Listening to "This I Believe"

• Introduction
• Learners
• Standards
• Process
• Resources


• Student Page

by Annie Higgins, University At Buffalo

Students will listen to self-selected recordings of essays produced as part of the contemporary revival of This I Believe, a collection of essays of personal belief and core values.

Teacher Introduction

" I believe that education has the power to transform a person’s life." -Michael Oatman

The purpose of this WebQuest is threefold: to expose ELLs to authentic communication, to challenge the students cognitively by thinking critically, and to gain valuable perspective on American culture through personal essays submitted to This I believe, a project that collects essays in which people write about their most important belief.

We begin as an entire class as to model the process of examining a personal essay through guided discussion. Working in small, heterogeneous groups, students negotiate meaning, build consensus and collaborate on creating a beliefs poster and forming insightful discussion questions about an essay of their choice.