The Common Core State Standards in English/Language arts, as well as other college-and career-ready standards, place strong emphases on critical literacy, cross-curricular learning, and cultural understanding.

A free Education Week webinar will explore how some educators are using those levers to create interdisciplinary units that integrate a variety of texts and learning methods to help students delve into social issues, including identity, cultural history, diversity and civic engagement.

The webinar will be held from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. ET on Oct. 22.

The guests will be:

  • Ruchi Agarwal-Rangnath, adjunct professor, elementary education, San Francisco State University. She is the author of Social Studies, Literacy, and Social Justice in the Common Core Classroom: A Guide for Teachers.
  • Erin Angell, a high school English teacher at Palo Alto High School in California and co-creator of the Social Justice Pathway curriculum.
  • Eric Bloom, high school history and economics teacher at Palo Alto High School and co-creator of the Social Justice Pathway curriculum.

The presentations will address issues such as instructional relevancy and student engagement, as well as boosting students’ proficiency in close reading, critical thinking, and social-emotional understanding. The guests will also reflect on the challenges involved in developing interdisciplinary literacy units, teaching social topics, and transitioning to new standards.

Register here for this live webinar.