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Is the High School Obsolete?

Sound Learning Monthly Feature: Is the High School Obsolete?

Is The High School Obsolete? When Minnesota's governor and the world's wealthiest man say, "Yes", people listen. For May, Sound Learning wraps up the school year by exploring Minnesota Public Radio's feature "Is The High School Obsolete?" Through this month's feature, your class can examine the debate swirling around the American high school by comparing arguments made by Governor Tim Pawlenty, Bill Gates and a broad cross-section of Minnesota high school students.

Students will practice critical listening and note taking skills as they evaluate the selected resources, online text, and streamed audio presented in this feature. The suggested discussion questions will guide your students to analyze and interpret the various viewpoints presented, as well as the facts used to support those positions. Use the online stories to spur your students to dig deeper and compare the many perspectives on the issue. As always, this month's lesson templates correlate with the Minnesota Graduation Standards and may be customized to fit your content needs and schedule.

Use these lesson templates to quickly integrate "Is High School Obsolete" with your curriculum.
Document Template for applying listening skills to prepare for a classroom discussion. (Word format)
Document Template for applying listening and reading comprehension skills to prepare for a classroom discussion. (Word format)
Selected Resources
Handouts for using "Is The High School Obsolete?" in your classroom:

PDF3 Circle Venn Diagram for comparing commentaries

PDFHow to Use an Idea Map

Quick Links

Document "High School" News Feature homepage

Audio Commentary from Governor Pawlenty (RealAudio)

Audio Commentary from Bill Gates (RealAudio)

Document Student commentaries and slideshow (Flash)



DocumentWhy audio clips?
DocumentWhat are monthly features?

Monthly Feature Archive
DocumentComposers Datebook (May 2006)
DocumentThe Writer's Almanac (April 2006)
DocumentRSS Feeds, Blogs, and Podcasts (Sept. 2006)
DocumentMore >>

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