ELA.12.C.4.1

Conduct research on a topical issue to answer a question and synthesize information from a variety of sources.

Clarifications

Clarification 1: While the benchmark does require that students consult multiple sources, there is no requirement that they use every source they consult. Part of the skill in researching is discernment—being able to tell which information is relevant and which sources are trustworthy enough to include.
General Information
Subject Area: English Language Arts (B.E.S.T.)
Grade: 12
Strand: Communication
Standard: Researching
Date Adopted or Revised: 08/20
Status: State Board Approved

Related Courses

This benchmark is part of these courses.
0500330: Executive Internship 4 (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 - 2023, 2023 and beyond (current))
0500530: Personal, Career, and School Development Skills 4 (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 - 2023, 2023 and beyond (current))
1001410: English Honors 4 (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1001470: Applied Communications 2 (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 - 2023, 2023 and beyond (current))
1001480: Communications Methodology Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1002520: English 4 Through ESOL (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1006333: Journalism 7 Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1006334: Journalism 8 Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1007390: Debate 7 Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2019, 2019 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1009332: Creative Writing 4 Honors (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1001400: English 4 (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1001405: English 4: Florida College Prep (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2019, 2019 - 2022, 2022 - 2023, 2023 and beyond (current))
1001402: English 4 for Credit Recovery (Specifically in versions: 2014 - 2015, 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1005312: Modern Literature (Specifically in versions: 2015 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
2400330: Approaches to Leadership Honors (Specifically in versions: 2015 - 2020, 2020 - 2022, 2022 - 2023, 2023 and beyond (current))
7910135: Access English 4 (Specifically in versions: 2017 - 2018, 2018 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1020870: Ancient Literature Honors (Specifically in versions: 2018 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1700630: GEAR Up 4 (Specifically in versions: 2020 - 2022, 2022 and beyond (current))
1005353: Humane Letters 4 Literature (Specifically in versions: 2020 - 2022, 2022 - 2023, 2023 and beyond (current))
1005354: Humane Letters 4 Literature Honors (Specifically in versions: 2020 - 2022, 2022 - 2023, 2023 and beyond (current))

Related Access Points

Alternate version of this benchmark for students with significant cognitive disabilities.
ELA.12.C.4.AP.1: Summarize research on a topic to answer a question from a variety of sources.

Related Resources

Vetted resources educators can use to teach the concepts and skills in this benchmark.

Lesson Plans

Out of Order: Stories from the History of the Supreme Court: Riding the Circuit:

In this lesson for Out of Order: Stories from the History of the Supreme Court, students will review the research presented in the text to explain the roles of the Supreme and Lesser courts.

There are three lessons that can be used to complement a study of Out of Order: Stories from the History of the Supreme Court and allow students to take a new perspective by merging ELA skills with civics knowledge.

This resource uses a book that is on the Florida Department of Education's reading list. This book is not provided with this resource.

Type: Lesson Plan

Resumes Part 2: Writing a Resume's Experience Section:

To practice resume writing, students will conduct research on a famous person and write the work/volunteer experience section of the person’s resume in this lesson.

Type: Lesson Plan

ECE Career Paths Part 1: Career Research:

Students will research a desired early childhood education career path, including identifying any specific skills, industry certification or degree requirements. Students will share their research with a partner and devise a plan to present their information to the class.

Type: Lesson Plan

ECE Career Paths Part 4: Professional Development:

Students will explore professional development opportunities from various early childhood education agencies in this lesson plan. Students will compile information into a resource collection used for their professional portfolio, to be referenced later in their career development. Students will identify areas of interest for professional development and focus on opportunities related to their areas of interest.

Type: Lesson Plan

Comparing Unsecured Loans:

Students will conduct research to identify, compare, and discuss characteristics of personal loans, student loans, and unsecured credit cards in this lesson plan.

Type: Lesson Plan

Comparing Secured Loans:

Students will conduct research to identify, compare, and discuss characteristics of auto loans, mortgages, and secured credit cards, in this lesson plan.

Type: Lesson Plan

Defining Fitness Roles:

Using the case study, "Scope of Practice Predicament" (CPALMS Resource #209586), students will organize the potential roles and responsibilities that exist for each professional that is present in the text. Once students have completed organizing the job tasks, they will conduct research into existing federal medical laws to create their own laws to protect fitness professionals, health and wellness facilities, and patients/clients.

Type: Lesson Plan

Art as a Career:

In part 1 of this unit, students identified the work of several local artists. They became familiar with various visual art related careers. In this lesson, part 2, students will choose one visual art related career to research in order to determine requisite skills, identify qualifications, analyze supply-and-demand, compare market location, and estimate potential earnings for the chosen career.

Type: Lesson Plan

Sources of Income:

Students will conduct research to explore then compare and contrast different sources of income, in this lesson plan.

Type: Lesson Plan

The Importance of Professionalism in the Workplace:

Using the case study, "Training Day: The Importance of Professionalism in the Workplace," students will research proper business etiquette and effective workplace communication. 

Type: Lesson Plan

Factors Affecting Income:

Students will conduct research to synthesize information on two different career choices, their education requirements, and necessary technical skills then analyze how different factors can affect income, in this lesson plan.

Type: Lesson Plan

Unsecured and Secured Loans:

Students will conduct research to identify characteristics of secured and unsecured loans, in this lesson plan.

Type: Lesson Plan

The Specifics of Supply and Demand:

This lesson is designed to teach the specifics of supply and demand. Determinants, as well as effects on supply and demand, will be covered. Students will then be asked to research headlines and analyze the supply and demand represented in the news articles.

Type: Lesson Plan

Budgeting: Finding Personal Financial Success:

During this lesson, students will learn about budgets, checking and savings accounts, and interest. They will then have a research activity to focus on their future lives, which they will use to create a budget for their lives after they have finished their education and/or job training. This budget will be created using a spreadsheet or other technology to explore how various factors, such as interest rates, will affect their budget and necessary income.

Type: Lesson Plan

Privacy: A Matter of National Security?:

In this lesson, students will embark upon a journey of espionage and inquire how the rights of one can become a barrier for the greater good of a nation. This is the first lesson in a three-part unit evaluating the concept of privacy, surveillance, and technology. After learning briefly about former NSA agent Edward Snowden, students will research to find more information on Snowden’s actions and surrounding events. activity will require students to use textual support, reasoning and relevancy of the text, and analyze an author's claims. Students will synthesize the arguments, information, and claims within the text to participate in a class debate on whether Snowden is should be celebrated or considered a traitor.

Type: Lesson Plan

Emily Dickinson: Poet Extraordinaire of Language, Time, and Space: Part 2:

This is part two in a series of three exploring and analyzing Emily Dickinson's style. In part two, students will use the historical and literary research conducted in part one and they will read and analyze a variety of her letters written during the Romantic Period. Students will use their analysis of the letters as sources for the summative assessment, a letter to the editor written in response to one or several of Dickinson's letters or topics.

Type: Lesson Plan

Emily Dickinson: Poet Extraordinaire of Language, Time, and Space: Part 1:

This lesson is part one in a series of three lessons analyzing the language of Emily Dickinson, researching the Romantic Period, and comparing her works to her contemporaries. In part one of this lesson series, students will work in small groups to analyze the language of Emily Dickinson's poems, they will research the literary period of The Romantic Period, and they will create a re-envisioned poem using information gleaned from their small group discussions, research, and whole group discussions.

Type: Lesson Plan

Styrofoam Eliminators:

This Model Eliciting Activity (MEA) is written at a 5th grade level. The Styrofoam Eliminators MEA provides students with an engineering problem in which they must work as a team to design a procedure to select the best alternative to using Styrofoam trays in school cafeterias.

Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom.

Type: Lesson Plan

Avoiding Debt:

Using the case study, “A Journey to Becoming Debt Free,” students will engage in a discussion about the case, do research on what good versus bad credit looks like, consider the causes and effects of incurring debt, and research different methods for avoiding debt. Students will summarize their findings and post their summaries on a discussion board to share with the class.

Type: Lesson Plan

Dietary Lifestyle Decision:

Using the case study, “The Healthy Meal Choice,” students will survey and discuss their ideas about personal choices regarding food lifestyle choices, and the impact on changing meal planning to include dietary changes for medical condition and family integration. Upon consensus within the group, students will research and plan updated meals for the family in the case study.

Type: Lesson Plan

Emily Dickinson: Poet Extraordinaire of Language, Time, and Space Part 3:

This is the culminating lesson in a three-part series exploring and analyzing Emily Dickinson's style. In part one, students conducted historical and literary research on the Romantic Period, in part two, students used historical and literary research as they read and analyzed a variety of Dickinson’s letters written during the Romantic Period. In this lesson, students will investigate primary and secondary documents on movements that influenced Dickinson and will create a literary reference kit to share with the class - a collection of materials that are representative of the period.

Type: Lesson Plan

Essential Liberty v. Temporary Safety:

In this lesson, students will explore the concepts of individual rights and freedoms as opposed to the good of society using currently relevant topics. Students will participate in small-group and teacher-led discussions, research, collaboration, and debate to gain understanding and to present their findings and conclusions, supported by evidence, about the issues and implications of their assigned topics. Supporting materials will enable the teacher to guide students to consider, explore, and respond to the guiding question of whether it"s appropriate in a democratic society to give up essential liberties for temporary safety.

Type: Lesson Plan

Fundraising Activity:

This lesson is part 2 in a series of 3 lessons where students determine a group or cause in need of funding, create a fundraising plan, and present their plan to a “board of directors.” In part 1, students researched and compared fundraising ideas from various sources, including their own experience with fundraising activities or events. Students also researched fundraising rules in the state of Florida to determine the necessary forms and information needed to legitimize their fundraisers. In this lesson plan, part 2, students will use their research to determine an innovative way to fundraise for their chosen group or cause and will prepare an outline and an oral presentation to be given in part 3 of the lesson series.

Type: Lesson Plan

Guilt Trip:

Using the case study, Guilt Trip, students will have a better understanding of market segmentation and how it is not only defined by demographics but also lifestyle preferences. They will also have a better understanding of how their own personality types influence their choices as well as their relationships with others, including their friends. Accordingly, this will further facilitate their understanding of how individual personality traits influence travel decisions, particularly where two or more travelers are involved.

Type: Lesson Plan

Hard and Soft Skills:

Students will be able to define hard and soft skills and why they are important to the workplace. Students will also research specific Information Technology hard skills and self-assess their own hard and soft skills. Students will develop strategies and goals to strengthen their career skills in this lesson plan.

Type: Lesson Plan

Hospitality and Federal Regulations:

Using the case study, “Will this Stay be ADA compliant?” students will identify federal regulations that public and private businesses must adhere to for guests.

Type: Lesson Plan

Meal Planning and Budgeting for Families:

Using the case study, “Dining Out Dilemma: How to Meal Plan and Budget for Busy Families," students will research and identify meal planning, budgeting and comparative shopping strategies that families can use to save money.

Type: Lesson Plan

Researching Employee Benefits:

Using case study, Employers Supporting Employees, students will conduct research on a variety of employer-provided benefits. Students will then use their research to brainstorm an idea for an outcome to the case study.

Type: Lesson Plan

Summer Job or Future Career: Researching Careers in Agriculture:

Using the case study, “Summer Job or Future Career?” students will research possible careers in the agriculture industry. They will research how many years of college they will need and the projected pay. They will also investigate the job outlook, or need, for this field in Florida.

Type: Lesson Plan

To Sue or Not to Sue?:

Using the case study, “Inspiration vs Copyright Infringement,” students will use the case study to create arguments to affirm and negate both sides of an argument presented in the case. The students will use their notes, research, and personal knowledge to build their cases. At the end of the class, students will write a summary explaining the case using evidence and research.

Type: Lesson Plan

What are the steps of starting a business?:

Using the case study, “To Start or Not Start a Business,” students will research the advantages and disadvantages of different forms of business ownership. Students will then provide a recommendation for a corresponding case study scenario. Students will also discuss vocabulary on business management to help better understand the process of starting a business.

Type: Lesson Plan

STEM Lessons - Model Eliciting Activity

Styrofoam Eliminators:

This Model Eliciting Activity (MEA) is written at a 5th grade level. The Styrofoam Eliminators MEA provides students with an engineering problem in which they must work as a team to design a procedure to select the best alternative to using Styrofoam trays in school cafeterias.

Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom.

Student Resources

Vetted resources students can use to learn the concepts and skills in this benchmark.

Parent Resources

Vetted resources caregivers can use to help students learn the concepts and skills in this benchmark.