsibility for media bias, the journalist or the reader?” and write an argument defending their position. By Activity 4.6, students have read and watched multiple pieces on Hurricane Katrina and complete an informational prompt: “After discussing the infographic, podcast, and video in groups, write a brief essay explaining how producers of media can select information—interviews, statistics, images, or sounds—to frame the information they present through a particular critical lens.” Tasks such as these prepare students for Embedded Assessment 1 in which students draw upon their cumulative skills and compose an essay with limited assistance: “Your assignment is to write an argumentative essay that argues for the use of a particular critical lens to interpret an event. Your essay must include an annotated bibliography and evidence from at least five texts gathered alone or with your group members.” The final assessment for the year requires students to demonstrate independence and capacity when choose writing styles: “Your assignment is to present an argument in a medium of your choice (persuasive speech, short documentary film, video news broadcast, podcast) in which you transform the information you gathered from your research in the first part of the unit into an argument concerning the topic/issue you have chosen.”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 meet the criteria that materials include a progression of focused, shared research and writing projects to encourage students to develop and synthesize knowledge and understanding of a topic using texts and other source materials.

The materials provide ample opportunities for students to practice evaluating sources, gathering relevant evidence, and citing and reporting findings accurately through shorter, focused, research tasks as well as more in-depth research projects. Throughout the year, students work collaboratively and independently to build their research skills. The Teacher Wrap provides suggestions for resources for teachers to bring to the classroom for students to explore and also provides students with choice in pursuing research avenues. Students analyze embedded selections and outside research brought to the classroom conversation. The units provide students shorter practice tasks that build their capacity to complete more extensive research projects generally through one or both of the Embedded Assessment.

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 2, The Collective Perspective, students read the central text Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw and practice various forms of literary criticism. During Activity 2.2, students complete an On the Spot Research activity on archetypes: “Conduct research on the four archetypes your teacher has assigned to your group. Jot down key words relating to the archetypes in the notes column of the graphic organizer. Discuss your findings, and work collaboratively to add a list of examples of this archetype to your graphic organizer. Consider characters in movies and other works of fiction. Then use your notes and list of examples to write a definition of each archetype.” Students complete a similar task in Activity 2.4 that references their independent reading books: “Using your understanding of Archetypal Criticism, analyze the characters presented in the text you are reading. Which archetypes or universal symbols do you notice in your independent reading? How does identifying archetypes deepen your understanding of the text? Write a brief response in your Reader/Writer Notebook.” Students study and practice several other types of literary criticism before completing Embedded Assessment 1: “Work with a partner to write a script that transforms a scene from Pygmalion so that it reflects one of the critical perspectives you have studied.”
• In Unit 4, Creating Perspectives, students read a variety of articles, speeches, reports, and media items to understand how authors can persuade readers by their presentation of information. In Activity 4.7, students select a text from a collection of texts which focus on the aftermath and portrayal of Hurricane Katrina. After reading, teachers assign students essential questions depending on the articles they choose. Students complete an in-depth reading and tasks section then present their answers to the questions while the class records notes and observations. After collecting a variety of evidence, students complete the writing prompt: “Write a brief essay using evidence from the various articles you have discussed to answer your guiding question.” Over the next activities, students prepare a research plan with their group to take a critical perspective on Hurricane Katrina. In Activity 4.9, students take a close look at evaluating sources: “It is important to be able to identify if sources will help to strengthen your argument. Think about which search engines and terms you will use and how you will know that sources are credible and accurate. This task requires you to examine each source for credibility, accuracy, bias, and relevance. Keep in mind that you should be able to analyze each source through one or multiple critical lenses.” The materials then present students with a list of questions to ask about the credibility of their sources. After completing the research, students complete Embedded Assessment 1: “Your assignment is to write an argumentative essay that argues for the use of a particular critical lens to interpret an event. Your essay must include an annotated bibliography and evidence from at least five texts gathered alone or with your group members.”

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 12 meet the criteria that materials provide a design, including accountability, for how students will regularly engage in a volume of independent reading either in or outside of class.

Each unit begins with a Planning the Unit section for teachers that includes a text list called Suggestions for Independent Reading which relate to topics, themes, and genres featured in the unit. The lists include a list for literary and nonfiction/informational texts, each with author, title, and Lexile level where applicable. Spanish selections are also provided. These lists can also be found in the Resources section along with a student independent reading log. Throughout the year, materials include frequent opportunities for students to engage in independent reading through lessons and self-selected materials. The beginning of each unit features a preview of the unit’s focus and guiding questions connected to the topic to support students in selecting the most appropriate independent reading texts and developing a reading plan. Twice per unit, the materials include Independent Reading Checkpoints that require students to complete an informal discussion or writing assignment. Students also respond to Independent Reading Links that require them to articulate connections between their independent reading and the skills/concepts they are learning about in the classroom, which also holds them accountable for completing their independent reading books and required reading logs. The Teacher Wrap also includes additional guidance for teachers to foster independence for all readers. When students read and analyze longer texts across the Activities, the materials suggest scaffolding strategies to support students along the way, gradually leading to their reading independence across the year. Additional readings can be found in the digital resource Zinc Reading Labs.

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• In Unit 1, Perception is Everything, the Previewing the Unit section of Activity 1.1 invites students to explore the big ideas and tasks of the unit to make plans for their own independent reading. The activity also requires students to create an Independent Reading Plan that requires them to answer questions including but not limited to the time and place they will set aside to read independently, and a specific date they plan on finishing the text. Some suggestions for independent reading include Going Bovine by Libba Bray, The Hours by Michael Cunningham, and Mudbound by Hillary Jordan (fiction); Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction by Jonathan Culler, Hirshima by John Hershey, and Moneyball by Michael Lewis.
• In Unit 2, The Collective Perspective, students read excerpts from the play Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw and make connections to archetypal elements found in Ovid's myth during Activity 2.11. They also evaluate the effectiveness of the author's choices in the form of an argumentative essay. In the activity, students complete an Independent Reading Link that requires them to review their notes from Activity 2.1, watch a film adaption of their independent reading text, and jot down how narrative elements are presented in the original text and film versions. Students also compare how the author and filmmaker handled dialogue, character, exposition, and the interpretations of the characters and consider if they were the filmmaker, what would they have done differently. Students discuss their observations with a peer and record notes of their discussion in their Reader/Writer Notebook.
• In Unit 3, Evolving Perspectives, students “analyze a character's motivations and traits by closely reading a soliloquy, and interpret a scene and evaluate how the delivery of lines can be used to amplify dramatic irony” during Activity 3.11. Students complete an Independent Reading Link that directs them to reflect on the internal thoughts and dialogue between characters in their independent reading. Students then work with a partner to discuss how this external or internal dialogue gave them more insight into character motivations. The Teacher Wrap recommends the following for the discussion between pairs: “ As pairs discuss the Independent Reading Link, encourage them to consider points of comparison between the character's internal thoughts and external dialogue.”
• In Unit 4, Creating Perspectives, the Previewing the Unit section of Activity 1.1 invites students to explore the big ideas and tasks of the unit to come and make plans for their own independent reading. The materials inform students that they will read a variety of informational texts including a series of texts on Hurricane Katrina. Student guidance recommends that they consider choosing nonfiction relating to the media, such as a biography about a prominent journalist or books about the experiences of journalists reporting from the front lines. Later in the unit, students find independent reading texts that will deepen their understanding about Hurricane Katrina and its long-term effects.