12th Grade - Gateway 3

The materials reviewed for Grade 12 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 12 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 12 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, How Can I Prepare for Life after High School?, Section 4, Lesson 1, students create an individual portfolio and narrative reflection around the Central Question, “How can I prepare for life after high school?” Students investigate a chosen post-secondary pathway, such as four-year university, two-year community college, vocational or technical profession, or military. During the learning process, students analyze their reading, writing, speaking, and collaborative skills as they work in research teams.

  • In the Application Unit, What Do I Want to Research?, students form research teams to explore an inquiry question they develop themselves. The Program Guide shares, “Students expand their learning community as they develop a presentation for the larger school community. The Application Unit includes independent and collaborative reading, writing, discussion, and presentation.” In Section 5, Lesson 6, students rehearse their presentations with the research team and receive peer feedback to refine their work. The student facing-materials include guidance such as, “As you listen to the other team’s presentation, use the Peer Review Culminating Task Checklist to guide your feedback to the team to help them refine their work after the rehearsal. If needed, refer to the Presentation Creation Process, Presentation Structure, and Presentation Written Components sections of the Application Unit Presentation Guide to inform your thinking and feedback.”

• 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, In the Time of the Butterflies, Section 3, Lesson 4, students analyze the text from a Marxist lens. Since analyzing the text from a Marxist lens changes their understanding of the text, they discuss and apply the change in their learning during a reflection activity in which they respond to questions such as: “How does reading the text through the Marxist lens impact my understanding of the text? How do I understand the text (the characters, plot, setting, and conflicts) differently through the Marxist lens than through the historical or biographical lenses?” After students reflect on these questions, they apply their understanding during a class discussion on how the Marxist lens shifts their understanding of the text.

  • In the Development Unit, Artificial Intelligence, Section 3, Lesson 5, students outline a proposed argument about the subtopic they have chosen regarding artificial intelligence and present their arguments to their research teams for peer review. Students share their thinking with their groups and receive feedback. Students then apply the feedback to revise their arguments: “In a peer review, we will each present and delineate a proposed argument in response to the unit’s Central Question, the Culminating Task question, and our selected subtopic question. We will use our peers’ feedback to revise elements of our argument and submit them for review to our teacher.”

• 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, Community, Section 1, Lesson 7, students reflect on their learning from the activities in Section 1 and their performance on the Section 1 Diagnostic during which they participated in a Socratic Seminar to deepen their understanding of Community. Students reflect on their learning by answering three of the following questions from the student-facing materials:

    • “How well did you take necessary action to prepare for the task?

    • What went well for you during the completion of this task?

    • What did you struggle with during the completion of this task? How did you push through that struggle?

    • How well did you actively focus your attention during this independent task?

    • How well did you develop and use an effective and efficient process to maintain workflow during this task?

    • What would you do differently during the next Section Diagnostic?”

  • In the Development Unit, Hamlet, Section 3, Lesson 11, students engage in a peer review of their supporting paragraphs and draft their thesis statements. The student-facing materials include the following guidance: “Take turns reviewing and discussing the results of the deconstruction activity and your feedback notes. To ensure you understand the feedback, be sure to ask your partner clarifying questions.”

  • In the Development Unit, 1984, Section 2, Lessons 9–10, students present their findings to the other research teams. Materials provide students with opportunities to self-reflect on their work on the Diagnostic and assess their progress toward being able to successfully complete the Culminating Task. For example, students respond to questions in their Learning Logs, including but not limited to: “4. How well did you actively focus your attention during this independent task?” Students also review the Culminating Task Progress Tracker to evaluate their skills and knowledge to determine readiness for the Culminating Task.

The materials reviewed for Grade 12 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, How Can I Prepare for Life After High School?, Section 1, Lesson 2, students create group presentations to share summaries of their sections of “The College Payoff: Education, Occupations, Lifetime Earnings.” The student-facing materials include the following guidance: “Once your group completes the reading and the Summarizing Text Tool, begin creating your group presentation. Each presentation should last 5–7 minutes. No slide minimum is required. Summarize what you read and analyzed from your part. In addition, address the following questions:

    • What was the most surprising aspect of your part? Why?

    • What was the least surprising aspect of your part? Why?

    • Is the information dissected effectively? Why or why not?

    • Each presentation must include a works cited page for texts and images used, including “The College Payoff: Education, Occupations, Lifetime Earnings.”

  • In the Development Unit, In the Time of Butterflies, Section 2, Lesson 2, students work in pairs or small groups to discuss questions about the Dominican Republic during the Trujillo regime. Questions include, but are not limited to, “What was the political climate like?” and “What internal conflicts existed in the country?” In Section 3, Lesson 3, students work with a partner or a small group to discuss a series of question while analyzing In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez:

    • “What differences in social stature exist between Tio Chiche and the Mirabal family?

    • How can you best characterize the relationship between Tio Chiche and Trujillo? Cite evidence to support your characterization.

    • What hierarchies are revealed when Mama writes the letter to Generalisimo Trujillo?”

  • In the Development Unit, Artificial Intelligence, Section 3, Lesson 5, students participate in a Section Diagnostic during which they present their ideas for the unit’s Culminating Task to their research teams and participate in a peer-review process that addresses the following criteria:

    • “uses a Delineating Arguments Tool to communicate the elements of a proposed argument

    • explains the relationships among those elements and the implications for developing a position

    • suggests possible claims, counterclaims, and supporting evidence that might be used to develop the position

    • listens to and records feedback from the group based on the criteria for the final argumentation task”

  • In the Development Unit, Hamlet, Section 2, Lesson 3, students work in groups as they participate in a gallery walk activity. The student-facing materials include the following explanation: “In your group, discuss how your assigned character interacts with Hamlet and how your character views Hamlet’s madness.” The Teacher Edition provides additional guidance: “The gallery walk method is an active learning strategy that is effective for promoting higher-order thinking and cooperation. In this variation of the gallery walk method, students are placed in small groups, and each group is assigned a specific character to analyze.”

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

  • In the Development Unit, Community, Section 4, Lesson 5, students engage in a Philosophical Chairs discussion protocol for the Section Diagnostic. In the Teaching Notes of the Teacher Edition, materials guide the teacher through implementing the protocol. For example, the Teaching Notes explain how the teacher can organize the room and groups, “including having students line up against different walls in the classroom according to their position or by arranging the chairs or desks in two semi-circles.”

  • In the Development Unit, Artificial Intelligence, Section 1, Lesson 1, students participate in small group discussions to record the different descriptions of artificial intelligence. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition includes this guidance for students who may need to revisit discussion norms: “direct them to the Discussion Norms and Discussion Stems sections of the Academic Discussions Reference Guide.”

  • In the Development Unit, 1984, Section 3, Lesson 2, students begin working in literature circles to analyze texts. The Teacher Edition provides the following guidance on implementing the literature circle model: “This literature circle model provides students more autonomy and responsibility for analyzing the novel, an expectation they will have in their postsecondary experience. The guiding questions are intended to draw students’ attention to key ideas and effective writing techniques. In addition to observing the discussion, you might collect their literary analyses as formative assessments of their reading and writing skills.”

  • In the Application Unit, What Do I Want to Research?, students begin working in teams for their final research project. The Teacher Edition provides the following guidance regarding the format of the research teams: “The presentation team signup process will vary considerably from class to class, based on the number of students you have, their level of engagement and readiness for independent work, and the method you choose for assigning research topics. The ideal size for each presentation team is between four and six students: one moderator, two or more commentators, and one synthesizer. The optional, dual role of technology specialist can go to one or more students, or it can be shared as a secondary role by every student in the team—one or more students can be a technology specialist in addition to their core role. Descriptions for each role can be found in the Presentation Guide.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 12 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 Development Unit, Community, Section 1, Lesson 2, students read the poem “If They Should Come for Us” by Fatimah Asghar. The Teaching Notes provide background information that details the author’s background: “Fatimah Asghar, is an award winning American poet, screenwriter, and educator of Pakistani, Kashmiri, and Muslim descent. Her parents’ status as refugees and their early deaths, as well as her own challenges as a member of marginalized groups, have strongly influenced her work.”

  • In the Development Unit, 1984, students write narratives for the purpose of sending a message to societies as part of the unit’s Culminating Task. Although materials do not depict different individuals of different genders, races, ethnicities, and other physical characteristics, the nature of the Culminating Task allows students to select these issues as part of their message to societies.

• 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, Community, Section 2, Lesson 8, students compare and contrast James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time with J.D. Vance’s Hillbilly Elegy. The use of these texts balances the portrayals of demographics that students analyze, as each text includes negative and positive stereotypes. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition include the following guidance: “Here students return to comparing the messages and styles of different authors—a task they will continue to perform throughout the unit. Students examine how Baldwin and Vance take different approaches to describing their communities. Despite the overt differences the authors describe, it is important for students to see how similar messages are still able to be conveyed, especially given the large difference in time period and location.”

  • In the Development Unit, Hamlet, students analyze William Shakespeare’s Hamlet from a critical lens: political, feminist, and psychological. Materials address stereotypes as students analyze the play’s portrayal of women as they look at the character Ophelia, and issues with mental illness as they discuss Hamlet’s “madness.” Materials incorporate the reading “Discovering Feminism through Gertrude and Ophelia in Shakespeare’s” by Zamila Abdul Rani, Siti Hawa Muhamad, and Siti Masitah to discuss the portrayal of women and their poor treatment during the time Hamlet was written.

• 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 Foundation Unit, How Can I Prepare for Life after High School?, students compose a portfolio of their post-secondary pathway and reflect on their choices as part of the unit’s Culminating Task. The task itself is a product students can use in the real world, such as when they apply to college, ask for letters of recommendation, and complete entrance essays. For example, in Section 3, Lesson 5, students complete the following: “For homework, contact two professionals (e.g., teachers, counselors, administrators, coaches, faith leaders, adult volunteer coordinators, etc.) who are willing to write you a letter of recommendation for your job, college choice, or military branch choice.”

  • In the Development Unit, In the Time of Butterflies, Section 1, Lesson 2, students begin reading the novel In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez. The novel tells the story of three sisters who overcome several obstacles to achieve success. The introduction of the novel in the student-facing materials includes the following information: “How does one exhibit bravery in the face of extreme danger? What does it mean to fight for what you believe in? In this unit, we will consider the question What makes a revolutionary? by exploring the Dominican Republic under the Trujillo regime. To do this, we will read Julia Alvarez’s historical fiction novel In the Time of the Butterflies, examine relevant informational material, and view a documentary film to supplement background knowledge. We will develop skills for closely analyzing the use and function of literary, rhetorical, and stylistic elements within multiple genres.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 12 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 Development Unit, Artificial Intelligence, Section 2, Lesson 12, students share their understanding relating to the independent reading. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition provide additional guidance for student support and differentiation, including, “At this early stage in their reading, students might be grouped because they share the same home language or text so that they can develop their abilities to summarize analysis and engage in discussion with more facility. This way, they might become ‘experts’ as groups discuss common characters, plots, themes, or ideas.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 12 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 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 make limited connections to the linguistic, cultural, and conventions used in learning ELA. Materials rarely make connections to the linguistic and cultural diversity to facilitate learning.

  • In the Development Unit, Community, students engage in a Culminating Task where they address the essential question, “What is the most important message about my community that I want outsiders to understand?” In this task, students:

    • “Explain the value of belonging to your community and its legitimacy.

    • Describe the essential components of your community.

    • Explain how one becomes and remains a member of your community.

    • Appropriately communicate and utilize language.”

  • The Culminating Task itself offers students of diverse backgrounds to make connections to their community, while focusing on cultural and linguistic components of that community.

  • In the Development Unit, Hamlet, Section 1, Lesson 1, students determine the meaning of unknown words using context and record their findings in their Vocabulary Journals. 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 limited teacher guidance on how to engage culturally diverse students in the learning of ELA.

  • In the Foundation Unit, How Can I Prepare for Life After High School, Section 1, Lesson 1, students discuss how to prepare for life after high school. Due to the sensitive nature of the topic, the Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition include the following guidance for teachers: “Be sure to foster an open and respectful classroom culture so that all students feel comfortable expressing their opinions as this is the first instance of students discussing the Central Question. You might offer English learners the option to discuss the topic in their home languages and report their discussion in English.”

  • In the Development Unit, In the Time of Butterflies, Section 3, Lesson 4, students discuss how their reading of In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez changes when viewing through a Marxist lens. The Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition suggest, “Offer English learners the option to discuss the topic in their home languages and report their discussion in English.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 12 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, In the Time of the Butterflies, Section 4, Lesson 9, students participate in a Socratic Seminar about Chapter 12 from their reading of In The Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez. 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, How Can I Prepare for Life after High School?, Section 1, Lesson 2, students use the Annotating and Note-Taking Reference Guide when reading “The College Payoff: Education, Occupations, Lifetime Earnings” by Anthony P. Carnevale. The Teaching Notes in the teaching edition include the following guidance: “And while students are reading along or individually, developing a system for annotating takes practice. You might use the sample annotation key in the Annotating and Note-Taking Reference Guide to model how to annotate the text.” The Tools can be used 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, Artificial Intelligence, Section 2, Lesson 2, students use the Attending to Details Tool to answer the guiding questions from the reading with a partner. The Teaching Notes in the teaching edition share, “If students need support with using the tool, you might model its use with one of the questions before releasing partners to work on their assigned questions independently.” The Odell Education Tools 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.”

  • 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.”

  • In the Development Unit, Community, 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.”

• 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, 1984, 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 12 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 Development Unit, Community, Section 3, Lesson 5, students work on a jigsaw activity to analyze “Bowling Alone” by Robert Putnam for its central idea. For this collaborative activity, students first work with expert groups, using the Attending to Details Tool in Google Docs to analyze different assigned parts of the text. Students then report their findings to their home groups. The student-facing materials include the following guidance: “In your home group, discuss the central ideas for the section you analyzed. Take notes for the section you did not analyze on a new Attending to Details Tool for each section.”

  • In the Development Unit, Hamlet, Section 4, Lesson 2, students work with a partner to complete vocabulary exercises presented by the instructor. One option in the Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition is for students to construct a Word Wall. In the Remote Learning Guide, the materials suggest Word Walls can be created and shared digitally through Google Docs and Jamboard and used directly in the LMS (Learning Management System).

  • In the Development Unit, In the Time of Butterflies, Section 2, Lesson 2, students work with partners or small groups to research additional information regarding the Dominican Republic during the Trujillo regime. Students review what they learned in the reading of the text. The student-facing materials instruct students to use digital tools to work collaboratively to find further information regarding the topic of the text: “With a partner or in a small group, use the following questions to discuss what you already know about the Dominican Republic during the Trujillo regime. If you have access to the Internet, you can look online for additional information about the Dominican Republic.”

  • In the Development Unit, Artificial Intelligence, Section 2, Lesson 2, students work with partners to complete a collaborative tool about the assigned text. Students work collaboratively to answer the questions utilizing the Attending to Details Tool, which is a Google Doc within the Literacy Toolbox and lesson materials. Student-facing materials include the following guidance: “With the same partner from the vocabulary activity, discuss your assigned guiding question, using an Attending to Details Tool to further analyze a relevant section of ‘The Future of Employment: How Susceptible Are Jobs to Computerisation?’”

  • In the Application Unit, What Do I Want to Research?, Section 1, Lesson 1, the Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition provide teachers with guidance on tools they can use in the unit to facilitate remote or virtual learning:

    • “If you are using this unit in a remote- or virtual-learning context, you might consult two resources: the general Odell Education Remote Learning Guide and the unit-specific Application Unit Remote Learning Guide. The Odell Education Remote Learning Guide provides general guidance for strategies and structures that can be used for synchronous and asynchronous learning, flipped classrooms, and blended learning. The Application Unit Remote Learning Guide provides remote learning suggestions for each lesson.”

  • The Remote Learning Guide offers suggestions on using technology to facilitate collaborative work and discussions with tools, such as FlipGrid, Padlet, Jamboard, and video conferencing like Google Meet and Zoom.

The materials reviewed for Grade 12 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, How Can I Prepare for Life after High School, an excerpt from “The Shapeless River: Does a Lack of Structure Inhibit Students’ Progress at Community Colleges?” by Judith Scott-Clayton is listed as a Core text in the Unit Text List and Text Overview. However, in the student-facing materials, the text does not appear under the Texts tab with other Core texts listed or Optional texts listed for any of the four sections. In the Development Unit, Hamlet, Section 2, Lesson 2, the activities skip from Activity 6 to Activity 8. Materials do not list an Activity 7; it appears this may be an error in numbering rather than missing content.

The materials reviewed for Grade 12 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 digitals 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 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, How Can I Prepare for Life After High School?, Section 2, Lesson 6, students research scholarships and other funding available for their selected pathways. Teaching Notes in the Teacher Edition include guidance on using digital tools, such as search engines and email: “Encourage students to vary their search terminology and reach out via email or phone to the specific institutions or programs they are interested in.”

  • In the Development Unit, Hamlet, Section 3, Lesson 4, students view a film adaptation of Act 4, Scene 5 of Hamlet to prepare to analyze the scene with a feminist view. The Teacher Edition includes the following guidance on using the digital film clip: “The Branagh film adaptation of Act 4, Scene 5 takes approximately 14 minutes to view. Consider using the subtitle feature to assist with understanding.”

  • In the Development Unit, In the Time of Butterflies, Section 1, Lesson 2, students watch the CBS news segment titled “‘El Jefe’ Portrait of a Dictator” by Bill Leonard to help build historical context for student’s reading of In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alverez. Materials note that this resource is accessible electronically, as evidenced by the computer icon on the Materials page. Students use the Video Note-Taking Tool, a Google Doc, to analyze the video and pull out relevant information.

  • In the Development Unit, 1984, Section 2, Lesson 6, students draft an annotated bibliography for one of the sources they have selected. The Teacher Edition provides guidance on how teachers can help students work through the annotated bibliography using online tools: “Students might benefit from seeing examples of different types of annotated bibliographies, which can be found easily online. Present the examples and, as a class, discuss what makes each a model annotated bibliography. You might consider modeling the process with an informational text students read earlier in the unit.”