Project Based Learning for Public Service Aspirants

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Subject

Digital Literacy

Social Studies

Civics

ELL / ESL

Topic

Race & Ethnicity Ability Class Bullying & Bias Rights & Activism

Essential Question

What 21st Century Skills should Public Service practitioners master?
What ethical standards are necessary to serve a diverse public?
How do we remain true to ourselves as we move in and out of different communities, cultures, and contexts?
How could one person’s identity threaten another person’s rights?
How does struggle help define who we are?
What problems arise when we relate to people as members of a group, rather than as unique individuals?
How do bias and injustice affect the future?
What shared beliefs have inspired social justice movements in history?
How is empathy a seed of social action?
Does everyone have an equal responsibility to stand up to injustice?
How can we effectively interrupt biased speech when we hear it?
Do our obligations to ourselves require us to stand up for others?
What factors are important to consider when choosing whether or not to speak up in the face of injustice?
Do our obligations to ourselves require us to stand up for others?
How can individuals learn to talk about injustice and remain civil?

Texts

Multimedia

Ben DeSoto 'Understanding Poverty' exhibit

In this video, photojournalist Ben DeSoto discusses "Understanding Poverty," an exhibit featuring images of people and communities affected by poverty and homelessness.

Ben Tecumseh DeSoto

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

Subject

Economics

Topic

Class

July 2, 2014

Informational

Always Running

In this excerpt from his memoir, Rodriguez provides a stirring recollection from his adolescence: the first time he experienced racism as a result of being an immigrant in America. As he says, the experience "stays with [him] like a foul odor."

Luis J. Rodriguez

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

Topic

Class Immigration Race & Ethnicity

July 2, 2014

Literature

Why Chicken Means So Much to Me

It may seem like an empty stomach is the worst thing about being poor, but for Junior it’s not being able to save his best friend.

Sherman Alexie

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

Subject

Economics

Topic

Race & Ethnicity Class

July 5, 2014

Visual

How Rich Are the Superrich?

This graphic from Mother Jones magazine depicts income inequality in the United States.

Dave Gilson and Carolyn Perot

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

Subject

Economics

Topic

Class

July 9, 2014

Informational

Alien and Sedition Acts

The Alien and Sedition Acts were passed by a Federalist Congress and signed into law by President John Adams in 1798 at a time when Adams feared the possibility of war with France.

5th Congress of US

Grade Level

9-12

Topic

Race & Ethnicity Immigration

July 2, 2014

Supporting Students With Learning Disabilities During School Closures

Experts from the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence offer recommendations for supporting students with learning disabilities through the coronavirus pandemic.

April 22, 2020

Social Justice in Science Class

In science classes, we teach students to think carefully about the relationship between observation and hypothesis. Let’s encourage them to use that thinking to create a more just world.

April 29, 2019

Teaching Strategies

Word Work

Prior Knowledge and Personal Association Surveys

These surveys ask students what they know or how they feel about specific words in the text they are reading.

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

July 19, 2014

Word Work

Vocabulary Frames

Students use this tool to identify a word’s meaning, its parts and its opposite. After organizing the information on an illustrated flashcard, students practice using the word in a sentence.

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

CCSS

L.6-12.4, L.6-12.6

July 19, 2014

Word Work

Vocabulary Rounds

This contextual redefinition strategy encourages students to use the structure and context of words to predict their meanings. Students arrive at the definition through exposure to increasingly rich clues.

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

CCSS

L.6-12.4, L.6-12.6

July 19, 2014

Word Work

Word Wall

A word wall is an organized display of vocabulary words drawn from the texts students are reading.

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

CCSS

L.6-12.4, L.6-12.5, L.6-12.6

July 19, 2014

Student Tasks

Write to the Source

Problem Solver

Problem Solver asks students to demonstrate their argumentative skills when identifying problems and solutions in writing.

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

CCSS

W.6-12.1, W.6-12.4, W.6-12.9

July 19, 2014

Write to the Source

So What?

So What? asks students to demonstrate their explanatory and informative skills when writing to gain the understanding of others.

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

CCSS

W.6-12.2, W.6-12.4, W.6-12.9

July 19, 2014

Write to the Source

What's the Impact?

What’s the Impact? asks students to demonstrate their explanatory and informative writing skills.

Grade Level

6-8 9-12

CCSS

W.6-12.2, W.6-12.4, W.6-12.9

July 19, 2014

Plan Built By

jdbattlesr

Project Based Learning for Public Service Aspirants

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