Primary Source Exemplar: Human Rights, Conflict and Social Change

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to recall and define structural elements of a formal argument

Students will be able to identify elements of a formal argument in Eleanor Roosevelt’s “Adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights” speech

Students will be able to evaluate Roosevelt’s argument

Students will be able to create a claim regarding the effectiveness of Roosevelt’s argument and write an argumentative paragraph asserting and defending their claim using formal argument structure and evidence from the text.

Standards Addressed

(CCSS Math Content Standards, CCSS Math Practice Standards, CCSS ELA Reading or Writing Anchor Standards, CCSS ELA Standards (other), Next Generation Science Standard, History / Social Science Standards)

(RI.9-10.1) Students will be able to cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text

(RI.9-10.2) Students will be able to determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including how it is shaped and refined by specific details

(RI.9-10.3) Students will analyze how the author unfolds an analysis or series of ideas or events, including the order in which the points are made, how they are introduced and developed, and the connections that are drawn between them.

(RI.9-10.8) Students will be able to delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient

(RI.9-10.9) Students will be able to analyze seminal US documents of historical significance

(SL.9-10.3) Students will be able to evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric

(W.9-10.1) Students will be able to write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence

Instructional Approach

Introduce the lesson

The teacher should ask students to identify questions they still have regarding the UDHR. Students can write questions on sticky notes and put them on a wall or white board in the classroom or they can share with one another in small groups or as a whole class.

The teacher should tell students that they are going to look at a document that influenced the adoption of the UDHR and that they are going to analyze it on multiple levels. First, they are going to look at it to see how it provides additional information regarding the UDHR.

The teacher should pass out the excerpts from Eleanor Roosevelt’s “On the Adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”

The teacher should instruct students to read the excerpts looking for any information that adds to their understanding of the UDHR. Students should mark these areas in the text, and the teacher should guide students in a discussion of what they learn about the UDHR from Roosevelt’s speech. Students should learn that there were 58 “states” involved in creating the document (the teacher might ask students what they think is meant by “states” and clarify any misconceptions), that the UDHR was created and adopted in the wake of the Holocaust and WWII, that it was not a simple document to create and that there were many discussion about what to include, etc. As Roosevelt states, “There are of course particular provisions in the Declaration before us with which we are not fully satisfied. I have no doubt this is true of other delegations, and it would still be true if we continued our labors over many years.” The teacher should use this quotation to engage students in a discussion of competing notions of human rights. The teacher might ask, for example, how different groups of people might interpret the Articles of the UDHR in different ways and how these different interpretations might lead to conflict. The teacher might provide a specific article for students to consider and ask them to think of recent or current conflicts that show competing notions of human rights.

Model and demonstrate desired learning

Next, the teacher should ask students to determine Roosevelt’s argument. In other words, what is the purpose of her speech? The teacher should provide students an opportunity to return to the text to find evidence to support their positions. The teacher might ask students to write a paragraph summarizing Roosevelt’s argument and to share these with the class.

The teacher should then provide direct instruction on the basic structure of an argument. This instruction should include an introduction to the idea of concession as well as a discussion of claims, sub-claims, and evidence.

Provide guided practice

The teacher should ask students to analyze Roosevelt’s argument by identifying her overall position and concession as well as claims and sub-claims. Additionally, ask students to determine the evidence Roosevelt uses to support her position. Students might work individually, in pairs, or in groups to do this work.

After students have analyzed the document, the teacher should guide students in a discussion of the structure of the argument. For example, the teacher might ask why Roosevelt begins with her concession. The teacher might also ask about the order of Roosevelt’s claims and the effectiveness of her evidence. The teacher might ask questions such as: Why does Roosevelt end her argument with the clearest statement of her purpose instead of starting with a clear statement of her purpose? How does this order impact your understanding of her purpose? Why does Roosevelt include quotations in her speech? What do these quotations add to her argument? What is the significance of Roosevelt’s allusions to other declarations? What is the significance of her allusions to the Nazi’s? How do these allusions impact her meaning, purpose, or tone?

After a discussion specific to an analysis of Roosevelt’s argument – including the formal structure of an argument – the teacher might use this document as an opportunity to review analysis of other key elements including key words and punctuation.

After the document has been discussed, the teacher should ask students to write a brief paragraph evaluating the argument for its effectiveness. The teacher should remind students that they have been writing paragraphs stating claims and supporting those claims with evidence since the beginning of the unit; however, at this time, students should pay attention to the structure of their paragraphs and include all the parts of a formal argument. The teacher should ask students to begin with an overall claim, include specific references to the text to support their reasoning, and include a concession. If desired, the teacher might provide students with a particular point of focus for their paragraphs. For example, the teacher might explain that often in a traditional argument the overall claim comes first instead of last and the concession often comes last. The teacher might then ask students to write their evaluative paragraphs in response to the following question: Did the order in which Roosevelt chose to present her argument enhance or impede its effectiveness? Defend your claim with evidence from the text and explain your reasoning. Another possible evaluation question might be: What is the most effective piece of evidence Eleanor Roosevelt uses in defense of her argument? Defend your claim with evidence from the text and explain your reasoning.

Student Tasks

Outline student tasks in the following areas:

Literacy knowledge tasks

Reading task

Indicate how students will approach the text, i.e. independent silent reading, read aloud; how students will question the text; how students will analyze details.

Students will read and re-read Roosevelt’s speech for multiple purposes. They will begin with an individual reading to determine overall purpose and to identify new information that helps them gain insight into the UDHR. Additional opportunities for reading will allow students the opportunity to analyze the text as an argument as well as to analyze key features including structure, word choice, and punctuation.

Vocabulary task

Indicate how student vocabulary and academic language will be developed.

This lesson offers an opportunity for students to develop academic vocabulary related to the traditional argument: concession, claim, subclaim, substantiated, unsubstantiated, etc.

Sentence syntax task

Indicate how students will learn to speak thoughtfully and with precision.

Students will be provided a structure for creating an effective argument. This structure can be applied not only to writing but also to speaking. Through this lesson, students will analyze the importance of sufficient evidence as well as concession.

Inquiry and analysis task

Indicate how students will build attention to detail, and grow in analyzing, selecting and connecting detail.

Students will be provided with information regarding a formal argument and will be asked to analyze an argument to identify its parts. Additionally, they will look at specific claims and subclaims as well as the evidence that supports each. This opportunity extends their analysis of structure to a particular type of text. Finally, students will have the opportunity to review analysis of key words and punctuation and their impact on meaning, purpose, and tone.

Writing (or other production)

Indicate how this task will help students learn to write. Indicate other forms of production in this task.

Students will be asked to write a brief, but structured, traditional argument with a claim, evidence, and concession.

Checking for Understanding

Note: a performance task will be included at the end of this series of lessons. Determine and outline how you will check for student understanding within this lesson, using some of the suggestions here.

• Guided Discussion

• Summary Paragraphs

• Evaluation Paragraphs

Differentiation/Adaptations/Modifications

Outline adaptations that can be made for English Language Learners, Special Education Students, or other learning contexts.

For ELL students or students with a low Lexile score, the teacher can use a smaller portion of the text if necessary, focusing on just a sub-claim and its support.

For advanced students, the teacher might use the text in its entirety and provide further background information about the process of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the perspective of other countries on specific articles.

Additional Supports

The teacher might model an analysis of structure in an argument using an editorial or other text before students apply their understanding to Roosevelt’s speech. In this case, the teacher should use the additional text to point out the concession, the claims and sub-claims, as well as the evidence used to support the claims and sub-claims.

To provide further support to students as they read and paraphrase Roosevelt’s speech, the teacher might provide a set of Guiding Questions to point students to significant details of the text and to support their understanding of what the text says explicitly.

To provide further support to students as they analyze Roosevelt’s speech, the teacher might use the same Primary Source Document Analysis worksheet used in the initial analysis of the Preamble to the UDHR.

The teacher might provide students with a graphic organizer to help them analyze Roosevelt’s argument. This graphic organizer could ask students to identify her overall position and concession as well as claims and subclaims. Additionally, it could ask students to determine the evidence Roosevelt uses to support her position. Students might work individually, in pairs, or in groups to do this work.

Students might watch a video recording of the speech at http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/eleanorrooseveltdeclarationhumanrights.htm

The teacher might provide students with a paragraph frame for an argumentative paragraph and allow students to fill in the blanks with a claim, evidence, and concession.

If this unit is taught as a stand-alone ELA unit instead of in collaboration with a history teacher, the ELA teacher might want to provide background history and context of Eleanor Roosevelt’s speech and the creation and adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

(Refer to the EQuIP rubric for additional elements to consider)