Senior High ELA - Alberta Education

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English Language Arts Guide to Implementation

2003

Alberta Learning Cataloguing in Publication Data Alberta. Alberta Learning. Learning and Teaching Resources Branch. Senior high school English language arts : guide to implementation. ISBN 0–7785–2571–6 1. English language—Study and teaching (Secondary)—Alberta. 2. Language arts (Secondary)—Study and teaching—Alberta. I. Title. PE1113.A333 2003

372.65

Questions or concerns regarding this guide can be addressed to the Director, Learning and Teaching Resources Branch, Alberta Learning. Telephone 780–427–2984. To be connected toll free inside Alberta dial 310–0000 first.

Several Web sites are listed in this document. These sites are listed as a service only to identify potentially useful ideas for teaching and learning. The responsibility to evaluate these sites rests with the user.

The primary intended audience for this document is: Administrators Counsellors General Audience Parents Students Teachers

9

Copyright ©2003, the Crown in Right of Alberta, as represented by the Minister of Learning. Alberta Learning, Learning and Teaching Resources Branch, 44 Capital Boulevard, 10044 – 108 Street NW, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, T5J 5E6. Every effort has been made to provide proper acknowledgement of original sources. If cases are identified where this has not been done, please notify Alberta Learning so appropriate corrective action can be taken. Permission is given by the copyright owner to reproduce this document for educational purposes and on a nonprofit basis, with the exception of materials cited for which Alberta Learning does not own copyright.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation was developed by the Learning and Teaching Resources Branch of Alberta Learning. A considerable debt of gratitude is owed to the Department of Education and Youth, Government of Manitoba (formerly Manitoba Education and Training), for permission to draw from its curriculum support document Senior 2 English Language Arts: A Foundation for Implementation, 1998. Alberta Learning expresses its appreciation to the many teachers and other educators whose teaching experiences and feedback informed the development of this document. Darlene Abraham Elaine Amyot Katherine Anselmo Christy Audet Jim Barritt Tani Baskett Carole Beaton Shelley Benson Cyndy Berry Joanne Biegun Lana Black Beverly Bosetti Glenda Brandingen Wouter Broersma Ken Brown Marie Bruggeman Bruce Buchanan Valerie Burghardt Corrine Burke Sher Burke Lisa Cameron Daryl Cardiff James Chiba Laurie Chomany Brad Clark Janet Clark Margaret Clark Simone Clark Dan Clarke Vicki Crowell Wade Currie Lisa Daverne Deborah Deak Donna de Bruin Bernie Derosiers Bill Dickson Norine Dodge

Faculty of Education, University of Calgary Fort McMurray Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 32 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Horizon School Division No. 67 Chinook’s Edge School Division No. 73 St. Albert Protestant Separate School District No. 6 Canadian Rockies Regional Division No. 12 Edmonton School District No. 7 Chinook’s Edge School Division No. 73 Calgary School District No. 19 Edmonton School District No. 7 Office of VP (Academic), University of Calgary Rundle College Society Black Gold Regional Division No. 18 Chinook’s Edge School Division No. 73 Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1 Rundle College Society East Central Alberta Catholic Separate Schools Regional Division No. 16 Wolf Creek School Division No. 72 Calgary School District No. 19 Edmonton School District No. 7 Grande Yellowhead Regional Division No. 35 Grande Prairie School District No. 2357 Horizon School Division No. 67 Black Gold Regional Division No. 18 Edmonton School District No. 7 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Rankin Inlet, Nunavut Edmonton School District No. 7 Fort Smith, Northwest Territories Lakeland Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 150 Golden Hills School Division No. 75 Livingstone Range School Division No. 68 Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 28 Grande Prairie School District No. 2357 Faculty of Education, University of Calgary Lethbridge School District No. 51

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Acknowledgements /iii (2003)

Karen Douziech Mary Dunnigan Bryan Ellefson Sandra Ens Carol Fedrau-Ens Michele Ferreira Jim Field Graham Foster Wendy Fox Karen Galandy Monique Gibeau Lois Gluck Christine Gordon Jim Graham Adrienne Gregory Doug Gregory Kim Greyson Kjirsten Grosky Margaret Hadley Martha Howson Carla Head Patrick Head James Heninger Kim Hoar Jill Horwood Margaret Hunsberger Phyliss Hutchinson Marg Iveson Joanne Jackson Pat Jackson Lynda Jeans Charlotte Jobb Ingrid Johnson Mike Joly Pat Jordan Debbie Jorgenson Peter Kaczor Pam Klemen Betty Koch Carol Koran Pat Kover Brenda Kwasnie Wendy Laird Sharon Lampard Gerard Landry Mary Jane Lennox Linda Leskiw Debra Leslie Paula Leverman iv/ Acknowledgements (2003)

Edmonton School District No. 7 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Palliser Regional Division No. 26 Rocky View School Division No. 41 Medicine Hat School District No. 76 Red Deer School District No. 104 Faculty of Education, University of Calgary Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1 (Retired) Lethbridge School District No. 51 Golden Hills School Division No. 75 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 St. Albert Protestant Separate School District No. 6 University of Calgary Foothills School Division No. 38 Calgary School District No. 19 Clearview School Division No. 71 Rocky View School Division No. 41 Buffalo Trail Public Schools Regional Division No. 28 Department of English, University of Calgary Black Gold Regional Division No. 18 Edmonton School District No. 7 Peace River School Division No. 10 Westwind School Division No. 74 Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1 Edmonton School District No. 7 Faculty of Education, University of Calgary Prairie Rose Regional Division No. 8 Department of Secondary Education, University of Alberta Lakeland Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 150 Alberta Distance Learning Centre Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1 Medicine Hat Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 20 Department of Secondary Education, University of Alberta St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 38 Calgary School District No. 19 University of Calgary Calgary School District No. 19 Parkland School Division No. 70 Medicine Hat College Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 4 Calgary School District No. 19 Calgary School District No. 19 Foothills School Division No. 38 Red Deer School District No. 104 Yellowknife, Northwest Territories Rocky View School Division No. 41 Sturgeon School Division No. 24 Chinook’s Edge School Division No. 73 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Ann Levey Carolyn Lewis Marilyn Lindgren Dianne Loveland Marvyn Machura Sharon Maclise Stasha Malazdrewich Elizabeth Marchand Michelle Marlen Audrey Martin Melanie Matheson Bob McDougall Murray McGillivray Larry McKill Mark McNally Pat McPherson Dave McWhinnie Anne McWhir Judy Mentz Sylvia Mentz Anne Michaelis Debbie Mineault Laurie Mitchell Darlene Montgomery Jill Mouly Peter Mueller Brenda Mulder Laura Mulvey Bruce Murdoch Michelle Murphy Kevin Mussieux Anne Marie Ogston David O’Handley Val Olekshy Norma Ornichinski Judy Pachal Jim Paul Maureen Pawliuk Marie Pawluk Doug Payne Karen Pegler Gene Plihal Joanne Polec Brenda Prentice Danica Pyper-Raymond Annette Ramrattan Nicola Ramsey Peg Richel Maria Roach Debbie Robert

Dean’s Office, Humanities, University of Calgary Edmonton School District No. 7 Chinook’s Edge School Division No. 73 Calgary School District No. 19 NorQuest College Alberta Home and School Councils’Association Lakeland Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 150 Battle River Regional Division No. 31 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Edmonton School District No. 7 Grande Prairie School District No. 2357 Medicine Hat School District No. 76 Department of English, University of Calgary Department of English, University of Alberta Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Red Deer School District No. 104 Rundle College Society Department of English, University of Calgary Red Deer School District No. 104 Northern Alberta Institute of Technology Horizon School Division No. 67 Curriculum Branch, Alberta Learning Livingstone Range School Division No. 68 Calgary School District No. 19 Prairie Land Regional Division No. 25 Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 4 Edmonton School District No. 7 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Living Waters Catholic Regional Division No. 42 Edmonton School District No. 7 Sturgeon School Division No. 24 Alberta College Fort Vermilion School Division No. 52 Edmonton School District No. 7 Sturgeon School Division No. 24 Edmonton School District No. 7 Faculty of Education, University of Calgary Greater St. Albert Catholic Regional Division No. 29 Edmonton School District No. 7 Buffalo Trail Public Schools Regional Division No. 28 Calgary School District No. 19 High Prairie School Division No. 48 Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 4 Wild Rose School Division No. 66 Pembina Hills Regional Division No. 7 Northland School Division No. 61 Slave Lake, Alberta Calgary School District No. 19 Elk Island Public Schools Regional Division No. 14 Keyano College

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Acknowledgements /v (2003)

Monica Robertson John Robinson Dom Saliani Ken Saunderson Lynn Scott Anita Sedor Jim Sheasgreen Valerie Sherwood Marcia Shillington Cathy Silewych Tara Sly Brad Smilanich Rhonda Smith Steven Smith Brenda Smither Lynn Sparks Tom Sperling Marlene Stevens Deb Strachan Kara Strobel Terry Susut Lorraine Tchir Monique Tellier-Phillips Kendra Terry Joanne Thibault Elaine Thompson Cat Turner Dwain Tymchyshyn Corvin Uhrback Linda Vandenberg Harry Wagner Keith Wagner Dorothy Walch Verna Weasel Child Robin Webster Peter Weeks Tracy Wilson Julie Wolff Rhonda Wolske Brian Wyley Lyla Yanishewski Tamara Young

Grande Prairie Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 28 St. Paul Education Regional Division No. 1 Calgary School District No. 19 Fort McMurray School District No. 2833 Rundle College Society Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1 Elk Island Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 41 Lundbreck, Alberta East Central Alberta Catholic Separate Schools Regional Division No. 16 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Rocky View School Division No. 41 Edmonton School District No. 7 Fort Vermilion School Division No. 52 Battle River Regional Division No. 31 Edmonton School District No. 7 Calgary School District No. 19 Wild Rose School Division No. 66 Calgary School District No. 19 Wolf Creek School Division No. 72 Prairie Land Regional Division No. 25 Wolf Creek School Division No. 72 St. Paul Education Regional Division No. 1 St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 38 Aspen View Regional Division No. 19 Peace River School Division No. 10 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Calgary School District No. 19 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Wolf Creek School Division No. 72 Holy Family Catholic Regional Division No. 37 Parkland School Division No. 70 School Improvement Branch, Alberta Learning Fort McMurray School District No. 2833 Siksika Nation High School Peace River School Division No. 10 Clearview School Division No. 71 Medicine Hat School District No. 76 Grasslands Regional Division No. 6 Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1 Wetaskiwin Regional Division No. 11 Peace Wapiti Regional Division No. 33 Northern Lights School Division No. 69

Contributing Writers LuEllen Anderson David Auten Karen Belter Susan Bowsfield Dean Cunningham

St. Albert Protestant Separate School District No. 6 Edmonton School District No. 7 (Retired) Edmonton School District No. 7 Pembina Hills Regional Division No. 7 Learning Technologies Branch, Alberta Learning

vi/ Acknowledgements (2003)

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Tom Dunn Rosemary Fitzpatrick Sharon Frederick Charlotte Garrett Heather Harrigan Keri Helgren Maggie Hogan Gerry Lawson Angie Lemire Ardyth MacQuarrie Ann Manson Patricia Perry Shelley Robinson Elana Scraba Jacqueline Veinot Ellen Wells Janeen Werner-King Carol Windlinger Jerry Wowk Carol Young

Learner Assessment Branch, Alberta Learning Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1 Northern Gateway Regional Division No. 10 NorQuest College Calgary School District No. 19 Black Gold Regional Division No. 18 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Film Classification Services, Alberta Community Development Grande Yellowhead Regional Division No. 35 Calgary School District No. 19 (Retired) Edmonton School District No. 7 (Retired) Northern Lights School Division No. 69 Rocky View School Division No. 41 Learner Assessment Branch, Alberta Learning (Retired) Elk Island Public Schools Regional Division No. 14 Edmonton School District No. 7 Calgary Roman Catholic Separate School District No. 1 Calgary School District No. 19 Edmonton Catholic Separate School District No. 7 Learning and Teaching Resources Branch, Alberta Learning

Alberta Learning Leadership Gina Vivone-Vernon Greg Bishop

Director, Learning and Teaching Resources Branch Team Leader, Learning and Teaching Resources Branch

Principal Writers Cam Fahlman Bill Talbot Cathi Ramsden

Curriculum Consultant, Learning and Teaching Resources Branch Program Consultant, Learning and Teaching Resources Branch Resource Manager, Learning and Teaching Resources Branch

Document Production Christopher Ewanchuk Kim Blevins Lin Hallett Dianne Moyer Esther Yong Sandra Mukai

Editor Copy Editor Desktop Publisher Desktop Publisher Desktop Publisher Copyright Officer

Language Arts Interbranch Committee Brigitta Braden Learner Assessment Branch Doug Burns Learner Assessment Branch (Retired) Jennifer Bushrod Curriculum Branch Alan Chouinard Learner Assessment Branch Janet Clark Learner Assessment Branch Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Acknowledgements /vii (2003)

Mike Ettrich Guylaine Girard Maureen Gough Jo-Anne Hug Nicole Lamarre Gerard Lavigne Carol Mayne Alain Nogue Barbara Proctor-Hartley Ann Marie Ruddell Ray Shapka Laurel Sproule Harvey Stables Philip Taranger Renate Taylor Majeau David Woodland

Learning Technologies Branch French Language Services Branch Professional Development and Certification Branch Learner Assessment Branch French Language Services Branch Learner Assessment Branch Learner Assessment Branch French Language Services Branch Learner Assessment Branch Learner Assessment Branch Learner Assessment Branch Learner Assessment Branch Learner Assessment Branch Learner Assessment Branch Learner Assessment Branch Learner Assessment Branch

Special thanks to: Janet Hancock, English Language Arts Program Manager, K–12

viii/ Acknowledgements (2003)

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction .................................................................................................................................... Purpose .................................................................................................................................... Background .............................................................................................................................. How to Use the Guide .............................................................................................................

1 1 1 1

PLANNING AND ASSESSMENT Unit Planning ................................................................................................................................. How Should I Begin? .............................................................................................................. What Outcomes Should be Addressed? .................................................................................. How Will I Know if Students Have Achieved the Outcomes? ............................................... What Texts Should be Studied? .............................................................................................. How Can I Help Students Achieve the Outcomes? ................................................................. What Are the Next Steps? ....................................................................................................... What Else Is Important to Consider When Planning? .............................................................

5 6 6 7 11 12 14 15

Assessment ..................................................................................................................................... Types and Purposes of Classroom Assessment........................................................................ What Does Good Assessment Look Like? ............................................................................... Standards—How Good Is Good Enough? ............................................................................... Diploma Examination Assessment ..........................................................................................

23 23 27 29 32

Responding to Text and Context .................................................................................................... Metacognition .......................................................................................................................... Skills and Attitudes ................................................................................................................. Responding to Text ................................................................................................................. Responding to Context ............................................................................................................ One Approach to Response-based Study ................................................................................ Sharing Responses ................................................................................................................... Response-based Learning Activities ....................................................................................... Suggestions for Assessment ....................................................................................................

35 35 36 37 39 40 43 44 52

Using Film in the Classroom ......................................................................................................... Choosing Films ........................................................................................................................ A Word about Ratings ............................................................................................................. Teaching Film .......................................................................................................................... Copyright ................................................................................................................................. Related Materials ..................................................................................................................... Film Study Units ...................................................................................................................... Feature Films Recommended for Classroom Use ...................................................................

55 55 55 56 61 61 61 95

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Table of Contents /ix (2003)

Choosing Resources ....................................................................................................................... Alberta Learning Authorized Resources ................................................................................. What Is Sensitive? ................................................................................................................... Explaining Program and Choice of Texts ............................................................................... Strategies for Dealing with Sensitive Texts and Issues ........................................................... Dealing with Challenges ..........................................................................................................

103 103 104 106 106 109

Meeting Student Needs .................................................................................................................. The Senior High School Learner ............................................................................................. Fostering a Will to Learn ......................................................................................................... Learning Styles ........................................................................................................................ Scaffolding to Support Student Learning ................................................................................ Differentiated Instruction ........................................................................................................ Toward Understanding Aboriginal Students ...........................................................................

111 111 112 116 117 120 132

ACHIEVING THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS OUTCOMES FOR SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL Suggestions for Instruction and Assessment .................................................................................. 139 An Organizational Framework ................................................................................................ 139 Instructional and Assessment Suggestions .............................................................................. 139 General Outcome 1 General Outcome 2 General Outcome 3 General Outcome 4 General Outcome 5

........................................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................................

141 183 239 289 349

Appendices Table of Contents ....................................................................................................... Appendix A: Unit Planning Tools, Ideas and Examples .............................................................. Appendix B: Assessment Tools, Scoring Guides and Student Planning Forms ........................... Appendix C: Cross-referencing of Specific Outcomes in the Information and Communication Technology and Senior High School English Language Arts Programs of Study ................................................................................................................ Appendix D: Charts for Comparison of Course Specific Outcomes ............................................ Note: The appendices are also included on the accompanying CD–ROM to enable teachers to manipulate the tools for specific classroom use.

387 389 433

APPENDICES

475 497

RESOURCE LISTS Works Cited List ............................................................................................................................ 535 Suggested Learning Resources ...................................................................................................... 543

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Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

INTRODUCTION Purpose

This guide to implementing the senior high school English language arts program is intended to assist teachers in planning for instruction and assessment to support student achievement of the prescribed learning outcomes. It gives suggestions for monitoring student progress in achieving the outcomes and provides planning, teaching and assessment strategies.

Background

The Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation, 2003, builds upon the work completed by the Department of Education and Youth, Government of Manitoba (formerly Manitoba Education and Training), as lead province for the development of The Common Curriculum Framework for English Language Arts, Kindergarten to Grade 12: Western Canadian Protocol for Collaboration in Basic Education. Produced by Alberta Learning, with contributions from and review by many teachers and other educators, this guide is a resource for teachers to use in implementing the new senior high school English language arts courses—English Language Arts 10-1, 10-2, 20-1, 20-2, 30-1 and 30-2—as articulated in the English Language Arts Senior High School Program of Studies, 2003. The program of studies includes general and specific outcomes and is mandated for use in all schools, public and private, offering grades 10, 11 and 12 English language arts in Alberta. This guide to implementation describes and explains the intentions of the new program. It is intended that this guide will be used in conjunction with the program of studies.

How to Use the Guide

Planning and Assessment The Planning and Assessment section begins with a unit that demonstrates a way of planning, and it provides unit activities that can be adapted to meet the needs of students in a variety of classrooms. The unit directs teachers to other sections of the guide, such as Choosing Resources, Using Film in the Classroom, Meeting Student Needs, or Assessment, where more information and direction are provided. References are also made to the Achieving the English Language Arts Outcomes for Senior High School section and the Appendices where teachers can find more specific strategies and templates. The Assessment section also contains information concerning preparing students for diploma examinations.

Achieving the English Language Arts Outcomes for Senior High School This section provides teaching/learning strategies that can be used to help students achieve the specific outcomes. Teaching/learning strategies are accompanied by an assessment strategy where appropriate. The strategies are organized around each general outcome and are subdivided by the outcome subheadings. Each outcome subheading is prefaced by a short section explaining what is meant by the subheading and how it might be assessed.

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Introduction /1 (2003)

Appendices The appendices are also included on the accompanying CD–ROM to enable teachers to manipulate the tools for specific classroom use. Appendix A provides additional teaching units and planning templates, samples of student writing, and teaching tools. Appendix B provides a variety of scoring guides, assessment tools and student planning sheets. Cross-referencing of the information and communication technology (ICT) outcomes and the English language arts (ELA) outcomes is provided in Appendix C so that the ICT outcomes can be more easily integrated into the ELA courses. Appendix D provides charts of specific outcomes for ELA 10-1, 10-2; ELA 20-1, 20-2; and ELA 30-1, 30-2 to aid in planning for classes that include students from different courses. This information is also available in print form in the English Language Arts Senior High School Program of Studies, 2003.

Icons

directs you to other parts of the guide or to other resources that provide more information, strategies or teaching tools designates strategies that involve metacognition designates strategies that involve collaboration

Resource Lists There are two separate resource lists in this guide. The first, a Works Cited List, includes bibliographic details regarding the resources referenced in the guide. This list has been divided into two sections to indicate those resources that have been authorized by Alberta Learning and those that have not. Resources that have been authorized by Alberta Learning are available for purchase from the Learning Resources Centre (Telephone: 780–427–5775; Web site: http://www.lrc.learning.gov.ab.ca). The second resource list, Suggested Learning Resources, includes bibliographic details and annotations regarding a variety of resources that have been suggested by Alberta teachers as useful. Included are print resources, intended primarily for teachers, as well as Web site and multimedia resources that students could access. Resources in this list are cross-referenced to particular learning outcome subheadings or other sections of this guide to indicate the areas in which they may be most useful. The Suggested Learning Resources have also been divided into two sections to indicate those resources that have been authorized by Alberta Learning and those that have not.

2/ Introduction (2003)

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

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UNIT PLANNING Planning starts with determining what students already know and what they need to understand and be able to do. Classroom assessment is conducted to fulfill this formative function—to inform teaching and improve learning and to monitor student progress in achieving the learning outcomes. Student self-assessment and reflection on their learning strategies provides important information not only for the student but also for the teacher. This information is then used in planning what learning outcomes students need to achieve and in choosing the resources and teaching and assessment strategies that are most appropriate. Summative evaluation fulfills a grading purpose and is used to inform students, parents and other interested parties, such as post-secondary institutions, of the extent to which the students have achieved the outcomes. Alberta’s English Language Arts Senior High School Program of Studies, 2003, states the outcomes students are to achieve by the end of each course, along with the texts to be studied. Teachers and/or schools must then design units that best help students achieve the specific outcomes for their current courses while building on and maintaining their ability to demonstrate the outcomes of the previous grades and courses. A number of factors influence unit design, including: • student interests, needs and goals • provincial requirements and suggestions • relevant jurisdictional policies • assessment and reporting practices • teacher interests, strengths and skills • resources available, and budget for new resources • parental and community values and interests • diploma examination preparation. Many teachers organize units of study around themes in order to focus instruction, make connections between a variety of specific outcomes and plan around groups of outcomes that require deeper understanding on the part of students. Planning around such universal experiences as “innocence lost to experience” or “the response of individuals to power and control within their society” helps students to explore complex ideas, enhances student engagement and takes students beyond English language arts to connect to other areas, such as philosophy, the social sciences or fine arts. The following unit planning1 process demonstrates one way of planning around these big ideas, using universal questions raised in literature, film and other texts. In this process, students explore the questions and come to essential understandings through reading, writing, speaking, listening, viewing and representing; they demonstrate their understandings through performance and self-assessments. Ways of providing a unit focus and deciding which outcomes to address are discussed, and sample performance assessments to determine how well students have achieved the outcomes are included. Suggestions for the types of texts students could study and create in this kind of unit are also included. The unit activities are intended for ELA 20-1 and 20-2 students, but they can be adapted for other levels. 1. Several of the ideas in this unit are based on the work of Wiggins and McTighe, Understanding by Design, 1998.

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Unit Planning /5 (2003)

How Should I Begin?

Units based on other planning models, along with unit planning templates, can be found in Appendix A. One way to begin unit planning is to choose a topic based on student interests and available resources. The easiest way to come up with focus questions for a unit is to select one that could be used as is, or adapted from the newly authorized resources or from old diploma examinations, e.g., “How does conflict and struggle affect the human spirit?” (Echoes 11) or “What is the effect of isolation on the individual?” (January 1994 English 30 diploma examination). Turning a topic or combination of topics from authorized resources into questions is another easy way to begin. For example, the topics “identity” and “choices” could be combined to create a question such as: “To what extent is an individual’s identity shaped by the choices he or she makes?” An alternative way to come up with focus questions is to work with a colleague or with students to choose a topic, and brainstorm questions or concepts related to the topic that would be important for students to understand. For example, in exploring a topic such as “heroes,” one might come up with the following important concepts: •

• • • • • • •

what heroes are how heroes are made how heroes are undone what purposes heroes can serve in a community or culture why audiences/readers sympathize with heroes and antiheroes how one’s quest or ambition assists or interferes with the making of a hero how conflict or ambition enhances or reduces heroic tendencies how one’s current context—historical, cultural, social, philosophical—can determine whether or not an individual’s actions are perceived as heroic.

Choose several of the concepts and combine them to create questions on which to focus the unit. Two such focus questions could be:

What Outcomes Should be Addressed?

•

How do ethics, ambition and context contribute to the making or undoing of heroes?

•

How do text creators use selected words, images or literary techniques to construct or deconstruct heroes?

In the process of exploring the focus questions, students come to important understandings that are connected to all of the general outcomes in the program of studies, but each question focuses on particular outcome subheadings and specific outcomes. For example, the following outcome subheadings are related to the first question, “How do ethics, ambition and context contribute to the making or undoing of heroes?” 1.2.1 2.1.1 2.3.1 3.2.3 4.1.1 5.1.2

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Consider new perspectives Discern and analyze context Connect self, text, culture and milieu Form generalizations and conclusions Assess text creation context Appreciate diversity of expression, opinion and perspective Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

The following outcome subheadings are related to the second focus question for the unit, “How do text creators use selected words, images or literary techniques to construct or deconstruct heroes?” 2.1.2 2.2.2 2.3.2

How Will I Know if Students Have Achieved the Outcomes?

Understand and interpret content Relate elements, devices and techniques to created effects Evaluate the verisimilitude, appropriateness and significance of print and nonprint texts

Once the outcomes for student learning are identified, it is important to decide what evidence will be used to determine if students have achieved the outcomes. Performance assessments are an important way for students to demonstrate their understandings arising from the unit focus questions; they help students and teachers determine the extent to which students have achieved the outcomes. Pages 23–26 describe types and purposes of assessment, including performance assessments. Student choice can be incorporated in performance assessments, as it is an important way to encourage students to reflect on and take ownership of their learning. One way to do this is to have students complete a proposal identifying a performance assessment, timeline and resources they could use, as well as identifying group responsibilities and roles, if the performance assessment is collaborative. Having students reflect on their strengths, limitations and interests, and how these influence their choices, helps to make the activity metacognitive.

Strategies for encouraging metacognition are identified with this icon the guide.

throughout

While developing, maintaining/monitoring and evaluating their plan of action, students can be encouraged to ask questions such as the following: Developing • What in my prior knowledge will help me with this particular task? • In what direction do I want my thinking to take me? • What should I do first? • Why am I reading this selection? • What resources do I already know about which will be useful in this project? • How much time do I have to complete the task? • What are my interests, and how can they be used to help me be successful? Maintaining/Monitoring • How am I doing? • Am I on the right track? • How should I proceed? • What information is important to remember? • Should I move in a different direction? • Should I adjust the pace depending on the difficulty?

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Unit Planning /7 (2003)

• •

What do I need to do if I do not understand? How can I improve this component of what I have drafted?

Evaluating • How well did I do? • Did my particular course of thinking produce more or less than I had expected? • What could I have done differently? • How might I apply this line of thinking to other problems? • Do I need to go back through the task to fill in any gaps in my understanding? Students should be given or should develop scoring guides when they are selecting their performance assessments, and they should use them periodically throughout the drafting process. By being part of the process of creating assessment tools, students identify and understand better what is expected of them and how their work will be assessed. As well, students’ sense of ownership of the assessment process increases. Such involvement helps students achieve their goals for language learning, set new goals and strengthen their ability to self-assess as independent learners.

Appendix B, page 442, provides a model for creating assessment devices in collaboration with students.

Sample Performance Assessments for This Unit Performance assessments can be developed for all categories in the Minimum Requirements: Text Creation on page 11 of the English Language Arts Senior High School Program of Studies, 2003. The following performance assessments provide ideas for oral/visual/multimedia presentations and for personal and critical/analytical responses for this unit. A.

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Brochures • Goal: Your task is to create two brochures based on a major character that you encountered in this unit. Imagine that the character or individual is running for a political office. • Role: Your role is that of an advertising executive. • Audience: The audience for each brochure is voters. • Situation: Your challenge is to vary your purpose for each brochure. • Product/Performance: In the first brochure, assume your advertising company has been hired by the character or person. Use pertinent details from the text or context to present the character as a hero to voters. You may add details, but they should not contradict the evidence in the story about the character. In the second brochure, assume your advertising company has been hired by an opposing party to create a negative brochure against the same character. You may add details, but they should not contradict the evidence in the story about the character. • Standard for Success: Your brochures will be evaluated for content (close reading of the text to find details about the character that can be highlighted in each brochure, as well as plausible extensions of the character’s experience that are suggested by the text). Also, your brochures will be judged on their organization and consistent formatting, including matters of choice (such as the use of colour and angles in visuals to reveal the tone toward the character, Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

•

use of diction to convey tone toward the character); matters of convention in layout (correct formatting of headings, appropriate use of visuals, use of white space, font); and matters of correctness in writing appropriate for the form (grammar, usage, mechanics). Extension Activity: You may submit Web page versions of your brochures, which demonstrates your skill at modifying your work for another medium.

B.

Visual Presentation: Photo Essays • Goal: You will reveal the influence that context plays in the making of a hero. The challenge is to create a representation of a character or individual from two points of view. The obstacle to overcome is the acquisition of a substantial base of photographs from which final images can be selected for inclusion. • Role: Your role is that of a news magazine journalist. You have been asked to provide fair representation of each side of this character, so that the public can come to its own conclusions. • Audience: The audience is the general public. • Situation: (can be made specific to the text/context) The awarding of a medal of honour has become controversial in the community. The context of various factions involved in the decision-making process has created uncertainty regarding the recipient of this award. • Product: You will create two photo essays of five images each, one which will present the character as a hero and deserving of the award, and the other which will present the character as undeserving. You will need to develop and include a set of criteria to guide your selection of images. • Standards: The photo essays will be evaluated for thought and detail (insightful, close reading of the text to find details about the character that can be highlighted in the photo essays, careful selection of images); organization (introduction, body, conclusion); visual appeal (use of image, colour and relationship among elements, effective communication of point of view); and matters of choice (camera techniques used purposefully, diction for the target audience).

C.

Oral/Visual Presentation – Spoken Word CD/Cassette Tape • Goal: Your challenge is to create a spoken word CD/cassette tape, complete with explanatory, illustrated cover, that is 10 minutes in length and will demonstrate your understanding of what a hero is in relation to our study of ___________. • Role: Your job is to find poems, excerpts from short stories, songs and/or appropriate background music that will support YOUR opinion about _________ (or any other character from _________) in relation to his or her status as a hero in your mind. • Audience: You need to convince your peers to see your side, based on their listening to your CD/cassette tape. This task will be based on the personal context you brought to the reading of the text. • Product: You will create a 10-minute spoken word CD/cassette tape through which you identify your opinion of __________ (or the character of your choice) in relation to his or her status as a hero. You will include poems, excerpts from short stories, songs and/or appropriate background music that support your opinion. You will also design a cover for the CD/cassette tape and justify your choice of each piece included on the cover.

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Unit Planning /9 (2003)

•

D.

Standards: You, your peers and the instructor, each using rubrics, will judge your work. Your CD/cassette tape must meet certain standards. The recording must be smooth and reflect practice, and the cover must be edited and polished and be visually appealing.

Personal Response Essay (Designed for ELA 20-1 and 20-2) Each essay topic focuses on one of the essential questions for the unit. Students can select topics and texts based on their interests and abilities. Choose ONE of the topics below. Write a personal response essay using your own experiences and/or observations to support your opinions about the topic. Use at least one of the texts studied during the unit to reinforce your opinions. You may also refer to other literature or films that you have studied. •

In your opinion, what is a hero? Use examples from one or more of the texts to support your ideas. You may also wish to use examples from your own experience or from other experiences that you know about. (ELA 20-2)

•

What is your opinion of the idea that heroes are created because they serve particular purposes in a culture or community? Use examples from one or more of the texts studied for support, along with your own experiences or world events that you know about. (ELA 20-1 or 20-2)

•

Think back over the texts that you studied in this unit, and choose the character that is most like you in the way that he or she responded to the central dilemma or problem in the text. Use details from your own experience and from the text to support your explanation. (ELA 20-2)

•

Why do readers/audiences identify with heroes or antiheroes? Use examples from one or more of the texts studied during the unit, along with your own reactions to the characters to support your opinion. (ELA 20-1 or 20-2)

Your essay will be evaluated on the following criteria: •

Thought: The insights into heroes or heroic action.

•

Detail: How well the details you use support your main ideas—quantity and quality of supporting ideas.

•

Organization: Coherence and shaped discussion, including an introduction that attracts the reader and focuses the discussion, and a developed and convincing conclusion.

•

Matters of Choice: Varied vocabulary that is used with precision; syntax is varied for effect. Matters of Correctness: Correctness of sentence construction, usage, grammar and mechanics.

•

E.

10/ Unit Planning (2003)

Critical/Analytical Response Essay (Designed for ELA 20-1) Each essay topic focuses on one of the essential questions for the unit. Students can choose topics and texts based on interests and abilities. Several of the essay topics encourage students to compare and contrast the techniques and themes used in print and visual texts. Students could collaborate to gather details from the texts for their essays and to select a graphic organizer for their data collection.

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Write a critical/analytical response essay on ONE of the topics below. •

Choose a character from a text you have studied. Discuss how the character’s quest or ambition enhances or interferes with the making of the hero.

•

Choose a character from a text you have studied. Discuss the historical, cultural, social or philosophical context in which the character’s actions are perceived as heroic or unheroic; and discuss whether the character would be considered heroic in our current context and why.

•

Discuss how juxtaposition of contrasting characters and juxtaposition of character weakness and strength are used in one of the texts you have studied to lead readers to sympathize with heroes or antiheroes.

•

Compare and contrast how symbol, metaphor, mood, selection of detail to present a point of view, or camera angle is used in two of the texts you have studied to support the making or undoing of a hero.

Your essay will be evaluated on the following criteria: •

Thought: The insights into the nature of heroism and the author’s/artist’s use of characterization, point of view, figurative language, symbol and visual elements to reveal his or her ideas about heroes.

•

Detail: How well the details you select from the texts support your main ideas—quantity and quality of supporting ideas.

•

Organization: Coherence and shaped discussion, including an introduction that attracts the reader and focuses the discussion, and a developed and convincing conclusion.

•

Matters of Choice: Varied vocabulary that is used with precision; syntax is varied for effect.

•

Matters of Correctness: Correctness of sentence construction, usage, grammar and mechanics.

Texts related to the unit question can be chosen by the teacher, students or both. The amount of choice given to the students will be determined by the teacher’s level of comfort and by student strengths and needs. If students need more help with strategies, it is sometimes easier to have everyone studying the same text. When more student choice is desirable, it can be incorporated into the unit by giving a choice of selections within different categories. For example, students could be given lists of poems, stories, myths, legends or essays related to the unit focus. They could then choose several to study as a class or in groups. An alternative way of giving choice is to have students look through the resources in order to choose the ones that they are interested in and which would best help them explore the unit questions.

What Texts Should be Studied?

Literature, film and other texts often raise controversial or sensitive issues. The section on Choosing Resources, pages 103–110, provides guidance on selecting texts and dealing with sensitive issues raised by the texts. A common way of organizing the study of texts is to use several shorter pieces, such as poems, short stories and essays, for initial exploration of the theme and then moving into an extended text, such as a novel, a modern or Shakespearean play, or a film.

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Unit Planning /11 (2003)

Extended texts such as the following could be used in this unit: • • • • • • • •

How Can I Help Students Achieve the Outcomes?

Of Mice and Men (novel) ELA 20-2 Lord of the Flies (novel) ELA 20-1 Obasan (novel) ELA 20-1 The Truman Show (feature film) ELA 10-1, 10-2, 20-1 or 20-2 All My Sons (modern play) ELA 30-1 The Crucible (modern play) ELA 20-1 Macbeth (Shakespearean drama) ELA 20-1 or 20-2 Ryan White: My Own Story (book-length nonfiction) ELA 20-2

Pages 10 and 11 of the English Language Arts Senior High School Program of Studies, 2003, available on the Alberta Learning Web site at http://www.learning.gov.ab.ca/ k_12/curriculum/bySubject/english/, provide the minimum requirements for text study and text creation. A listing of novels and nonfiction, Senior High English Language Arts 1994 Novels and Nonfiction List, is available for purchase from the Learning Resources Centre and is on the Alberta Learning Web site at http://www.learning.gov.ab.ca/k_12/curriculum/ bySubject/english/.

Specific lessons based on student needs and interests need to be developed around the texts studied, using strategies such as those in the Achieving the English Language Arts Outcomes for Senior High School section of this guide or in the teacher guides for the newly authorized basic resources. For example, you may find that your students are having difficulty in deciding what is significant in a text. Modelling a strategy of underlining or highlighting sections of a text that you found significant, explaining why you chose these details, and discussing how they contributed to your understanding, is one way of helping students with close reading of literature. Another strategy is to read a text aloud, identify specific parts for students to highlight and then have students work in groups to decide why you might have chosen these details and what they might mean. Similarly, students can be guided in their viewing by identifying motifs for them to take note of as they watch a film, then having them discuss the context in which they saw the motifs, any patterns they could identify and what these patterns might mean. Achieving the English Language Arts Outcomes for Senior High School, General Outcome 2, pages 183–238, provides numerous strategies for helping students comprehend and respond to written, oral, visual and multimedia texts. General Outcomes 1 and 3 also have a number of these kinds of strategies. Pages 55–102 provide more ideas and strategies for using film in the classroom. The process of creating texts also helps students come to further understandings of the texts they are studying and the concepts around which the unit is focused. Creating poems, oral interpretations, collages or mind maps in response to texts studied are ways that students can extend their understanding of what they have read, seen or heard. Similarly, students may create stories or scripts to help them better understand the concept of heroism.

12/ Unit Planning (2003)

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

These strategies and other ideas for responding to texts are described on pages 44 to 54, along with more information on responding to text and context on pages 35 to 44. Achieving the English Language Arts Outcomes for Senior High School, General Outcome 4, pages 289–348, provides numerous strategies for helping students with text creation. General Outcome 3 also has a number of these kinds of strategies. As the performance assessment and plans for other texts to be created are developed, and texts to be studied are chosen and strategies planned, it will be evident that many outcomes in addition to the focus outcomes will be addressed. The student proposals, for example, address 1.2.3 Set personal goals for language growth, specific outcome a: appraise own strengths and weaknesses as a language user and language learner; select appropriate strategies to increase strengths and address weaknesses; monitor the effectiveness of selected strategies; and modify selected strategies as needed to optimize growth.

Students can use assessment guides, such as the one in Appendix B, on pages 436–437, to assess their progress in achieving this specific outcome. Similarly, as students create the projects and essays, they will achieve a number of specific outcomes listed under 4.1.4 Use production, publication and presentation strategies and technologies consistent with context; 4.2.1 Enhance thought and understanding and support and detail; 4.2.2 Enhance organization; 4.2.3 Consider and address matters of choice; and 4.2.4 Edit text for matters of correctness.

Scoring guides, such as the following in Appendix B, can be used to assess student progress in these outcomes: Personal response essays, pages 469–470 Critical response essays, pages 467–468 Oral assessment, pages 450–451 Visual presentations, page 448 A wide variety of scoring guides are available in the Classroom Assessment Materials Project (CAMP) materials, available for purchase from the Learning Resources Centre, and in the teacher guides for the newly authorized basic resources for grades 10 and 11. As they work together to create scoring guides for performance assessments or to plan the projects, presentations and essays, students can also be helped to achieve a number of the specific outcomes listed under 5.2.1 Cooperate with others, and contribute to group processes and 5.2.2 Understand and evaluate group processes.

These outcomes can be self-assessed by students by using a scoring guide such as the one in Appendix B, on page 445, or they can be assessed summatively by using a scoring guide such as the one in Appendix B, on page 443. Students may also achieve a number of other outcomes in their work that are not assessed at this time.

Senior High School English Language Arts Guide to Implementation ©Alberta Learning, Alberta, Canada

Unit Planning /13 (2003)

What Are the Next Steps?

As one unit is completed, new units are planned to reinforce and build on the learning that has taken place and to address the outcomes that have not yet been dealt with or that require further emphasis. Appendix A, page 396, provides an organizer that lays out all of the general outcomes, headings and subheadings on one page to help keep track of how often outcomes have been addressed and which need to be planned for. Some teachers like to put a check beside the outcome subheading each time it is addressed or list the specific outcome each time it is dealt with. Information