Overview
Title: Globalization and Global Inequality
Grade Level: 8
Curriculum Area (s): Global Studies
Name: Heather Bradford
Overview: This is a four week eighth grade
social studies unit on globalization meant to
provide context and understanding directed
toward answering the question: why is the
world unequal? Topics explored in this unit
include colonization, independence, Bretton
Woods organizations, globalization, and
solutions towards alleviating inequality.
Themes that will be explored are social justice,
social change, and barriers to development.
Summative assessments for this unit include
three quizzes, a unit exam, and a country case
study essay. Formative assessments include
assignments such as a writing journal, movie
guides, and a poem.
Stage 1-Desired Results
Outcomes:
 MN Academic Standards:
o 8.4.3.14:
Globalization, the spread of capitalism and the end of the Cold War have shaped
a contemporary world still characterized by rapid technological change, dramatic
increases in global population and economic growth coupled with persistent
economic and social disparities and cultural conflict. (The New Global Era: 1989
to Present)


Benchmark: 8.4.3.14.1 Describe causes of economic imbalances and
social inequalities among the world’s peoples in the post-colonial world
and efforts made to close those gaps. (The New Global Era: 1989 to
Present)
Benchmark: 8.4.3.14.8 Describe how groups are reviving and maintaining
their traditional cultures, identities and distinctiveness in the context of
increasing globalization. (The New Global Era: 1989 to
Present)
o 8.4.3.13.:
Post-World War II political reorganization produced the Cold War balance of
power and new alliances that were based on competing economic and political
doctrines. (The World After World War II: 1950-1989)
 Benchmark: 8.4.3.13.1 Analyze connections between revolutions,
independence movements and social transformations during the Cold War
era. (The World After World War II: 1950-1989)

Benchmark: 8.4.3.13.3 Describe political challenges and struggles of
newly independent countries during the Cold War era. (The World After
World War II: 1950-1989)
Learning Outcomes:
 Students will identify key colonial powers including Great Britain, Belgium, Portugal,
and France and minor colonial powers including Germany, Italy, and Spain (knowledge,
8.4.3.14.1).
 Students will identify what regions were colonized in the mid-1800s to early 1900s
(knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1).
 Students will construct a map of presently underdeveloped countries which were
colonized by a particular European country (application, 8.4.3.14.1).
 Students will identify challenges faced by newly independent countries (knowledge,
8.4.3.13.1 )
 Students will identify key words including: globalization, colonization, monoculture,
export economy, non-governmental organization, International Monetary Fund, World
Bank, World Trade Organization, Genetically Modified Organism, privatization,
austerity, boycott, protest, fair trade, free trade, sweatshop, social movement, microloan,
and banana republic (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1 and 8.4.3.14.8).
 Students will describe the impact of colonization on a country of their choice
(comprehension, 8.4.3.14.1).
 Students will describe current barriers to development within a country of their choice
(comprehension, 8.4.3.14.1).
 Students will construct a poem comparing the perspectives of a sweatshop worker and
the head of a company (application, analysis, 8.4.3.14.1).
 Students will compare and contrast advantages and disadvantages of globalization
(analysis, 8.4.3.14.1).
 Students will synthesize information regarding colonization, independence, and
globalization to explain why some countries are poor (synthesis, 8.4.3.14.1, 8.4.3.13.1,
and 8.4.3.13.1).
 Students will identify solutions for alleviating poverty and resisting globalization
(knowledge, 8.4.3.14.8).
 Students will justify a solution for alleviating global inequality (evaluation, 8.4.3.14.1).
Big Ideas:
 In many ways, colonization left a legacy of poverty and social instability in formerly
colonized countries. Wealthy countries are often those which benefited from colonial
systems, gaining an early economic advantage.

Independence movements helped colonized countries obtain more autonomy, but
formerly colonized countries continue to struggle with dependence, cash crop/export
economies, debt, war, and other challenges.

Globalization perpetuates poverty through lending institutions, structural adjustments, a
global race to the bottom of wages, export centered economics, and cash crop economies.

There are many strategies towards mitigating global inequality, including mass
movements, fair trade, micro-loans, community building, non-governmental
organizations, and international aid.
Essential Questions:
 Why are many people in the world poor?
 What can be done to help poor people/countries?
 What institutions/power structures/histories have created or sustained poverty in “less
developed” countries?
Stage 2- Assessment Evidence
Summative Assessments:
 Quizzes (3): Weeks one, two, and three will have a fifteen question quiz each Friday.
The quiz will cover topics discussed during the week, chapter reading, and vocabulary
and evaluate students at the knowledge level.
 Unit Exam: The end of week four will feature a unit exam which assesses the students on
their knowledge of content from weeks 1-4.
 Country Case Study Paper: This final paper asks students to synthesize what they have
learned over the past four weeks into a comprehensive country study which analyzes why
that country is underdeveloped and provides possible solutions to alleviate poverty in that
country.
Formative Assessments:
 Sweatshop Two-Sided Poem: Students will work with a partner to create a poem that
contrasts the perspectives of a sweatshop worker with a company owner.
 Movie Guides (3): Students will complete movie guides during and following films
shown in the class.
 Global Studies Journal: Students will be asked to keep a journal, where they write
personal responses to daily questions.
 Globalization Arguments Worksheet: Students will create a t-chart mapping the
arguments for and against globalization.
 Colonization Map Contest: Students will work in groups to fill in a map of countries
colonized by a particular country. This will be a contest to see which group can fill out
their map the fastest, just as imperialist countries raced to colonize.
 Fair Trade versus Free Trade: Students will work in groups and evaluate common
products to identify if they are fair trade.
 Interactive Time Line: Students will work in groups to create a timeline of independence,
posting dates and countries on a large timeline sheet at the front of the class.
Stage Three-Learning Plan
Week One: Colonization
 Day One: Students will be introduced to colonization.
o Colonization will be defined. The teacher will also explain what it meant to be
colonized. For colonized countries, it meant loss of culture, foreign rule, resource
extraction. Other vocabulary of the day will include imperialism, empire, and
Scramble for Africa.
o Colonization Map Contest: Students will work in groups to fill in a map of
countries colonized by a particular country. This will be a contest to see which
group can fill out their map the fastest, just as imperialist countries raced to
colonize. Based upon this activity, students will discuss the what, when, and
where of colonization. This activity will work toward the following learning
targets: Students will identify key colonial powers including Great Britain,
Belgium, Portugal, and France and minor colonial powers including Germany,
Italy, and Spain (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1). Students will identify what regions were
colonized in the mid-1800s to early 1900s (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1). Students will
construct a map of presently underdeveloped countries which were colonized by a
particular European country (application, 8.4.3.14.1).
o Students will watch selected parts of a 5 min clip on the colonization of Africa:
The clip is from Uganda Rising.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pis5f085P3M&list=PL1Zer54Yv2OH78qrpU_
gAfQ_PnfMrnISG
o Students will reflect in their Writing Journal why they think Africa was colonized.
o Teacher will show students a list of the poorest countries of the world today. She
will ask the class to identify which ones were also colonized.

Day Two: Students will learn the why of colonization and imperialism.
o Anticipatory Set: Teacher will play “Banana Man” by Tally Hall and ask students
to reflect upon what they think the song means in their Writing Journal.
o The teacher will introduce ideas such as monoculture, cash crop, export economy,
cheap labor, cheap resources, racist ideas, and consumer markets as reasons for
colonization. Imperialism will also be introduced. The “Banana Man” song will
be played again and connected to the material.
o Students will sample banana chips and iced tea during an “edible lecture” about
monoculture and Banana Republics. Guatemala will be the example used.
o A five minute video on cash crops will be shown with special focus on the British
Empire. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnC5nikccnM

Day Three: Students will learn the how of colonization:
o Match Game: To review material from the past two days on colonization, students
will break into groups of about 3-4. Groups will receive a pack of notecards with
mismatched vocabulary and definitions, while other groups will receive different
packs of cards with mismatched definitions and vocabulary. The goal is to have
students visit other groups until they find the correct definitions for their
vocabulary cards. This will review the material of days one and two.
o Following the opening activity, students will settle down with a reading of “The
White Man’s Burdon” by Rudyard Kipling. After this is read, they will write in
their Writing Journals a short reaction to the poem and answer the question, what
was the European/American attitude towards colonized people? Did they see
them as equal?
o Teacher will discuss how ideas such as Social Darwinism, racism, and “the White
Man’s Burdon” justified colonization.
o Teacher will also discuss how force was used to control colonial countries, using
the example of Namibia and Democratic Republic of Congo.

Day Four: Students will learn the legacy of colonization.
o Anticipatory Set: Teacher will play a music video for Diamonds are Forever to
introduce the theme of the day: legacy of colonization. While the song is played,
the teacher will ask students to write in their Writing Journal what they think the
song is about and what they know about Sierra Leone.
o Teacher will present information on the legacy of colonization, introducing key
terms such as underdevelopment, post-colonialism, conflict diamonds, multinational corporation, and poverty. In this lecture, the students will be shown a top
twenty list of the poorest countries of the world. Measures such as literacy rate,
child mortality, GDP, per capita income, and unemployment will be discussed and
defined.
o Case Study: Sierra Leone-Students will break up into six groups. Each group will
read excerpts from an article on the colonization and colonial legacy of Sierra
Leone. Two groups will read each of the three articles. The articles are
Resettlement of Freed Slaves
(http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/storyofafrica/9chapter9.shtml)
, Diamonds the Real Story
(http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/data/2002/03/01/html/ft_20020301.1.ht
ml), (Sierra Leone: http://www.globalissues.org/article/88/sierra-leone)
o After reading the articles, student groups will summarize the main points and
share this summary with the class.
o Students will discuss in groups and as a class why Sierra Leone is poor, even
though the country is rich in diamonds. The teacher will help them connect this
poverty to colonization, conflict, multi-national corporations, and other ideas
discussed in class.

Day Five: Case Study: Democratic Republic of Congo
o Quiz One on Colonization: Students will identify key words including:
colonization, monoculture, export economy, banana republic, and cash crops.
Students will identify reasons that some countries colonized others (knowledge,
8.4.3.14.1).
o Documentary: White King, Red Rubber, Black Death
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_paPL5VyU9I
o Film Guide Worksheet
Week Two: Independence to Dependence
 Day One: Independence
o Interactive Time Line: Students will work in groups to create a timeline of
independence, posting dates and countries on a large timeline sheet at the front of
the class.
o Independence Report Back: Students will work in groups. The groups will each
be assigned a country and given a paragraph summary of the struggle for
independence. They will report back to the class how independence was won (i.e.
violence, non-violence) and why they think the country fought for independence.
o Challenges: Teacher will discuss the challenges of independence and introduce
the word post-colonialism.
o Case Study: Congo: Congo will be explored more in depth with a short video on
the assassination of Patrice Lumumba. Independence Cha Cha: Patrice
LaMumba http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSXDCp-XZuU
o Teacher will briefly explain that DR-Congo had years of dictatorship under
Mbuto Sese Seko following Lumumba’s death. Dictatorship will be introduced as
a vocab word.
o Students will write in their Writing Journal about a challenge to independence and
their reaction to the video.

Day Two: Bretton Woods Institutions
o Teacher will present the IMF, World Bank, and GATT (WTO) as international
financial institutions. The functions of each will be defined.
o Students will be taught the advantages and disadvantages of the organizations.
o Students will role play as a government, concerned citizens, and supporters of a
dam project that requires large loans. Through role play, students will debate the
merits of the large project.

Day Three: Debt and Austerity
o Students will be presented with a fictional account of a country that has gone into
too much debt due to loans from the World Bank and emergency loans from the
IMF. The country spends a lot of its budget on paying the loans. They will be
asked to brainstorm what they think the country can do to save money or help the
situation.
o After students have shared their ideas, the teacher will explain that when
countries fall into too much debt they may take austerity measures. Austerity
means cutting government spending and social programs. They may also have to
stabilize their currency or they risk falling into a crisis. If countries default on
their loans, it is harder to obtain new loans and it may cause problems for other
countries.
o Key words of the day will be discussed and defined such as austerity, default, and
structural adjustment.
o Group Work: Students will break into four groups. Each group will be given a
short article on a debt crisis. One group will be given an article on the financial
crisis in Greece, another group will be given an article on the Lost Decade in
Latin America, the third group will be given an article on the Asian Financial
Crisis of the Late 1990s, and Mexico’s debt crisis in 1982. Students will
summarize the key events from the articles. As a class, students will compare and
contrast how the debt situations were similar and different. Information to inform
class discussion and lecture can come from:
http://theirelandinstitute.com/citizen/c04-miranda-molina-page.html

Day Four: Privatization and the WTO
o Anticipatory Set: Teacher will introduce the lesson by asking students if they have
downloaded music for free. This will be tied to intellectual property.
o Teacher will introduce the WTO and how it emerged from GATT.
o Teacher will introduce terms such as trade agreement, patent, intellectual
property, GMO, and privatization. Students will be asked what it means if
something is private? They will be asked to brainstorm if there are any things
which should be free for everyone or if everything should be patented.
o Students will watch a short video about the privatization of water.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gO2IZwtR56g
o After watching the video students will be asked why water was privatized in
Bolivia? Why do some people support privatizing water? Why are some people
against it?
o Students will watch another short video about the WTO and privatization.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4znkk0dGW1c As a class, they will be asked
why ¼ million farmers in India are committing suicide? What is her critique of
the WTO? What is her critique of GMOs?

Day Five: Friday Film
o Students will take Quiz Three to assess content knowledge from the week. The
quiz will ask students to identify the WTO, World Bank, and IMF as well as
vocabulary words such as austerity and privatization. Students will also be asked
to identify a challenge faced by newly independent countries.
o Students will watch Vandana Shiva: Rights to Seeds and Water
o Students will complete Film Guide Two.
Week Three: Globalization and its Discontents
 Day One: Review
o Day one will be used to review or catch up on material.
o If there is extra time, students will do a Monopoly Game in groups. However,
rules will apply that some students must start the game late, can only buy the
cheapest properties, and are awarded half the cash. This will illustrate the
challenges of inequality and unfair advantages developed countries have enjoyed.

Day Two: Globalization
o Anticipatory Set: Pablo Neruda’s “United Fruit Company” poem will be read
aloud. Students will use their Writing Journal to answer what they think the poem
means.
o The poem mentions multinational corporations, Banana republic, independence,
and dictatorship. These words will be reviewed or defined.
o Favorite Food Activity: Students will compile a list of all of their favorite foods.
They will use class materials and computers to determine where these foods come
from. The point is that stores are full of products from all over the world.
Because of the exchange of people and ideas, all kinds of unique, cultural foods
are available. Class will sample some international foods, such as hummus,
tropical fruit, Chinese ginger candy, etc.
o Teacher will define and introduce the idea of globalization. Characteristics of
globalization will be explained. Students will create a graphic organizer depicting
the characteristics of globalization.
o Group Question: Students will work in groups to discuss ways that globalization
is similar to colonization.

Day Three: Special Issue: Sweatshops
o Anticipatory Set: As a class, students will map where their clothes are from.
Responses will be mapped on the Smartboard, coloring a map of the world.
o The teacher will introduce the words sweatshop and global race to the bottom
o Case Study: Bangladesh: Students will learn about the garment industry in
Bangladesh. They will also learn about deadly accidents over the past two
decades within this industry. This information will be connected to IMF policies.
o Students will work in pairs to create a two-sided poem. The poem will represent
the perspectives of a sweatshop worker and the owner of a company. The purpose
of the assignment is application and analysis of standard 8.4.3.14.1.

Day Four: Special Issue: Globalization, People, and the Environment
o Anticipatory Set: A quote from Chief Seattle will be put on the Smart Board.
The quote is: “Humankind has not woven the web of life.
We are but one thread within it.
Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves.
All things are bound together.
All things connect.”
Students will be asked to write in their Writing Journals answering the questions,
“What do you think this quote means? How might this quote connect to
globalization?”
o The teacher will explain that people depend on their environment to survive.
Students will be asked to think of ways that the environment is necessary to us. A
list will be created on the board.
o Teacher will define “environmental problem” and ask students to brainstorm
different environmental problems. These will be written on the board.
o Students will divide into four groups. Each group will be given a short article on
an environmental problem. Article one will be about climate change, agriculture,
and population in Bangladesh. Article two will be about McDonalds, indigenous
people, and rainforest destruction in Brazil. Article three will be about Pepsi,
water, and farmers in India. Article four will be about indigenous people,
Chevron, oil spills, and Ecuador. In each of these, students will summarize the
articles as a group and answer how globalization is impacting humans and the
environment. Students will report their findings to the class.

Day Five: Friday Film
o Quiz 3: Students will take a quiz on globalization, sweatshops, and the
environment
o Film: The End of Poverty
o Film Study Guide
Week Four: Solutions and Conclusions
 Day One: Government and NGO Solutions
o Students will be introduced to terms such as non-governmental organization,
micro-loans, and governmental organization.
o Compare and Contrast: Students will work in groups. Each group will be
assigned a solution for poverty alleviation and given a short article on this
solution. The solutions will include international aid, Peace Corps programs,
micro-loans, and NGOs. Students will define and summarize their solution for
the class. After everyone has presented, students will create a graphic organizer
with the benefits and disadvantages of each method.

Day Two: Fair Trade and Boycott
o A short video about chocolate slavery and fair trade will be shown to the class.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NZv8FX4wPc
o Following the video, students will write how life is different for the children who
make chocolate compared to them.
o Teacher will define fair trade, boycott, and free trade for the class.
o Students will review and sample Fair Trade products to identify the labeling.
o Students will construct a t-chart comparing Fair Trade to Free Trade.

Day Three: Protest and Mass Movements
o Students will watch The Battle for Seattle
o Students will complete a Film Guide. Through the guide, students will identify
solutions for alleviating poverty and resisting globalization (knowledge,
8.4.3.14.8).
o Teacher will review the words protest, social movement, World Trade
Organization.
o Students will turn in their Writing Journal.

Day Four: Review
o Anticipatory Set: “The Real Poetry,” a poem by Thomas Byuva will be read.
o Writing Journal: Students will be asked to write what they think the poem is
about. The poem offers reasons why Zimbabwe struggled, along with other
African countries, to develop after independence.
o Poem Review: The reasons for underdevelopment which were outlined in the
poem will be examined. This will be a creative review of the material.
o Inequality Jeopardy: Unit information will be reviewed through a Jeopardy game.
o Any additional time will be used on Country Case Study Paper, editing and peer
groups.

Day Five: Unit Exam
o Students will take their Unit Exam.
o Students who finish early can work independently on their upcoming Country
Case Study Paper.
o The Country Case Study Paper is due the following week. There will be a peer
review day on the following Monday.
List of Resources:
Videos:
Cash Crops and the British Empire
Independence Cha Cha: Patrice Lumumba
The Battle for Seattle
The End of Poverty
Uganda Rising
Vandana Shiva: Rights to Seeds and Water
White King, Red Rubber, Black Death
Poems:
The Real Poetry by Thomas Byuva
The United Fruit Company by Pablo Neruda
The White Man’s Burdon by Rudyard Kipling
Music:
“Banana Man” by Tally Hall
“Diamonds are Forever” by Kanye West
Articles:
Diamonds the Real Story
(http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/data/2002/03/01/html/ft_20020301.1.html)
Resettlement of Freed Slaves
(http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/storyofafrica/9chapter9.shtml)
Sierra Leone
(Sierra Leone: http://www.globalissues.org/article/88/sierra-leone)
Classroom Materials:
Laptop
Notebooks
Pens/Pencils
Smartboard
Stage Four-Reflection
The activities, assessment, and lessons of the unit were developed by using Backwards
Design. According to Wiggins and McTighe (2005) Backwards Design involves identifying a
central theme or idea, then working backwards to build the lesson around this idea. The idea that
I began with is that countries are economically unequal. Within this big idea are smaller ideas
and details, such as the idea that colonization left a legacy of poverty and social instability in
formerly colonized countries, wealthy countries are often those which benefited from colonial
systems, independence movements helped colonized countries obtain more autonomy, formerly
colonized countries continue to struggle economically and politically, globalization perpetuates
poverty, and there are many strategies towards mitigating global inequality. These big ideas
easily connect with a number of eight grade social studies standards, but the ones focused on for
the unit are benchmarks 8.4.3.13.1, 8.4.3.13.3, 8.4.3.14.1, and 8.4.3.14.8. These benchmarks
require students to understand the causes of inequality in a post-colonial world, the struggles for
independence, challenges of newly independent countries, efforts to resist globalization. Each of
these benchmarks is related to the larger question of global inequality.
Backwards Design means starting with a big idea and mapping out how to reach learning
goals connected to this big idea. After identifying the big idea, essential questions, and
standards, I built the lesson around the kinds of knowledge students would need to possess to
provide an answer to the driving question of why the world is unequal. Of course, the
knowledge to answer this question is far greater than a small social studies unit could allow.
Nevertheless, I identified four core sets of knowledge required to answer the driving question.
Each week is based upon developing knowledge in these areas. Week one focuses on
establishing an understanding of colonization, week two on independence and post-WWII, week
three on globalization and week four on how the negative aspects of globalization are resisted.
Once these weekly themes were identified, it was easy to construct learning outcomes that would
represent knowledge of the themes and understanding of how these themes connect to one other.
For instance, in Week One, students learn about colonization. However, the big idea is to
understand why the world is unequal. To this end, colonization is connected to present
inequality. This connection is made through activities during the week such as a class discussion
on Sierra Leone. Because colonization is connected to later topics, at the end of the week, there
is a summative assessment in Week One on colonization. This is because to move forward into
post-colonialism and globalization, students must know colonization well. In this way,
Backwards Design was used to structure the lessons around reaching the learning goals and
benchmarks associated with the big ideas.
Backwards Design was also used to determine how attainment of the learning goals would
be measured. Acceptable evidence for learning included summative assessments such as weekly
quizzes, a unit exam, and a final essay. The logic of having three quizzes is that this is a measure
of student knowledge on the week’s topic. The quiz is summative for the week’s lessons but
formative in informing the student and teacher if any information is unclear or confusing. It is in
this sense, assessment FOR learning as well as assessment of learning. In the case of Week One,
students need to know such concepts such as colonization, imperialism, monoculture, cash crop,
etc. to grasp later concepts pertaining to independence and globalization. The quiz measures this
by asking multiple choice questions to assess knowledge of the week’s materials. Throughout
the week, summative assessments are also used so that students and the teacher can determine if
students are learning the material and if adjustments should be made. These formative
assessments include a writing journal, poetry activity, film guides, informal checks for
understanding, class discussion, group work, and non-graded class activities. These activities
vary in scope, structure, and time frame. The assumption behind them is that understanding
develops by thinking and re-thinking over time. More traditional assessment methods, such as
quizzes and tests, but these are used to essential knowledge to the cumulative performance of
understanding (Wiggins and McTighe, 2005). The cumulative performance assessment is the
Country Case Study Essay.
The final stage in Backwards Design is determining daily activities or learning experiences
to meet the learning objectives. A variety of methods and theories were used to determine these
experiences. For example, Multiple Intelligences Theory by Gardner (2011) informed some of
the activities, as I thought it was important that learning appealed to multiple intelligences.
Therefore, activities involved a variety of activities and mediums, including group work,
individual work, reflection, collaboration, movement, music, poetry, videos, lecture, discussion,
and games. This variety was meant to appeal to learners who might have strengths in bodilykinesthetic intelligence (games), musical-rhythmic intelligence (songs), verbal-linguistic
intelligence (written reflection and poetry), logical-mathematical intelligence (use of statistics),
interpersonal intelligence (group work), intrapersonal intelligence (reflection), and
environmental intelligences (environmental topics) (Gardner, 2011). Beyond Multiple
Intelligences, Critical Pedagogy also informed some of the activities. Critical Pedagogy calls
upon students to examine their place in society and demand equality for themselves and others.
This is founded upon building critical thinking and challenging the status quo. Because Critical
Pedagogy is not widely accepted in U.S. schools, its application within this unit was more
conservative than my teaching philosophy. Mindful of Critical Pedagogy, I selected activities
and materials that empower students to challenge inequality. For instance, two lessons began by
reading poetry from people of color. One lesson required students to write their own poem with
a partner. These activities relate to Critical Pedagogy because they were a way to bring in the
voices of non-white writers and role models. This was meant to instill a sense of critical
multiculturalism. It was also a way for students to express themselves creatively while writing
about social justice. Throughout the lessons, students learn about Africa, barriers to
development, colonization, imperialism, globalization, and inequality. This education about the
broader world and the injustices therein is important to creating engaged students. The final
lessons offer insight on how social change is made, which meets a social studies standard, but
also prepares students to consider how they might change the world. The writing journal and
frequent discussions were meant to allow students to make meaning out of the materials for
themselves.
Nevertheless, the assessments in some ways fail to meet the vision of Multiple Intelligences
and Critical Pedagogy. To truly meet Multiple Intelligences, some choice and variety in
summative is required. Although there is variety in the formative assessments, the summative
assessments are based upon quizzes, a test, and an essay. These measure a very narrow set of
intelligences. In an ideal classroom, students might have choice over how they are assessed and
there would be choices to match their intelligences. These assessments could include final
poetry projects, producing a piece of art, writing a research paper, analyzing statistical data, or
any number of other assessments. However, this would require developing eight different
assessments, each graded differently and complete with rubrics. This is beyond the scope of this
assignment and what most teachers have time for. That is why the summative assessment does
not match the guiding theory. In the same way, Critical Pedagogy may critique the notion of
tests as stemming from middle class, white traditions in education, which serve power by sorting
students by achievement. Achievement itself is often correlated to social class and race.
Therefore, this theory would be more likely to seek alternative assessments or none at all.
However, this is beyond what teachers are allowed to do in most schools and also falls outside of
my own requirements for the assignment. This is why the assessments do not reflect the theory
of critical pedagogy. Therefore, the decision to include more standard assessments such as
quizzes and an exam was more of a practical consideration than a theoretical one.
This assignment taught me a great deal about planning and assessment. First of all, it
familiarized me with Backwards Design, which was new information to me. I think that this is a
very useful method that corresponds well with how I think. I often think about things on the
macro level first and then move into specific details. This global, big picture propensity for
thinking matched Backwards Design quite well. In the future, having practiced designing a unit,
I will be more efficient and effective at it. For instance, it will be easier for me to brain storm big
ideas and essential questions now that I have had practice. The opportunity to create an exam
was also useful, as there are many challenges involved. Writing precise questions and sampling
the right materials were among the challenges. Finally, the assessment assignment also helped
me to consider how theories apply to assessment. While I failed to truly implement Critical
Pedagogy and Multiple Intelligence based assessment into this unit, it allowed me to consider
how they might be brought into the lessons. Perhaps with more practice as a teacher and more
comfort in my job stability, more could be done to provide students with alternative forms of
assessment. However, quizzes and tests are viewed as legitimate and sometimes necessary forms
of summative assessment. Class sizes and lack of time to prepare and grade a variety of
alternative assessments creates real barriers to experimentation. This is unavoidable. Therefore,
practicality trumps theory in this case. As a whole, this activity helped me to think more deeply
about assessment and apply my knowledge in creating an assessment plan.
Sources:
Gardner, H. (2011). Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. Basic Books.
McLaren, P. (1998). Life in Schools. An Introduction to Critical Pedagogy in the
Foundations of Education. Addison Wesley Longman, Inc., 1 Jacob Way, Reading, MA
01867.
Stiggins, R., and Chappuis, J. (2012). An Introduction to Student-Involved Assessment
for Learning. Boston MA, Pearson
Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (2005) Understanding by Design. Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall Inc.
Summative Assessment Descriptions
Assessment Title and Type
 Quizzes (3) (quiz)
 Unit Exam (test)
 Country Case Study (essay)
Percentage of Grade
Summative
Assessments
Points
Percent
Quizzes (3)
45
18%
Exam (1)
35
14%
Essay (1)
100
40%
Movie Guides (3)
30
12%
Pair Poem
15
6%
Writing Journal
10
4%
T-Chart Worksheet
15
6%
Formative
Assessments
Standards Assessed

MN Academic Standards:
o 8.4.3.14:
Globalization, the spread of capitalism and the end of the Cold War have shaped a
contemporary world still characterized by rapid technological change, dramatic
increases in global population and economic growth coupled with persistent
economic and social disparities and cultural conflict. (The New Global Era: 1989
to Present)


Benchmark: 8.4.3.14.1 Describe causes of economic imbalances and social
inequalities among the world’s peoples in the post-colonial world and
efforts made to close those gaps. (The New Global Era: 1989 to Present)
Benchmark: 8.4.3.14.8 Describe how groups are reviving and maintaining
their traditional cultures, identities and distinctiveness in the context of
increasing globalization. (The New Global Era: 1989 to
Present)
o 8.4.3.13.:
Post-World War II political reorganization produced the Cold War balance of
power and new alliances that were based on competing economic and political
doctrines. (The World After World War II: 1950-1989)
 Benchmark: 8.4.3.13.1 Analyze connections between revolutions,
independence movements and social transformations during the Cold War
era. (The World After World War II: 1950-1989)
 Benchmark: 8.4.3.13.3 Describe political challenges and struggles of newly
independent countries during the Cold War era. (The World After World
War II: 1950-1989)
Checklist/Rubric
Checklist: Country Case Study
Rubric: Country Case Study
Assessment Commentary:
For each of the summative assessments identified, provide a brief description and tell why you
chose to use that assessment.
Quiz One:



A 15 point multiple choice and matching quiz on topics discussed during week one.
These topics include imperialism, cash crop, colonization, Banana republic, and
monoculture. Items also relate to examples used in the week, such as colonization in the
Democratic Republic of Congo and conflict diamonds in Sierra Leone. The quiz assesses
for the following learning outcomes and MN K-12 Social Studies Standards: Students will
identify key colonial powers including Great Britain, Belgium, Portugal, and France and
minor colonial powers including Germany, Italy, and Spain (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1).
Students will identify what regions were colonized in the mid-1800s to early 1900s
(knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1), students will identify key words including: colonization,
monoculture, export economy, and banana republic (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1 and
8.4.3.14.8). (quiz).
The quiz was chosen because a knowledge base is important to completing the final essay
assessment. This quiz tests the knowledge that students should have gained during this
week. This knowledge about colonialism is essential to understanding the next week’s
lessons on independence movements and the emergence of new financial organizations.
This assessment is effective inasmuch as it is an assessment of and for learning. Students
can use their quiz to study materials that missed and as a study guide for the unite exam.
Quiz Two:



A 15 point multiple choice and matching quiz on topics discussed during week two.
These topics include independence, post-colonialism, Bretton Wood’s institutions (i.e.
IMF, World Bank, GATT/WTO, GMO, debt, austerity, and privatization. Students will
also be assessed on the examples used during the week, such as Democratic Republic of
Congo, India, and Mexico. This assessment is connected to the following learning
outcomes and standards: Students will identify challenges faced by newly independent
countries (knowledge, 8.4.3.13.1) Students will identify key words including: IMF, World
Bank, WTO, and GMO (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1 and 8.4.3.14.8). (quiz)
The quiz was chosen because a knowledge base is important to completing the final essay
assessment. This quiz tests the knowledge that students should have gained during this
week. This knowledge about independence movements and the emergence of new
financial organizations is essential to understanding the next week’s lessons about
globalization and global inequality.
This assessment is effective inasmuch as it is an assessment of and for learning. Students
can use their quiz to study materials that missed and as a study guide for the unite exam.
.
Quiz Three:



A 15 point multiple choice and matching quiz on topics discussed during week two.
These topics include globalization, sweatshops, environment, multinational corporations,
dictatorship, and global race to the bottom. Examples used during the week, such as
Chevron in Ecuador, sweatshops in Bangladesh, and rainforest destruction in Brazil will
also be tested. This assessment is used to measure attainment of the following learning
objectives and standards: students will identify key words including: fair trade, free trade,
sweatshop, globalization, and multinational corporation (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1 and
8.4.3.14.8) and students will identify challenges faced by newly independent countries
(knowledge, 8.4.3.13.1). (quiz)
The quiz was chosen because a knowledge base is important to completing the final essay
assessment. This quiz tests the knowledge that students should have gained during this
week. This knowledge about globalization, environment, and global inequality is
important in understanding the following week’s lessons on solutions.
This assessment is effective inasmuch as it is an assessment of and for learning. Students
can use their quiz to study materials that missed and as a study guide for the unite exam.
Unit Exam:

A 35 point comprehensive exam on material from weeks 1-4. The format includes
multiple choice, true and false, and matching. This assessment is used to measure
attainment of the following learning objectives and standards: Students will identify key
words including: globalization, colonization, monoculture, export economy, nongovernmental organization, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Trade

Organization, Genetically Modified Organism, privatization, austerity, boycott, protest,
fair trade, free trade, sweatshop, social movement, microloan, and banana republic
(knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1 and 8.4.3.14.8), students will identify challenges faced by newly
independent countries (knowledge, 8.4.3.13.1 ), students will identify solutions for
alleviating poverty and resisting globalization (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.8), students will
identify key colonial powers including Great Britain, Belgium, Portugal, and France and
minor colonial powers including Germany, Italy, and Spain (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1), and
students will identify what regions were colonized in the mid-1800s to early 1900s
(knowledge, 8.4.3.14.1). (exam)
This exam is important in measuring student knowledge of lessons from weeks 1-3. In
addition, new items from materials on week four will be included in the test. Together,
mastery of this knowledge is essential in building towards the final essay project for the
unit. The exam is effective inasmuch as it includes several formats to appeal to different
test takers (multiple choice, true and false, and matching). It can also be used as an
assessment for learning, as students can review their graded test to determine what is
unclear to them. This will help them write their paper.
Country Case Study:
 A 100 point essay in which students must study a history, providing useful socioeconomic and political context. The student must discuss the country’s history of
colonization, independence, and current socio-economic situation. These elements of the
country’s history and present situation must be connected in a meaningful way for the
purpose of answering the question of why the country is underdeveloped. At the end of
this narrative, the student must provide and defend plausible solutions towards alleviating
poverty and encouraging economic development. This assignment is designed to assess
attainment of the following learning objectives and standards: Students will describe the
impact of colonization on a country of their choice (comprehension, 8.4.3.14.1), students
will describe current barriers to development within a country of their choice
(comprehension, 8.4.3.14.1), students will synthesize information regarding colonization,
independence, and globalization to explain why some countries are poor (synthesis,
8.4.3.14.1, 8.4.3.13.1, and 8.4.3.13.1), students will identify solutions for alleviating
poverty and resisting globalization (knowledge, 8.4.3.14.8), and students will justify a
solution for alleviating global inequality (evaluation, 8.4.3.14.1). (essay)
 This essay project is important because it measures higher level learning. Unlike the test
and quizzes, students are to synthesize and evaluate the information from weeks 1-4. The
quizzes and tests mostly tested knowledge. This is a measure of the students’ ability to
apply this knowledge in a meaningful way. For this reason, the essay is weighted heavily
on the grade for this unit. It is the final project of the unit and represents the culmination
of all that the students should have learned. In essence, this is the project that meets all
the standards and answers the big question of why the world is unequal in development.
 The essay will feature a peer review session and includes a check list. Both of these
should help students with this challenging assignment.
Additional Assessment Commentary:
To ensure the quality of the assessments, the samples provided are meant to be reliable,
valid, and assessments for learning. Reliability requires that scores will be dependable no matter
how many times the assessment is administered. While it is difficult to control for every variable
that may impact an assessment, one variable that is controlled for is test anxiety, at least to some
degree. To mitigate text anxiety, quizzes are only worth 6% of the grade each or fifteen points.
The final unit exam is worth 14%, but this is not an enormous part of the grade. Furthermore,
the final test has a review day, which may ease some student anxiety. Quizzes do not have a
review day, however, one review and catch up day is built into the schedule so if students need
additional help, time, or instruction this is possible. The essay exam is 40% of the grade, which
may cause some anxiety. However, the provided checklist may reduce this among students.
Also, the rubric should improve reliability in grading this item. For these reasons, the summative
assessments are, for the most part, reliable.
Another concern in constructing assessments is validity. Validity means that the
assessments must represent student learning. The quizzes are clearly connected to material from
each week and the unit test represents knowledge of materials from weeks one through four. In
the attached unit exam, questions were developed with the original idea that the test would be
forty questions, with ten questions for each week. However, some weeks could be combined
together into questions that tested both, which resulted in 35 questions. Not every concept or
example was sampled in the final unit exam, but the most key ideas were from each week. To
improve validity, the questions were written in a way that was clear and understandable,
following the rules put forth by Stiggins and Chappuis (2012). For instance, the exam was
created by working backwards to test quality. This meant writing the multiple choice questions
as assertions and true and false statements into propositions. Likewise, the matching section was
created so that responses were similar in length and matched to uniform concepts. These
measures were meant to improve the validity of the test, as students will be less likely to choose
the wrong answer because they were confused or selecting the correct answer because they
noticed a pattern or obvious choice. The validity in the final essay was ensured through clear
instruction, a check list, and a rubric.
Finally, the summative assessments were also designed to be assessments for learning.
The quizzes each week are meant to build towards the final exam, but also the materials for the
following week. Students can use their quiz to determine if they were unsure of something. The
teacher can use the quizzes to assess the students’ understanding of the materials and if anything
must be reviewed. Even the final exam could be used to help students assess themselves on their
knowledge as they work towards completing their final essay. The check-list for the final essay
also helps students reflect on if their work matches the requirements for the project. Peer review
is also meant to help students assess themselves and others. Formative activities along the way
are meant to support learning and help students perform better on the summative assessments. In
this way, students should be able to track their own learning and in doing so, learn how to learn
better.
Source:
Stiggins, R., and Chappuis, J. (2012). An Introduction to Student-Involved Assessment
for Learning. Boston MA, Pearson
Name: ______________________________ Date: _______________ Hour:_______________
Unit Exam
Part One: Match the country to the challenge it has faced, placing the letter of your answer
in the box by the country. (8 points)
1. Democratic
Republic of Congo
2. Brazil
3. Sierra Leone
4. Ecuador
5. Bangladesh
6. Namibia
7. Guatemala
8. India
A. This country defaulted on IMF debt in 1982.
B. This country was colonized by Sweden.
C. This country has the most garment sweatshops in
the world.
D. This country experienced genocide against the
Herero.
E. This country was a Banana republic.
F. This country funded a ten year civil war with
diamonds.
G. This country’s rainforests are cut down for cattle
grazing.
H. This country’s farmers commit suicide over
expensive seeds and fertilizer.
I. This country was colonized by Belgium.
J. This country’s rainforests were polluted by
Chevron.
Part Two: Multiple Choice: 14 Points
1. Which of the following European countries was not actively engaged in colonizing Africa in
the 1800s?
A. Greece
B. Great Britain
C. Germany
D. Belgium
2. Which of the following is an example of a social movement?
A. An individual refusing to purchase “conflict diamonds”
B. A group of people protesting the privatization of water.
C. A charity provides free medicine in Africa.
D. A tribe learns its lost language.
3. Which of the following is not a challenge that occurred since the Democratic Republic of
Congo gained independence?
A. Congo’s first president was assassinated.
B. Congo had a dictator who spent the country’s money.
C. Congo was ruled by King Leopold II.
D. Congo has faced civil war.
4. Which of the following organizations primarily provides short term, emergency loans?
A. World Bank
B. International Monetary Fund
C. General Agreement of Trade and Tariffs
D. World Trade Organization
5. Which organization would determine the legality of patenting genetically modified corn?
A. Monsanto
B. International Monetary Fund
C. World Bank
D. World Trade Organization
6. Which of the following is not a reason why a country may be poor?
A. History of colonization
B. Export Economy
C. Direct Rule
D. Civil War
7. Which of the following is an example of an IMF austerity measure?
A. The IMF approves a patent for a genetically modified strain of rice.
B. The IMF approves a loan after a government reduces health care spending.
C. The IMF stabilizes a currency with an emergency loan.
D. The IMF approves a loan for a hydroelectric dam project.
8. Which of the following is an example of fair trade?
A. Nigerian Children are trafficked into Sierra Leone to work at a chocolate plantation.
B. Chocolate growers at a co-operative are guaranteed a price of $.40 for each pound of cocoa
beans.
C. Hershey’s chocolate promise not to use chemical pesticides and fertilizers.
D. Hershey’s chocolate has promised to restore 1 acre of rainforest for each bar of limited edition
chocolate sold.
9. Which of the following is not a characteristic of globalization?
A. Increased international trade and communication.
B. Increased cultural exchange.
C. Increased power of international finance institutions.
D. Increased movement to rural areas.
10. Which of the following is an example of privatization?
A. A government takes ownership of failing banks.
B. A government establishes a new spy organization.
C. A government establishes new taxes on imports.
D. A government sells its state mining company to a corporation.
11. Which of the following is an example of post-colonialism?
A. Ten million Congolese died under King Leopold’s rule.
B. France controlled Cote d’Ivoire until 1960.
C. Burkina Faso and Cote d’Ivoire speak French today.
D. Great Britain forced China to trade tea for opium.
12. Which of the following is a characteristic of free trade?
A. A guaranteed minimum price on products.
B. State ownership of large companies.
C. Local investment into a community.
D. Fewer environmental and labor regulations.
13. Why were activists protesting in The Battle for Seattle?
A. The protestors wanted the U.S. to join the World Trade Organization.
B. The protestors wanted to import more corn from Mexico.
C. The protestors disliked World Trade Organization policies.
D. The protestors wanted to stop colonization.
14. What is a similarity between globalization and colonization?
A. In both, European countries directly control the governments of underdeveloped countries
B. In both, underdeveloped countries are a source of cheap labor and raw materials.
C. In both, international trade organizations determine trade laws.
D. In both, underdeveloped countries establish their own governments.
Part Three: True or False: (13 points)
1. T or F Social Darwinism is commonly used to justify globalization.
2. T or F Many poor countries today were colonized in the past.
3. T or F Monoculture is defined as agriculture that does not use pesticides.
4. T or F One benefit of globalization is increased communication between countries.
5. T or F Slavery no longer exists anywhere in the world.
6. T or F Multinational corporations are companies that operate in one country.
7. T or F Countries with resources like diamonds and gold are always rich.
8. T or F There are more poor people in the world than rich people.
9. T or F Poor countries often export cash crops.
10. T or F After independence, some countries faced civil war.
11. T or F Indigenous people can resist globalization by preserving their language.
12. T or F Sweatshops pay fair wages to their employees.
13. T or F After independence, some countries were ruled by dictators.
Name: ______________________________ Date: _______________ Hour:_______________
Unit Exam Answers
Part One: Match the country to the challenge it has faced, placing the letter of your answer
in the box by the country. (8 points)
1. Democratic
Republic of Congo
I
2. Brazil
G
3. Sierra Leone
F
4. Ecuador
J
A. This country defaulted on IMF debt in 1982.
B. This country was colonized by Sweden.
5. Bangladesh
C
6. Namibia
D
7. Guatemala
E
8. India
H
C. This country has the most garment sweatshops in
the world.
D. This country experienced genocide against the
Herero.
E. This country was a banana republic.
F. This country funded a ten year civil war with
diamonds.
G. This country’s rainforests are cut down for cattle
grazing.
H. This country’s farmers commit suicide over
expensive seeds and fertilizer.
I. This country was colonized by Belgium.
J. This country’s rainforests were polluted by
Chevron.
Part Two: Multiple Choice: 14 Points
1. Which of the following European countries was not actively engaged in colonizing Africa in
the 1800s?
A. Greece
B. Great Britain
C. Germany
D. Belgium
2. Which of the following best describes a social movement?
A. An individual refusing to purchase “conflict diamonds”
B. A group of people protesting the privatization of water.
C. A charity providing free medicine in Africa.
D. A tribe learns its lost language.
3. Which of the following is not a challenge that occurred since the Democratic Republic of
Congo gained independence?
A. Congo’s first president was assassinated.
B. Congo had a dictator who spent the country’s money.
C. Congo was ruled by King Leopold II.
D. Congo has faced civil war.
4. Which of the following organizations primarily provides short term, emergency loans?
A. World Bank
B. International Monetary Fund
C. General Agreement of Trade and Tariffs
D. World Trade Organization
5. Which organization would determine the legality of patenting genetically modified corn?
A. Monsanto
B. International Monetary Fund
C. World Bank
D. World Trade Organization
6. Which of the following is not a reason why a country may be poor?
A. History of colonization
B. Export Economy
C. Direct Rule
D. Civil War
7. Which of the following is an example of an IMF austerity measure?
A. The IMF approves a patent for a genetically modified strain of rice.
B. The IMF approves a loan after a government reduces health care spending.
C. The IMF stabilizes a currency with an emergency loan.
D. The IMF approves a loan for a hydroelectric dam project.
8. Which of the following is an example of fair trade?
A. Nigerian Children are trafficked into Sierra Leone to work at a chocolate plantation.
B. Chocolate growers at a co-operative are guaranteed a price of $.40 for each pound of
cocoa beans.
C. Hershey’s chocolate promise not to use chemical pesticides and fertilizers.
D. Hershey’s chocolate has promised to restore 1 acre of rainforest for each bar of limited edition
chocolate sold.
9. Which of the following is not a characteristic of globalization?
A. Increased international trade and communication.
B. Increased cultural exchange.
C. Increased power of international finance institutions.
D. Increased movement to rural areas.
10. Which of the following is an example of privatization?
A. A government takes ownership of failing banks.
B. A government establishes a new spy organization.
C. A government establishes new taxes on imports.
D. A government sells its state mining company to a corporation.
11. Which of the following is an example of post-colonialism?
A. Ten million Congolese died under King Leopold’s rule.
B. France controlled Cote d’Ivoire until 1960.
C. Burkina Faso and Cote d’Ivoire speak French today.
D. Great Britain forced China to trade tea for opium.
12. Which of the following is a characteristic of free trade?
A. A guaranteed minimum price on products.
B. State ownership of large companies.
C. Local investment into a community.
D. Fewer environmental and labor regulations.
13. Why were activists protesting in The Battle for Seattle?
A. The protestors wanted the U.S. to join the World Trade Organization.
B. The protestors wanted to import more corn from Mexico.
C. The protestors disliked World Trade Organization policies.
D. The protestors wanted to stop colonization.
14. What is a similarity between globalization and colonization?
A. In both, European countries directly control the governments of underdeveloped countries
B. In both, underdeveloped countries are a source of cheap labor and raw materials.
C. In both, international trade organizations determine trade laws.
D. In both, underdeveloped countries establish their own governments.
Part Three: True or False: (13 points)
1. T or F Social Darwinism is commonly used to justify globalization.
2. T or F Many poor countries today were colonized in the past.
3. T or F Monoculture is defined as agriculture that does not use pesticides.
4. T or F One benefit of globalization is increased communication between countries.
5. T or F Slavery no longer exists anywhere in the world.
6. T or F Multinational corporations are companies that operate in one country.
7. T or F Countries with resources like diamonds and gold are always rich.
8. T or F There are more poor people in the world than rich people.
9. T or F Poor countries often export cash crops.
10. T or F After independence, some countries faced civil war.
11. T or F Indigenous people can resist globalization by preserving their language.
12. T or F Sweatshops pay fair wages to their employees.
13. T or F After independence, some countries were ruled by dictators.
Country Case Study
For this essay project, you will pick a country from the country list for this essay project.
After picking your country, you will write on paragraph of information about the country. This
information should include the GDP or GNP, literacy rate, infant mortality, and per capita
income. Other information to include may be style of government, homelessness, number of
doctors per capita, or any other information that you believe is relevant socio-economic and
political background information. This information will be your introduction to the essay.
In paragraph two, you will write about the country’s history of colonization and
independence. This paragraph should address what country colonized your country, when this
occurred, and for how long. This paragraph should also include information about how and
when your country obtained independence. Based upon this information, you should identify
and describe a minimum of two negative legacies that have resulted from this colonial history.
In paragraph three, you will identify and describe two or more current challenges to
development in your country. These current challenges could include access to education,
national debt, monoculture, political repression, environmental disasters, war, terrorism,
corruption, crime, disease, or other factors that have been discussed in class.
In paragraph four, you will answer the question of why this country is not developed. To
answer this question, you must connect your answers about the history of the country with the
current challenges in the country. In this paragraph, you must describe in detail three major
challenges to development based on history and current conditions.
In paragraph five, you will present a detailed strategy of how you would assist the
country’s development. This must be supported by class lessons and research from at least one
outside source. Some strategies that have been discussed in class include fair trade, debt
forgiveness, international aid, non-governmental organizations, micro-loans, protectionism,
public expenditures, social organization, and trade blocks.
Throughout the essay, you are expected to follow grammatical rules, including correct
organization, sentence structure, punctuation, and spelling. If you use outside sources, please
submit them with your essay on a separate piece of paper.
This assignment is due on November 7, 2014
Assignment Checklist:
o I wrote a one paragraph introduction to my country.
 My first paragraph includes GDP, literacy rate, infant mortality, and per capita
income.
 My first paragraph includes additional useful socio-economic or political
information.
o I wrote about colonial history in paragraph two.
 My second paragraph discusses what country colonized my country and when this
happened.
 My second paragraph discusses how and when my country became independent.
 My second paragraph describes two negative things that happened because of this
colonial history.
o I wrote about three current conditions in my country in paragraph three.
 My third paragraph discusses three current challenges to development.
 I described these challenges with details and facts.
o I wrote about why my country is not developed in paragraph four.
 I connect history and current conditions.
 I described three major challenges to development, using connections between
history and current conditions.
o I wrote about a solution to my country’s development challenges in paragraph five.
 My solution is based on class lessons and extra research.
 My additional research includes a link/website title or title/author of book on the
last page.
o Additional Considerations
 I proof read and spell checked my paper.
 I made sure there are no grammatical errors. My sentences are complete,
arguments are organized, and there are no errors in punctuation, capitalization, or
spelling.
Country Case Study Rubric
Criteria
Points
Exceeds
Expectations (90-100%)
Meets
Expectations (80-89%)
Below Expectations
(70-79%)
Country
Context
10
Student accurately
describes relevant country
information including
location, employment,
GDP, literacy rate, infant
mortality, and two or more
other political-socioeconomic characteristics.
Student accurately
describes relevant country
information including
location, employment,
GDP, literacy rate, and
child mortality.
Student describes
some relevant
country information,
but information is
inaccurate or
lacking detail.
Historical
Analysis
20
Student correctly describes
all relevant historical
information concerning
colonization and
independence. Student
identifies two or more
negative legacies resulting
from colonization.
Student correctly describes
relevant historical
information concerning
colonization, including
when and how
independence was obtained.
Student identifies two
negative legacies resulting
from colonization.
Current
Challenges
Analysis
20
Student factually identifies
and describes with detail
two or more major and
current challenges to
development
Student factually identifies
and describes two current
challenges to development
Student describes
some historical
information
concerning
colonization and
independence with
errors in facts or
missing details.
Student identifies at
least one legacy
resulting from
colonization.
Student identifies
and describes a
challenge to
development, but is
missing some detail
and accuracy.
Synthesis
25
Student makes a clear and
strong connection between
history and current
challenges. Student
provides detailed support
for three or more causes of
underdevelopment, using
historical/current
conditions.
Student makes a connection
between history and current
challenges. Student
supports three reasons for
underdevelopment with
historical/current
conditions.
Student weakly
connects history and
current challenges.
Student does not
adequately use
history or current
conditions to
support underdevelopment.
Solutions
20
Student develops a detailed
strategy to assist the
country’s development,
supported by class lessons
and research.
Student develops a strategy
to assist the country’s
development, supported by
class lessons.
Student develops
strategy to assist the
country’s
development, but it
is not supported by
lessons or research.
Student fails to
develop a strategy
to assist the
country’s
development.
Style
5
Student exercises control of
grammatical conventions,
including organization,
sentence structure,
punctuation, and spelling.
Student exercises some
control of grammatical
conventions, including
organization, sentence
structure, punctuation, and
spelling, with fewer than
three minor errors.
Student lacks
control of
grammatical
conventions, with
major grammatical
errors.
Student has little
control of
grammatical
conventions, with
many distracting
grammatical errors.
Total Points: 100
Off-track from
Expectations (69%
or less)
Student describes
little relevant
country
information and
misses major
information.
Student describes
little or erroneous
historical
information
concerning
colonization and
independence.
Student fails to
identify the legacy
of colonization.
Student does not
identify and
describes a
challenge to
development or
does with little
detail and
accuracy.
Student makes
little or no
connection
between history
and current
challenges. Student
does not address or
support reasons for
underdevelopment.
Planning Commentary:
Because my use of Backwards Design was described in my reflection, I will focus other
aspects of my planning process. As mentioned in the reflection, the embryonic big idea that
guided this unit was the notion that the world in unequal. This big idea was broken down into
supporting ideas about the role of colonization, struggles for and after independence,
globalization, and the promise of change. These big ideas work well with eighth grade Global
Studies, though high school World History would also have related standards. My interest in this
topic stems from my own interests in social justice, travel, world history, international relations,
and globalization. Therefore, it was not difficult for me to develop the lesson. This lesson was
developed using Backwards Design, as described in the reflection.
Not addressed in the reflection was how this lesson can appeal to the needs and interests
of Middle School learners. To this end, I focused upon a few characteristics of young adolescent
learners from Turning Point: Transforming Middle Schools. One of the psychological
characteristics of young adolescent learners is concern with their self and their own identity. To
meet this psychological need, I included activities such as small group learning, a writing
journal, and questions meant to connect the classroom material to their own experiences. For
instance, students keep a writing journal where they can react to films, poems, or songs, deciding
what they think these mean. This activity helps the student reflect on material, but also create
their own meaning in the classroom. Another characteristic of young adolescent learners is an
interest in social justice and idealism. The whole unit is centered upon this need, as the unit
seeks to show both how the world is unequal, but how measures can be taken to make things
more just and equitable.
Turning Points: Transforming Middle School also posits that one of the physical and
intellectual needs of adolescents is to be active in their learning experiences. To this end, I tried
to incorporate a hands-on activity involving examining fair trade products, creating interactive
time lines, playing a Monopoly game, and doing a map land grab of Africa. Based upon
discussions in my Social Studies Methods Class, I incorporated a T-Chart to help students
organize their thinking on the advantages and disadvantages of globalization. I also tried to
minimize the amount of lecture and provide a wide range of activities to appeal to different
learning styles. Some of these activities included videos, small group discussion, individual
work, writing, sampling food, listing to poetry, playing music, and examining labels. This also
was meant to appeal to multiple intelligences, which was discussed in greater length in the
reflection.
Knowledge gained from my Social Studies Methods course also shaped the planning of
this lesson. In this course, I developed a two day lesson on fair trade and free trade. This lesson
was incorporated into the unit, as it was also tied to standards for eight grade Global Studies.
Activities, lessons, and learning objectives developed for that lesson helped to flesh out this unit,
while providing me with practice since the lesson was given to other students in the course. As a
whole, the unit employed some best practices found in Turning Points: Transforming Middle
Schools and in EDU 5341 Middle School Methods, as well as the Backwards Design, Critical
Pedagogy, and Multiple Intelligences, which were described in the reflection.
Source:
Turning Points: Transforming Middle Schools (2005) Center for Collaborative Education
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED509759.pdf