Identification of Learning Problem

The target audience for my collaborative unit on digital citizenship is a group of 10th grade
students at Banks County High School. They are members of Mrs. Passs American Literature class.
Through an interview with Mrs. Pass she indicated that her students were weak in the area of copyright
laws especially when they related to plagiarism and correctly citing material. She said that her class had
covered how to cite material but the students still displayed weaknesses in the area. She emphasized the
importance of her students knowing about copyright and how to correctly cite material they have used for
purposes beyond the classroom and beyond high school. The goal of this instructional unit will be for
students of Mrs. Passs class to why copyright laws are in place and be able to identify when plagiarism
has occurred.
Learner Analysis
The students taking part in this instructional unit are all 10th grade students enrolled in Mrs. Passs 6th7th period American Literature course. These students are of varying ability levels, but no students in the
class have been identified as gifted learners or currently require a 504 plan or IEP. They are all either 15
or 16 years old. There are 8 male students and 10 female students. Approximately 90% percent of the
class is Caucasian while 10% percent of the class is something other than Caucasian.
Task Analysis
For this unit of instruction, I have completed a procedural analysis of better understanding the reason for
copyright laws and increasing one's ability to identify plagiarism. Mrs. Pass and I will serve as the SMEs
because we have experience with copyright law and identifying plagiarism in academic work.
1. Understand the definition of copyright.
a. Identify examples of when copyright laws have been broken
2. Understand why copyright laws exist.
3. Be able to create examples of copyright laws obeyed and copyright laws broken.
4. Identify aspects of scenarios where copyright laws either have or have not been followed
5. Understand definition of plagiarism
6. Discuss the significance of citing material
7. Understand correct citation procedure
8. Identify incorrect citation procedure
9. Be able to locate citation resources

Learning Objectives
Objective #1:
Students will be familiar with basic copyright laws
Objective #2
Students will be able to identify when copyright laws have or have not been followed.
Objective #3
Students will understand the importance of citing resources
Objective #4
Students will be able to find a citation error given an incorrect citation.

Assessments
The first assessment given will ask student to do two things. First the students will get with a
group and create two scenarios. In one scenarios they will describe an event where copyright laws were
broken. In the other scenario they will describe an events where copyright laws were followed. Once they
have created these scenarios they will share them on a Padlet. Once some examples have been shared they
will respond to at least one. They will say whether it is an example of correct or incorrect copyright
procedure and why.
The second assessment will ask students to share why they think it is important to cite material.
This will be a class discussion and the instructors will observe and facilitate the discussion.

Content Sequencing and Instructional Strategies

Sequence

Description

Objective

Kahoot quiz on copyright laws

1,2

Presentation on copyright laws

and examples

1,2

Create good and bad copyright

examples

Respond to 1 example saying

why it is right or wrong

Video on basics of citations

3,4

Discussion of importance of
citations

Examples and identification of

citation mistakes

Create Listly with 3 citation

resources

1. Kahoot quiz on copyright laws

This step will allow the students to begin thinking about copyright and the laws associated with
the topic. It will allow the instructors to see how much the students know about copyright laws. It
will also allow the students to see their own misunderstandings of copyright.
2. Presentation on copyright laws and examples
This will allow the students to better understand copyright by seeing its definition and discussing
and observing when and why laws were broken in given examples.
3.

Create good and bad copyright examples

In this step the students will create and share their copyright examples. It will allow them to
consider copyright laws and apply their knowledge to creating situation involving copyright laws.

4.

Respond to 1 example saying whether it is right or wrong

In this step of instruction, the students will be asked to correctly identify whether a shared
scenario is an example of correct or incorrect copyright procedure. They will also have to explain
why to further their understandings of copyright laws.

5.

Video on citation basics

In this step students will watch a video on the basics of citation. It will show why citations are
important and how you can tell if citation rules have been followed correctly.

6.

Discussion of importance of citations

This step of instruction will involve students discussing why they think it is important to cite
material. The instructors will guide the discussion and add content when appropriate to keep the
discussion on the right track.

7.

Examples and identification of citation mistakes

As a class the students will be presented with examples of citations where errors have been made.
In teams they will discuss and identify where they think the mistake is. The instructor will lead
short discussions after each example to identify correct answers.

8.

Create Listly with at least 3 citation resources

In this step each student and his or her partner will create a Listly list of citation resources that
can be used to make sure citation are correct when citing material. They will share the address of
this list with the instructors.

Instructional Design Summary

1.

Gaining Attention of Learners

The first activity will be taking a quiz. Through

this the participants will see what they know
about copyright and what they do not know as
well.

2.

Informing Learners of Objectives

I will introduce the objectives during my

introduction to help focus our instruction for
the participants.

3.

Activating Relevant Prior Knowledge

Students will be reminded of an annotated

bibliography project they completed prior to
this instruction. They will be asked to

remember where they struggled on that

assignment.
4.

Content Delivery

The content will be delivered online as well as

in person. Each participant will have his or her
own device to use and follow along with the
lesson and complete some of the activities.

5.

Sequence of Instruction

1.

The learners will complete the

introductory quiz.

2.

I will inform the learners of the

objectives of the workshop.

3.

We will present the presentation on

copyright law along with several examples

4.

Students will form groups and create two

examples of copyright in action. 1 will be
correct, 1 will be incorrect.
5.

Students will respond to at least one

posting and state whether copyright was used

correctly and why/why not to demonstrate
mastery.
6.

Students will watch video on citation

basics and examples of citation done
incorrectly

7.

Students will discuss the importance of

citation in a discussion facilitated by the
instructors.

8.

Instructors will show citation examples

and discuss with students whether they are

correct or incorrect in their answers to whether
the citations were one correctly or not.
9. Students will get with a partner and create a
Listly with at least 3 citation resources.
6.

Feedback

Feedback for the learners will be provided

during the instruction as they work through the
activities. Students will also receive feedback
from their classmates during the discussions
and Padlet activity.

7.

Differentiation/UDL

The instruction given will be modeled so that

different levels of learners can see each step.
Instruction will be broken into pieces to allow
time for participants to ask clarifying
questions. The instruction will also be
available online through an online module if
the participants need additional resources or
learn more effectively through that medium.
Often time the activities involve group work so
that students can work with other students to

further their understanding. Multiple mediums

are used to disseminate information to different
types of learners. Ample time for discussions
and questions will be provided.

Formative Evaluation
Students will finish the unit by taking an assessment on a Google Form to show their growth
towards the goal and objectives set. The data gathered will be used to inform and revise instruction. It will
also indicate what objectives need to be revisited.