You are about to embark on a journey through the past and then into the future with a unit entitled Envisioning a More Perfect Future: An Exploration of Dysotpias and Utopias. This is a unit on envisioning a better future for you, for your peers, for your family – for the rest of the world. We are living in a global society and this unit will provide you with the opportunity to design your own perfect world. You will establish the habits, practices, and organizing social structures that citizens will follow in your utopian society – in your perfect world. In order to do so, you will research and study fictionalized dystopias and real-life utopias. You will participate in a series of lessons plans and classroom activities so that you can demonstrate their understanding of both utopias and dystopias.
As this is an interdisciplinary unit, you will be asked to engaged in a number of different learning experiences including:
As this is an interdisciplinary unit, you will be asked to engaged in a number of different learning experiences including:
- Opinion Surveys
- Internet Research
- Selection and reading of dystoipian novels (e.g. 1984, Brave New World, Feed, Divergent)
- Online WebQuests and Research
- Creative Writing
- Creative Arts
21st Century Skills Addressed in This Unit
To address knowledge, skills, and attitudes for a global society, the goals for Envisioning a More Perfect Future were taken from 21st Century Skills. For the purposes of this assignment, they are further categorized as: conceptual-content goals and process/product goals. The major conceptual goal of Envisioning a More Perfect Future is for the students to develop knowledge about and passion for creating a better world – for becoming global citizens. In terms of content, students will examine citizenship (1) through non-examples of dystopia fiction, (2) historical and influential leaders, (3) researching current thoughts and ideas about utopias, and (4) designing their perfect society – utopia.
Civic Literacy (content goals)
Throughout this unit, students will explore the knowledge and learn the skills related to Civic Literacy (content goals). By the end of this unit, students will be able to clearly articulate:
Global Issues (content goals)
By the end of the unit, students will demonstrate the ability to understand and address global issues. A sub-goal is students will learn about individuals representing diverse cultures, religions and lifestyles in a spirit of mutual respect. (http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework/256)
Students research historical utopian and dystopian societies and reflect on their own society.
Information and Media Literacy Skills (process and product goals)
By the end of this unit, students will be able to:
Communication Skills (process and product goals)
By the end of this unit, students will
By the end of the unit, students will demonstrate the ability to:
By the end of the unit, students will demonstrate the ability to:
By the end of this unit, students will begin to:
Throughout this unit, students will explore the knowledge and learn the skills related to Civic Literacy (content goals). By the end of this unit, students will be able to clearly articulate:
- Participating effectively in civic life through knowing how to stay informed and understanding governmental processes
- Exercising the rights and obligations of citizenship at local, state, national and global levels
- Understanding the local and global implications of civic decisions (http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework/258)
Global Issues (content goals)
By the end of the unit, students will demonstrate the ability to understand and address global issues. A sub-goal is students will learn about individuals representing diverse cultures, religions and lifestyles in a spirit of mutual respect. (http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework/256)
Students research historical utopian and dystopian societies and reflect on their own society.
Information and Media Literacy Skills (process and product goals)
By the end of this unit, students will be able to:
- Understand, manage and create effective oral, written and/or multimedia communication in a variety of forms and contexts
- Analyze, access, manage, integrate, evaluate and create information in a variety of forms and media (http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework/264)
Communication Skills (process and product goals)
By the end of this unit, students will
- Articulate thoughts and ideas effectively using oral, written and nonverbal communication skills in a variety of forms and contexts
- Listen effectively to decipher meaning, including knowledge, values, attitudes and intentions
- Use communication for a range of purposes (e.g. to inform, instruct, motivate and persuade)
- Utilize multiple media and technologies, and know how to judge their effectiveness a priori as well as assess their impact (http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework/261)
By the end of the unit, students will demonstrate the ability to:
- Understand the interconnections among systems
- Frame, analyze and solve problems
- Solve different kinds of non-familiar problems in both conventional and innovative ways
- Identify and ask significant questions that clarify various points of view and lead to better solutions (http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework/260)
By the end of the unit, students will demonstrate the ability to:
- Use a wide range of idea creation techniques (such as brainstorming)
- Create new and worthwhile ideas (both incremental and radical concepts)
- Elaborate, refine, analyze and evaluate their own ideas in order to improve and maximize creative efforts
- Act on creative ideas to make a tangible and useful contribution to the field in which the innovation will occur (http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework/262)
By the end of this unit, students will begin to:
- Demonstrate integrity and ethical behavior in personal, workplace and community contexts
- Set and meet high standards and goals for one's self and others
- Utilize time efficiently and manage workload
- Exercise personal responsibility and flexibility in personal, workplace and community contexts
- Monitor one's own understanding and learning needs
- Act responsibly with the interests of the larger community in mind (http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework/266)