Join the national conversation!
Y T L A N E P H T A E D E H T IS ? D E I F I T S U J Word Generation - Unit 1.13
Focus Words advocates | contrary | prohibit | release | reverse! !
Weekly Passage Should people who commit serious crimes be sentenced to death? The death penalty is also known as capital punishment. It is allowed in some states, but not in others. In the year 2005, sixty people were put to death by lethal injection in the United States. Advocates of the death penalty say that the threat of being punished by death stops people from committing violent crimes. They also contend that the death penalty helps murder victims’ families find peace. Those who take the contrary position argue that the death penalty does not lower rates of violent crime. These death penalty opponents also point out that in some cases,
innocent people have been sentenced to death. After further investigation their sentences were reversed. For example, DNA testing showed that some people had not committed the crimes they were accused of committing, so they were released from prison. Death penalty opponents worry that many innocent people have been put to death. Should the death penalty be prohibited, or are there good reasons to keep it? When, if ever, do you think capital punishment is justified?
Unit: 1.13
Is the death penalty justified?
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!advocates: (noun)
supporters
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: advocate , advocate (verb)
______________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Students’ rights are often advocated for by teachers.
______________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Name a person who is an advocate for students.
______________________________________________________________________
!contrary: (adjective)
opposite; opposing
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: contradict
______________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Contrary to popular belief, most teacher work after school during
!! the summer.
______________________________________________________________________
TURN !! AND TALK: What is another statement that might begin with the phrase “contrary to
popular belief?”
______________________________________________________________________
!prohibit : (verb)
to not allow; to forbid
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: prohibits, prohibiting, prohibited
______________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Students are prohibited from getting out of their seats in this class.
______________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: What is something a student is prohibited from doing in school?
______________________________________________________________________
!release : (verb) to let go; to set free
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: release (noun), releases, releasing, released
______________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: One can release emotions either physically or emotionally.
______________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Complete the sentence: I release my anger by…
______________________________________________________________________
!reverse: (verb) to change back; to overturn
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: reverse (noun), reverses, reversing, reversed
______________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Reversing a state law requires many government agencies to agree.
______________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Do you think the death penalty should be reversed?
______________________________________________________________________
!
Unit 1.13
Is the death penalty justified? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK Death penalty advocates say the death penalty helps society by discouraging crime and eliminating the most dangerous criminals. On the contrary, some say a society that executes its own citizens will be less moral and less fair overall. Many countries around the world, from Mexico to South Africa, have abolished the death penalty. The European Union (EU) prohibits the death penalty in all EU countries. Between 1973 and 1995, American courts sentenced 5,760 people to death. Of these people, only 313 were executed. A study found that 68% of death sentences were reversed because of serious errors. In 9% of those reversals, the defendant was eventually acquitted and released. Option 1: Of 5,760 people sentenced to death, only 313 were actually executed. What percent of the people sentenced to death were actually executed? A) about 5.4% B) about 10.3% C) about 16.8% D) about 20.1%
acquitte d: fr from crimin ee al charge
Option 2: If 68% of death penalty cases are reversed and in 9% of those reversals the defendant is eventually declared not guilty, what percent of people sentenced to death are eventually acquitted?
Discussion Question: The study cited above found that in 68% of the cases where a defendant was sentenced to death, the sentence was reversed by another court because serious mistakes had been made during the trial. Death penalty opponents say this shows that the system is deeply flawed. When mistakes are so common, they say, the only way to prevent innocent people from being executed is to prohibit capital punishment or the death penalty. On the contrary, say death penalty advocates, these statistics prove that each defendant gets a fair trial, with safeguards to prevent mistakes. They point out that in most reversals, the defendant is not acquitted and released, but rather, is still found guilty, and sentenced to prison instead of death. What do you think? Do these statistics on death sentence reversals support death penalty advocates, or death penalty opponents?
Unit 1.13
Is the death penalty justified? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY Ms. Kahn was discussing the death penalty with her students. “If a state allows the death penalty, people in that state must be more scared to commit crimes than people in states that do not have the death penalty,” says James, advocating for the death penalty. “No way!” Sumiko replied. “Just because the punishment is worse doesn’t mean there’s going to be less crime. When someone is going to commit a crime that bad, they aren’t thinking about the punishment.” “On the contrary, there are studies that show that criminals do think about the punishment, and harsher punishment gives them more adrenaline when they commit a crime,” Ms. Kahn stated. “As of June 2013, 20 states prohibited the death penalty. Let’s look to see if the crime rate is different in states that do and don’t allow the death penalty.” Ms. Kahn found some interesting statistics online about the murder rates in death penalty verses non-death penalty states from 1991-2011. 10
Murder Rate (per 100,000 people)
Death Penalty States Non-Death Penalty States 7.5
5
2.5
0
1991
1993
1995
1997
1999
2001
2003
2005
2007
2009
2011
Data Source: http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/deterrence-states-withoutdeath-penalty-have-had-consistently-lower-murder-rates#stateswithvwithout
What patterns do you notice within these data? Do states prohibiting the death penalty have a higher or lower murder rate?
It is tempting to conclude that the difference you see in this graph between death-penalty and non-death-penalty states represents a causal effect. Why is that a dangerous conclusion? What additional data would you seek to determine whether there is a cause-andeffect relationship?
Do these data support Sumiko’s or James’ assumptions? Explain.
SERP 2014
| Word Generation
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Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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4
Unit 1.13
Is the death penalty justified?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Is the death penalty justified?! Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can. Pro
Con
Unit 1.13
Is the death penalty justified? DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.13 Is the death penalty justified?
Use the focus words from this week and from previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words advocates | contrary | prohibit | release | reverse!
! _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
Join the national conversation!
A N A H T E R O M : A M H ? T M AS E L B O R P L A C MEDI Word Generation - Unit 1.14
Focus Words
intervention | phenomenon | priority | suspend | transmit!
!
Weekly Passage Asthma is a respiratory illness that makes breathing difficult. Sometimes it is connected to plant and animal allergies. Asthma is not a contagious illness; it cannot be transmitted from person to person. Instead, asthma is a health condition that is triggered by environmental factors, such as indoor and outdoor pollutants that make the air dirty. But health experts are noticing a pattern. Asthma appears to be getting worse in low-income, urban areas, affecting more and more children who live there. A study of rich and poor neighborhoods showed big differences in asthma rates. The low-income area of the Bronx in New York had high rates of asthma, 222 cases per 10,000 residents, while wealthier neighborhoods in Seattle had only 96 cases per 10,000. Factories, power plants, and other industrial facilities are major contributors to air pollution. Many poor residential communities are located near
these industrial areas. Automobile emissions are another common cause of air pollution, and cities have more traffic than suburban areas. Since widespread asthma is a public health phenomenon that is directly linked to pollution, many people think something should be done to fix the problem. But who should pay for expensive clean-up efforts and other interventions to improve the air quality in homes, schools, and neighborhoods? Should factories be expected to clean up after themselves? Is the government responsible for making asthma prevention a priority? Will teaching people about the asthma problem help? Should operations in power plants be suspended until they lower their pollution levels? What do you recommend?
Unit 1.14 - Asthma: More than a medical problem? Problem of the Week! There was a dramatic increase in the asthma rate in the 1980’s and 1990’s. More recently, 14% of children in the U.S. today have been diagnosed with asthma. Researchers have been working to understand this phenomenon. Asthma is a complicated illness. Unlike HIV or the common cold, it is not transmitted from person to person. Rather, doctors think a combination of genetic factors and environmental factors, like pollution, determine who gets asthma. Asthma attacks can be life-threatening, and treating asthma is expensive. For these reasons, some say fighting asthma should be a national priority. But how can we fight asthma? Realistically, we cannot suspend all activities that cause pollution. To plan effective interventions we need to know which groups are most affected. Here are some statistics.! !
17% of boys have been diagnosed with asthma, as compared to 11% of girls!
!
18% of children from poor families have been diagnosed with asthma, as compared to 13% of children from non-poor families
Option 1: According to these statistics, which of the following groups would you expect to have the highest asthma diagnosis rate? A) girls from poor families B) girls from non-poor families C) boys from non-poor families D) boys from poor families
Option 2: Two boys are chosen at random. According to the statistics given above, what is the likelihood that they both have asthma?
Math Discussion Question: Childhood asthma places a real burden on families. An asthma attack is a frightening phenomenon. Normal life is suspended when a child suffers an attack, and helping the child breathe becomes the family’s priority. Sometimes, using an inhaler helps relieve the symptoms. Other times, a more serious intervention is necessary, like a doctor visit or a hospital stay. Doctors and social workers try to transmit up-to-date medical knowledge to families to help them avoid asthma triggers, like mold, pollen, and cigarette smoke. Should families pay for all of these services themselves? What about families that can’t afford to pay?
Unit 1.14
Asthma: More Than a Medical Problem? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY The students in Mr. Seemy’s class are talking about air pollution because Victor is concerned about his asthma acting up. He has a track meet after school, but the pollution has been particularly bad this week. “Smog is definitely one of the main triggers for my asthma, so I have to be careful,” says Victor. “It’s a hassle. I love competing, but I have to pay close attention to my breathing, suspend strenuous activity if I start to have any trouble breathing, and be prepared to intervene by using my inhaler. It usually works out okay, but I wish people would do more to keep the air clean.” “I’ve heard that air pollution not only triggers asthma attacks for some people with asthma, it can also cause more people to develop asthma in the first place,” says Jorge. “It’s more than just a medical phenomenon, it’s a social injustice, because some people can’t afford to move out of polluted areas and into more expensive neighborhoods that have cleaner air.” “Yeah,” says Victor. “There was a study done in southern California where they looked at kids who live in communities with different levels of ozone pollution from traffic. Among kids who play a lot of sports, the ones living and going to school in places with more ozone were three times more likely to develop asthma than the ones in less polluted neighborhoods.” “Three times more?” said Jorge. “Man, it seems like it would be healthier to just not exercise if you live or go to school near a freeway. Who wants to develop asthma if you can avoid it?” “No way,” said Victor. “Air pollution is a problem, but exercise is a priority if you want to stay healthy.” With Mr. Seemy’s encouragement, Victor and Jorge found a press release about the study Victor remembered, from the California Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Resources Board and the University of Southern California. Here is an excerpt from the press release (http://www.arb.ca.gov/newsrel/nr013102.htm):
Previous evidence has shown that ozone, one of the most health-damaging air pollutants, can aggravate existing cases!of asthma.!The new ARB-USC study, however, points strongly to ozone as a cause in the development of asthma in young people!who did not previously have the disease. The study compared new asthma cases in 3,535 children who were followed over five years in 12 Southern California communities to determine the potential health damage caused by growing up in polluted air. Six of the communities had!higher!than average ozone concentrations while six had lower than average concentrations. Researchers further refined the study by looking at children who played up to three team sports. The study showed that!children!in the high ozone communities who played three or more sports developed asthma at a rate three times higher than!those!in the low ozone communities. Because participation in some sports can result in a child drawing up!to 17 times the!“normal” amount of air into the lungs, young athletes are more likely to develop asthma. Based on this excerpt from a press release, does this study make any recommendations about how much exercise children in polluted communities should get?
Who do you think is right, Jorge, who thinks children in polluted communities should exercise less to avoid developing asthma; or Victor, who thinks exercise is a health priority that outweighs the risk of developing asthma?
Unit 1.14
Asthma: More than a medical problem?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Asthma is only a problem for the public health industry. ! Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can. Pro
Con
Unit 1.14
Asthma: More than a medical problem? DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.14 Is asthma just a medical problem? Use the focus words from this week and from previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words intervention | phenomenon | priority | suspend | transmit!
! _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
!
Join the national conversation!
: S W ’S NE
Y A D O T
!
? T N E M N TERTAI
N E R O N MATIO
INFOR
Word Generation - Unit 1.15
Focus Words abandon | biased | contemporary | dramatic | exploit!
!
Weekly Passage What is the role of news media? Which stories should they cover? The news is reported every day by TV, radio, newspapers, and web sites. Some programs report on celebrity life, on everyday topics like shopping, or on strange events that do not affect many people. But is that news? Some people think the public is missing out on important information. They believe we should be hearing more about what is happening with the war in Iraq and government spending of our tax dollars. They don’t think the news should tell us about movie stars having babies and athletes getting arrested. Some people think that many contemporary news reports are biased. They say that today’s reporters often present only one of many views on complex issues such as immigration or the conflict in the Middle East. Even the words and pictures that reporters use to describe an event can
affect people’s feelings about it. Critics also say that today’s news is sensationalized or made more exciting than it really is. They think that stories are chosen for shock value and told in ways that appeal to people’s emotions and exploit their curiosity. These kinds of stories are designed to make people want to know more. Some news sources say that they are giving the public what it wants. They fear that people will not watch their programs or read their papers if the stories are not dramatic enough. Is America more interested in being entertained than in learning about what’s happening in the world? Or have the news media abandoned their job of informing people about events and issues that really matter?
Unit: 1.15
Today’s news: Information or entertainment
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!abandon: (verb) to give up
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: abandon (noun), abandon, abandoned, abandoning, abandonment
_________________________________________________________________________________
!
EXAMPLES OF USE: After reading three chapters of a book that didn’t catch my interest, I completely abandoned it.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Talk about a book you abandoned. Why did you abandon it?
_________________________________________________________________________________
!biased: (adjective) slanted; one sided
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: biases, unbiased, bias (noun),
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Ms. Jones does not like vanilla, she is biased in favor of chocolate.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: What type of biases do you have in your reading?
_________________________________________________________________________________
!contemporary : (adjective) modern; current
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: contemporize
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Contemporary culture requires everyone to be able to use technology.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Why do you think it is challenging for some adults to learn contemporary technology?
_________________________________________________________________________________
!dramatic : (adjective) exciting
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: drama, dramatize, dramaturgy
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Brianna was quite dramatic about the potential of passing all of her classes.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Describe a time when one of your friends was dramatic?
_________________________________________________________________________________
!exploit: (verb) to take advantage of
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: exploit (noun), exploits, exploited, exploiting, exploitation
________________________________________________________________________________
!! !
EXAMPLES OF USE: Terio (a youtube phenomenon) has been exploited by his parents, through hundreds
appearances, in order for them to make a profit.
__________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: How are celebrities exploited through the media?
_________________________________________________________________________________
! ! ! !
Unit 1.15
Today’s news: Information or entertainment? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK
Top 15 most-viewed stories from cnn.com on March 17, 2011. 1 Japanese settle in shelters, foreigners want out
Historically, a good journalist’s job has been to tell the truth. Journalists tell us when companies exploit their workers. They tell us when police officers are biased against minorities or teens or when they are heroes to a community. They cover stories that are dramatic but also important, like tsunamis, the war in Afghanistan, plane crashes and presidential elections. They help us know what our world is really like.
2 Japan struggles to cool reactors, spent fuel at damaged plant 3 Yale killing suspect admits murder, gets 44 years 4 U.S. hints at Libya airstrikes as Gadhafi pounds rebels 5 Estranged son of anti-gay Westboro pastor says father does ‘evil’
Some contemporary news outlets are abandoning these responsibilities. They focus on stories that are gossipy or fun. Most people, they say, would rather read about Charlie Sheen than health care reform. Is this true? In March of 2011, an earthquake struck Japan. It was followed by a devastating tsunami. The country’s nuclear plants began to melt down, releasing deadly radiation into the environment. Were Americans tuned in to the disaster? Options 1 and 2: Read each headline. Decide whether each article is “information,” “entertainment,” or “both.” Put an x in the appropriate box. Can the class agree on each article? What fraction of the most-viewed articles fall into each category?
Information Entertainment Both
6 Rob Pattinson and Kristen Stewart’s movie date (with fans) 7 Amid disaster, Japan’s societal mores remain strong 8 Sandra Bullock sends $1 million for Japan relief 9 Doctors feared mass suicide after deadly ‘sweat lodge,’ survivor says 10 The moments that make us fat 11 ‘Radiation has always been part of my story’ 12 Radiation: when to worry 13 LeAnn Rimes defends her slim figure 14 Congress wants to cut tsunami warning centers? Really? 15 Tiger Woods: being a single dad is ‘tough’
Discussion Question: What do the 15 most-viewed articles tell us about contemporary internet news viewers? Should we be embarrassed that while Japan was in crisis, Americans were reading about LeAnn Rimes’s weight loss? Or is it natural for people to want to abandon real-world concerns and read about something “light” once in a while? What do you think about stories number 3 and 9: are they important, or are they just dramatic tales that exploit people’s curiosity? Why do you think so many people were interested in story number 5, about the biased Westboro pastor who pickets American soldiers’ funerals? SERP 2014
| Word Generation
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Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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Unit 1.15
Today’s news: Information or entertainment? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY The students in Ms. Kahn’s class are talking about biased reporting in contemporary news media. Aliyah brings up an article by Michael Massing, a reporter who sees bias in the U.S. media’s stories about Mexico. “He says that U.S. reporters focus on violent Mexican drug gangs,” says Aliyah. “They ignore important stories about poverty and corruption. Instead, they exploit sad events like shootings and murders. They want to tell stories that are dramatic rather than stories that are important.” “Is Michael Massing right?” asks Ms. Kahn. “Does U.S. news coverage of Mexico focus on drugs and drug violence and abandon other topics? What kind of evidence could you find to help answer this question?” Some of Ms. Kahn’s students decided to monitor their city’s newspaper for a month. They wrote down the title of each article that related to Mexico. At the end of the month they studied their data.
Date
Drugs/ Violence?
Title of Article
How would you summarize the data the students collected?
___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ Does this table support Mr. Massing’s statement that news coverage focuses on drugs and drug violence in Mexico?
___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ SERP 2014
| Word Generation
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Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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16
Unit 1.15
Today’s news: ! Information or entertainment? DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Is the news just for information?! Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can. Pro
Con
Unit 1.15
Today’s news: ! Information or entertainment? DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.15 Is the news just for information? Use the focus words from this week and from previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words abandon | biased | contemporary | dramatic | exploit! !
________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
! : G N I K O M S N E ? TE E L B I S N O P S E R S I O H W
Join the national conversation!
Word Generation - Unit 1.16
Focus Words
accumulation | contradict | exhibit | inevitable | manipulate!
!
Weekly Passage The effects of cigarette smoking cause nearly one in five deaths in the U.S. each year. Smoking is linked with cancer, heart disease, and lung disease. It is now widely acknowledged to be addictive. Once people start, they have trouble stopping. You can sometimes find it easy to tell whether someone smokes or not. Smokers often exhibit symptoms such as coughing, low energy, respiratory difficulties, and poor circulation. These problems often build over time. Doctors believe it is inevitable that smoking will eventually lead to an accumulation of health concerns. So why do people smoke? Some say smoking keeps them calm. Others think it makes them look cool. Teen smoking rates are lower than they once were. Still, 23% of high school students and 8% of middle school students smoke. Many people think
tobacco companies should follow stricter guidelines about marketing to teens. Companies use appealing advertisements and other techniques to manipulate kids into buying cigarettes. For instance, one brand developed flavored cigarettes and promoted them with fun, tropical images. Another brand advertised with hip-hop themes. Critics argue that these actions contradict statements by tobacco companies that they are trying to prevent kids from smoking. These companies say they support laws that block kids’ access to cigarettes. Should companies be held responsible for attracting kids to cigarettes? Is it the job of parents, teachers, and lawmakers to prevent teen smoking? Or should kids be responsible for their own choices?
Unit: 1.16
Teen smoking: Who is responsible?
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!accumulation:
(noun) build-up
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: accumulations, accumulates, accumulating, accumulated, accumulate (verb)
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: The student portfolios have an accumulation of writing pieces from throughout the year.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN !!! AND TALK: If you do not clean your room often, clutter will quickly build up and take over. Rewrite
this sentence to include the word accumulation.
_________________________________________________________________________________
!contradict:
(verb) to argue against; to deny
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: contradicts, contradicting, contradicted, contradictions
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Your rude behavior contradicts the rules on the behavior chart.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Describe a time when your behavior contradicted class rules.
_________________________________________________________________________________
!exhibit :
(verb) to show; to display
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: exhibit (noun), exhibits, exhibiting, exhibited
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Students in our school earn rewards for exhibiting good behavior.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Use the word exhibit as either a noun or verb in a sentence.
_________________________________________________________________________________
!inevitable :
(adjective) expected; unavoidable
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: inevitably, inevitability
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: It is inevitable that hard work and good study habits will payoff.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Complete this sentence: It is inevitable that when it is hot outside…
_________________________________________________________________________________
!manipulate:
(verb) to influence; to persuade
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: manipulates, manipulated, manipulating, manipulation, manipulator
________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Kai tried to manipulate the students, by giving out candy to gain votes in the election.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Describe a commercial or advertisement that has manipulated you into purchasing a specific item.
_________________________________________________________________________________
! ! ! !
Unit 1.16
Teen Smoking: Who is Responsible? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK In 1998, the major tobacco companies agreed not to market cigarettes to people under the age of 18. However, a study on magazine advertising contradicts this agreement. The study says that, while tobacco companies stopped exhibiting ads in magazines that are strictly for kids, they placed more ads in adult magazines with many young readers, like Entertainment Weekly, Sports Illustrated, and People. The study claims that the accumulated effect of these new ads is that cigarette advertising reaches the same number of teens as before 1998. Have the tobacco companies manipulated the system? Do we need stricter rules? Or is it inevitable that teens will be exposed to cigarette ads? This graph shows the total amount spent by tobacco companies each year on advertising and promotions. Tobacco Company Advertising and Promotional Spending (in billions of U.S. Dollars) 15.39
16
11.45
12
8.41
14.38
12.7
13.36
12.84
2005
2006
9.82
86.68
4
0
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Option 1: What happened to tobacco companies’ advertising and promotional spending between 1998 and 2003? A) it increased by over 200%
B) it increased by 75%
C) it increased by over 100%
D) it increased by over 300%
Option 2: Each year, all states combined receive over $25 billion in settlement money from tobacco companies. Of this money, all states combined spend about $500 million each year on anti-smoking programs like television ads and programs to help smokers quit. (The rest goes to smoking-related health care costs.) In 2006, for every dollar states spent on anti-smoking programs, tobacco companies spent how many dollars advertising and promoting cigarettes? (Hint: use the graph; to solve quickly, use exponents!) Discussion Question: The study mentioned above found that ads for the three most popular cigarette brands among teens (Marlboro, Newport, and Camel) were seen by 80% of teens an average of 17 times. Advertisers consider this much accumulated exposure more than enough to “reach” a potential customer. Does this contradict the 1998 agreement? Or are the tobacco companies doing their part by pulling ads from billboards and kid-only magazines? The companies say they have a legal right to advertise to adults, and it is inevitable that kids will sometimes see these ads. However, some say the frequency with which popular teen brands are exhibited in magazines that many teens read suggests that tobacco companies are being manipulative and dishonest. What do you say? Are tobacco companies playing fair? SERP 2014
| Word Generation
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Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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21
Unit 1.16
Teen Smoking: Who is Responsible? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY
In 2012, the United States Surgeon General Regina Benjamin concluded that youth are more likely to start smoking if they see smoking in movies. This conclusion worries Ms. Kahn and Mr. Seemy because they know their students enjoy movies. Mr. Seemy says, “I know it’s inevitable that teens will see smoking, but maybe it’s just R-rated movies for adults that exhibit smoking.” “I’m afraid the data contradict your thinking,” responds Ms. Kahn. “The Centers for Disease Control has been accumulating statistics. It seems that movies that teens are allowed to see often have smoking.” Mr. Seemy sighs. “I hope our students are not manipulated by images of smoking in the movies.”
How would you summarize the data on the graph from the CDC?
___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________
Does this graph support Ms. Kahn’s statement that movies that teens are allowed to see show smoking?
___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ SERP 2014
| Word Generation
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Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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22
Unit 1.16!
Teen Smoking: Who is Responsible?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Teen smoking: are just teens responsible?!
!
Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can. Pro (Yes)
Con (No)
Unit 1.16
Teen Smoking: Who is Responsible? DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.16 Teen smoking: are just teens responsible? Use the focus words from this week and from previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words accumulation | contradict | exhibit | inevitable | manipulate!
!
_________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
Y R A T I L I M D L N O D E SHOU W O L L A E B S R E ? T S I E U S R U P M REC A C L O O H C S H G I H Join the national conversation!
Word Generation - Unit 1.17
Focus Words
accommodate | bulk | confine | route | unethical unethical! ! Weekly Passage The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have increased the need for new military recruits. But where can they be found? Lately, the Pentagon has been looking for new soldiers in public high schools. However, not all high schools are targeted equally. Military recruiters usually go to schools located in poor neighborhoods, where the bulk of the students come from low-income homes. Critics of this approach to military recruitment call it unethical. They say the military is exploiting poor communities when they confine their outreach programs to particular schools. Some call it “the new poverty draft.”
education. A new law called the Solomon Amendment requires high schools to provide the names of their students to military recruiters. If a school refuses to accommodate the government’s request, school funds may be withheld. Supporters of the approach believe it’s the most efficient way to build the armed forces. They say that students in certain schools are more likely to join the military, so targeting them directly makes sense.
During the Vietnam War, the military required all young men to sign up for military duty. Without a draft in place now, the military is recruiting kids who don’t have access to college or good jobs by promising them decent pay and a chance for higher
!
In many countries, everyone of a certain age is expected to serve in the military. What route do you think the U.S. military should take to build its forces?
Unit: 1.17
Should military recruiters be allowed on high school campuses?
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!accommodate:
(verb) to help; to adjust or go along with
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: accommodates, accommodating, accommodated, accommodation
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Principal Rivera will accommodate the students’ request for activities by starting a co-ed
!!basketball team.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: What might a hotel accommodate its guests with?
_________________________________________________________________________________
!bulk:
(noun) majority
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: bulky
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: The bulk of the lunch period is taken up by waiting in line for food.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: The majority of your work will be completed within your computer class. Re-write this
!!_________________________________________________________________________________
sentence to include the word bulk.
!confine:
(verb) to limit
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: confines (verb), confining, confined, confinement, confines (noun)
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: During the winter, we are confined to the cafeteria because the school yard gets icy.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Describe a time you were confined. How did it feel?
_________________________________________________________________________________
!route :
(noun) path; approach
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: routes, route (verb), reroute
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: My bus driver takes the longest route to school.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: What is the best route to get from your home to school? Be sure to use the word route
!r!_________________________________________________________________________________
oute in your answer.
!unethical:
(adjective) wrong; unfair
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: ethic, ethical, ethics, ethos
________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: It is unethical to steal from others.
_________________________________________________________________________________
!! ! !
TURN AND TALK: “Should military recruiters be allowed on high school campuses?” Is this ethical or
u_________________________________________________________________________________
nethical?
Unit 1.17
Should military recruiters be allowed on high school campuses? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK Federal rules say that public schools must accommodate military recruiters’ requests for information about students. Some say it is reasonable to allow recruiters to communicate with high school students about military careers. Others say this route to building the military is unethical, because it targets struggling students and students in economically depressed areas where jobs are hard to find. As a result, when America goes to war, these young people bear the burden. Should recruiters confine their efforts to older people with more life experience? Or is it fair to open our schools to the military, and offer students a choice? Parents can stop the release of information about their child. However, in most cases, when this choice is presented, the bulk of parents do not respond. Option 1: At Fairport High School, 80 parents out of a total of 1,500 gave permission for the school to release their child’s information to military recruiters. What percent of parents gave their permission? A) about 3% B) about 20 % C) about 8% D) about 5 % Option 2: Olympia High School has over 1,000 students. Fewer than 50 parents asked to withhold their child’s information from recruiters. If parents didn’t ask to withhold information, it was assumed that they consented, and the information was released. Based on this information, what percent of students had their information released?
Unit 1.17
Should military recruiters be allowed on high school campuses? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY The students in Ms. Kahn’s class are discussing military recruiters’ access to students. “There was a high school in New York state that got into a big legal fight because the school leaders didn’t accommodate military recruiters’ requests for information,” says Jamal. “This was at Fairport High School. They sent a form to parents that allowed them to give or deny permission to release their child’s information, just like at other schools. The usual thing happened: the bulk of parents didn’t respond one way or the other. But unlike other schools, Fairport did not release the information of students whose parents did not respond. Instead, Fairport confined the release of information to students whose parents had given explicit permission. School officials said it was unethical for them to release information without explicit parental approval. But military recruiters said the school was unfairly blocking an important route to new recruits.” “So the school wanted parents to have to opt in to share information,” said Haley, “but the recruiters wanted parents to have to opt out, right?” “Right,” said Jamal. “The question is, if people don’t respond, should we assume they’re refusing permission or that they’re giving permission?” “That distinction between opting in and opting out can be confusing,” says Ms. Kahn, “but it’s very important to understand the difference. When scientists are recruiting volunteers to participate in scientific experiments, they must have people opt in. That usually means they have to get them to sign a piece of paper saying YES they are willing to participate. A scientist cannot have someone participate without them saying yes. “Opting out is different,” continues Ms. Kahn. “With military recruiters, U.S. law says that families must opt out if they don’t want to share information with the military. That means schools are required to share student information with the military unless families sign a piece of paper saying NO.” Here are two examples of different things a business might put on an internet order form. Explain why one is an opt-in situation and the other is an opt-out situation.
1.
2. if you would like ☑toSelect receive news and
We have lots of ☑special offers for our
special offers from our company.
customers. Check here if you would rather not hear about them.
_______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
SERP 2014
| Word Generation
|
Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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28
Unit 1.17
Should military recruiters be allowed on high school campuses?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Should military recruiters be allowed on high school campuses?! Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can.
Pro (Yes)
Con (No)
Unit 1.17
Should military recruiters be allowed on high school campuses?! DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.17 Should the military recruiters be allowed on high school campuses? Use the focus words from this week and from previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words accommodate | bulk | confine | route | unethical! _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
Join the national conversation!
E B S G U R D D L U O SH ? D E Z I L A G E L
Word Generation - Unit 1.18
Focus Words decade | incompatible | temporarily | unify | violation!
!
Weekly Passage Buying and selling alcohol was prohibited in the U.S. from 1920-1933. Alcohol was sold illegally during those years. Violent crime increased as sellers fought with each other. Now, however, selling alcohol to adults is not a violation of the law, and selling alcohol is no longer a source of violent crime. Some people have proposed that drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, and heroin also be legalized. Advocates of drug legalization suggest that the world of drugs would be safer if the criminal element were removed from selling them. They also argue that if drugs were legal, police could focus on more serious crimes. Furthermore, they point out that the government’s limited resources could then be used for improving schools and providing better health care rather than funding more jails for drug dealers. In the decade from 1985-1995, more than 80 percent of the prison population
increase resulted from drug convictions. Most of those prisoners were minorities. African-American Congressman Charles Rangel feels strongly that illegal drugs should not be legalized. He says that legalizing dangerous drugs like cocaine and heroin would kill even more young black men. He is outraged that the U.S. government has not made the drug problem a higher priority. Rangel thinks everyone should work together to unify and strengthen efforts to fight drug abuse and related crime. He believes that legalizing drugs is incompatible with initiatives aimed at improving the lives of urban youth. Should we temporarily legalize drugs and see if crime levels go down? Or do you agree with Congressman Rangel that we cannot risk more young people becoming addicted to harmful substances?
Unit: 1.18
Should drugs be legalized?
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!decade: (noun) ten years
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: decades
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: School lunches have become healthier over the last decade.
___________________________________________________________________________
!
TURN AND TALK: Discuss something significant that happened during the decade you were born in.
___________________________________________________________________________
!incompatible: (adjective) in disagreement
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: compatible, incompatibility
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Because my computer is old, the new video game I bought is incompatible with my computer and won’t work.
___________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: The Mac and Smartboard do not work together without an adaptor. Rewrite the
sentence using the word incompatible.
___________________________________________________________________________
!!
!temporarily: (adverb) for a while; not permanently
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: temporary
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: The school yard is temporarily closed due to the snow.
___________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Where do you stand on the issue of temporarily legalizing drugs?
___________________________________________________________________________
!unify : (verb) to bring together
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: unifies, unifying, unified, unification
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Uniforms help to unify the school.
___________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: How do you think students can become unified in this school?
___________________________________________________________________________
!violation: (noun) broken rule; crime
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: violations, violate (verb), violate, inviolate, inviolable
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Selling drugs is a violation of the law and punishable by the government.
___________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Do you think selling drugs should continue to be a violation?
___________________________________________________________________________
!
Unit 1.18 - Should drugs be legalized? Problem of the Week In the decade between 1998 and 2007, the number of juveniles (children/minors under the age of 17) arrested for drug violations was around 200,000. Americans are unified in their desire to keep kids out of trouble but divided about the best way to do that. Should we fight harder to get rid of illegal drugs? Or should we legalize them, removing the criminal element? Is drug legalization compatible with a functioning society?!
U.S. Juveniles Arrested for Drug Violations 210,000 203,900
204,000 198,000
202,500
201,400
198,500
196,700 195,700
194,200 192,000
192,000
191,800 186,200
186,000 180,000
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
Option 1: In what year(s) did the number of arrests temporarily exceed 202,000? A) 2000, 2001, and 2003 B) 2000 and 2003 C) 2000 and 2001 D) 2000 Option 2: In 1995, 39.9% of drug arrests were for marijuana. By 2009, the percentage of arrests for marijuana had risen to 52.6% of total drug arrests. Six percent of all drug arrests were for marijuana trafficking and sale, and 45.6% of all drug arrests were for marijuana possession. Are law enforcement officials temporarily focusing their efforts on marijuana possession? Or is this a trend that will continue? If 45.6% of all drug arrests are for marijuana possession, how many of the juveniles arrested in 2007 would you expect to have been arrested on this charge? Math Discussion Question: In 1971, President Nixon declared drug abuse “public enemy number one.” In that year, 108,100 juveniles were arrested for drug violations. Decades later, almost twice that many juveniles are being arrested each year, and some are saying the war on drugs has been lost. What is our best strategy? Should we permit marijuana, and focus on policing more serious drugs? Without a unified approach nationwide, there could be problems. For example, California’s medical marijuana laws were incompatible with federal anti-drug laws. Medical marijuana stores were permitted by state law, but were still being raided by federal agents. If you were temporarily in charge of the nation’s drug policies, what strategy would you follow?
Unit 1.18
Should drugs be legalized? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY After a class discussion about drugs in Mr. Seemy’s class, Kyra and Victor look into the history of drinking laws and find out that decades ago, in the 1970s and 1980s, each state in the U.S. decided on its own drinking age. The drinking age was 18 in some states and 19, 20, or 21 in others. However, the Drinking Age Act of 1984 created a unified law for the whole country that raised the drinking age to 21. Kyra and Victor report that some scientists think that 18-, 19-, and 20-year-olds started to drink even more alcohol after this law was passed, a result that is incompatible with the law's goal. Perhaps these lawbreakers wanted to violate the rule because it seemed too strict to them, or because they found breaking the rule exciting.Victor wonders if laws against drugs might have the same effect: Would legalizing drugs make the number of users go down? Kyra thinks not. Mr. Seemy told Ms. Kahn about Kyra and Victor’s question about the unintended effect of rules. Mr. Seemy and Ms. Kahn decided to test the idea in the classroom by temporarily "legalizing" a behavior that is against the rules: For five weeks Mr. Seemy allowed cursing in the classroom and Ms. Kahn prohibited it. They kept track of how many incidents of cursing there were in each class over time. Number of “Cursing in Class” Incidents Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Mr. Seemy’s Class (cursing allowed)
56
2
5
5
5
Ms. Kahn’s Class (cursing prohibited)
8
11
10
9
11
Did Mr. Seemy’s and Ms. Kahn’s “experiment” show any differences between the two classes? Explain. ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ The data above is not enough to prove anything, but which of these claims do these data support more? How?
Claim 1: Prohibiting a behavior causes it to happen more.
Claim 2: Prohibiting a behavior causes it to happen less.
___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________
SERP 2014
| Word Generation
|
Series 1 - Part B
|
wordgeneration.org
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34
Unit 1.18
Should drugs be legalized?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Should drugs be legalized?! Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can. Pro (Yes)
Con (No)
Unit 1.18
Should drugs be legalized?! DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.18 Should drugs be legalized? Use the focus words from this week and from previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words decade | incompatible | temporarily | unify | violation! _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
: N O I T A Z I L I V I C L A ? B E S O L P G A L L O C R O S S E R G PRO Join the national conversation!
Word Generation - Unit 1.19
Focus Words collapse | conceive | incline | intrinsically | nonetheless! ! Weekly Passage Anthropologists and historians define a civilization as a complex society. Based on historical and archeological records, they define ancient societies such as the Sumerians, Egyptians, Greeks, and Mayans as civilizations. Anthropologists and historians tell us that these societies had cities with governments. These societies also conceived of important discoveries and inventions that have continued to be valuable to other societies over the years. Civilizations, however, rise and fall. There is debate about whether some civilizations are more advanced than others. Some think civilizations that hold the most power are intrinsically better. Others argue that when one civilization conquers another, as the Europeans conquered the Native Americans, it is not necessarily because they are more civilized. Some people suggest that more complex societies are inclined to have a
higher standard of living than simpler societies. Nonetheless, easier access to more goods and services does not always mean higher quality of life. In some ways, today’s communication and transportation technologies have helped to create one unified global civilization. Some people think this contemporary civilization is still progressing. Recent years have brought major technological advancements and spread democracy to different parts of the world. Others think our civilization is beginning to collapse. Problems such as terrorism and environmental destruction are growing. What will be the fate of our civilization? Is our collective future looking brighter or darker?
Unit: 1.19
Global civilization: Progress or collapse?
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
! collapse: (verb) to fall apart
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: collapse (noun), collapses, collapsing, collapsed
!__________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES !!meetings.
OF USE: Our student government began to collapse when the members began to miss
__________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Why do you think a civilization might collapse?
_________________________________________________________________________
!conceive: (verb) to develop; to think or believe
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: conceives, conceiving, conceived, conceivable, inconceivable
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES Some of the greatest technological advancements, such as the internet, were
!!conceived inOFtheUSE: last century.
___________________________________________________________________________
TURN TALK: The Sumerians thought of the first writing system. Rewrite this sentence to include
!!the wordANDconceive.
_____________________________________________________________________________
!incline : (verb) leaning toward (a belief)
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: incline (noun), inclines, inclining, inclined
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: The Pilgrims were inclined to settle near the rivers.
____________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Why do you think the Egyptians were so inclined to settle near a river?
____________________________________________________________________________
!intrinsically: (adverb) fundamentally; at the core
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: intrinsic
____________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Professional athletes are intrinsically programed to become the best athlete they can.
____________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Complete the sentence:Values that are intrinsic to me are…
____________________________________________________________________________
!nonetheless: (adverb) however; even so
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: N/A
___________________________________________________________________________
!! TURN TALK: LeBron James achieved stardom in Miami, however he chose to go home.
!!RewriteAND the sentence to include the word nonetheless.
___________________________________________________________________________
! EXAMPLES OF USE: The United States is one of the most powerful countries in the world;
nonetheless, we still have problems to solve.
___________________________________________________________________________
Unit 1.19
Global Civilization: Progress or collapse? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK People who are inclined to think positively about global trends often point to the example of life expectancy. As scientists learn more about the causes and cures for disease, they help people live longer and healthier lives. Once, people were considered intrinsically past their prime at 40 or 50. Today, medical advances have changed the way we conceive of old age. Many people are living active lives, far from physical collapse, well into their 80s and beyond. In today’s global civilization, people travel more and diseases can spread quickly. Nonetheless, information about how to fight diseases also travels quickly. People around the world are living longer all the time and life expectancies are on the rise. Average global life expectancy at birth in 1955 was 48 years. In 1995 it was 65 years. In 2025 it will reach 73.
1965 _____ 1975 _____ 2015 _____ Option 2: Plot the points of the data given above. What was the average increase per decade in life expectancy between 1955 and 1995? What was the average increase per decade in life expectancy between 1995 and 2025?
SERP 2014
80
Life Expectancy (years)
Option 1: Plot the points of the data given above, and connect the three points with a line to show change. (We’re assuming that life expectancy increased at a constant rate between 1955 and 1995, and between 1995 and 2025.) Using your graph, determine the approximate life expectancy in the following years:
60
40
20
0 1955
1965
| Word Generation
1975
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1985
Series 1 - Part B
1995
|
2005
2015
wordgeneration.org
2025
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39
Unit 1.19
Global civilization: Progress or Collapse? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY “Some people who are intrinsically optimistic think that people will continue to lead longer and better lives than the generations that came before them,” said Ms. Kahn. “Some people who are inclined to be pessimistic worry that longer lives and increased use of resources will strain the environment, leading to collapse.” “The job of scientists,” continued Ms. Kahn, “is to conceive of questions that can be studied objectively so people have good information. It is important not to let optimistic or pessimistic attitudes affect the way you study things in science. For example, you may be very enthusiastic about switching to renewable energy. But to study energy scientifically, you must remain open-minded, objective, and neutral nonetheless.” On the subject of renewable energy, which of the students below is thinking scientifically?
Do you really believe that people all over the world can cooperate enough to decide to stop burning fossil fuels?
Solar panels are quiet, clean, and efficient. I have a feeling people will start using them more soon.
I wonder which countries use fossil fuels the most and for what purpose? How are those countries different from countries that use renewable energy now?
Which student did you pick? Why?
__________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ Compare your choice with another student’s. Did you agree?
SERP 2014
| Word Generation
|
Series 1 - Part B
|
wordgeneration.org
|
40
Unit 1.19
Global Civilization: ! Progress or collapse?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Is global civilization progressing?! Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can. Pro (Yes)
Con (No)
Unit 1.19
Global Civilization: ! Progress or collapse? DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt:1.19 Is our civilization making progress, or is it about to collapse? Use the focus words from this week and from previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words collapse | conceive | incline | intrinsically | nonetheless! ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
Join the national conversation!
: S T U O P O R D L O O H C S ? E M HIGH A L B O T S ’ O H W Word Generation - Unit 1.20
Focus Words convince | enormous | integrity | persistent | reluctant! ! Weekly Passage High school dropout rates vary, depending on how they are calculated. The U.S. Department of Education estimates that one in ten high school students will not graduate. Other estimates are as high as 30%. But everyone agrees that the number of high school dropouts is too high. By all accounts, dropout rates for African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Americans are higher than those for Whites or Asians. Rates are also significantly higher in most urban districts – sometimes 80%. Some think dropping out is not such a big issue, but many believe it’s an enormous national problem that has persisted for many years. High school dropouts are more likely to be unemployed or incarcerated. When they do get jobs, dropouts typically have a lower income than graduates and are twice as likely to find themselves in poverty.
What should be done? Some people think that schools need to be made more relevant to students’ lives. Others believe that kids are not working hard enough and are giving up too easily. They think today’s teens lack integrity and would rather take the easy way out than put in an honest day’s work. Some dropouts say school is too boring. Others quit because they do not feel successful. They say the academics standards are too high for everyone to reach. Once students leave school, many are reluctant to return because they think it’s too late. Should schools do more to prevent dropouts? What might convince teens to stay in school?
!
Unit: 1.20
High school dropouts: Who’s to blame?
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!convince: (verb) to persuade
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: convinces, convincing, convinced, unconvinced
_________________________________________________________________________________
!!
EXAMPLES OF USE: Principal Perez decided to host a school dance for the seventh grade to promote better
a______________________________________________________________________________
ttendance and convince students to behave in school.
TURN AND TALK: How could teens be convinced to stay in school?
_________________________________________________________________________________
!enormous: (adjective) huge
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: N/A
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Trying to keep a school of 1700 students engaged and motivated to come to school is an
!!enormous undertaking.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Why are teen dropout rates an enormous problem?
_________________________________________________________________________________
!integrity: (noun) honesty; honor
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: N/A
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Sheila showed great integrity when she returned the cell phone she found in the cafeteria.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Discuss a time when you showed integrity at school.
_________________________________________________________________________________
!persistent: (adjective) continual; relentless
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: persist, persistence
_________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Although the book was long, Kianni was persistent and finished it.
_____________________________________________________________________________
TURN TALK: Even though Mark felt unsuccessful and thought of dropping out, he was relentless and
!!stayed inAND school. Rewrite this sentence to include the word persistent.
_________________________________________________________________________________
!reluctant: (adjective) unwilling
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: reluctance,
________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Aspen was a reluctant reader until finding an author he loved.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Why might teens be reluctant to return to school after dropping out?
_________________________________________________________________________________
! ! !
Unit 1.20
High school dropouts: Who’s to blame? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK Although many people consider the national dropout rate an enormous problem, it can be difficult to get the facts. In some states, there have been persistent problems getting schools to accurately report how many students drop out. High dropout rates look bad, and when lots of students are dropping out, some schools are reluctant to tell the truth. If some school officials lack the integrity to be honest, how can we convince them to report the facts? Option 1: In a school district in Texas, about 13,500 students are enrolled in eighth grade each year. But only 8,000 students graduate from high school each year. Based on these numbers, about what percentage of the district’s eighth graders do not complete high school there? A) about 20% B) about 35% C) about 41% D) about 57% Option 2: As mentioned in Option 1 above, about 13,500 students are enrolled in eighth grade in a Texas school district. But only 8,000 students graduate from high school in that district. The school district claims that the official dropout rate is about 10%. Figure out how the district determines this percentage. Then explain how it differs from the way Option 1 is calculated.
Discussion Question: The persistent dropout problem has enormous consequences for America’s youth. Students who drop out face low wages and limited opportunities. To solve the dropout problem, we need to have the facts. Most school officials act with honesty and integrity when reporting their dropout rates, but some do not. How would you convince reluctant officials to be honest about how many students are dropping out?
Unit 1.20
High school dropouts: Who’s to blame? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY Teachers Mr. Seemy and Ms. Kahn are worried about the high dropout rate at the nearby high school. They know that when students drop out, they take an enormous risk with their futures. These two teachers have a lot of integrity and want to know what they could do that might help convince reluctant students to stay in school. They find data about this persistent problem in a report called The Silent Epidemic: Perspectives of High School Dropouts. It was released by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in 2006. In this report, researchers John M. Bridgeland, John J. Dilulio, Jr., and Karen Burke Morison asked dropouts directly what they believe would improve students’ chances of staying in school. Here is how the students who have dropped out responded.
What Dropouts Believe Would Improve Students’ Chances Percentage of students who believe each item would improve students’ chances of staying in school Opportunities for real-world learning (internships, service learning, etc,) to make classroom more relevant
81%
Better teachers who keep classes interesting
81%
Smaller classes with more individual instruction
75%
Better communication between parents & school, get parents more involved
71%
Parents make sure their kids go to school every day
71%
Increase supervision at school: ensure students attend classes
0%
70% 10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90% 100%
Imagine Mr. Seemy and Ms. Kahn asked you to think of one specific recommendation for them that you think would help with the problem. What would you suggest? Remember, base your recommendation on this data or on other real information.
___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________
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Unit 1.20!
High school dropouts: ! Who’s to blame?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Teenagers are to blame for the enormous high school dropout rate.!
!
Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can. Pro (Agree)
Con (Disagree)
Unit 1.20!
High school dropouts: ! Who’s to blame? DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.20 What should be done to prevent teens from dropping out of school? Use the focus words from this week and previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples.
Focus Words convince | enormous | integrity | persistent | reluctant! ______________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
!
Join the national conversation!
L L A S E I L I M A F ’ S ? M N I O T I C T I A V S D N L E U P O M H S CO E M A S E H T E RECEIV Word Generation - Unit 1.21
Focus Words financial | compensation | fund | sum | recover ! Weekly Passage Ron Malin’s father and Serena Johnson’s father were each killed on the same day, 9/11/2001. Ron’s father died when terrorists flew an airplane into the building where he was working. Serena’s father was killed in front of his house in a drive-by shooting. To help Ron’s family recover, the government compensated them with three million dollars. Serena’s family got financial compensation, too. However, theirs was only three thousand dollars. Some people say that if families experience equivalent tragedies, it is not fair to compensate them differently. They say that every victim’s family should receive the same amount. Many religions also support this view. These religions regard all human lives as equally valuable. Crime victims’ families receive money from the government to pay for certain expenses caused by the crime. However, the government created a special fund to give
larger sums to families of 9/11 victims. Many people say 9/11 victims deserve special treatment because they died during an attack on our country. Some say families of 9/11 victims received high payments because many were wealthy. Others voice yet another concern. They say that government officials were worried that these families would sue the airlines. People who win lawsuits can receive enormous sums, many times the amount that Ron’s family received. With thousands of victims, the airlines could have gone bankrupt. The insurance companies who pay damages if airlines are successfully sued could have gone bankrupt too. Although money can never bring back someone who has died, it can help a family recover from a tragedy. What do you think? Should victims’ families all receive the same compensation?
Unit: 1.21
Should victims’ families all receive the same compensation?
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!financial: (adjective) having to do with money
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: financially, finance (verb)
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: The loss of a family member can cause financial problems if that person was
!!assisting in paying bills.
___________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: What other factors can lead a family to struggle financially?
!__________________________________________________________________________
_ !compensation: (noun) something given as payment, or to make up for a loss, injury or death
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: compensate, compensatory
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES !!loved one.
OF USE: Crime victim’s families receive some financial compensation for the loss of a
___________________________________________________________________________
TURN TALK: Do you agree with giving all victims’ families financial compensation?
!!Why orAND why not?
___________________________________________________________________________
!fund: (noun) a supply of money for a specific purpose
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: funds, fund (verb), funds (verb), funded, funding, refund, defund
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: A fund was set up for all 9/11 victims and their families.
___________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: What is an issue or cause you believe deserves funding? Why?
___________________________________________________________________________
!sum: (noun) amount
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: sums, sum (verb)
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Not all victims’ families receive the same sum of money.
___________________________________________________________________________
!!
TURN AND TALK: Do you believe that all victims’ families should receive the same sum? Why or why
not?
___________________________________________________________________________
!recover: (noun) to regain strength, or to get back something that was lost
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: recovers, recovered, recovering, recovery, recoverable
___________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES USE: Most families use the money they receive to recover from their tragedies
!!financially orOFemotionally.
___________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: What could the families do with the money to help them recover from their loss?
___________________________________________________________________________
! !
Unit 1.21
Should victims’ families all receive the same compensation? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK Each state has a crime victim compensation program. These programs oversee funds to help crime victims recover crime-related financial losses. Each state has its own rules. For example, Michigan’s crime victim compensation program will pay for funeral expenses, medical bills, and lost wages. However, the maximum award is $15,000. The average sum awarded is $3,841. Option 1: The federal government set up a special victim compensation fund for victims of September 11. This fund awarded an average of $1.8 million to each victim. In the state of Michigan, the maximum award a crime victim can receive is $15,000. How many $15,000 awards would it take to total $1.8 million? A) 12 B) 120 C) 130 D) 1,300 Option 2: The average sum awarded by the federal September 11 victim compensation fund was $1.8 million. The highest sum awarded was $7.9 million. In 2008, the median household income for the U.S. was $52,029. If $50,000 can support an average household for a year, how many years of support does $1.8 million represent? How many years of support does $7.9 million represent? (Hint: to solve quickly, use exponents!)
Discussion Question: Victim compensation programs help victims recover after a tragedy. The funds awarded cover costs like medical bills for wounded people, funeral expenses for murder victims, and lost wages. When lost wages are considered, people who have earned more money receive more financial help than people who have earned less. Is this fair? Or should we develop a different system that awards an equal sum to each victim?
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Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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Unit 1.21
Should victims’ families all receive the same compensation? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY Ms. Kahn’s class is having a lively debate about the compensation fund for the families of victims after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Ms. Kahn explains that government compensation is meant to replace victims’ income and help families recover financially. “In a system like that,” says Ms. Kahn, “not everyone gets the same compensation. Part of the goal is to replace the future income of the person who was killed or disabled. Therefore, the families of lower earners get smaller sums than the families of higher earners.” “That’s not fair,” says Alyssa. “Rich people and poor people are worth the same.” Many of her classmates agree, but Daylen says, “It’s not about what people are worth as human beings, it’s just about replacing the future income that families have lost. And that lost income isn’t necessarily equal.” “Why should people get compensated based on the earnings of lost family members?” replies Alyssa. “Well,” says Daylen, “why should people pay income tax based on their earnings? If it’s unfair for poor people to get less money from a victim’s compensation fund, is it also unfair for rich people to pay more in taxes?”
TURN AND TALK: Explain why you think Daylen’s question is or is not logically connected to Alicia’s position.
________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________
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Series 1 - Part B
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Unit 1.21!
Should victims’ families all receive the same compensation?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... !
Should victims’ families all receive the same compensation?!
!
Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can.
Pro (Yes)
Con (No)
Unit 1.21
Should victims’ families all receive the same compensation?! DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.21 Should victims’ families all receive the same compensation? Use the focus words from this week and previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words financial | compensation | fund | sum | recover ! ________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
! D E E N E W O D : Y C A V I R A P T D U N O A B S A C G I T N I I L H O T P Y R E V E ? E W T O A N D I K D N TO A C L A I T N E T PO Word Generation - Unit 1.22 Join the national conversation!
Focus Words candidate | campaign | ethics | issue | display ! Weekly Passage Sam Ellis was a strong supporter of one candidate for President. He agreed with all of her positions. He planned to vote for her in the election. Then, one morning, Sam read in the newspaper that his candidate had once been caught with marijuana. This had happened back when the candidate was in high school, over 25 years earlier. Sam was disappointed. He wondered if she still deserved his vote. During campaigns, we learn a lot about political candidates. Some have abused alcohol or drugs. Some have cheated on their spouses or stolen money. Do we have a right to know personal details about political candidates? Some people say yes. They point out that a candidate is asking for the public’s trust. They ask how we, the public, can understand a candidate's ethics and values if we don't know about his or her personal life. Others think that if we exclude everyone who ever made a mistake, we
might leave out people who would make good leaders. Some people think we should focus on how candidates will handle crucial issues like terrorism, pollution, and global warming, not how they handle their marriage or their private mistakes. Should some parts of a candidate’s personal life be off-limits? Imagine this: one of your friends posted a photograph of you being a clown and doing something very embarrassing at a party (use your imagination). If one day you decided to run for public office, you could be sure that this photo would be displayed in newspapers, on television, and all over the internet. One funny moment from years earlier would follow you into your future. Would you then feel like your privacy had been invaded? Or would you say that the public has the right to know about your teenage behavior?
!
Unit: 1.22!
Politics and privacy: Do we need to know everything about a potential candidate?
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!candidate:
(noun) a person running for office!
FORMS: candidates, candidacy, candid! _________________________________________________________________________________! EXAMPLES OF USE: Elijah was the most popular candidate for student body president. ! _________________________________________________________________________________! TURN AND TALK: What are the attributes of a good candidate for student body president?! _________________________________________________________________________________!
!campaign:
(noun) a political contest!
FORMS: campaigns, campaign (verb), campaigner! _________________________________________________________________________________! EXAMPLES OF USE: The student government candidates will campaign for two weeks before the election. ! _________________________________________________________________________________! TURN AND TALK: If you were running for student government, how would you campaign? ! _________________________________________________________________________________!
!ethics :
(noun) beliefs about what is morally right !
FORMS: ethic, ethical, unethical, ethicist! _________________________________________________________________________________! EXAMPLES OF USE: A candidate’s ethical views are important to voters. ! _________________________________________________________________________________! TURN AND TALK: Sam decided to give free gum to anyone who voted for him. Is this ethical?! _________________________________________________________________________________!
!issue :
(noun) a matter of public concern!
FORMS: issues, issue (verb), issuer, issueless! _________________________________________________________________________________! EXAMPLES OF USE: Jules ran on the issue of having better school lunches.! _________________________________________________________________________________!
!!
TURN AND TALK: Discuss the relationship between issues and ethics. Use this sentence: ! Issues and ethics are related because…! _________________________________________________________________________________!
!display:
(verb) to show!
FORMS: display (noun), displays, displayed, displaying! ________________________________________________________________________________! EXAMPLES OF USE: The candidates’ views on school lunches were displayed during their speeches.! _________________________________________________________________________________! TURN AND TALK: What are two other ways candidates can display their views?! _________________________________________________________________________________!
!
Unit 1.22
Politics and Privacy: Do we need to know everything about a potential candidate? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK In 2008, New York Governor David Paterson called a press conference to admit to an ethical mistake.Years earlier, he confessed, he had several affairs while he was married to his wife. Some people applauded his honesty. Others wondered why he chose to put his mistakes on display. When it comes to politicians and political candidates, which issues should be private, and which should be public? In March and April 2008, New Yorkers were asked the following question: Do you think the press should report if a married politician has an affair? !
33% said: Yes, always.
!
15% said: Only if the politician ran a campaign based on family values.
!
34% said: Only if the politician used public money to pay for the affair.
Option 1: How many New Yorkers think that the press should always report if a married politician has an affair? A) about one in two B) about one in three C) about one in four D) about one in five
Option 2: In the same poll mentioned above, 40% of respondents said that the press should report illegal drug use by a politician under any circumstances, even if the drug use occurred when the person was much younger. Based on this information, are Americans more tolerant of politicians who use drugs, or of politicians having extramarital affairs?
Discussion Question: Which of the views above do you find most convincing? When someone decides to become a candidate for political office, are they deciding to put their marriage or relationship on display? Or should infidelity only become an issue if it involves some other ethical breach directly related to the candidate’s public role, like stealing money or running a hypocritical campaign?
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Series 1 - Part B
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Unit 1.22
Politics and Privacy: Do we need to know everything about a potential candidate? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY Mr. Seemy has been discussing an upcoming election with his students. He is still undecided about which candidate he will support even though the campaign is nearing its end. He is unhappy about some ugly comments one of the candidates wrote on a social media site. Even though the comments were made ten years ago, the candidate’s opponent is displaying the information and is claiming that it is an important issue for voters. Mr. Seemy doesn’t like the comments, but he also questions whether it’s ethical to dig through a candidate’s old posts. He wonders what his students think on the issue, so he creates this survey. Take the survey yourself, and then compare your responses with those of your classmates and discuss the differences in your answers.
Ethics Survey On a scale from 1 to 5 (1 = totally unethical and 5 = highly ethical), please evaluate the following behaviors: A Facebook user lying about his or her age. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 Reading a text message on your friend’s phone without his or her permission. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 Finding a $20 bill on the hallway floor and keeping it. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 Posting that a restaurant has bad food. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 Sharing a photo of someone without their permission. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 Not challenging a rumor even though you know it’s untrue. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 Searching through old posts on social media to see if you can find something embarrassing about a political candidate. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 Think of two more and ask a classmate to evaluate: __________________________________________________________________ 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 __________________________________________________________________ 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5
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Series 1 - Part B
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Unit 1.22
Politics and Privacy: Do we need to know everything about a potential candidate? DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate….. Politics and privacy: do we need to know everything about a potential candidate?! Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can. Pro
Con
Unit 1.22
Politics and Privacy: Do we need to know everything about a potential candidate? DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.22 Politics and Privacy: ! Do we need to know everything about a potential candidate? Use the focus words from this week and previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples.. Focus Words candidate | campaign | ethics | issue | display ! ________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
: S E N O H P L L E C & S O T O H P ! T R I C O I N L U F EXP T N E C ? INNO R O I V A H E B L A ILLEG Word Generation - Unit 1.23
Join the national conversation!
Focus Words accountable | disseminate | constant | appropriate | legal
!
Weekly Passage Jessica Logan made a mistake. She sent her boyfriend a nude photo of herself using her cell phone. Without her consent, her boyfriend sent the message to other students in their school. These other students began calling Jessica terrible names. They harassed her day after day. The humiliation was constant. Jessica became depressed and began to skip school. Jessica’s mother begged the school to take action. The school agreed to speak to one of the students, ask her to delete the photo, and tell her not to speak to Jessica again. Incidents like this can be very hurtful to students. They can make it it hard for them to concentrate on school work, and can sometimes even lead students to harm themselves. Sending sexually explicit pictures using cell phones is sometimes called “sexting.” A survey last year showed that almost half the teens in the US had sent or received this kind of inappropriate picture.
Sexting can have legal consequences. Depending on a student’s age, the senders and receivers can both be charged with disseminating pornography. Recently, two teens on Cape Cod in Massachusetts were charged for disseminating a photo showing a semi-nude female schoolmate. Their parents think these charges are extreme. They worry that what began as a teenage mistake will end up as a criminal charge on their sons’ permanent records. Who is responsible for addressing sexting? Should the school have been tougher with the students who were harassing Jessica? Should the parents of these students be held accountable? Should the students involved be charged as criminals, or do you think that their acts should be regarded as teenage mistakes?
Unit: 1.23
Explicit Photos & Cell Phones: Innocent Fun Or Illegal Behavior? FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!accountable: (adjective) responsible for; obliged to explain (or account for) one’s actions
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: account (verb), unaccountable, accountant, accountability
____________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Students are held accountable for following the school rules by the principal.
____________________________________________________________________________________
!!
TURN AND TALK: What consequences do you think are most effective in holding students
accountable?
____________________________________________________________________________________
!appropriate: (adjective) suitable or fitting
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: appropriately, appropriate (verb), inappropriate
____________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Students will gain prizes for appropriate conduct such as raising one’s hand and listening to
!o!thers.
____________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: What can you do in the schoolyard that is not appropriate in the classroom?
____________________________________________________________________________________
!constant: (adjective) not changing; continuing without a letup
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: constantly
____________________________________________________________________________________
!!
EXAMPLES OF USE: There will be constant reinforcement of the rules by the teachers during the assembly to
ensure good behavior.
____________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: How does your school provide constant reminders of the rules?
____________________________________________________________________________________
!disseminate: (verb) to scatter, to spread, or to broadcast
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: release (noun), releases, releasing, released
____________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES !s!!chool.
OF USE: The staff will disseminate copies of the code of conduct to all students on the first day of
____________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Rewrite the following sentence to include the word disseminate: Jose and Millie will be
!!broadcasting the class rules during morning announcements.
!___________________________________________________________________________________
!
legal: (verb) having to do with the law
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: legally, legality, legalism, illegal, legalize
____________________________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: Serious violations of the rules will lead to legal action.
____________________________________________________________________________________
TURN AND TALK: Are legal consequences the best way to deal with cyber-bullying? Why or why
not?
____________________________________________________________________________________
! !
Unit 1.23
Explicit Photos & Cell Phones: Innocent fun or illegal behavior? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK According to a recent poll, three in 10 young people have been involved in some type of sexting that involves photos of them being nude or partially nude. In several high-profile cases around the country, prosecutors have acted to hold students legally accountable for forwarding inappropriate photos. A 14-year-old in Washington suffered constant harassment when her explicit photo went viral. She had sent the photo to her boyfriend, and when they broke up, he sent it to one female friend. This friend forwarded it to her entire contacts list, along with a message calling the student in the picture a terrible name. After police got involved, three students were charged with disseminating child pornography. Option 1: Fourteen percent of male students and 9% of female students report having seen a sext that has been passed around. Which of the following is true? A) about one in 10 students has seen a sext that has been passed around B) about one in five students has seen a sext that has been passed around C) about one in 20 students has seen a sext that has been passed around D) about one in 25 students has seen a sext that has been passed around
Option 2: Twenty percent of young people say that a friend has forwarded a text or e-mail without permission. In one case, a student named Trevor made a mistake, and sent an inappropriate photo to his girlfriend, Lea, at noon. By 1 p.m. she had shared it with two friends (two more people, for a total of three). By 2 p.m. each of those friends had shared it with two other friends (four more people, for a total of seven). If things continue at this rate, how long before their entire class of 100 students has seen the picture? (Hint: try making a table!)
Discussion Question: Many students have constant access to cell phones and the internet, and some inappropriate use is inevitable. But when a photo is disseminated that ruins a student’s life, what is the appropriate response? In the case of the 14-year-old in Washington, prosecutors decided that three students were most responsible for spreading the picture, and held them legally accountable. But when hundreds of students have seen a photo, and many of those have forwarded it, is it fair to single out only a few? Some parents complained that the original sender should be held accountable, because she sent the photo to her boyfriend in the first place. What do you think?
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Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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Unit 1.23
Photos & Cell phones: Innocent fun or illegal behavior? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY Ms. Kahn has been noticing lots of news stories about “sexting.” Some stories say that parents aren’t holding their children accountable for actions that are inappropriate for their age. Some talk about legal consequences. In all of the stories, one fact is a constant: 20% of teens are sexting. “Says who?” Ms. Kahn thinks. “This statistic is widely disseminated. But where did it come from?” Ms. Kahn does some research and discovers that the “20% of teens” statistic is based on a single study. And worse yet, other researchers have been saying that the study was wrong. Ms. Kahn decides to find out for herself if her own students are sexting. She knows that this is a sensitive topic, so she has to think carefully about the most appropriate way to collect the data. She has to consider that her students might not answer truthfully if they feel they will be identified. Ms. Kahn is having trouble thinking of how to collect the data in a convenient way that is also accurate and anonymous.
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Series 1 - Part B
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Unit 1.23
Explicit Photos & Cell Phones: ! Innocent fun or illegal behavior?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Should “sexting” have legal consequences?!
!
Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can.
Pro
Con
Unit 1.23
Explicit Photos & Cell Phones: ! Innocent fun or illegal behavior? DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.23 Should “sexting” have legal consequences? Use the focus words from this week and previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words accountable | disseminate | constant | appropriate | legal
!
________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________
!
! : E C N E L O I V G N ? E DATI L B I S N O P S E R S I O WH
Join the national conversation!
Word Generation - Unit 1.24
Focus Words assault | abuse | trigger | distort | physical Weekly Passage
In the hallway of Stevens High School, Franny and Jada, two seventh-grade girls, are leaning against their lockers reading a magazine. They read a horrible story about their favorite popsinging couple: Shelley and James. Jada reads aloud: “James became angry at Shelley. He hit her in the face, then punched and bit her repeatedly, threatened to kill her, and even choked her, over the course of 20 minutes.” At first, neither girl can believe that James, the beloved star, physically assaulted Shelley. “Maybe Shelley is lying,” Jada says. “Maybe Shelley wasn’t hurt that badly. Or maybe she did something that triggered the assault.” But when they see the photo of Shelley’s bruised, bloody face, they changed their minds. According to the Family Violence Prevention Fund, dating violence is a serious problem. One in three teenage girls is physically, emotionally, or verbally abused by a dating partner. Franny and Jada read on. The article says that when James was young, he saw his father beat his mother. His attitude toward women and violence
!
may have become distorted by these experiences. But is this a good explanation? Does it excuse his behavior? Finally, the article says that Shelley eventually forgave James and dropped the charges. Franny and Jada are outraged. “Even if Shelley drops the charges, the police should make James pay,” says Franny. “He broke the law!” Franny’s and Jada’s friend, Kim, overhears their conversation. “No one really knows what went on between Shelley and James,” she says. “If Shelley wants him back, that’s her business.” What do you think? Should Shelley press charges, or is it her right to decide that James should be forgiven? Is dating violence a private matter, or a public one? How should we handle dating violence?
Unit: 1.24
Dating Violence: Who is responsible?
FOCUS WORDS OF THE WEEK
!abuse:
(verb) to inflict harm
F_________________________________________________________________________________
ORMS/RELATED WORDS: abuse (noun.), abuses, abused, abusing
EXAMPLES OF USE: Both boys and girls can be abused or abusers in relationships.
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TURN AND TALK: Discuss other types of abuse of which you might be aware.
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!assault:
(verb) to attack suddenly
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: assault (noun.), assaults, assaulted, assaulting
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EXAMPLES OF USE: Any student who is a victim of assault should report it immediately.
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TURN AND TALK: Make a list of people to whom you can turn to report an assault and receive
!!a!ssistance.
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!distort: (verb) to misrepresent or give false meaning to
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: distorts, distorted, distorting
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!!
EXAMPLES OF USE: Sometimes victims of assault distort the facts, because they do not want their partner to
g_________________________________________________________________________________
et in trouble.
TURN AND TALK: Have you ever had your message distorted? Explain how this happened to your classmate.
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!physical:
(adjective) of the body
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: physically
_______________ __________________________________________________________________
EXAMPLES OF USE: It is important to maintain physical health by exercising and eating right.
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TURN AND TALK: Tell your partner about the things you do each day to remain physically healthy.
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!trigger:
(verb) to make something happen
FORMS/RELATED WORDS: trigger (noun), triggers, triggered, triggering
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EXAMPLES OF USE: Hurtful words and actions can trigger physical violence.
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!! ! ! !
TURN AND TALK: What is something that triggers strong emotions or memories for you? Explain it to your
partner.
______ ___________________________________________________________________________
Unit 1.24
Dating Violence: Who is responsible? PROBLEM OF THE WEEK Many dating violence victims have distorted ideas about relationships. They may think that jealous behavior and even physical assault are ways of showing love. They may blame themselves for triggering verbal or physical abuse.Violence prevention programs urge teens to recognize that mean and controlling behavior has no place in a healthy relationship and can lead to more serious abuse. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provide the following dating violence statistics. ! !
Each year, 1 in 4 adolescents is verbally, physically, emotionally, or sexually abused by a dating partner One in ten students report being physically hurt by a girlfriend or boyfriend in the past year
Option 1: What percent of students was physically hurt by a girlfriend or boyfriend in the past year? A) 10% B) 15% C) 20% D) 25%
Option 2: One in four adolescents is abused or assaulted by a dating partner. In a group of 5 students, if each one has a one-in-four chance of being a victim, what is the likelihood that there are NO victims?
Discussion Question: According to the CDC, 72% of 8th and 9th graders date. In your opinion, do students understand healthy relationships or do they have distorted ideas about how dating partners should act? Do students know which behaviors constitute abuse? Which do you think is a more common problem: physical assault or emotional abuse? If a girlfriend or boyfriend does something that triggers a violent response in their dating partner, who is responsible for the violence?
SERP 2014
| Word Generation
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Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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Unit 1.24
Dating violence: Who is responsible? THINKING SCIENTIFICALLY Mr. Seemy’s class is discussing dating violence. He mentions that some researchers think this kind of abuse stems from distorted ideas about gender. “Some young men believe that ‘being a man’ means solving arguments with physical force. Perhaps these men don't know how to solve their problems with words, and then a disagreement can trigger an assault.” “I think that male teenagers aren’t like that,” said Pedro, “even if they become more like that as they grow older. And I have an idea of how I might collect some data!” Here is Pedro’s plan for his exploration:
1. How might Pedro use the Venn Diagram as part of his investigation? 2. If Pedro asked you for advice to make his investigation more scientific, what would you tell him?
SERP 2014
| Word Generation
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Series 1 - Part B
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wordgeneration.org
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Unit 1.24
Dating Violence: ! Who is responsible?! DEBATING THE ISSUE
Debate, Moderate, Evaluate..... Are legal consequences the best way to prevent dating violence?! Write down pro and con arguments based on the article, the WG math lesson, the WG science lesson, as well as ideas that you generate yourself. Use as many focus words as you can. Pro
Con
Unit 1.24
Dating Violence: ! Who is responsible? DEBATING THE ISSUE Word Generation Debate Organizer Who’s who? Pro ______________________
Con ________________________
Moderator ____________________
Evaluator __________________
Moderator Sentence Stems: What I heard you say is… I believe you said … Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard you say… Based on what I heard, I think that you really believe… Do you agree with your opponent’s argument that… Can you provide some evidence to back that up?
Evaluator Tally Sheet (Tally how many focus words each debater and the moderator uses during the debate.) Focus Words
Previous Weeks Words:
Pro
Con
Moderator
Writing Prompt: 1.24 Dating Violence: Are legal consequences the best way to prevent dating violence? Use the focus words from this week and previous weeks. Support your position with clear reasons and specific examples. Focus Words assault | abuse | trigger | distort | physical
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