Critical Information Literacy Project

Lesson Plan
January 2011
Patrick Walls
Grade 6-8 Music / Instrumental Music

Evaluative Research Project: Should Music Online Be Free?

Introduction
Students will engage in a teacher-led discussion of downloading music, iTunes, Rhapsody, Limewire, BitTorrent and other online sources of sound recordings online. Draw a correlation/comparison to copying/burning CDs for a friend. Should music be available for free online, and what are the ramifications for the artists and record labels?

Development
Teacher will visit a website (Steve Job's "Thoughts on Music" at http://www.apple.com/hotnews/thoughtsonmusic/) to determine the author's opinion on the subject, or information ("facts") for our debate. Teacher will model applying Evaluative Questions to determine the relative worth and validity of the material presented on the site.

Practice
Alone or in pairs, students will visit the websites below, or read the print sources provided, and take notes on each web pages in regards to the author's position, and website validity. Students must visit at least three different websites with unique domain names. In other words, not all three webpages may be from "www.wired.com"

Independent Practice
Utilizing proper spelling, grammar and form, students will write a 1-2 page paper (typed, double-spaced, 12-point Times, with a 1-inch margin) detailing their own person position on the subject, using information gathered to support their arguments. The relative quality and/or worth of supporting material must be discussed, and how they determined the relative merits of the material.

Closure
After papers have been collected at the beginning of the following class, have another classroom discussion. Have any students' opinion changed? What websites/publications did they find most influential? Why?

Supporting Materials

Online Resources

CNET | "We will pay for music if you leave us alone"
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-9970930-17.html
An editorial, or author's opinion piece as a consumer.
Newsweek | "Music For Free, And It's Legal"
http://www.newsweek.com/2009/03/20/music-for-free-and-it-s-legal.html
An article about a new music download service in England that could serve as a model to rival iTunes.
Newsweek | "Turning Off the Music Tap"
http://www.newsweek.com/2002/05/12/turning-off-the-music-tap.html
Should legislation be enacted to prevent digital copying on all electronic devices? Sen. Fritz Hollings thinks so.
Shashdot.org | "Why We Think Music Should Be Free"
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=00/06/06/0254252
Blogger Robin "Roblimo" Miller weighs in on how copyright and music protection has changed over the years.
Slate.com | "The Right Price for Digital Music - Why 99 cents per song is too much, and too little."
http://www.slate.com/id/2131573/
One would expect one of leaders in online news to have an opinion on the newest methods of music delivery. Adam Peneberg writes about finding the right price (if any) for music online.
Suite101.com | "Music Should Be Free"
http://www.suite101.com/content/music-should-be-free-a218544
Thomas Horner argues that music should be free, and that record labels suing consumers is just wrong.
This Magazine | "Pay indie artists and break the music monopoly - Legalize Music Piracy"
http://this.org/magazine/2009/11/10/legalize-music-piracy-file-sharing/
A newer online magazines offers a new model for compensating musical artists.
TIME Magazine | "Radiohead Says: Pay What You Want"
http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1666973,00.html
One of the most venerable print magazines discusses the "cd heard 'round the world" - when Radiohead decided to give away it's newest CD online, allowing consumers to pay what they wanted for the download.
Wired Magazine | "The Age of Music Piracy Is Officially Over"
http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/11/st_essay_nofreebird/
The internet magazine on the internet offers an opinion piece on music piracy, saying that music is basically too cheap NOT to pay for.
Wired Magazine | "David Byrne's Survival Strategies for Emerging Artists - and Megastars"
http://www.wired.com/entertainment/music/magazine/16-01/ff_byrne?currentPage=all
David Byrne, creative genius behind and lead singer for the Talking Heads, talks about delivering music in the new era. An artist's view in the Wild West of digital downloads.
Wired Magazine | "David Byrne and Thom Yorke on the Real Value of Music"
http://www.wired.com/entertainment/music/magazine/16-01/ff_yorke?currentPage=all
Two artists' perspectives - Thom Yorke (from Radiohead, who gave away their newest album online, allowing consumers to pay what they wanted to for it) and David Byrne (from Talking Heads) provide a yin and yang discussion on downloading music and paying for it (or not).

Offline Resources

Newsweek Magazine | "Music For Free, And It's Legal"
By William Underhill - Mar 21, 2009
An article about a new music download service in England that could serve as a model to rival iTunes.
Newsweek Magazine | "Turning Off The Music Tap"
By Steven Levy - May 13, 2002
Should legislation be enacted to prevent digital copying on all electronic devices? Sen. Fritz Hollings thinks so.
TIME Magazine | "Radiohead Says: Pay What You Want"
By Josh Tyrangiel - Monday, Oct. 01, 2007
One of the most venerable print magazines discusses the "cd heard 'round the world" - when Radiohead decided to give away it's newest CD online, allowing consumers to pay what they wanted for the download.

Evaluative Questions

Who is the source of the information? (Are they an expert?)
What are you getting? (Is the information from a biased source?)
When was the website created? (Or article written?)
Where is the website hosted? (".org" ".com" ".net")
Why are you at this site? (Does it answer your questions, does it meet your needs?)
How can you tell the author is legitimate? (Double check your information!)

For more information on evaluating websites, click http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/special_initiatives/wa_resources/wa_shared/tipsheets/5Ws_of_cyberspace.cfm.

Rubric

	Below Expectations	Meets Expectations	Exceeds Expectations
Paper Length	Less than one page, or more than two.	One to two pages in total length. No cover page.
Format	Borders less or greater than 1". Font other than 12-point Times [New Roman]. No name or date on paper.	1" borders. 12-point Times [New Roman]. Double-spaced.
Grammar, Spelling, and Usage	More than a few spelling, grammar, or usage errors.	Correct grammar, spelling, and usage is used throughout the paper. One or two minor errors.	Paper is error-free in regards to grammar, spelling, and usage.
Comparative Evaluations	Student examines and reports on less than three sources.	Student thoroughly examines, evaluates and reports on at least three sources.	Student thoroughly examines, evaluates and reports on more than three sources, and draws meaningful conclusions.
Concluding Opinion	Student neglects to come to or state an overall opinion on the subject.	Student clearly states an opinion based on sources examined, and supports it with examples drawn from the sources.	Student presents an especially convincing position, with exceptionally well thought out and present supporting documentation from sources that were examined during the project.