StudySync Lesson Plan
Worship the Spirit of Criticism:
Address at the Pasteur Institute
Objectives
1.
Engage students in the vocabulary, diction, and themes of the excerpt from Louis
Pasteur’s “Address at the Pasteur Institute” speech so that they are prepared to discuss
and write about the excerpt and/or entire essay.
2. Practice and reinforce the following Grade 10 Common Core Standards for speaking and
listening and for reading and writing in history/social studies, science, and technical
subjects:
SPEAKING AND LISTENING – SL.9-10.1-6
READING: SCIENCE/TECHNICAL SUBJECTS – RST.9-10.1-10
WRITING: HISTORY/SOC STUDIES – WHST.9-10.1-10
Time
120 minutes (with up to an additional 190 minutes of extension possibilities)
Materials
SyncTV Premium Lesson on “Address at the Pasteur Institute”
Overview
This excerpt from a speech Louis Pasteur gave to his colleagues in 1888 at the opening of the
Pasteur Institute in Paris addresses his interest in scientific study geared toward prolonging
human life through disease prevention in contrast with the use of science to create weapons and
methods of warfare to end human life. Close examination of this excerpt will prepare students to
read the entire text with interest and understanding, and to write thoughtful, informed, and
textually-rooted responses, consistent with the Common Core Standards for the high school
grades.
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Lesson Plan: Address at the Pasteur Institute
Background (10 minutes)
1.
Watch the Preview (SL.9-10.2). As a group, watch the video preview of the premium
lesson. Ask the students to share their impression or understanding of the early
development of disease prevention.
a. Based on the preview, how do you think Louis Pasteur was regarded by people of
France and the world in 1888? What evidence from the preview leads to your
conclusion?
b. What were Pasteur’s achievements? How do you think these achievements
affected ordinary people? Think about not only what it means not to suffer or die
from a disease, but how fear of disease might affect people on a daily basis.
c. Based on the images in the preview, what do you think the tone of the speech will
be? If you were in the audience for this speech, what might you expect to hear?
Extension (additional 40 minutes)
d. Write. (WHST.9-10.4). The process of pasteurization is named after the author of
this excerpt, Louis Pasteur. Find out what Pasteur contributed to developing this
process and define the basic idea of pasteurization. Work with 3 or 4 other
students to write the text and create illustrations for a short picture book
explaining pasteurization to 2nd and 3rd graders.
e. Share. (SL.9-10.4, 6). Arrange for students to visit classes of younger students and
present their books. From each group, have two students take turns reading or
presenting the book and two or three others take turns observing the students in
the audience and their questions and reactions. Ask students to summarize
reactions to their books. Which pictures and text worked well? What areas
required more explanation?
Engaging the Text (110 minutes)
2. Read the Text (30 minutes)
a. Read and Annotate (RST.9-10.2, 6, 8). Ask students to read the introduction and
excerpt from “Address at the Pasteur Institute.” Be sure to give them enough time
to both read and annotate the text. If your classroom has a projector, you may
want to model note-taking skills by reading and annotating the first paragraph as a
class. If students are completing this task as a homework assignment, ask them to
write any questions they have into the annotation tool–these questions are visible
to you after the students submit their writing assignments or beforehand if you
use the “Mimic” function to access the students’ accounts. Offer students the
following guidelines as they prepare for their reading and annotation:
i. Circle any phrase or word that is unfamiliar to you so that you can look it
up or use context clues to determine its meaning.
ii. Underline what you think are the key phrases or important points of the
passage as well as anything that strikes you as interesting, moving, or well
stated.
iii. Write at least two questions you have about the text in the annotation tool.
Extension (additional 20 minutes)
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Lesson Plan: Address at the Pasteur Institute
b. Listen (SL.9-10.1–2; RST.9-10.4). As a class, listen to the audio reading of the text.
Ask students to use context clues to define key terms from the glossary. As a
group, work to define any other unclear terms or ideas not listed in the glossary.
c. Comprehend (RST.9-10.1–2). Either distribute the multiple-choice questions or
read them aloud to the class. As a class, reread and discuss any passages of the
text about which students remain unclear.
3. Watch SyncTV (45 minutes)
a. Watch. Either watch the SyncTV discussion associated with “Address at the
Pasteur Institute” as a class or ask students to watch it on their individual
computers.
b. Discuss (SL.9-10.1–6). After watching the model discussion, divide students into
small groups (2-3 students). Move around the room monitoring the groups as
students follow the SyncTV episode as a model to discuss some of the following
questions:
i. Review your annotations of the text and share at least one question you
had about the text with your group and investigate the answers together.
ii. Find places in the text in which Pasteur refers to other scientists and
summarize his attitude toward them.
iii. On your own, find one sentence or phrase that best summarizes the
excerpt; share your choice with your group and explain why you chose it.
iv. Describe the “two contrary laws” Pasteur mentions toward the end of the
excerpt—what did this debate mean in the context of the late 19th century
(scientific advancements and capabilities, historical events)? Compare this
to the debate today. Is this still a relevant issue? Provide examples from
current events to support your view.
v. How do you think Pasteur feels about the opening of this institute? What
makes you think that?
vi. Do you agree with the SyncTV student’s perspective that Louis Pasteur’s
speech did not offer a convincing or persuasive argument? What
techniques of persuasion/argument does Pasteur use? Do you find them
effective?
Extension (additional 20 minutes)
c. Evaluate (SL.9-10.1–6). Watch the SyncTV episode again (as a whole class if
possible). Before watching, assign each of your students one of the three students
in the episode to follow. Have your students keep a running list of points that each
student makes. Ask students to pay close attention to how the students in the
episode prove their points (e.g., citing textual evidence, using personal examples).
When the episode has finished, discuss each of the characters and evaluate the
quality of their arguments. What makes some arguments stronger than others?
What are some of the best and worst points made about the text? How and why?
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Lesson Plan: Address at the Pasteur Institute
4. Think (5 minutes)
a. Respond (W.9-10.1-2, W.9-10.4, W.9-10.6). Ask students to read the “Think”
questions, watch the corresponding video clips, and respond to the questions.
Extension (additional 45 minutes)
b. Creative writing (WHST.9-10. 2, 4). The diction in Pasteur’s speech is dated and
formal. Have students identify which words or phrases exemplify this and discuss
their meanings. Then have students, individually or in small groups, present the
same speech in a more contemporary form—a rap, a series of public service
announcements, a PowerPoint presentation, or an interactive webpage. This may
be assigned in class with 30 minutes of work time and 15 minutes of volunteer
presentations, or you may want to give students a few days to put together their
interpretations outside of class. Everyone should submit, along with their project, a
short paragraph explaining which medium they chose to use as translation and
why, along with a few sentences about their experience creating the project.
5. Write (30 minutes)
a. Discuss (SL.9-10.1). Whether you’re assigning the writing portion of the lesson as
homework or as an in-class writing assignment, read the prompt as a group, or
have students read it individually, and then solicit questions regarding the prompt
or the assignment expectations. Whichever prompt you have chosen, make sure
you are clear about the assignment expectations and the rubric by which you and
the other students will be evaluating them.
b. Organize (RST.9-10.1–2, WHST.9-10.1–2, 6). Ask students to go back and annotate
the text with the prompt in mind. They should be organizing their thoughts and the
points they’ll address in their writing as they make annotations. If you’ve worked
on outlining or other organizational tools for writing, this is a good place to apply
them.
c. Write (WHST.9-10.1–2, 4–6). Have students complete and submit their writing
responses.
Extension (additional 30 minutes)
d. Prepare (WHST.9-10.4). Using one of the writing prompt options that you have not
assigned to your students (or developing one of your own) and using the
StudySync rubric labeled “Basic Essay Structure – CCS W.9-10.1,” as a class,
outline an essay on the excerpt from The Life of Pasteur. Walk students through
the expectations of basic 5-paragraph essay writing.
i. First, have students individually develop thesis statement ideas. Then ask
several students to share these ideas.
ii. Choose a solid idea that does not yet make an argument, and then as a
class develop that idea into an argumentative thesis.
iii. Break the students into small groups (2-3 students each) and ask them to
develop supporting points for the class’s thesis.
iv. Have the groups list 1-2 examples from the text and 1-2 examples from
their own experiences that could bolster each point. Ask them to rank their
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Lesson Plan: Address at the Pasteur Institute
supporting evidence from strongest to weakest and eliminate the two
weakest ideas for each point.
v. Lastly, bring the whole class together again to discuss good conclusions.
Go through the criteria given in the rubric for a good conclusion. Ask
students to write their own concluding sentences.
vi. By the end of the exercise, each student should have his/her own essay
outline template.
Extension (additional 15 minutes)
e. Peer Review (WHST.9-10.5). Use the StudySync “Review” feature to have students
complete one to two evaluations of their peers’ work based on your chosen
review rubric. Have the students look at the peer evaluations of their own writing.
In pairs, ask the students to discuss briefly the peer evaluations. Suggested
questions: What might you do differently in a revision? How might you strengthen
the writing and the ideas?
Extension (additional 20 minutes)
f.
Self-Assess (WHST.9-10.4–6). Use the StudySync assignment creation tool to
create a “Writing” assignment that asks students to address the following prompt:
Reread your essay and the reviews of your essay on Pasteur’s “Address at
the Pasteur Institute.” After reading these reviews, what do you believe
were the biggest strengths of your essay? What were the biggest
weaknesses? If you were to go back and write this essay again, what
would you change about your writing process? How has writing this essay
made you a better writer?
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Lesson Plan: Address at the Pasteur Institute
SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS
Key Vocabulary
1.
clobber (v.) – to hit or bash severely; to seriously harm or damage
2. high-strung (adj.) – nervous, anxious; excited or excitable
3. digest (v.) – to think over and arrange in the mind; to receive in the mind and consider
carefully; to comprehend
4. gallantly (adv.) –bravely or honorably
5. emotional (adj.) – easily affected by emotion; determined by emotion more than reason
6. sophisticated (adj.) – elegant, refined; appealing to the tastes of an intellectual
7. rave (v.) – to speak or write with wild enthusiasm or incoherence
Reading Comprehension Questions
1.
What is most nearly meant by the assertion: “it might be said there is not a stone but what
is the material sign of generous thought”
a. The building is not yet complete.
b. Some people think the building is of poor design.
c. The building is more significant for what it will inspire than what its physical
presence will create.
d. The building could not have been created without generous donations.
2. What does Pasteur mean that he is “a man ‘vanquished by time,’ deprived of my masters”
a. He has been deprived of mentors during this process.
b. He has grown old and outlived his mentors.
c. The project has been completed quicker than any expected.
d. The building was made with very little supervision.
3. What is the purpose of this speech as evidenced by this excerpt?
a. To lay out what should be done with the building now that it is finished.
b. To celebrate the accomplishments of French scientists.
c. To provoke thoughtful inspection of the role scientists play in the fate of humanity.
d. To “worship the spirit of criticism” by questioning Pasteur’s own findings.
4. From the sentence, “The collaborators and students who are now here share our
scientific faith,” one may understand that this text:
a. Can only be understood by other scientists.
b. Is a meeting of people who do not necessarily agree.
c. Is a celebratory speech.
d. Is directed at supporters of Pasteur’s research.
5. What is, as Pasteur puts it, “most difficult to an inventor”?
a. To refrain from sharing one’s findings until they are thoroughly proven.
b. To maintain energy throughout a sustained research project.
c. To share credit with other scientists working on the same project.
d. To stop working on an invention once it is finished.
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Lesson Plan: Address at the Pasteur Institute
6. In the sixth paragraph, which of the following is nearest to the meaning of “joy” as Pasteur
uses it?
a. happiness
b. satisfaction
c. good humor
d. credibility
7. What does “sanguinary” mean?
a. convincing
b. certain
c. fatal
d. bloody
8. Which of the following key phrases could also act as a summary of this excerpt?
a. “Science has no country.”
b. “Never advance anything that cannot be proved in a simple and decisive fashion.”
c. “All we struggled for together will not perish.”
d. “Sacrifice hundreds and thousands of lives to the ambition of one.”
9. What do the “two contrary laws” Pasteur discusses have in common?
a. grief
b. mortality
c. the quest for joy
d. scientific method
10. What kind of appeal is Pasteur making to his fellow scientists?
a. philosophical
b. psychological
c. ethical
d. task-oriented
Answer Key
1. C
2. B
3. C
4. D
5. A
6. B
7. D
8. B
9. D
10. C
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Lesson Plan: Address at the Pasteur Institute
Further Assignments
1.
Ask students to rewrite their responses to the writing prompt based on their peers’
feedback and/or their self-assessments. (WHST.9-10.10)
2. Louis Pasteur’s research supported the idea that mankind would benefit from better
health and longer life, calling this “the relief of humanity.” Have students write an
argument for or against stem cell research directed at the goal of prolonging human life,
using Pasteur’s speech as a reference in their arguments. Tell students to decide who the
audience for their argument will be and to match their argument to the audience.
(WHST.9-10.1, 10)
3. Have each student select a small section from the rest of Pasteur’s speech and present a
summary of the section, informally, to the class. Presentations should take place in
chronological order and should be followed by a short discussion collecting the main
ideas of the rest of the piece. (WHST.9-10.2, 4)
4. Ask students to apply the idea of worshipping “the spirit of criticism” to something they
have produced. They can apply the idea to a school project or something they have made
such as a video or a cooking or craft project, or to their performance in a sport or as a
musician. Ask them to use specifics in their criticism, not simply dismissing something
they have done as “lousy” or “terrible” and take a scientific attitude toward finding ways
of improving their work. (WHST.9-10.1–2, 4)
5. Have students use technology to produce a multi-media presentation on pasteurization or
vaccination. They may look for or make animations, images, sound narration, and
hyperlinks to create an informative and dynamic presentation. (WHST.9-10.6)
6. Have students use mind-mapping software on their iPads or other devices to categorize
features of the “two contrary laws” Pasteur describes in his speech. Ask them to flesh out
their mind maps with definitions of terms, synonyms, and additional thoughts they may
have. Then direct them to create extended definitions, in their own words, for each of the
laws. (ELL)
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Lesson Plan: Address at the Pasteur Institute