How do educators translate the high-sounding elements of state standards so that students not only understand concepts but can apply them meaningfully? How do they motivate students to take on more responsibility, engage their minds in solving complex problems, and connect schoolwork with their own lives? The following description and excerpts are from an instructional unit developed by Maine educators that addresses these challenges both in methodology and content.
In the first of three lessons, students research the political, ethical, and economic background of child labor, including current events and issues. The heart of this unit, Lesson 2: A Case Study, requires students to incorporate their findings into a contemporary case study via role playing. Participants must balance children's rights with global complexities, which leads to brainstorming policies, hypothesizing outcomes, and analyzing complex interconnections involving child labor. In the final lesson students explore change efforts by other youths and implement their own action plan.
The development of this curriculum began when Amy Sanders, a history teacher at Lincoln Academy, teamed up with Library Media Specialist Shelly Swazey and Information Literacy advisor Audrey Conant. They piloted a world history unit designed to integrate the research process and technology seamlessly within a study of child labor past and present. They measured student performance with alternative assessments in line with Maine's Learning Results.
After further development and refinement by Amy Sanders with David Bacon and Meredith Sommers, the resulting curriculum has been published by the Resource Center of the Americas. Ordering information is available on their website http://www.americas.org Copies are available at the libraries of Maine colleges and universities with teacher education programs, as well as the Maine State Library.
Standards Alignment: Based on Maine's Learning Results Outcomes. The unit aligns well with several MLR Standards, as follows. It correlates well with other State Standards as well, and provides a foundation for evaluating and refining this curriculum to local or state needs.
