Lesson Ideas for Evaluating Information found Online

Here are three different lesson plans for a 9th grade English class. The first would be a precursor to some later research projects. Note that the first is not a stand-alone lesson, but would rather equip students with valuable skills that will benefit them for later assignments.

Lesson 1: The Five W's

Objectives:

Students will learn to apply a very simple formula to websites in order to determine their validity. In Kathleen Schrock's article The ABCs of Web Site Evaluation Schrock points out that, like an investigator, students can apply the five W questions: Who? What? When? Where? and Why? to any Web Site to try and determine its validity. Students will learn to ask these questions of various websites in order to determine which sites might be reliable sources of information. I think this method is one of the quickest ways to validate website information....especially the When? question. There are so many outdated resources out there that many websites can be easily discounted because of when they were last updated.

Methods:

1. Students will meet in the computer lab in the library and told to access this site: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly. Students will be told to click on the examples link and await further instructions.

2. Students will be introduced to the 5 W's and how they can be applied to any website. I will demonstrate how these questions can be applied by showing my students a poplar website (espn.com, cnn.com, etc...)

3. Students will create a chart with space for evaluation of four websites based on answers to the five questions.

4. Using the example sites from the aforementioned site, The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly, students will evaluate four different sites and write a brief paragraph which defends which they think is the best site by using the 5 W's as their guiding questions. Student will be encouraged to thoroughly investigate each site, especially in checking links and author credentials. Each of the W's leads to a follow-up set of questions for investigation, and students will be equipped with these follow-up questions in order to make critical judgment.

Assessment:

Students will be evaluated based on the completion of the chart and, more importantly, in the months to come as they complete research.

Lesson 2: The Mini-Research Requirement

Objectives:

One component I would like to require of one of my rhetoric assignments is a small research component which, again, is a precursor for a bigger project pending later in the school year. The assignment topic is one I define (step 1 of the Big 6), but students would be responsible for the other 5 steps of the problem-solving model. The paper's topic is: If ECS (the school I at which I currently work) could offer one new class next year, what should it be, and why? Students will need to incorporate research into their argument and will learn to do so by thinking about where to search for information, locating the information, engaging with the relevant information, synthesizing it for their essay, and finally reflecting on the process. There will be a minimum requirement of two outside sources for this essay.

Methods:

1. Students will brainstorm ideas for the essay by considering which class would be most vital and why. They will construct a rough outline for their argument after generating a solid thesis.

2. Students will then go through steps 2-5 of the Big 6 process as they spend time accessing resources in the library (print and internet). As students are completing steps 3 and 4, they will be required to fill out a chart similar to the one from the Five W's lesson. In order to ensure validity of sources as they are going through the research process, the previous lesson will be a vital part of the completion of this essay. Along with a works cited page, students will need to hand in a completed chart which answers the Five W's for each of the sources used in the essay.

3. The essay will be broken into four stages:

1) Thesis and Outline

2) Annotated Outline which includes research/statistics/quotes and the 5 W's chart

3) Rough Draft

4) Final copy with Works Cited.

Assessment:

Each stage of the essay process will receive feedback. Ultimately, the first three stages of the process will be worth as much as the final stage, so the bulk of the assessment does not fall on the summative part of the assignment, but rather the student should see much improvement in the essay as he receives formative assessment at every stage.

Lesson 3: The Final Piece of the Big 6 Puzzle

Objectives:

Students will cap their school year by completing a bigger research essay than the one described previously, but this time they will be drawn into the inquiry process and they will be responsible for the question/topic/problem that the essay addresses. The inquiry process will be guided, of course, and the topic must be appropriate to the curriculum of the class. The main objective of this lesson is to draw students into the process by giving them freedom to find a topic that interests them. There will be a minimum of four outside sources required for this essay, and the process will be very similar to the one described in Lesson 2.

Methods:

1. Students will submit a proposal for their topic, and, pending teacher approval, begin to consider resources which will give them information relevant to their topic.

2. Students will then go through steps 2-5 of the Big 6 process as they spend time accessing resources in the library (print and internet). There will be a week of blocked time devoted to time spent in the library in order to complete the research portion. As students are completing steps 3 and 4, they will be required to fill out a chart similar to the one from the Five W's lesson. In order to ensure validity of sources as they are going through the research process, the first lesson will be a vital part of the completion of this essay. Along with a works cited page, students will need to hand in a completed chart which answers the Five W's for each of the sources used in the essay.

3. The essay will be broken into five stages:

1) Topic Proposal

2) Outline

3) Annotated Outline which includes research/statistics/quotes and the 5 W's chart

4) Rough Draft

5) Final copy with Works Cited.

Assessment:

Each stage of the essay process will receive feedback. Ultimately, the first three stages of the process will be worth as much as the final stage, so the bulk of the assessment does not fall on the summative part of the assignment, but rather the student should see much improvement in the essay as he receives formative assessment at every stage.

Though lessons 2 or 3 sound similar (and they are), they are intentionally constructed to build on one another to help students arrive at the end of a successfully completed Problem-Solving Model while also learning about how to employ the use of the internet in searching, retrieving, evaluating, and organizing information. I am seriously considering using these lesson designs in my class this year because I think this process would be better than the one I have used in years past. Yes, evaluating work at each stage is a pain in the neck, but it is also the best way to see serious student improvement.

Slowly Losing My Sanity

This year, I wanted to insert a research component to an essay in my classroom. Considering that this has not been a part of the 9th grade curriculum in the past, this type of assignment was long overdue. All I asked of my students was to find two outside sources that commented on some of the literature we read throughout the course of the year. They had already created a thesis, written an outline, and had feedback on both those stages. The next stage was to add to the outline with a little bit of research connecting to some of the claims of their body paragraphs. In order to give students ample time to complete the research component, I decided to take my class to the library for 3 days this week and walk them through the process.

This being the first time that they have completed research of this type, many students expressed frustration and confusion over where to start. I spent every minute in the library answering questions and helping students find appropriate resources. They learned how to use some Internet databases and use an index to find appropriate passages in print literature. It was an overwhelming experience, and with their annotated outline due on Tuesday, I am concerned about the product I will get. A lot of the questions my students asked could have been addressed on the front end of the research process, a valuable learning experience for refining the process next year.

What I learned:

1. I need to spend more time on the front end teaching students how to research. Some started to narrow, others too broad, and some were just too lazy to look very hard for relevant information. Had I addressed some research strategies on the front end, I think I could have alleviated some of the research angst from my students.

2. I need to give students better information about correctly citing sources on the front end. A lot of students were confused about which citation information to record, and I fear that when it comes time to create a works cited page, students will not have all the information they need.

3. I need to give students more examples of what I'm looking for from each stage of the essay. Because this is my first year teaching research, I will collect good student examples from this group and use them as models next year.

Overall, this part of the assignment has been challenging, but one that I want to continue doing and refining. I also want to do it during a different part of the year next year. I will be able to give the assignment more attention during the winter quarter and will make the adjustment next year.

A Stroll Down Memory Lane

I recently had students take a day in class to put aside whatever stress they had from school, take a deep breath, and focus on there writing. We were in the midst of a difficult Odyssey unit and needed a break from the intensive literary study. A day to focus on creative writing provided the relief necessary. Though I told them it was for their mental health, I also had the objective in mind to work on developing more descriptive writing. When it comes to descriptive writing, what better place to start than with memories?

To generate ideas on what to write, I had students recall three separate memories: their earliest, their most vivid, and their most painful (either physical or emotional). They were then to write a story based on one of those memories. The only guideline to their writing was that they were to fill it with sensory detail; this was in an effort to make their writing more engaging and descriptive as opposed to solely plot-driven. As students began writing, I wrote alongside them and was able to share my piece with each successive class. I loved completing the assignment and was able to model what I wanted for my other classes in addition to connecting with them by sharing a memory from my past.

The results from this assignment were astounding. I had multiple students ask if they could take their writing home to finish it and later turned in 3-4 page stories. Some stories were full of wonderful descriptive language; others contained an emotional depth that was surprising coming from 15 year old students. Some wrote about deaths in the family, others about memories connected to traumatic experiences, one even wrote about her attempted suicide. For those that were particularly difficult to read, I was able to follow up with students and connect with them in a deeper way. Overall, this assignment allowed me to, yes, teach them about descriptive writing, but, more importantly, opened my eyes to some students who needed extra attention, encouragement, or relationship. It's amazing what students will tell you when you give them the forum and opportunity!

Favorite Writing Resources

1. For every writing need, a teacher need not look further than Purdue's OWL. It is an Online Writing Lab which has information ranging from how to format essays according to different guidelines (MLA v APA) to giving examples of how to properly use in-text citations. I have used this resource in my own writing and have used it to look up questions about how to evaluate student writing, as well. This is a resource that can answer just about every question when it comes to writing. Students could use this resource in much the same way I have: to clear up any questions a student may have when going through the writing process without their teacher readily available to help them.

2. Another website I enjoy using for lesson plans is the Web English Teacher. When it comes to generating ideas for writing topics and activities, I frequently turn to this website for help. This site includes many postings from teachers around the country. These postings are grade-specific and at times include entire unit plans. It is easy to search for subject-specific lessons and even easier to find ideas for creative writing assignments. Though I usually tweak the lessons to fit my classroom plans, this website has been a consistently-used resource for planning and implementation.

3. I have heard of other teachers speak of using EasyBib, a website that creates easy bibliographies for research papers. These teachers have encouraged students to use the resource so that they create works cited pages that are accurate and neat. I have never encouraged students to use it, but I can see how it might save them some time from having to go through the tedious process. All the students need is the book/resource information and they are good to go with generating a citation.

4. A resource I have begun using this year is a website called Turn It In. With this resource, students have a location to file their papers online. They submit an electronic version of their papers which then gets sent to the teacher with a report attached to it. The whole point of the website is to prevent plagiarism, and it does this by comparing the student essay to the millions of online essays available to try and detect any copied material. Students essays will also be compared with other essays being turned in for the same class to ensure that students are not copying off of one another. I have used the resource once this year, and it has helped me detect academic dishonesty that would have otherwise gone unnoticed. I would highly recommend this resource as a way of promoting academic integrity in your class. It also has some grading resources that, though I have not used, look like they could be helpful.