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Work Sample & Commentary: Should the Labels…?

The task
Students were asked to research, outline, and write a term paper on a current, controversial topic. The assignment included the selection of a topic of personal interest and the development of a thesis question.

Circumstances of performance
This sample of student work was produced under the following conditions:
alone in a group
in class as homework
with teacher feedback with peer feedback
timed opportunity for revision
This work sample illustrates a standard-setting performance for the following parts of the standards:
c Reading: Read and comprehend informational materials.
e Writing: Produce a persuasive essay.
a Conventions: Demonstrate an understanding of the rules of the English language.

What the work shows
c Reading: The student reads and comprehends informational materials to develop understanding and expertise and produces written or oral work that:
• restates or summarizes information;
• relates new information to prior knowledge and experience;
• extends ideas;
• makes connections to related topics or information.
The student read materials from a variety of sources in order to collect information about the labels that are used to refer to people with disabilities. This reference section includes materials from research studies, journals, popular magazines, and books.

The student summarized the information on the impact of labels and stereotyping to support the discussion and conclusion of the paper.
The work demonstrates that the student was able to extend the ideas presented in these materials and form an opinion.
The work forges connections between more general studies of language and uses them to support the opinion that the way language is used to describe people is important to their self-respect.

e Writing: The student produces a persuasive essay that:
• engages the reader by establishing a context, creating a persona, and otherwise developing reader interest;
• develops a controlling idea that makes a clear and knowledgeable judgment;
• creates an organizing structure that is appropriate to the needs, values, and interests of a specified audience, and arranges details, reasons, examples, and anecdotes effectively and persuasively;
• includes appropriate information and arguments and excludes information and arguments that are irrelevant;
• anticipates and addresses reader concerns and counter-arguments;
• supports arguments with detailed evidence, citing sources of information as appropriate;
• provides a sense of closure to the writing.

Through the title and the discussion of politically correct language, the work draws the reader into the controversy concerning the use of language to identify disabled people.
The controlling idea for the work is developed by presenting various research studies on the impact of labels and stereotyping on people.

The student presented well documented facts and details based on appropriate research that advances a thorough understanding of the issues.

The student used a range of appropriate strategies, such as:
providing facts and details based on research (bibliography and footnotes);
analyzing the subject through a personal reexamination; and
recounting a relevant anecdote based on the experiences of a successful disabled person.

The student created a structure by organizing the material around the arguments for and against the theory that labels affect the status and behavior of people with disabilities. The work develops a sophisticated view that goes beyond the popularly held notion of the benefits of politically correct language by incorporating published research.
The student presented counter-arguments by incorporating an alternative view from a respected disabled person who believes that politically correct language is used for the benefit of the general population and not to aid people with disabilities.
The student’s arguments are based on appropriate research and present both sides of the controversy as is documented by the bibliography. This is also evidenced in the footnotes.
The student provided a strong sense of closure by establishing the importance of seeing disabled people as people regardless of the labels used to describe them.
a Conventions, Grammar, and Usage of the English Language: The student demonstrates an understanding of the rules of the English language in written and oral work, and selects the structures and features of language appropriate to the purpose, audience, and context of the work. The student demonstrates control of:
• grammar;
• paragraph structure;
• punctuation;
• sentence construction;
• spelling;
• usage.

In almost error free writing, the student demonstrated an understanding of the rules of the English language.

The student incorporated a number of techniques used in academic writing, such as footnotes and a reference section. Each of the quotations used are contextualized and referenced. This gives the report a professional look and gives the student’s arguments much more credibility. The student does not, however, do the more extensive processing of information that would be expected at the high school level.

There is an error in the “Sources Consulted” section (“socil” instead of “social”). This appears to be a typographical error since the student spelled this word correctly elsewhere.