9th Grade - Gateway 3

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 provide some strategies for informing all stakeholders, including students, parents, or caregivers about the program and suggestions for how they can help support student progress and achievement.

The Program Guide includes, “Prior to starting each unit, teachers are encouraged to initiate a conversation with students, parents and guardians, explaining the unit’s particular aspects of diversity (e.g., race, ethnicity, gender and gender identity, and sexual orientation) and prime students to engage in brave conversations about topics that may be challenging.” While materials include a Remote Learning Guide that outlines several ways teachers can communicate and monitor students, the materials do not outline strategies that inform stakeholders how they can help support student progress and achievement.

Materials provide some strategies for informing all stakeholders, including students, parents, or caregivers about the program and suggestions for how they can help support student progress and achievement. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials contain strategies for informing students, parents, or caregivers about the ELA program.

  • In the Program Guide, materials provide general ideas for informing students, parents, or caregivers: “Educators might also engage parents, counselors, and other respected community advisors in conversations about the texts and topics students are studying. Teachers are encouraged to create a kind, open, and safe environment for students to engage with multiple perspectives and grow as individuals.” Materials do not explicitly mention specific strategies for informing students, parents, or caregivers.

  • In the Remote Learning Guide, materials include various ways in which teachers can communicate with students. For example, the Remote Learning Guide includes that, “A major concern for educators in remote learning is how to diagnose, monitor, and evaluate student progress in reading, writing, and speaking. In synchronous learning sessions, this type of monitoring can be done in much the same way as in the brick-and-mortar classroom—via entry tasks, discussion check-ins, polling, group work, and exit tickets.” Materials do not include a thorough explanation of how instructional information is communicated with various stakeholders.

• Materials do not contain suggestions for how parents or caregivers can help support student progress and achievement.

• In the Program Guide, materials outline an end-of-year activity: “At the end of the year, each class’s learning community presents newfound knowledge about timely and relevant issues to a forum made up of students’ school, guardians, and local community.” Materials do not provide concrete actions for parents or caregivers to support student progress and achievement during this task.

• In the Application Unit, What Do I Want to Research?, Section 5, Lesson 1, students select one of three options to present their Culminating Task: in-class, school-wide, or community-based presentations. In Section 5, Lesson 6, the Teacher Edition provides a few different ways for students to share their research with the larger community. The following example is listed in the Teacher Edition: “Option 1 is a community celebration, where students’ families, friends and other teachers are invited, as well as their peers. This would be an opportunity for the students to celebrate their hard work on a sustained, independent research project in a broader, more interesting forum for their concluding question and answer session.” While this option provides an opportunity to involve stakeholders during the presentation of students’ work, neither the Teacher Edition Teaching Notes or the student-facing materials specifically mention how parents or caregivers can support student progress and achievement as students work to complete this task.

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 include assessments that offer accommodations that allow students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills without changing the content of the assessment.

Students can increase the font size of text within the digital materials by clicking on the delta arrows on the right side of the text box; however, materials do not provide guidance on the use of this provided accommodation.

Assessments offer accommodations that allow students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills without changing the content of the assessment. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials offer accommodations that ensure all students can access the assessment (e.g., text-to-speech, increased font size) without changing the content of the assessment. Materials do not include guidance for teachers on the use of provided accommodations.

  • In the Program Guide, Website Guidance, Activity Pages, the Student Directions section includes the following note, “This section provides student-facing directions, which can be expanded to increase the font size for better readability. For activities that contain more than one step, segmenting is used. Activity segments are indicated by horizontal bars across the top of the directions pane.” Materials do not explain how students can increase the font size.

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 provide varied approaches to learning tasks over time and variety in how students are expected to demonstrate their learning with opportunities for students to monitor their learning. 

The program design allows students to make choices about their learning and research. Approaches to presentation and demonstration of learning vary. Students work with partners, present with small groups, and complete individual tasks to demonstrate learning. Students share their thinking in various contexts, including multi-modal opportunities during which students investigate and problem-solve with peers. Materials leverage multiple formats for students to deepen their understanding and ability to explain and apply literacy ideas. Students and teachers can monitor student learning through formative and summative assessment opportunities, such as peer reviews and discussions, teacher feedback on Section Diagnostics, and reflection on the culminating tasks. The program offers students frequent opportunities for self-reflection, and they can self-evaluate their progress on their ability to successfully meet the learning goals.

Materials provide varied approaches to learning tasks over time and variety in how students are expected to demonstrate their learning with opportunities for students to monitor their learning. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials provide multi-modal opportunities for students to question, investigate, sense-make, and problem-solve using a variety of formats and methods. Materials leverage the use of a variety of formats and methods over time to deepen student understanding and ability to explain and apply literacy ideas.

  • In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, Section 4, Lesson 2, students present their Culminating Task on the Central Question, “Who changes the world?,” in their groups. Students choose from the following pathways—technological, cultural, business and marketing, humanitarian, political, or scientific—and create a 5–7 minute presentation about global, national, and local change agents and the conditions that caused or allowed change.

  • In the Development Unit, The Book of Unknown Americans, students work through a series of lessons and activities to answer the Central Question, “How does perspective shape our understanding of events?” Students use a variety of formats and methods over time to deepen their understanding of literacy ideas. For example, in Section 2, Lesson 5, students have the opportunity to solidify their understanding of the text by participating in discussion with peers: “We will answer comprehension and analysis questions about the text to solidify our understanding.” In Section 4, Lesson 6, students explain and apply literacy ideas as they write an expository piece about literary techniques: “We will apply our knowledge of text structure and dialogue by writing an original narrative paragraph, using ‘My Mother Never Worked’ as a springboard.”

• Students have opportunities to share their thinking, to demonstrate changes in their thinking over time, and to apply their understanding in new contexts.

  • In the Development Unit, Photojournalism, Section 5, Lesson 3, students begin writing their expository essays for the Culminating Task in which they discuss how photojournalism highlights and defines important moments in history. Students write their introductory paragraph and gather feedback from peers and the teacher: “As students share responses, you will want to check on them individually and offer feedback to partners, giving suggestions, answering questions, and occasionally probing students to think further by questioning them about their compositions.” Students apply the feedback and suggestions to their writing and to the discussion that follows the lesson.

  • In the Application Unit, What Do I Want to Research?, Section 1, Lesson 4, students develop inquiry questions to guide their research and share their thinking with the teacher for feedback. After meeting with the teacher, student-facing materials outline how students share their thinking with their team members and discuss how their work has changed: “In teams, discuss the feedback your teacher has given you on your Central Research Question. Revise, or refine, the question as needed.” In Section 1, Lesson 5, students follow a similar process to apply the changes in their thinking to different contexts. In this lesson, teacher-facing materials explain how students apply their thinking to a research portfolio and a brief presentation to the class: “In the following lesson, student teams present their research materials to date. This allows students to pause, gather their growing research portfolio, and practice communicating their research questions, ideas, and founding interests.”

• Materials provide for ongoing review, practice, self-reflection, and feedback. Materials provide a clear path for students to monitor and move their own learning.

  • In the Development Unit, Romeo and Juliet, Section 3, Lesson 8, students revise their work to fully support and develop their ideas based on the needs of the task, purpose, and audience. Students share their draft responses with a partner for feedback. The student-facing materials include guiding questions, such as: “2. Do I sufficiently explain how each supporting claim is connected to the central claim?”

  • In the Development Unit, Global Food Production, Section 2, Lessons 8–9, students take a position and delineate a supporting argument in favor of one or more agricultural practices seen as promising in addressing global food challenges and sustainability. Materials provide students with opportunities to self-reflect on their work on the Diagnostic and assess their progress toward the culminating task. For example, students respond to questions in their Learning Logs, such as: “5. How well did you develop and use an effective and efficient process to maintain workflow during this task?” Then, students evaluate their skills and knowledge using the Culminating Task Progress Tracker.

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 provide opportunities for teachers to use a variety of grouping strategies.

Students have opportunities to work one-on-one with the instructor; in pairs, small groups, and research teams; and as a whole-group during various activities throughout the materials. The Teaching Notes of the Teacher Edition include a range of choices and details to assist teachers with implementation. Materials include guidance as to when teachers can change group activities, such as altering the implementation of jigsaw activities, opening up the activity to the whole group, and individualizing and designing groups as they see fit. Student-facing materials provide guidance and descriptions for student group interactions. Materials offer students guiding questions, norms, criteria for discussion, and other necessary information to complete the activities successfully.

Materials provide opportunities for teachers to use a variety of grouping strategies. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials provide grouping strategies for students. Materials provide for varied types of interaction among students.

  • In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, Section 1, Lesson 2, students interact with partners. The student-facing materials include the following guidance: “Watch the TED Talk by Dr. Clint Smith entitled ‘The Danger of Silence.’ Then, follow the directions below:

    • Think of one word that describes how you feel about Dr. Smith’s talk.

    • Share the word with your partner. Briefly explain to your partner why you chose the word you did.

    • Write your partner’s word and explanation, as well as your own, in your Learning Log.”

  • In the Development Unit, Photojournalism, Section 3, Lesson 1, students pair up in study teams of four students to analyze photographs by photojournalist Charles Moore and answer series of discussion questions:

    • “Describe the people and objects appearing in your image.

    • When do you think this photo was taken?

    • What about the photograph allows you to deduce this date or time period?”

  • In Section 4, Lesson 3, students participate in a jigsaw activity where they answer questions based on a section of Tom Junod’s “The Falling Man: An Unforgettable Story.” For example, “What descriptive details or images stand out to you as you read?” Afterwards, students share their findings with the whole class.

  • In the Development Unit, Global Food Production, Section 3, Lesson 6, students work in small groups to review and annotate a text. Student-facing materials include the following guidance in the lesson introduction: “In small groups or pairs, we will review ‘The Future of Food and Agriculture: Trends and Challenges’ from Lesson 1 and brainstorm possible topics related to it as we consider questions from the Culminating Task…In your small group, discuss the topics and challenges that the questions address. Discuss the relationship among the perspectives and positions encompassing these subtopics.”

  • In the Application Unit, What Do I Want to Research?, Section 2, Lesson 2, students move into groups assigned by the teacher to unpack the Potential Sources Tool using the Assessing Sources Reference Guide and guided questions on the Potential Sources Tool. Students then share their findings with the whole class. In Section 3, Lesson 1, students work in research teams as they begin to find resources for the inquiry pathways they select. Students work with this team throughout the unit to complete their Culminating Task.

• Materials provide guidance for the teacher on grouping students in a variety of grouping formats.

  • In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, Section 2, Lesson 3, students work in their research teams for the Culminating Task for the unit. The Teacher Edition includes the following guidance on grouping students: “There are several ways you might have students select their research teams. You can have each student write down their top two choices on index cards and assign groups from their choices, or you can have students select their own groups. You can also assign students heterogeneously, based on their demonstrated reading, writing, and presenting skills.”

  • In the Development Unit, Romeo and Juliet, Section 3, Lesson 2, students work in jigsaw groups to examine the figurative language in the balcony scene. The Teacher Edition provides guidance for implementing the jigsaw method: “The jigsaw method is an instructional strategy that is effective for reading and analyzing text that can be easily segmented. This cooperative learning strategy allows for multiple parts of the text to be analyzed. It encourages strong speaking, listening, and presenting skills for all students and values each student’s contribution as an expert. Finally, by discussing the text multiple times, students benefit from hearing the text analyzed in different ways. In a jigsaw, students work in two different groups: expert and home.”

  • In the Application Unit, What Do I Want to Research?, Section 5, Lesson 1, students create a team presentation for a classroom, school, or community audience. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition suggest strategies on how to manage the diverse grouping of students:

    • “Because each class working on this unit might have different themes, team sizes, timelines, and final presentation venues, clarify the specifics of this process to your students.”

  • The Teaching Notes continue with strategies for logistics and listening and speaking assignments.

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 provide a balance of images or information about people, representing various demographic and physical characteristics.

Students have several opportunities to read and view materials and assessments that depict individuals of different genders, races, ethnicities, and other physical characteristics. Materials offer a wide variety of texts and topics that balance information of different demographics. Materials work to maintain a balance of positive portrayals in representation to prevent the prevalence of negative stereotypes harmful to students. Because materials include a multitude of voices and perspectives, students have the opportunity to see themselves succeed based on the representation of characters in the text they read throughout the units.

Materials provide a balance of images or information about people, representing various demographic and physical characteristics. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials and assessments depict different individuals of different genders, races, ethnicities, and other physical characteristics.

  • In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, students listen to a Ted Talk by poet Clint Smith titled “The Danger of Silence,” where he discusses the power of being silent about issues such as the civil rights movement, genocide, and those impacted by natural disasters. In the unit’s Culminating Task, students engage in a group presentation where they choose technological, cultural, business and marketing, humanitarian, political, or scientific pathways to explore and address the question, “What are the conditions that caused or allowed change to occur in your pathway topic, and who were change agents?” Students use Phil Patton’s “Agents of Change” to help them choose their pathways. The text provides a summary of some of the outliers in history who have made a significant change, such as Leonard and Phil Chess.

  • In the Development Unit, Photojournalism, Section 3, Lesson 1, students study a video about the civil rights movement and discuss its contents during a class discussion. The video includes individuals of different genders, races, ethnicities, and other physical characteristics based on the description provided in the Teacher Edition. The description of the video consists of the following information in the Teaching Notes section: “The 10-minute documentary was made by students McKay and Miranda Jessop and won the 2013 National History Day competition in Washington, D.C. The video tells the story of the Children’s March, the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, as well as the impact of these events on the civil rights movement in 1963. The video also includes personal interviews with Barbara Cross, daughter of Reverend John Cross of the bombed church, and Clifton Casey, who demonstrated at age 16.”

• Materials and assessments balance positive portrayals of demographics or physical characteristics. Materials avoid stereotypes or language that might be offensive to a particular group.

  • In the Development Unit, The Book of Unknown Americans, Section 3, Lesson 3, students discuss the text “My Mother Never Worked” by Bonnie Smith-Yackel. This text addresses gender roles to avoid and confront stereotypical gender roles. The Teaching Notes provide information to explain how the text portrays characters: “The term gender refers to male and female cultural and social roles and expectations of behavior that societies place on people. Gender is at the center of this essay; while most of the ‘jobs’ that Martha Smith engaged in were traditionally handled by women, she also helped with farm work in jobs traditionally associated with male roles. It is important to note that the entirety of the narrative is not focused on gender; farming and caring for a family outside of a job that pays into Social Security are also explored.”

  • In the Development Unit, Global Food Production, Section 2, Lesson 1, students review concepts from Section 1 to see how the topics connect to the central question, “How do we feed a growing world?” In the Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition, materials suggest revisiting texts covered so far, such as “10 Things You Need to Know About the Global Food System” by Evan Fraser and Elizabeth Fraser. In this text, students discuss issues with food security related to the Arab Spring and food prices in Zambia. The texts focus on specific issues to avoid creating generalizations.

• Materials provide representations that show students that they can succeed in the subject, going beyond just showing photos of diverse students not engaged in work related to the context of the learning.

  • In the Development Unit, Romeo and Juliet, Section 1, Lesson 1, students read “Why Do We Still Care About Shakespeare” by Cindy Tumiel to begin discussing the central question, “Why do we still read Shakespeare?” In the text, Tumiel makes the case that students can see the importance of Shakespeare in their daily lives. Tumiel demonstrates how students can go beyond the subject as they look at how it connects to their lives.

  • In the Development Unit, The Book of Unknown Americans, students analyze The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez. This novel centers around a Mexican family which immigrated to America. The main character of the novel is Maribel Rivera, who is the teen daughter in the family and suffers from a tragic accident that damages her brain. The novel showcases how Maribel overcomes many obstacles due to recovery from the accident and overcoming obstacles stemming from being an immigrant. At the end of the novel, Maribel regains much of her brain function.

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 provide insufficient guidance to encourage teachers to draw upon student home language to facilitate learning.

The instructional materials include Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition that occasionally encourage teachers to draw upon student home language to facilitate learning. The Program Guide emphasizes a generalized, asset-based approach to learning across Grades 9–12 for students with diverse learning needs: “All students’ language, literacy, cultural knowledge, communities, and diversity are assets that should be leveraged as they develop and express their understanding in English language arts.” Although materials specify assets that should be leveraged, materials do not provide sufficient opportunities for teachers to draw upon student home language or for students to develop home language literacy.

Materials provide insufficient guidance to encourage teachers to draw upon student home language to facilitate learning. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials provide suggestions and strategies to use the home language to support students in learning ELA. Teacher materials include guidance on how to garner information that will aid in learning, including the family’s preferred language of communication, schooling experiences in other languages, literacy abilities in other languages, and previous exposure to academic or everyday English.

  • No evidence found

• Materials rarely present multilingualism as an asset in reading. Students are rarely explicitly encouraged to develop home language literacy and to use their home language strategically for learning how to negotiate texts in the target language.

  • In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, Section 1, Lesson 1, students explore the central question, “Who changes the world?” Students engage in a peer-to-peer discussion and complete a Quick Write in response to the following question: “5. If you were to provide an answer to the Central Question today, what would it be?”

    • The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition provide ideas for support and differentiation using an asset-based lens: “Students are encouraged to bring the knowledge, insight, and curiosity they already have to enhance their experience in the unit. English learners in particular benefit from making connections to their cultural and social backgrounds.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 provide insufficient guidance to encourage teachers to draw upon student cultural and social backgrounds to facilitate learning.

Materials miss opportunities to capitalize on the diverse cultural and social backgrounds of students. Learning goals and instructional activities do not consistently leverage students’ cultural and social backgrounds. Opportunities for students to feel acknowledged during tasks based on customs of other cultures or sections of the materials provided in multiple languages are lacking.

Materials rarely provide guidance to encourage teachers to draw upon student cultural and social backgrounds to facilitate learning. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials rarely make connections to the linguistic, cultural, and conventions used in learning ELA. Materials do not make connections to the linguistic and cultural diversity to facilitate learning.

  • In the Development Unit, The Book of Unknown Americans, Section 3, Lesson 1, students use their vocabulary journal to decipher the meaning of words found in The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition include the following guidance: “Additionally, if a word under study is a cognate—a word that shares similar spelling, meaning, and pronunciation with a word in another language—in the student’s home language, you might make connections between the cognate and the new vocabulary word. A cognate provides a bridge to the English language for English learners.”

• Materials include teacher guidance on how to engage culturally diverse students in the learning of ELA.

  • In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, Section 1, Lesson 2, students watch a TED Talk, “The Danger of Silence.” The Teaching Notes include the following guidance for teachers to engage culturally diverse students in the learning of ELA: “An introductory video can provide a diverse group of students with an accessible medium through which to enter into the content of a particular text or topic. Speakers often employ basic interpersonal communicative skills when speaking, giving students, particularly English learners, a good opportunity to gain background knowledge or vocabulary that can support their reading and understanding of other texts.”

  • In the Development Unit, Photojournalism, Section 1, Lesson 1, students watch a clip of Get the Picture by Cathy Pearson. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition explain the importance for English language learners: “Speakers often employ basic interpersonal communicative skills when speaking, giving students, particularly English learners, a good opportunity to gain background knowledge or vocabulary that can support their reading and understanding of other texts.”

  • In the Development Unit, Romeo and Juliet, Section 1, Lesson 1, Activity 6, students watch the video “William Shakespeare: Legendary Wordsmith” and respond to guiding questions during the viewing. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition include the following guidance: “You might encourage English learners to annotate the text in their home language.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 integrate technology such as interactive tools, virtual manipulatives/objects, and/or dynamic software in ways that engage students in the grade-level/series standards, when applicable

Materials include a Remote Learning Guide with details to assist educators, including but not limited to: monitoring student learning, establishing a remote classroom culture, and technology solutions to facilitate virtual instruction. Unit Readers, as well as digital texts, are available for teacher and student use. The Remote Learning Guide notes that “Students and educators can find the digital texts by using the bibliographic information provided for each text on the Text tabs at the section, lesson, and activity levels in the program.” Students can annotate texts and work collaboratively in a remote setting. Editable tools are available as downloadable Google Docs. Customization at the local level can include consideration of text types and strategies when working asynchronously and synchronously.

Materials integrate technology such as interactive tools, virtual manipulatives/objects, and/or dynamic software in ways that engage students in the grade-level/series standards, when applicable. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Digital technology and interactive tools, such as data collection tools, simulations, and/or modeling tools are available to students.

  • In the Development Unit, Photojournalism, Section 2, Lesson 10, students prepare to participate in a Socratic Seminar organized around key questions about modern photojournalism. Socratic Seminar and Philosophical Chairs Discussion can occur asynchronously or synchronously to engage students in their learning and ensure all students have equity of voice. The Remote Learning Guide includes guidance to support providing these learning opportunities utilizing digital tools. For example, materials suggest the use of Parlay Live Round Table, “an interactive discussion tool that allows educators to set up a Socratic Seminar. It allows tracking of participation and other tools to encourage students.” Materials include additional guidance to support the use of a Conference App and set expectations, protocols, and note-taking in a structured environment.

• Digital tools support student engagement in ELA.

  • In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, Section 1, Lesson 2, students use the Video Note-Taking Tool when watching Dr. Clint Smith’s TED Talk entitled “The Danger of Silence.” The Teaching Notes in the teaching edition share, “You might use a transcript of the TED Talk, which can be accessed on YouTube, for students who need additional support. This will be especially handy in the following activity as students conduct a deeper analysis of the ideas presented in the talk.” The Tools also offer opportunities for modeling in asynchronous and synchronous environments. The Remote Learning Guide includes suggestions for modeling and additional guidance to collect evidence when working synchronously: “Share a model of the Google Doc version of the tool via screen share. Model your thinking as you move through the tool, reflecting on the prompts within the tool and the resulting textual analysis.”

  • In the Development Unit, The Book of Unknown Americans, Section 1, Lesson 1, students review the Unit Text List to familiarize themselves with the texts they will analyze and discuss throughout the unit. The student-facing materials provide text locations with details for tradebooks, digital access, unit readers, and CD/DVD. For example, “Digital Access: You can find these texts online. Use the information provided in the Unit Text List or on the Materials tab for the activity to conduct a web search for the resource. Digital Access resources include online articles, videos, podcasts, and other web sources.”

  • In the Application Unit, What Do I Want to Research?, Section 1, Lesson 3, students learn how to use the Potential Sources Tool to aid in their pre-searches. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition shares, “The printed student book includes twelve copies of the Potential Sources Tool…Students can also keep track of their sources using an electronic copy of the tool in their Google Drive.” The Remote Learning Guide includes suggestions for modeling and additional guidance to collect evidence when working synchronously:

    • “Share a model of the Google Doc version of the tool via screen share.

    • Model your thinking as you move through the tool, reflecting on the prompts within the tool and the resulting textual analysis.”

  • When collecting evidence, teachers can prompt students to submit Google Docs or if they are using PDFs, they can “send a picture or scan of their completed tool via email or the LMS.”

• Digital materials can be customized for local use (i.e., student and/or community interests).

  • The Remote Learning Guide includes guidance for asynchronous and synchronous learning opportunities. When working asynchronously, such as utilizing a video-sharing website and interactive videos, guidance includes, “If the LMS allows, add guiding questions directly to video, or use a third-party app (e.g., EdPuzzle) to insert questions into the video.” Teachers can also use an embed code if the LMS allows: “This will alleviate students from leaving the online classroom and entering another less secure site.”

  • In the Development Unit, Global Food Production, teachers can use the Remote Learning Guide to support synchronous learning opportunities that use screen share for lessons, including videos, and make digital annotations. The Remote Learning Guide suggests utilizing screen sharing during synchronous learning, which allows the use of digital resources. During asynchronous learning, the Remote Learning Guide includes the following guidance: “Annotate the text with the class, sharing their metacognition or thinking aloud while also writing their thinking directly on the shared document, a whiteboard model, or a PowerPoint slide.” Additional guidance includes, “If permissible, create a Google Docs or Word version of the text. Individual copies will need to be created (the LMS might have an automatic feature for this). Students can use the comment, highlight, and underline features to annotate the text. Consider using a third-party technology resource for annotation (e.g., Hypothesis, NowComment).”

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 include or reference digital technology that provides opportunities for teachers and/or students to collaborate with each other, when applicable.

Students work collaboratively throughout the units. Both the Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition and student-facing materials include guidance when teachers and students collaborate using digital tools. One main feature of the materials is the use of Google Docs, which offer opportunities to share drafts and comment directly on student work. This feature provides teachers with continuous opportunities to make individual and group projects collaborative through Google’s sharing capabilities. Materials, particularly the Remote Learning Guide, also reference digital technology, such as Zoom, Padlet, and FlipGrid, that offers opportunities for collaboration and help facilitate discussions.

Materials include or reference digital technology that provides opportunities for teachers and/or students to collaborate with each other, when applicable. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials include or reference digital technology that provides opportunities for teachers and/or students to collaborate with each other.

  • In the Remote Learning Guide, materials reference a variety of technology that provide opportunities for students and/or teachers to collaborate:

    • Create a shared document, graphic organizer, or assignment for each group (e.g., Google Docs, Microsoft 360)

    • Students meet via conferencing software (e.g., Zoom, Google Meet, FaceTime).

    • Use a resource outside of the LMS (Learning Management System) to promote collaboration (e.g., Flipgrid, Parlay, Padlet).

  • The Remote Learning Guide also includes a table that lists instructional strategies with technology solutions. For example, when utilizing “discussion boards and collaboration tools,” the materials suggest that teachers use the LMS, Parlay, or Flipgrid.

  • In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, materials provide opportunities for collaboration with peers and the teacher through discussions, one-one-conferencing, peer review and research teams, and other collaborative activities. Students use a series of Google Docs, which allow collaboration features, such as sharing and commenting. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition do not explicitly point out how teachers can utilize technology to facilitate these interactions.

  • In the Development Unit, Photojournalism, Section 2, Lesson 3, students work collaboratively to examine the characters in Eyes of the World: Robert Capa, Gerda Taro, and the Invention of Modern Photojournalism by Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos, Henry Holt, and Company. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition provide guidance on students’ use of the Character Note-Taking Tool, which is a Google Doc available in the student materials: “To practice these skills, students can work in small groups on one assigned character, preparing a short presentation of the group’s ideas to the whole class, which happens in the following lesson. You might have students use the Character Note-Taking Tool to help organize their notes.”

  • In the Development Unit, Romeo and Juliet, Section 1, Lesson 2, students work on their Vocabulary Journals to locate unfamiliar words in William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition suggest, “You might also have students work collaboratively to create a Word Wall that is maintained and revisited throughout the unit.” In the Remote Learning Guide, materials note that Word Walls can be created and shared digitally through Google Docs and Jamboard and used directly in the LMS.

  • In the Development Unit, The Book of Unknown Americans, Section 2, Lesson 3, students work collaboratively to analyze “Immigrants in Our Own Land” by Jimmy Santiago Bacca. Students use the Literary Elements and Narrative Techniques Note-Taking Tool, which is a Google Doc for students to track and discuss their thinking with their partner. Student-facing materials include the following guidance: “We will collaborate with peers to analyze the poem ‘Immigrants in Our Own Land’ in order to deepen our understanding of how authors use literary elements and narrative techniques to illuminate meaning and themes.”

  • In the Development Unit, Global Food Production, Section 1, Lesson 1, the Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition note that students can create their own note-taking systems in the form of Google Docs, in addition to using the tools provided. The Teaching Notes include instructions on how a student can create a copy to edit their own document. Materials do not explicitly explain the share features that Google Docs also offers.

  • In the Application Unit, What Do I Want to Research?, Section 3, Lesson 6, students work on revising their research as a team in preparation for presenting the Culminating Task. The student-facing materials include guidance on utilizing the team’s Research Frame Tool, which is a Google Doc. The student-facing materials include the following guidance: “As a team, again revise your Research Frame Tool to reflect new information and questions that have emerged from your research thus far. If it is more efficient or easier to read, start with a blank copy of the tool or compose it on paper or electronically.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 include a visual design (whether in print or digital) that supports students in engaging thoughtfully with the subject, and is neither distracting nor chaotic.

The visual design of the materials is not distracting and should support student learning and engagement. The layout of the materials is consistent across units and grade levels. When appropriate, materials include guidance on locating texts in the student-facing materials and provide reminders for accessing other Tools and Guides to support learning. The student-facing materials and Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition clearly communicate information. The Teaching Notes consistently include headings that signal when support is available for a specific purpose, such as the following sections: About the Author, Concept, Text, Topic; Teaching Strategies and Decisions; and Student Support and Differentiation. The Tools and Guides support student understanding of topics, texts, and concepts. Materials are typically free of errors.

The visual design (whether in print or digital) supports students in engaging thoughtfully with the subject, and is neither distracting nor chaotic. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Images, graphics, and models support student learning and engagement without being visually distracting.

  • Materials balance the use of blank space on home and landing pages, as well as in the various Tools and Guides. The landing page design utilizes an abstract art theme. In each grade level, the Unit Homepage contains an abstract art icon for each Foundation, Development, and Application Unit. Program Resources icons also utilize abstract art similar to that of the landing page.

  • Materials consistently use the same icons throughout each grade and unit. Appendix G of the Program Guide contains the key for iconography used throughout the materials. Icons include: Unit Reader Texts, Digital Access Texts, Tradebook, and Multimedia Text. Additional icons, such as an image of a piece of paper with a pencil indicating students can “Download PDF’’ and an image of a sheet of paper with the Google Drive symbol in the center indicating students can “Download GDOC,” appear as needed during instructional activities.

• Teacher and student materials are consistent in layout and structure across lessons/modules/units. Images, graphics, and models clearly communicate information or support student understanding of topics, texts, or concepts.

  • The Program Guide includes guidance on the layout and structure of the materials: “Each grade’s homepage organizes the available units by type—Foundation, Development, or Application—and provides each unit’s title. Also found on each grade homepage are the following program resources:

    • Reference Guides: a downloadable PDF consisting of all of the program’s reference guides

    • Program Guide: this program guide, available as a PDF Purchase

    • Unit Readers: a link to an external site where users can purchase unit readers and student materials

    • Course-at-a-Glance: an overview of the units available for the grade level.”

  • Each Unit Homepage contains the following tabs:

    • Unit Overview: The Unit Overview describes the unit and provides links to the sections of the unit.

    • Culminating Task: The Culminating Task provides the unit’s Culminating Task prompt. The Culminating Task Checklist and Evaluation Plan for the unit are available as downloadable PDFs.

    • Text Overview: The Text Overview tab contains the unit’s Text Overview (PDF), which identifies the texts used in the unit and includes recommendations for independent choice reading texts.

    • Materials: The Materials tab houses documents specific to the unit, including the Evaluation Plan, Text Overview (teacher-facing), Unit Text List (student-facing), Culminating Task Checklist, and any other relevant documents.

  • The Program Guide explains the organization of instructional units: “HSLP units are broken down into sections. The navigation bar at the top of the page permits users to easily navigate between sections.”Each Section Page contains the following tabs:

    • Section Overview: This tab provides a brief description of the knowledge, skills, and habits addressed in the section, as well as which major texts are used. Links to the lessons included in the section are also available here. Each lesson link includes the lesson’s overview and is labeled as Core, Optional, Section Diagnostic, or Independent Reading to facilitate navigation and planning.

    • Learning Goals: This tab houses the section’s learning goals, which are derived from the evaluation criteria.

    • Section Diagnostic: This tab provides the Section Diagnostic prompt. It also includes the Culminating Task Connections, which explains what students will do and demonstrate in the formative task, and how it will help prepare them for success on the unit’s Culminating Task. In the case of the teacher version, a description of how the Section Diagnostic helps prepare students for success on the Culminating Task is provided.

    • Texts: This tab lists the texts for the section, which are divided into core and optional. Each listing includes the text’s title, author, publisher, and date of publication.

    • Materials: This tab lists the materials used in the section, and divides them as tools, question sets, or reference guides.

  • Each section is then broken down into lessons, which users can navigate among using the navigation bar at the top of the page. Each Lesson Page contains the following tabs:

    • Lesson Overview: This tab contains a description of the lesson and links to its activities. The links include four sources of information: the activity number, the foci of the activity (Read, Write, Listen, View, Present, Discuss), whether the activity is core or optional, and a brief summary of the activity.

    • Learning Goals: This tab provides the lesson learning goals, which are expressed as student-facing “Can I…?” questions that reflect the knowledge or skills goals of the lesson.

    • Texts and Materials: This tab follows the same organizational features as the section pages, providing only texts and materials pertinent to the respective lessons.

• Organizational features (Table of Contents, glossary, index, internal references, table headers, captions, etc.) in the materials are clear, accurate, and error-free.

  • Materials are typically free of errors; however, materials contain some labeling and typographical errors. In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, Section 1, Lesson 7, Niccolò Machiavelli’s The Prince is a Core reading and lesson within the program. In the Material tab, the Unit Text List labels the text “Use” as “Optional.” In the Development Unit, The Book of Unknown Americans, the “Genre/Format” of the text “Immigrants in Our Own Land” by Jimmy Santiago Baca in the Unit Text List is labeled as a “Short Story,” yet the text is a poem. There is a minor typo in the Development Unit, Romeo and Juliet, Section 3, Lesson 1, Activity 3 when the student-facing materials state, “Use your notes on the Film-Theme Note-Taking Tool Tool [sic] to respond to the following questions from the Luhrmann Adaptation of Act 1, Scene 5 portion…”

The materials reviewed for Grade 9 provide teacher guidance for the use of embedded technology to support and enhance student learning, when applicable. 

The Teacher Edition provides guidance on the use of technology to support and enhance student learning. In many cases, the Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition include ideas for extending student learning with technology, such as using specific digital tools. In other cases, the Teaching Notes provide guidance to support student learning, such as with specific digital tools to help clarify students’ understanding.

Materials provide teacher guidance for the use of embedded technology to support and enhance student learning, when applicable. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials provide guidance for using embedded technology to support and enhance student learning, where applicable.

  • In the Program Guide, materials explain how texts within the units can be accessed digitally. Students can use the Unit Text List for digital access: “These texts can be found online. The information provided in the Unit Text List or on the Materials tab for the activity can be used to conduct a web search for the resource. Digital Access resources include online articles, videos, podcasts, and other web sources.”

  • In the Remote Learning Guide, materials include a table of instructional strategies with technology solutions. For example, materials suggest that teachers use Pear Deck and EdPuzzle for “interactive tools for videos or slides,” Snagit, Screencastify, Quicktime, and Loom for “modeling and screencasting,” and Hypothesis, NowComment, highlighting and commenting features on Google Docs. or Word for “digital annotating of text.”

  • In the Remote Learning Guide, materials explain the technology used to facilitate digital annotations:

    • “If permissible, create a Google Docs or Word version of the text. Individual copies will need to be created (the LMS might have an automatic feature for this).

    • Students can use the comment, highlight, and underline features to annotate the text.

    • Consider using a third-party technology resource for annotation (e.g., Hypothesis, NowComment).”

  • In the Foundation Unit, Who Changes the World?, Section 1, Lesson 2, students watch a TED Talk for a second time to gain a deeper understanding of activism and the other terms they have learned throughout the unit. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition include the following guidance on the use of embedded technology: “You might use a transcript of the TED Talk, which can be accessed on YouTube, for students who need additional support. This will be especially handy in the following activity as students conduct a deeper analysis of the ideas presented in the talk.”

  • In the Development Unit, The Book of Unknown Americans, materials reference artwork online to help facilitate classroom activities. For example, in Section 1, Lesson 1, students locate Norman Rockwell’s painting, The Catch. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition state that “Students can access the painting online.” In Section 2, Lesson 1, students access Diego Rivera’s mural, The Uprising, to examine how the artist uses character traits in the painting.

  • In the Development Unit, Global Food Production, Section 2, Lesson 4, students learn additional information about the agriculture economist Jayson Lusk to gain a deeper understanding of his perspective and any of his possible biases to help them more accurately delineate and evaluate the argument in his op-ed, which students read in the previous lesson. The Teacher Edition suggests that teachers find more information about Jason Lusk using digital tools: “When he wrote the New York Times op ed piece in 2016, Jayson Lusk was a professor of agricultural science at Oklahoma State University. More recently, here is a short biography from the website of an organization called Food Tank, who interviewed Lusk in 2020 (the interview can be found on the Internet by searching for his name and ‘foodtank.com’).”