WSU

SSE 6730
Sam Gracik
Authentic Learning Lesson Plan
Section 4.1.2: World Religions
Goals: Students will understand the history of the interactions between world religions as well as
how these religions spread and create converts.
Objectives:
1) Students will be able to identify the major religions in various religions of the world
when such a region is highlighted on the map.
2) Students will be able to identify in an essay how religions (specifically Christianity (both
Catholic and Orthodox), Islam, and Hinduism) clashed and/or coexisted when they
attempted to spread into the same areas.
3) Students will be able to trace the origins of modern religions and current religious
conflicts throughout history.
Materials:
1) Textbook
2) World Map
3) Essay Prompt
Procedure:
Sections 1 and 2 will take up the most class time, and will take between two and three days to
cover depending on the length of the chapter(s).
1) A class discussion will be held on current major issues that are impacted by religion.
Topics to discuss at length if students bring them up (or introduced to continue
discussion) can include: ISIS, US-Saudi relations, Israel, Indian and Pakistani relations,
and the divide between Eastern and Western Europe.
2) Students will read the relevant chapter(s) in the textbook. These chapters will be
summarized and discussed in class to assist in and improve student understanding.
3) An in-class check for understanding will be done with a large map either projected or
pulled down if such a map is available. The teacher will point to various regions,
outlining them with a pointer if necessary and the entire class will state the names of the
major religions in that region currently.
4) Students will be instructed to write an essay on the interactions between two of the major
religions. See the assessment section.
Assessment:
1) The first assessment takes place in class in procedure step #3.

2) The second assessment is an essay assignment. The prompt will instruct students to
analyze the interactions of two religions (chosen from the list of: Hinduism, Islam,
Catholicism, and Orthodox Christianity). Protestantism will be reserved for another
lesson. The timeframe which students will be asked to cover will be from first point of
contact between the religions through to modern-day relationships between the religions
and their followers. Students will also be asked to explore the impacts that both the
historic and current interactions between the religions have impacted the world.
Assessment #2 Partial Rubric for Content
4 Student displays very good understanding of the interactions between their two chosen
religions and the impact that these interactions have and have had on the world at large.
3 Student displays a good understanding of the interactions between the two chosen religions
and the impact of these interactions but does not have enough information on either historical or
current interactions.
2 The students displays good understanding of either the interactions between the religions or
how the religions interactions impact the world, but does not display enough understanding of
the other.
1 The student displays knowledge of historical and/or current interactions between the religions
but does not display any understanding of the impacts that these interactions have had and have
on the world.
0 Student displays minimal or no knowledge about the religions and no understanding of how
the interactions between the religions have impacted the world.