Standard
3: Language for Critical Analysis and Evaluation
Students will read, write, listen, and
speak for critical analysis and evaluation.
As listeners and readers, students will
analyze experiences, ideas, information, and issues presented by others using a variety of
established criteria. As speakers and writers, they will present, in oral and written
language and from a variety of perspectives, their opinions and judgments on experiences,
ideas, information and issues.
Key
Idea 1
Listening and Reading:
Listening and reading to analyze and
evaluate experiences, ideas, information, and issues requires using evaluative criteria
from a variety of perspectives and recognizing the difference in evaluations based on
different sets of criteria.
Performance Indicators
(Benchmarks)
Elementary
Level Students:
- read and form opinions about a variety of
literary and informational texts and presentations, as well as persuasive texts such as
advertisements, commercials, and letters to the editor
- make decisions. about the quality and
dependability of texts and experiences based on some criteria, such as the attractiveness
of the illustrations and appeal of the characters in a picture book, or the logic and
believability of the claims made Ii an advertisement
- recognize that the criteria that one uses
to analyze and evaluate anything depend on one’s point of view and purpose for the
analysis
- evaluate their own strategies for reading
and listening critically (such as recognizing bias or false claims, and understanding the
difference between fact and opinion) and adjust those strategies to understand the
experience more fully.
Middle Level Students:
- analyze, interpret, and evaluate
information, ideas, organization, and language from academic and non-academic texts, such
as textbooks, public documents, book and movie reviews, and editorials
- assess the quality of texts and
presentations, using criteria related to the genre, the subject area, and purpose (e.g.,
using the criteria of accuracy objectivity comprehensiveness, and understanding of the
game to evaluate a sports editorial)
- understand that within any group there are
many different points of view depending on the particular interests and values of the
individual, and recognize those differences in perspective in texts and presentations
(e.g., in considering whether to let a new industry come into a community, some community
members might be enthusiastic about the additional jobs that will be created while others
are concerned about the air and noise pollution that could result.)
- evaluate their own and others’ work
based on a variety of criteria (e.g., logic, clarity comprehensiveness, conciseness,
originality conventionality) and recognize the varying effectiveness of different
approaches.
Commencement Level
Students
- analyze, interpret, and evaluate ideas,
information, organization, and language of a wide range of general and technical texts and
presentations across subject areas, including technical manuals, professional journals,
political speeches, and literary criticism
- evaluate the quality of the texts and
presentations from a variety of critical perspectives within the field of study (e.g.,
using both Poe’s elements of a short story and the elements of "naturalist
fiction" to evaluate a modern story)
- make precise determinations about the
perspective of a particular writer or speaker by recognizing the relative weight they
place on particular arguments and criteria (e.g., one critic condemns a biography as too
long and rambling another praises it for its accuracy and never mentions its length)
- evaluate and compare their own and
others’ work with regard to different criteria and recognize the change in
evaluations when different criteria are considered to be more important.
Key Idea
2
Speaking and Writing:
Speaking and writing for critical
analysis and evaluation requires presenting opinions and judgments on experiences, ideas,
information, and issues clearly, logically, and persuasively with reference to specific
criteria on which the opinion or judgment is based.
Performance Indicators
(Benchmarks)
Elementary
Level Students:
- express opinions (in such forms as oral
and written reviews, letters to the editor, essays, or persuasive speeches) about events,
books, Issues, and experiences, supporting their opinions with some evidence
- present arguments for certain views or
actions with reference to specific criteria that support the argument (e.g., an argument
to purchase a particular piece of playground equipment might be based on the criteria of
safety, appeal to children, durability, and low cost.)
- monitor and adjust their own oral and
written presentations to meet criteria for competent performance (e.g., in writing.the
criteria might include development of position, organization, appropriate vocabulary
mechanics, and neatness. in speaking. the criteria might include good content, effective
delivery diction, posture, poise, and eye contact.)
- use effective vocabulary and follow the
rules of grammar, usage, spelling, and punctuation in persuasive writing.
Middle Level Students:
- present (in essays, position papers,
speeches, and debates) clear analyses of issues, ideas, texts, and experiences, supporting
their positions with well. developed arguments
- develop arguments with effective use of
details and evidence that reflect a coherent set of criteria (e.g., reporting results of
lab experiments to support a hypothesis)
- monitor and adjust their own oral and
written presentations according to the standards for a particular genre (e.g.,defining key
terms used in a formal debate)
- use standard English precise vocabulary
and presentational strategies effectively to influence an audience.
Commencement Level
Students:
- present orally and in writing well
developed analyses of issues, ideas, and texts, explaining the rationale for their
positions and analyzing their positions from a variety of perspectives in such forms as
formal speeches, debates, thesis/support papers, literary critiques, and issues analyses
- make effective use of details, evidence,
and arguments and of presentational strategies to Influence an audience to adopt their
position
- monitor and adjust their own oral and
written presentations to have the greatest influence on a particular audience
- use standard English a broad and precise
vocabulary and the conventions of formal oratory and debate.
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