Context:

This unit is designed for use with classes in the upper secondary levels - seniors, juniors and potentially sophomores. It can be used with students of all ability levels, however, for remedial or special needs students, some adaptations must be made. The basic framework of the unit is sound for all socio-economic and geographic distributions of students. The specific reading, listening and viewing materials are to be modified to meet student needs and interests. As this is a unit on social change, the issues discussed should be relevant to the society in which the students function. Because of this, flexibility of subject matter has been incorporated as an aspect of the unit.

Focus:

This unit is designed around the theme of Literature as Social Change. It will explore the different voices of societal change that are found in literature. The unit will include a variety of different genres, however, all will be thematically related. This will allow for both cross-genre comparisons and creative endeavors. Students will have had experience with multiple genres before this unit (this will be important for their unit project).

Goals:

Literature is the fundamental voice of society. It both expresses the human condition and serves as a force for societal change. It reflects the world around us, and in doing so, affects its development. After this unit, students will see the reciprocal relationship between society and literature. They will understand the role that literature plays in shaping our world. But most importantly, they will understand how literature gives power to the individuals within the masses and how it can give them a voice to be heard.

Objectives:

By understanding the basic dynamics of literature, society and power, students will be able to discuss the different voices of change and critique their effectiveness. Students will be able to exercise their own voice for societal change through an authentic semester project - a creative endeavor addressing an issue that is personally relevant to them. Through an analytical written project, they will also contrast, compare and analyze the efficacy of different methods used in varying literary contexts to procure social change. Finally, students will be able to integrate public speaking skills and rhetorical devices in an oral presentation that demonstrates personal, social and civic awareness for the purpose of persuading an audience.

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Day by Day Plans

Monday

Students will listen to "Changes" by 2Pac Shakur. They will be given a handout of the lyrics. Class discussion about the social issues raised in the song. Then they will be given the Langston Hughes handout with "Mother to Son" on it. Direct mini-lesson on the blues and early African-American music and the social issues surrounding them. Small group discussions analyzing the poem and comparing the song and poem. The last five minutes of class have students write in their journal to give them a chance to reflect on the day's lesson.

Homework: write at least ten lines of poetry or "blues" that addresses a social issue of your own.
 

Tuesday

Collect homework - poem/blues. Discuss issues that were raised by the homework assignment. Continue with Hughes Poetry - "The Weary Blues" and "I, too, sing America" Introduce Zora Neale Hurston and other writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Students will listen to voice recordings of various Harlem Renaissance authors reading their own works. They will then write in their journals what they think the readings mean. Afterwards, we will discuss this as a class.

Introduce the Unit Creative Project. Students will need to choose genres and their social issue by tomorrow.

Homework: Students will choose a H.R. poem or passage (very short) to memorize and perform for the class on Thursday.

Wednesday

Return blues/poem homework assignment.

Beginning class activity - brainstorming different kinds of social issues and genres that can address them. Students must have chosen a genre and issue for their Creative Project. This is to be submitted today for teacher approval.

Read "Black Death," by Hurston. The students will then create a found poem from the text. This will be turned in at the end of the hour.

Thursday

Return students found poems and their Creative Project choices.

Students will present their memorized poems or passages in class. Present reproduction of the painting "Abraham Lincoln" by William H. Johnson. Have students write their own interpretation of the painting in their journals. Then discuss Johnson and what the painting means.

Friday

Discuss the citizen's role in a democracy. Read "Introduction to a Public Citizen's Action Manual", by Ralph Nader. Relate this to Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Students will then be given roles in the creation of a micro-drama. They will give a short play on the events of December 1, 1955, when Mrs. Rosa Parks was told to give up her seat on the bus. Act out her arrest then show her explaining the reasons for her action to a group of reporters after she has been released from jail. The rest of the hour will be spent creating the drama. It will be performed Monday*.

Remind students that their Creative Project Bibliography of Resources is due on Tuesday and Part One is due on Wednesday (This shouldn't be a problem.  Explain to the students that they should be working on Part One in order to complete the Bibliography.)

                *based on "Non-violent Protest Through the Ages," lesson plan by Olivia J. Green
 
 

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Monday

Students will give their performance of the events surrounding Rosa Parks arrest. Begin literature circles. Students will be given a list of books and a brief summary of what each is about. They will then choose the book that they want to read - no more than five students to a book.  We will start in class work on the books in three weeks.

Remind students that their Creative Project Bibliography of Resources for their Creative Project is due tomorrow and Part One is due Wednesday.

Introduce War into the classroom (the song, not the actuality). Discuss Viet Nam and the protests it sparked - Kent State et al.

Homework: Read handout of war poetry.

Tuesday

Begin class with music of U2, Bob Dylan, and Joan Baiz. Discuss the lyrics of the songs. Then relate them to the poetry that was read for homework. Students will then write a comparison/analysis of the songs and poems in their journals. We will discuss the different techniques that are used in the pieces, then the remainder of the hour will be spent writing an imitation of one of the works that we have covered so far. This will be due Thursday.

The Bibliography of Resources for their Creative Project is due today. Remind the students that they MUST bring in their initial draft of Part One of their Creative Project tomorrow for peer editing.

Homework:  Finish Imitation Assignment by Thursday.

Wednesday

The entirety of the hour will be spent in Peer Editing for Part One of the Creative Project. Students are to get critical feedback from at least three other students in the class. They will work in groups of two, editing each others project. Every 1/3 of the hour, the teacher will instruct them to switch partners.

Homework: Read "Dover Beach" by Matthew Arnold

Thursday

Collect the student's Imitation homework assignment. Discuss "Dover Beach" in depth - walk the students through a line-by-line analysis. Play Samuel Barber's song "Dover Beach" written around Arnold's text. If possible segue this into Barber's Adagio and the scene from Platoon where it is used. If not, create my own visual presentation set to this music. From poetry to art song to theatre, trace this anti-war theme through the genres.

Friday

Return student's Imitation homework assignment.

Remind Students that the first draft of Part One of their Creative Project is due on Monday.

Present Holocaust image and poetry. Discuss the picture and poem. Then have students write their own poem and journal entry about the picture.
 

Monday

The first draft of Part One of the Creative Project is due today. Introduce Henry David Thoreau. Give background lecture for ideas, terms and social context that students will need to understand Civil Disobedience.

Homework:

• read Civil Disobedience.
• Find an example of a piece of literature (any genre, including song lyrics) that was written (at least in part) for the purpose of social change. This will be presented to the class on Friday.

Discuss Civil Disobedience. Do the students agree with Thoreau's beliefs? They will write a response to the essay in their journals. Relate the ideas discussed in Civil Disobedience with the philosophies of Ghandi. Give background information about Ghandi and the social environment at the time. Play Audio Clips from Ghandi's speeches. Discuss our roles as world citizens.

Food for thought selection.

Wednesday

Return the first draft of Part One to the students for revision.

Watch "I have a Dream - The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." (35 minutes). After viewing, students will write a paragraph reader-response to the film and a paragraph tracing the influences of Thoreau and Ghandi.

Thursday

Today will be a field trip to the Instructional Media Center to do biographical research on Thoreau, King or Ghandi. We will gather information today for our homework assignment.

Remind students to bring in examples of words of social change to present to the class tomorrow.

Homework: write a brief (1 page) biographical sketch of Thoreau, King or Ghandi. This will be due tomorrow.

Friday
 

Students will present their found examples of words of social change. Biographical sketch is due. Representative examples will be posted around the classroom.

Remind students that the final draft of Part One of their Creative Project is due on Monday.

Monday

The final draft of Part One of our Unit Creative Project is due today. We will do an in-class writing assignment today. Discuss what students perceive women's strengths to be. List them on the board. Now list what strengths society values. Do they coincide? Students will then write about a strong woman in their life using their choice of genre. Then in their journals, they will compare this woman with three women they have encountered in their readings in the class to date*.

Homework: Read "Shakespeare's Sister" by Virginia Woolf tonight.

First half of class will be spent discussing "Shakespeare's Sister" and writing a short (15 minute) essay evaluating its merits and applicability to today's society. The students will write this reader-response to the essay in their journals.

We will spend the second half of the class period working on our Self-Evaluations for the Creative Project. What is not finished in class will be completed as homework. The Self-Evaluations are due tomorrow.

Self-Evaluations are due for the Unit Creative Projects. We will read in class Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour." We will discuss the issues raised in the text and then respond in our journals.

Homework: read "Desiree’s Baby," by Kate Chopin

Students will begin to write an in class skit. Working in groups of four or five, they will write a dramatization of a feminist issue that was brought up in our readings. We will brainstorm these ideas. Students will then get together and rehearse their skit. These will be presented in class tomorrow*.

Presentation of skits. This should take most of the hour. If there is time left, we will discuss the issues raised in the various skits.

On Monday we will begin our In-Class presentations of our Literature as Social Change Creative Projects. Five students will give their presentation each day. The presentations will take one week of class time.

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Day by Day Materials

Monday - 2 Pac 2 Hughes

                    Zora Neale Hurston - "Black Death"

Thursday - Painting

                    William H. Johnson - "Abraham Lincoln"

Friday - Essay

                    Ralph Nader - "Introduction to a Public Citizen's Action Manual"
 
 

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Monday - Literature Circles Book List

Monday - War by Edwin Starr

Monday (cont.) - War Poetry

              A.E. Housman - "Wake Not for the World-Heard Thunder"
               W.B. Yeats -
                           "An Irish Airman Foresees His Death"
                           "Easter 1916"
                           "Second Coming"
               W. Owens - "Dulce et Decorum Est"

Tuesday - Songs

               U2 - "Sunday Bloody Sunday" or "New Year's Day"
               Bob Dylan - "Masters of War"
               Joan Baez - ?

Wednesday - Poetry

              Matthew Arnold - "Dover Beach"

Thursday - Multiple Genres

              Samuel Barber - "Dover Beach"
                        "Adagio for Strings"
              Platoon (selection) movie

Friday - Holocaust images

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Monday - Literature

            Thoreau - Civil Disobedience

Tuesday - Audio Clips

            Ghandi - Speeches

Tuesday - Food for Thought

• There would be 57 Asians, 21 Europeans, 14 from the Western Hemisphere (North and South), and 8 Africans.
• 51 would be female; 49 would be male
• 70 would be other than white; 30 white.
• 70 would be non-Christian; 30 Christian.
• 50% of the entire world's wealth would be in the hands of only 6 people and all 6 would be citizens of the United States.
• 80 would live in substandard housing.
• 70 would be unable to read.
• 50 would suffer from malnutrition.
• 1 would be near death, 1 would be near giving birth
• Only 1 would have a college education.
• No one would own a computer as yet.

            "I have a Dream - The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr."
 

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Monday - Essay

            Virginia Woolf - "Shakespeare's Sister"

Wenesday - Short Story

            Kate Chopin - "The Story of an Hour"
                                    "Desiree's Baby"
 
 

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Outcomes (Objectives)

The purpose of this project is to allow you, as ******** High School Students and members of our community, to address an issue of personal importance and to develop your creative skills. You will be developing a creative project of your choice that expresses your views on a social issue. This project should be something that could be displayed to the public for the purpose of raising their awareness and influencing their beliefs.

STEPS TO FOLLOW

PART ONE

1. Choose an issue that is of importance to you. You don't have to choose a stance YET, but the project will be more interesting for you and the end product more interesting for us if the issue is one that you care about.

• School uniforms
• Welfare to work
• Women in military combat
• Environment vs. economics
• Affirmative action
• U.S. foreign policy
• Any local concerns
• Any national concerns

1. Choose  appropriate genres. Choose at least two different genres for your Creative Project.  When choosing  genres consider your own interest in the genres and how effective they  will be conveying your beliefs.

• collection of poems
• short story
• novella
• play
• editorial
• music video
• radio play
• satire
• children's literature
• essays
• commercials
• literary magazine

1. Do research. There will be two types of research involved in this project. First, you must find information about the topic you will be writing about. You need to have at least FIVE different resources that give you information concerning your issue. Preferably, this information will include many different perspectives on the issue (you can't develop a strong stance without knowing the different sides to the problem). Use this information to solidify your own beliefs on the subject. Second, you must look to different examples of the genre you chose. This will allow you to see the strengths of the genre and how others have used it for their own purposes. Then you can develop the strengths of the genre to suit your own purpose. You must have at least THREE examples of your genre.
2. Create a first draft. Now that you have your issue, genre, and supporting evidence, create your first draft of the project. This draft will then be submitted for peer editing.
3. Revise. Take the responses you got from peer editing and evaluate them. Do you agree with what your peer editors suggest? Make appropriate changes.
4. Submit second draft. Submit your second draft to the instructor. You will receive a grade on this draft based on the following rubric.

	Technique	Production	Persuasiveness
Excellent	Genre-appropriate use of grammar, syntax, voice and conventions. If there is deviation from conventional usage, it is well-justified. Genre is well-developed.	Highly polished end-product. Aesthetics are genre appropriate and production is well organized. Quality workmanship. Work has been thoroughly edited and revised.	Well-supported stances that are presented in a manner which is likely to persuade audiences. Highly logical presentation.
Good	Few mistakes in usage. Genre is clear, but not completely developed.	Incomplete editing and revision. Workmanship is good, but could be improved.	Stances are supported by evidence and logic. Presentation is good, but could be improved.
Mediocre	Moderate technical errors. The genre is not fully developed and unclear..	Mediocre editing and revisions.	Stances are moderately supported by evidence and logic. Presentation is moderately persuasive.
Poor	Numerous spelling, grammar, and convention mistakes. Meaning and persuasiveness are compromised. The genre is poorly developed.	Sloppy workmanship. The aesthetics are inappropriate for the chosen genre. Little or no editing and revision.	Stances are not supported and illogical. Presentation is not persuasive.


 
1. Revise again. Make appropriate changes in your project based on the feedback you received from the instructor.
2. Submit final draft. This will be the final draft for your project. You will be graded on this draft. If your grade improves from your first submission, then the second grade will replace the first grade as your final mark for the project.

 

 

PART TWO

3. Self-evaluation. This is a written statement that evaluates the effectiveness of your project and what you learned while creating it. It should be roughly one page long. In it, you will assess the effectiveness of your project based on your choice of genre, issue, and execution. You will then write what you have learned in the process of creating this project. Examples: Did your stance on the issue change? Did you come to understand the genre better? Is there anything that you would change if you had to do it again?

 

 

PART THREE

4. Presentation. Now that you have put your heart into this project, it is time to share it with an audience. Everyone will give a 10-minute presentation of their project in class. This can include overhead projections, reading aloud, showing visual projects and class discussion. Each presentation should give a brief background of the issue and genre that you chose.

DUE DATES

Day 2 - Turn in choice of genre and issue.

Day 5 - Submit bibliography of resources used in research.

Day 6 - Submit first draft for peer editing.

Day 8 - Submit revised draft to instructor for initial grade on Part One.

Day 13 - Submit final draft to instructor for final grade on Part One.

Day 15 - Submit Self-Evaluation.

Day 17 - In-Class presentations begin.

Your overall grade for the project will be based on the finished product of Part One (65%), your Self-Evaluation (10%) and your In-Class Presentation (25%). Part One will be graded based on the rubric that I have provided. The Self-Evaluation will be graded as an essay. Use proper grammar, spelling and conventions. Most importantly, be thoughtful. The In-Class presentation will be evaluated on the degree of preparedness, the persuasiveness of your stance and the clarity with which you present the issue.
 

Scoring Rubric

Part One (60 Points - 20 points for each area)
 

Self-Evaluation (10 Points)

The evaluation must be clearly written according to traditional usage conventions. The evaluation must address the effectiveness of Part One and indicate self-reflection.

Presentation (30 Points)

I have scored the performance assessment based on the amount that I felt each section addressed the content standards. The rubric for part one corresponds to the different areas that were involved in the creation of the project. Technique addresses the issues of genre choice and ability to write within that genre. Production addresses the performance aspect of the project. The end product is to be presented to an audience in a professional manner. Persuasiveness addresses the research aspect of the product. Stances need to be well supported and arguments need to be thoroughly thought out.

Self-evaluation is an important component of the content standards. This section was given ten percent of the total weight because of the relative amount of work and thought that would go into developing it on the part of the students.

For the same reason, 30 percent of the grade was given to the presentation.

This project is designed for use in high school English classes. The cognitive levels are appropriate for this age group and the project itself is relevant to their approaching entry into the adult world, where they will need to have well-thought positions on pertinent social issues.

Adaptation:

For students who didn't have the pre-requisite communication and critical thinking skills this project would still be appropriate because of its pedagogical values. The project would only need to be adapted to include more instructor supervision. Students would be given extra guidance in the completion of each of the separate stages. This would include provision of examples of the various stages. Further, students would be allowed further revision opportunities to adjust to instructor expectations.
 

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