Students will: 
Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matters uncertain.

Analyze how a text uses structure to emphasize key points or advance an explanation or analysis.

Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.

Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.

Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.

Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

Mrs. Bixler is a National Board Certified English Language Arts educator who has taught at the middle and high school levels, as well as at the university level.  Teaching students how to critically analyze sources has been integral to her teaching practice, and that includes the critical analysis of media sources. 

Students will be asked to search multiple media resources on their own, analyze those sources, and share their conclusion with the class.  Students will also conduct an interview of an individual, then write a sensationalized version of that interview.
Finally, students will compare and contrast news sources, looking for fact, opinion, bias, sensationalism, slant, spin, unsubstantiated claims, and more. 
Homework should take about 1 hour per week to complete, outside of class.

Additionally, students will be asked to watch or read news about current world events so that they may engage in class discussions about the 8 types of media bias.

Informal assessment is ongoing, but formal grades may be provided upon request.

50 minutes per week in class, and an estimated 1 - 2 hours per week outside of class.