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Lesson 2

We will read and analyze “Agents of Change,” which will help frame our research pathways.

Lesson Goals

  • Can I gather and organize relevant and sufficient evidence to demonstrate an understanding of change agents?

  • Can I work productively in various roles with other participants in my pathway group?

Texts

Core

  • Unit Reader
    • “Agents of Change,” Phil Patton, American Heritage, 1994

Materials

Tools

Question Sets

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: Read – Discuss

We will read and discuss “Agents Of Change.”

Step 1

Read the following proverb, commonly known as “For Want of a Nail”:

For want of a nail the shoe was lost;

For want of a shoe the horse was lost;

For want of a horse the battle was lost;

For the failure of battle the kingdom was lost—

All for the want of a horse-shoe nail.

Discuss what the central idea of this proverb is.

Step 2

Follow along while your teacher reads the first seven sentences of “Agents of Change” aloud. Discuss with a partner how the author expands on the central idea of the proverb.

Step 3

Read the second and third paragraphs of “Agents of Change” on your own, and respond to the following questions with a partner:

  1. What does Phil Patton mean when he writes, “Ordinary life is shaped for the most part by ordinary people”? What does this tell you about the “great nail makers” in the article?

  2. How does the author make a case for learning about the “nail makers” of history?

  3. How does a “nail maker” fit into your description of a change agent?

Activity 2: Discuss

We will continue discussing Phil Patton’s change agents using the change agents Note-Taking Tool in preparation for choosing pathway groups.

Step 1

You will work with a group to research change agents under a specific topic of change. You will have six pathways available. You might discover that a change agent had an impact in more than one area. For this reason, change agents can be used in multiple pathways. The pathways are as follows:

  • technological

  • cultural

  • business and marketing

  • humanitarian

  • political

  • scientific

Step 2

You will use a presentation protocol to learn about the change agents in the text “Agents of Change” by Phil Patton and practice learning about change agents in various pathways. Patton writes about 10 “nail-makers.” In small groups, you will be assigned one of these “nail-makers” before reading the section of the article about that individual.

In your groups, you will use the Change Agents Note-Taking Tool and respond to the following questions about the person or people assigned:

  1. What change occurred?

  2. How did the change happen? What were the conditions for the change?

  3. Which pathway does this change agent fit into and why?

In the Change Agents Note-Taking Tool, you will see a row with the name of each change agent. There are three columns next to the names. Record your answer to each of the questions at the top of the chart next to the name of the change agent.

Later, everyone in class will present their change agents in order to learn about all the individuals the author highlights.

Activity 3: Discuss – Listen

We will discuss and explore the different change agents we learned about in Patton’s text using a presentation protocol.

In your groups, present to your classmates the change agent you learned about. Each presentation should respond to the following questions from the Change Agents Note-Taking Tool:

  1. What change occurred?

  2. How did the change happen? What were the conditions for the change?

  3. Which pathway does this change agent fit into and why?