We Are The World - No Turning Back | Stage 5 | English

Summary Duration

This unit builds on from the "Who Am I" Year 7 unit and the "My Island Home" Year 8 unit, with students now moving beyond our own boundaries to look at our place in the world. In this unit, students explore an issue of global concern and for my class that is the issue of refugees and asylum seekers. As part of their work they will work with students from the new arrivals class – interviewing them to learn about their experiences and build relationships. They will build their understanding of that issue through studying a variety of texts, particularly the documentary “Go Back To Where You Came From” and the website “The Long Journey”. Students will learn about the medium of documentary, extend their essay writing skills and analyse websites. The students will finish the unit by working on a PBL style project where they develop a text to build empathy and understanding for local refugees.

10 weeks

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Outcomes Key concepts and Skills Syllabus Requirements

English K-10

› EN5-1A responds to and composes increasingly sophisticated and sustained texts for understanding, interpretation, critical analysis, imaginative expression and pleasure

› EN5-2A effectively uses and critically assesses a wide range of processes, skills, strategies and knowledge for responding to and composing a wide range of texts in different media and technologies

› EN5-3B selects and uses language forms, features and structures of texts appropriate to a range of purposes, audiences and contexts, describing and explaining their effects on meaning

› EN5-5C thinks imaginatively, creatively, interpretively and critically about information and increasingly complex ideas and arguments to respond to and compose texts in a range of contexts

› EN5-7D understands and evaluates the diverse ways texts can represent personal and public worlds

› EN5-8D questions, challenges and evaluates cultural assumptions in texts and their effects on meaning

Concepts:

Empathy

Activism

Skills:

WHY paragraphs – The language of argument, cohesion, transition words

Essay writing – the language of argument, vocabulary, transition words, cohesion

Visual literacy: documentary, websites, picture books – elements, techniques, metalanguage

General Capabilities:

Intercultural Understanding

Ethical Understanding

Creative and Critical Thinking

Literacy

Text Requirements:

Picture Books

Non Fiction

Film - documentaries

Visual Texts

Media, multimedia and digital texts

Texts that explore cultural and social perspectives

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SYLLABUS OUTCOMESStage 5 - Outcome 1

Students:

Engage personally with texts

appreciate, explain and respond to the aesthetic qualities and the power of language in an increasingly sophisticated range of texts

Develop and apply contextual knowledge

analyse and explain the ways language forms and features, ideas, perspectives and originality are used to shape meaning

analyse ideas, information, perspectives, contexts and ideologies and the ways they are presented in increasingly demanding, sustained imaginative, informative and persuasive texts

Understand and apply knowledge of language forms and features

identify how vocabulary choices contribute to specificity, abstraction and stylistic effectiveness (ACELA1561)

analyse and explain the use of symbols, icons and myth in still and moving images and how these augment meaning (ACELA1560)

Respond to and compose texts

explore and explain the combinations of language and visual choices that

TEACHING SEQUENCEThe Hook:

Show the Hook video.

Students to write down their initial reactions to the video, the words used and the questions asked. Let them know that we will be coming back to those in a couple of weeks.

Do a word cline on the words/terms used in the video. Students to place in order of empathy towards refugees – high to low. Discussion of the impact of the different words/terms. *** Addition – look at the recent directive for government workers in Department of Immigration to refer to them as “illegal immigrant” rather than “client” – what is the effect of that change in words?

Explain to the class that we will be exploring the issue of refugees and asylum seekers this term through a variety of texts, especially the documentary “Go Back To Where You Came From” and a website “Long Journey”.

What is a refugee? What is an asylum seeker? Students to find a definition for the two terms and write into their OneNote file or book.

Our key concepts this term will be “Empathy” and “Activism”. Students to brainstorm what these mean and write down definition.

RESOURCESHook video – No Turning back

SMH – Illegals not clients

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authors make to present information, opinions and perspectives in different texts (ACELY1745)

evaluate the impact on audiences of different choices in the representation of still and moving images (ACELA1572)

Stage 5 - Outcome 2

Students:

Engage personally with texts

consider how aspects of texts, including characterisation, setting, situations, issues, ideas, tone and point of view, can evoke a range of responses, including empathy, sympathy, antipathy and indifference

Develop and apply contextual knowledge

interpret, analyse and evaluate how different perspectives of issue, event, situation, individuals or groups are constructed to serve specific purposes in texts (ACELY1742)

evaluate the ways film, websites and other multimedia texts use technology for different purposes, audiences and contexts to convey ideas and points of view

Understand and apply knowledge of language forms and features

review, edit and refine students' own and others' texts for control of

Ask students to use the next couple of weeks, while we learn about documentaries, to think more about the topic of refugees and asylum seekers. Encourage them to ask their family and friends about their opinions and reactions to this issue.

What is a documentary – Introductory Activities

What is a documentary? How is a documentary different to a movie?

Can they identify documentaries they have watched - list on board. Try and group into different categories e.g. nature, biographies, human interest, social issues etc. What are the different purposes of each of these categories?

Look at DIY Doco site – Style and Genre and Elements tabs. Students to explore as a homework task and take notes for use with the following activities.

Use the “Documentary Film” Booklet to explore the documentary medium. Read through and discuss the information, including the information on the “Critical Questions to Ask” and the techniques/elements of documentaries. Complete the activities for the documentary “Insecurities”.

In groups, students to be allocated one of the “Film Festival” documentaries to analyse using the questions in the booklet. Use the Techniques Table to

The Documentary Film – booklet

DIY Doco

Shorts of the Week - Documentaries

Documentary Conventions Handout

Technique Table

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content, organisation, sentence structure, vocabulary, and/or visual features to achieve particular purposes and effects (ACELY1747,

ACELY1757)

Respond to and compose texts

apply word processing functions, as well as web authoring programs, to compose and format texts for different purposes, audiences and contexts, including the workplace

use increasingly sophisticated processes of representation to respond to and compose complex spoken, written, visual, multimodal and/or digital texts for a wide range of purposes and audiences, considering and evaluating the effect of the technology

use comprehension strategies to compare and contrast information within and between texts, identifying and analysing embedded perspectives, and evaluating supporting evidence (ACELY1744,

ACELY1754)

Stage 5 - Outcome 3

Students:

Engage personally with texts

analyse and explain how text structures, language features and visual features of texts and the

identify the techniques used and their effect.They are to share their analysis with the class (2 periods).

Homework task - Watch at least ONE of the short documentaries from "Shorts of the Week". Work through the critical questions (booklet or handout) for their chosen documentary – how many can they answer? Use the Techniques Table to analyse the short documentary.

Read through the Documentary Conventions handout (also in booklet). Discuss in relation to the films they have seen.

No Turning Back - Refugees

Remind students that we will be watching a documentary on the issue of refugees and asylum seekers. Check that they can explain what a refugee/asylum seeker is?

Google search for definitions – record in their OneNote file.

What are some of the common attitudes and beliefs about refugees? (Refer to the Hook video as well as their conversations on the subject in the past couple of weeks) List on the board. Are there more positive or negative attitudes? Why?

Test Your Knowledge - SBS

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context in which texts are experienced may influence audience response (ACELT1641)

Respond to and compose texts

compose and respond to a wide range of visual texts, eg picture books, graphic novels and films, using a range of appropriate techniques and metalanguage

Stage 5 - Outcome 5

Students:

Engage personally with texts

investigate the ways different modes, subject areas, media and cultural representation affect their personal and critical responses to texts

Develop and apply contextual knowledge

compare ways in which spoken, written, visual, multimodal and digital texts are shaped according to personal, historical, cultural, social, technological and workplace contexts

Understand and apply knowledge of language forms and features

understand and use the language of argument, eg the use of logic, evidence, refutation, ellipsis, irrelevance and circumlocution, and analyse how it affects responses

Students are to write down their own attitudes and beliefs about refugees and asylum seekers. They should think about how they came to those attitudes. These do not need to be shared with the class.

Students are to work through the “Test Yourself” activity on the Go Back to Where You Came From SBS site. What did they find out that they didn’t know? Does it contradict some of the common beliefs they identified earlier?

Research Activity – students are to explore the Refugee Council of Australia and UN Refugee Agency websites. What information did they discover re the number of people identified as refugees, where refugees are coming from and where they are going etc?

Refugee Picture Books – students to look through a variety of picture books that have a refugee focus. For each one, students can record the following:

How does the book build empathy?

How do the visuals build on and add to the story? (Techniques including style, layout, colour, images etc)

Optional Activity – Asylum: Exit Australia. Students individually, or in pairs, can go through the simulation on the experiences of a refugee.

Go Back To Where You Came From

Refugee Council of Australia

Picture Books:

The Island, Armin Greder

Ziba Came by Boat, Liz Lofthouse

The Little Refugee, Anh Do & Suzanne Do

Refugees, David Miller

The Arrival, Shaun Tan

Asylum: Exit Australia

Go Back to Where You Came From, Series 1

ATOM Study Guide

Go Back - questions

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understand the ways generalisations, clichés, rhetorical devices, appeals to authority and appeals to popularity and public opinion shape meaning and responses

critically evaluate the ways bias, stereotypes, perspectives and ideologies are constructed in texts

explain the ways the language of argument and persuasion can be adapted for different contexts

investigate the ways web and digital technologies use and manipulate visual images, hyperlinks, sound and the written word to create meaning

Respond to and compose texts

respond to and compose a range of sustained imaginative, informative and persuasive texts which are increasingly demanding in terms of ideas, arguments and linguistic, structural, cognitive, emotional and moral complexity

formulate, develop and express their own ideas and beliefs creatively, thoughtfully, positively and confidently on issues such as sustainable patterns of living

Stage 5 - Outcome 7

Students:

Introduce the documentary. Read through the introduction in the Study Guide – identify the purpose of the documentary.

Begin watching Episode 1 of “Go Back To Where You Came From”. Students are to work through the “Go Back To Where You Came From” Study Guide and/or question sheet. Teacher to stop at the appropriate points to discuss student responses and build understanding so they can answer the questions.

Handout the “Participants’ Journey” table. Students are to fill this in for each participant as they watch the 3 episodes. What are our initial reactions to the participants? How are they portrayed at the start – who are we meant to like and dislike? How are we positioned to feel this way? Look at key points on their journeys where their attitudes begin to change. Why is this change occurring? Why can they no longer hold on to their original beliefs and attitudes?

Optional Activity – Creative tasks with a focus on one of the participants. (Homework task)

As they are watching the 3 episodes they are to fill in the Documentary Techniques Table. Again, stop at key points to identify the different techniques and the effect in this particular scene. For example – interview with Mrs Masudi, the raid in Malaysia, the refugee camp food line.

Participants Journey Table

Creative Task Handout

Documentary Technique Table

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Engage personally with texts

explore and reflect on their own values in relation to the values expressed and explored in texts

reflect on personal experience and broadening views of the world by responding to the ideas and arguments of others with increasingly complex ideas and arguments of their own

understand that people's evaluations of texts are influenced by their value systems, the context and the purpose and mode of communication (ACELA1565)

explore and reflect on personal understanding of the world and significant human experience gained from interpreting various representations of life matters in texts (ACELT1635)

evaluate the social, moral and ethical positions represented in texts (ACELT1812)

Understand and apply knowledge of language forms and features

analyse the ways in which creative and imaginative texts can explore human experience, universal themes and social contexts

use and analyse increasingly complex language features to present a viewpoint on issues such as

After watching the documentary students to answer the following questions:

1. Did the documentary achieve its desired purpose?

2. Which participants changed the most in their attitudes to refugees?

3. How are we meant to think about Darren at the end of the documentary? How does the director build our reaction to Darren throughout the documentary?

4. Has the documentary changed their point of view on the issue of refugees?

Essay writing

Students are to revise the WHY paragraph structure. Model a paragraph on the board on one of the early documentaries.

Give students the WHAT for a WHY paragraph – The main purpose of the documentary is to build empathy for refugees. Brainstorm HOW that purpose was achieved – techniques, examples, effects. Brainstorm WHY statements. Students to write up their paragraph and post on Edmodo for feedback by

Sample “Go Back” WHY paragraph

WHY Planning Sheet & Peer Feedback

Essay vocabulary handout

No Turning Back – vocabulary activity table

Transition Words Lesson

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environmental and social sustainability

explore and analyse ethical positions on a current issue, including the values and/or principles involved, in digital communication forums

respond to and compose sustained imaginative, creative and critical texts that represent aspects of their expanding personal and public worlds, for a wide range of purposes, including for enjoyment and pleasure

students and teacher.

Brainstorm the stages and ways the documentary builds empathy – these will become the WHAT statements that students can choose for their essay assessment task.

Vocabulary Exercise – building sophisticated vocabulary to use in the essay. Why is the choice of vocabulary important? What are the types of words they could be using in their essay – especially in each of the three sections of the essay. Brainstorm ideas, use the vocabulary handout and associated activity.

Transition Words and Cohesion - How can they add cohesion to their response both within each paragraph and between paragraphs using transition words? Homework Task – watch the video lesson and look back at their WHY paragraph to see how they can improve the use of transition words.

Hand out the essay planning scaffold. Encourage students to write a draft of their essay and submit for feedback before writing up the essay in the assigned period.

Long Journey Website

Revision of website design elements from previous unit.

Students to explore the website and

Essay planning scaffold

Long Journey website

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follow at least one child through all stages of their journey to safety in Australia. For their chosen child they are to write a summary of their experiences and journey – starting with their experiences in their home country and finishing with a reflection of their new life in Australia. Optional – could write from the perspective of the child.

Who is the audience for this website? How do we know?

What is the purpose of this website? Does it fulfill its purpose?

Students are to identify the two “memory stones” that they thought were the most powerful and explain why they chose them.

Why is it broken into four chapters? What is the name for each chapter and why do they think that was the chosen title? Were the design elements of the website effective in achieving its purpose?

Go back to the website and use the documentary tool to create a documentary – what clips would be most effective at raising awareness and empathy for refugees? How would they put it together to achieve maximum impact? Students to share their documentaries with the class – discuss similarities and differences in approach.

Let the class know that while they have been doing their study of the “Long

Project Outline

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Journey” the New Arrival class has also been studying it and writing about their own journey.

PBL Mini Project:

Driving Question - How can we build empathy for and acceptance of refugees, especially those in our local area?

Students are to work in small groups to create a documentary, website or picture book to build empathy and understanding of refugees.

Hand out the project outline. Go through it with the students so they are clear on what they have to do.

As part of the preparation, students Reflection Sheet

Assessment overview Evaluation

Across Year Assessment Task – essay on a documentary

In Class Assessment – short documentary analysis, documentary creative task, Long Journey recount and PBL project.

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