Identifying a Local Community Issue | ELA Community Activism PBL (Lesson 1 of 6) | 6-8, 9-10, 11-12

Instructions

Materials Needed: 

• ELA Community Activism Project-Based Learning (PBL) Resources
• A digital device for each student or small group of students
• A pre-created digital board for brainstorming in Step 3. 
  • Here is an optional Google Jamboard template to complete this step
• ELA Community Activism PBL Project Planning (print or digital)

Instructions

This instructional idea is the first in a six-part set that provides 6-12 ELA teachers with sample procedures and resources for implementing a community activism project-based learning project addressing the ISTE Student Standards. Throughout these six instructional ideas, students will identify a local community issue and community stakeholders, conduct research, synthesize and publish their research for an authentic audience, and seek feedback on their final product. 

In this part (1 of 6) of the project, students will identify a community need and the required resources, technology tools, and communication platforms needed to complete the project. Teachers may decide to have students identify separate community needs in small groups OR work toward the same community need as a whole class according to student needs. 

For Teachers – Before the Lesson:

• Review the ELA Community Activism Project-Based Learning (PBL) Resources document and accompanying PBL and community activism resources. 
• Consider the unique needs and abilities of your students and decide on the best format for this project. Should students complete the project in small groups or as a whole class?

Step 1: Own It 

• Ask students to connect to prior knowledge of community activism by doing a Think-Pair-Share on the following questions: 
  • What is an activist? Name an activist and how they impacted their community.
  • What is community activism? What examples of community activism can you identify from the past and present? 

Step 2: Learn It 

• Introduce the concepts of project-based learning and definitions of “community activism” and “activist” to students.
  • Consider sharing resources from PBL Works to discuss “What is PBL?” and “Why PBL?” related to project-based learning. 
  • Consider sharing resources from the Youth Activism Project and Accredited Schools Online, the latter of which provides information on how to become a student activist and common methods of student activism.    
• Introduce the project.
  • Introduce the project to students by presenting the project goals (see above and the ELA Community Activism Project-Based Learning (PBL) Resources for pre-written project description, learning objectives, and ISTE standards addressed). 
  • Define the term “community” for your project. 
    • Are students to address a need in your school building? In your city? A broader need in your state or country? 
  • Create and divide students into groups for the project AND the next activity.
    • Reminder: Teachers may decide to have students identify separate community needs in small groups OR work toward the same community need as a whole class according to student needs.      

Step 3: Ideate

• It’s time for students to brainstorm an issue/topic/need/focus for activism in their community. 
  • Provide students 5-10 minutes to brainstorm as many issues/topics/needs/focuses for activism in their community as possible. 
  • For each small group, ask students to record their ideas using a digital board. Use this Google Jamboard as a template OR create your own using another digital board like Miro.  
    • If using Google Jamboard, ask students to record their ideas using sticky notes. 
    • If devices aren’t available, this activity can be completed using normal paper or poster paper in small groups.
  • After students have completed their brainstorming, ask them to choose an issue/topic/need/focus for their project. Some questions they might consider when choosing a issue/topic/need/focus: 
    • Which issue/topic/need/focus do we find most interesting? Why? 
    • Which issue/topic/need/focus is most feasible for us to tackle? 
    • Do we have the time and resources to complete a project for this issue/topic/need/focus? What will we need to contribute?
    • To whom would we present our project? What real-world community group or person has a stake in this need?  

Step 4: Share It

• After students have completed the brainstorming process, ask each group to share out by answering the following questions: 
  • What issue/topic/need/focus did you select for your group’s community activism? 
    • Why do you believe this is an important issue for our community?
  • What would your group/our class need to address this community issue/topic/need/focus? 
  • To whom would you present your project? Why is this person/group an appropriate audience? 
    

Step 5: Make a Plan

• Ask students to complete the ELA Community Activism PBL Project Planning sheet (or another project planning sheet of your own making).
  • If using the ELA Community Activism PBL Project Planning sheet, student should complete the following sections: 1 (all), 2a, 2b, 3 (all), 4 (all), 5 (all) 
    • Note: for more in depth work on the ELA Community Activism PBL Project Planning sheet, see part 2 of 6 of this instructional idea set. 
  • If each small group is pursuing their own individual community need, students should complete one project planning sheet per group. 
    • Throughout this process, students should identify the project goal, stakeholders and audience, materials needed, brief outline of project steps, group member roles, communication methods, and any additional questions they have related to the project.
  • If the class is pursuing only one common community need, the teacher may decide how best to complete this task.