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Writing

CCR Anchor 4: Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.

41 Results

1. A Civil Rights Leader Presentation

Activity Description

Nonviolence: animated image of Nelson Mandela surrounded by a Word Cloud with words such as peace, courage, liberation, education, justice, dignity, conviction, community, and nonviolence
Source: Pixabay by John Hain (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 

In this activity, students use the Internet to gather information and take notes for a presentation about a civil rights leader. Students work individually or in pairs to enter information and images on a Google Slideshow (or other slideshow software) template file and make an oral presentation.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate High, Advanced
2. A Random Act of Kindness: Upworthy Video

Activity Description

Kindness
Source: Pixabay by reneebigelow (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 

Students view an animated video from Upworthy's YouTube channel, answer questions about it, and then write about, design a slideshow or poster, or summarize another video about a random act of kindness.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language, ABE: Adult Basic Education

Levels

Intermediate High, Advanced, Low, Intermediate, High, All Levels
3. Adobe Express Video: Digital Film about a Holiday or Celebration

Activity Description

Asian New Year
Source: Unsplash (License: Creative Commons 1.0)
Students work alone or with a classmate or small group of students to create a digital film about a holiday or celebration in their native country.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced
4. All Tech Considered from NPR

Activity Description

NPR Technology
Source: NPR Technology Entries (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 

NPR's "All Things Considered" airs its series called "All Tech Considered" which explores the sometimes daunting—always-changing—world of technology. If you are baffled by your cell phone, or your students are wondering what their kids mean when they say they are tweeting on Twitter, All Tech Considered explores many of these areas and could be of help. Try sending your students here to look up information that interests them. Not all stories have an audio component, so look for ones that have "Listen to the Story" or the word "podcast." Podcasts of many of the archived shows are downloadable and the segments are usually under 10 minutes.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, ASE: High School Diploma

Levels

Low, Intermediate, High, All Levels
5. Amazing Places in the USA

Activity Description

Devil
Source: Pixabay by Jim Jorstad (License: CC0/Public Domain)

 

Students have conversation about favorite places, learn about a United States national monument by watching a video and answering questions, and then select a place in the U.S. to research and present on.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate High, Advanced
6. American Cleaning Institute: Information on Health and Safety

Activity Description

Cleaning Institute Cleaning Tips
Source: Cleaning Institute Cleaning Tips (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 

This site offers a world of information about laundry and all types of cleaning tips, understanding products, sustainable cleaning as well as industry priorities. The example website includes a section called Cleaning Tips where you can apply learning to home, school, or work. "Information sheets" found in teacher resources are in a printable format such as PDF. The section on Soaps and Detergents History with a timeline offers another way to organize a lesson.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Diploma

Levels

Intermediate, High, Intermediate High, Advanced
7. Collaborative Story Writing with Emoji Random Generator

Activity Description

Assorted Emojis
Source: Pixabay by Pixaline (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
Students work collaboratively to write a descriptive story from randomly-generated emojis. This is a team writing exercise intended for students to add details to their writing. 

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, ASE: High School Diploma

Levels

Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Beginning Low, Beginning High, Advanced
8. Conservation Biology: Claim your Species Presentation

Activity Description

Brown Turtle Swimming Underwater
Source: Unsplash by Wexor TMG (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 
In this lesson, students practice listening comprehension with a video, discuss, and read about endangered species and efforts to prevent their extinction. The culminating assignment is a presentation about an endangered species.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language, ABE: Adult Basic Education

Levels

Intermediate, High, Intermediate High, Advanced
9. Environmental Conservation Project

Activity Description

Pollution
Source: Pixabay by Sergei Tokmakov (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 

Students engage in conversation about the environment, practice listening comprehension by watching a video and answering questions, read an article about the harm of plastics on the environment, brainstorm ways to preserve the natural environment, write a paragraph, and create an inforgraphic based on their ideas.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate, High, Intermediate High, Advanced
10. Essay Writing, Using AI in Editing: Working the Web for Education - Tom March - Critical Thinking

Activity Description

Our Story in 2 Minutes
Source: Our Story in 2 Minutes by drivinman687 (License: CC0/Public Domain)

In this activity, students are shown a video called “What in the World… History Compressed” and then later asked to write about it. The emphasis is on critical thinking. The Web site contains videos, political cartoons, and pictures that encourage students to think critically.

Screenshot of Working the Web for Education - Tom March - Critical Thinking

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Diploma

Levels

High, Intermediate, Intermediate High, Advanced
11. Fantastic Places in the Golden State

Activity Description

Hollywood Sign
Source: Pixabay by David Mark (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 
Students have conversations, learn trivia about California, practice passive voice, and research and present on an interesting place to visit in California.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced
12. FutureMe: Goal Setting and Documentation

Activity Description

FutureMe Screenshot
Source: FutureMe by Unknown (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
In this activity, students set goals for themselves for a particular point in time in the future (end of a school session, in a month, six months, a year, etc.) and write letters to their future selves (and/or to others) about their goals. The letters are posted on the site, which e-mails the letters to recipients on the future date chosen. This works well as an introduction at the beginning of the school term.
 

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language, ABE: Adult Basic Education, ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, ASE: High School Diploma

Levels

Beginning High, Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced, Low, Intermediate, High
13. GCFGlobal: Learning to Email

Activity Description

Person Holding Black iPhone 5
Source: Unsplash by Solen Feyissa (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 
Students learn the basics of emailing via a tutorial and take a quiz at the end. Students then apply their learning by writing an email based on a provided or selected scenario.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation

Levels

All Levels, Intermediate High, Advanced
14. GED Practice Test from 4Tests

Activity Description

4Tests
Source: 4Tests GED Practice Test page (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 

A free online practice test site for the 2014 GED test with the 4 sections of the GED provided by Barrons Educational Series. It includes an explanation for the right answer.

 

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, ABE: Adult Basic Education

Levels

High
15. Generate A TED Talk with AI Assistance

Activity Description

TED Talks: Discover ideas worth spreading
Source: TED Talks by TED Talks (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
In this lesson, students learn about the typical structure and organization of TED Talks. They then use AI text generator tools to either assist them in writing TED Talks about issues that concern them, or if the outcome is pronunciation practice and oral presentation skills, to provide them with an original TED Talk script that they can alter. Students practice their talks and deliver them with images on a slideshow.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

High, Advanced
16. Generate and Describe a Dream Room with AI

Activity Description

PaintIt Room
Source: PaintIt (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 
Students apply their learning of housing vocabulary by designing, describing, and presenting a dream room.
 
 
 
 

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Beginning High, Intermediate Low, Intermediate High
17. Google Arts and Culture: Wonders of the World Project

Activity Description

Machu Picchu
Source: Unsplash by Natalie Pedigo (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 

Intermediate and advanced students learn about ancient and modern wonders of the world using the online information on the Google Arts and Culture site and other Web sites and then and share what they learn in a jigsaw reading/cooperative learning activity. As an optional follow-up, write a paragraph and/or make an oral presentation about a wonder of the world of their choosing (a museum, building, sculpture, statue, bridge, canal, dam, temple, church, cathedral, castle, or natural wonder or a UNESCO World Heritage Site) located in their native countries or elsewhere.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate High, Advanced
18. Google Slides or Padlet Introductions Using Gerunds and Infinitives

Activity Description

Four People Watching White MacBook
Source: Unsplash (License: Creative Commons 1.0)
 
Use this introduction activity to create community in class. Students will learn and apply grammar (gerunds and infinitives) by introducing themselves through sentences and images posted on a Padlet wall or on a shared Google Slideshow.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced
19. Google Slides: Introductions Ice-Breaker

Activity Description

Public Speaking Icon
Source: Pixabay (License: CC0/Public Domain)

Beginning-level ESL students will complete sentence frames about themselves and will write the sentences on their assigned slide on a shared Google Slideshow with the purpose of breaking the ice and creating community in the first week of class.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Beginning Literacy, Beginning Low, Beginning High
20. Google's Applied Digital Skills

Activity Description

Home page for Applied Digital Skills
Source: Applied Digital Skills (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 

In this series of video lessons, students learn how to use Google Slides in making a personal introduction presentation to the class. 

Applied Digital Skills is a free curriculum designed to help students learn digital skills while using them in practical life applications like budgeting, planning an event, or writing. It is video-based and easy to use.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Diploma, CTE: Career Technical Education

Levels

Intermediate, High, All Levels, Intermediate High, Advanced
21. Guess Who and Where: Adobe Express Animated Character

Activity Description

Adobe Express Animated Character
Source: Adobe Express (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
In this activity, students think of a place for classmates to guess based on an image and describe themselves with clues to their identity. They then upload an image of the mystery place for an animated talking character they choose that speaks their recorded scripts. Classmates view their animated characters to guess the place and identity of the speaker.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

All Levels
22. International Business Customs, Culture, and Etiquette Team Presentation

Activity Description

Colleagues Meeting
Source: Pixabay by Gerd Altmann (License: CC0/Public Domain)

Honing their 21st Century Skills of global awareness and teamwork, students work in teams, role-playing international business consultants. Their job is to create a presentation for a group of American business people relocating to another country (students’ native country or a country assigned to them) about business customs and etiquette in that country, especially as they differ from that of the USA.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate, High, Intermediate High, Advanced
23. Learning Idioms

Activity Description

Rainstorm
Source: Pixabay by OpenClipart-Vectors (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 

Students watch videos and take notes to learn idioms, practice the idioms in conversation and on an online discussion forum (optionally), and then create a "quiz" for their classmates OR select a new idiom from the video channel or other sites,  create a presentation to teach the class the idiom(s) by creating a PowerPoint or Google Slideshow presentation, writing and performing a dialog, using Web sites to create digital films or comic strips based on dialogs, making an infographic, or making videos.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced
24. My Hometown

Activity Description

Small Town
Source: Pixabay by Scott (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 

Students will make oral presentations with visual aides to talk about their hometowns. Students practice present and past passive verb forms by talking about their hometowns or birthplaces (It is called..., It is known for..., etc.). For information that is unknown (such as what is produced there), students can use Web sites such as Wikipedia to find the information.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Advanced, Intermediate High
25. My Name Project: Paragraph and Presentation

Activity Description

Four Markers on a Table
 

Students use the Internet to find information about the meaning of their first names, write a paragraph with this information and reflect on the personal connotation of their names, and make an oral class presentation.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate High, Advanced
26. National Symbols Project: Paragraph and Presentation

Activity Description

Intermediate and advanced students or students in Citizenship classes learn about national symbols of the United States through jigsaw reading and follow up by writing a paragraph and/or making an oral presentation about national symbols of their native countries (or state/city symbols if the class is relatively homogeneous).

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate High, Advanced
27. NPR "This I Believe": Careers - "Do What you Love"

Activity Description

Tony Hawk
Source: This I Believe: Do What You Love by NPR (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 

Use the essays from the NPR Radio program to create speaking/conversation activities, vocabulary learning exercises, listening (main ideas, cloze, details, etc.) activities, and follow up with extension activities in which students speak or write about themselves.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language, ABE: Adult Basic Education, ASE: High School Diploma

Levels

Intermediate High, Advanced, Low, Intermediate, High, All Levels
28. NPR's "This I Believe" and a TED Talk: Springboard for Writing about a Valuable Lesson

Activity Description

 

 

NPR This I Believe
Source: NPR This I Believe (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
Students listen to an NPR's "This I Believe" essay, "Do Talk to Strangers," and answer questions about the essay/recording, and then watch a TED Talk and answer questions, followed by an assignment in which they write their own personal narratives about a valuable life lesson.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, ABE: Adult Basic Education, ASE: High School Diploma

Levels

Intermediate High, Advanced, Low, Intermediate, High
29. Personal Logo: Learn, Create, Write, and Present about Logos

Activity Description

Jack of Spade Playing Card
Source: Unsplash by Slidebean (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
In this lesson, students learn about logo types and some background behind logos of well-known companies through videos and the Famous Logos website, select one to research and briefly present about using a shared Google Slides slideshow, create a personal logo using their choice of a variety of tools, and write and present about their personal logo to the class.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, ABE: Adult Basic Education, ASE: High School Diploma

Levels

Intermediate High, Advanced, Low, Intermediate, High
30. Simple Present Tense

Activity Description

Simple Present Image
Source: Simple Present Image (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])

In this lesson, students will learn ow to pronounce verbs wit the third person singular and use appropriate simple verb in writing, reading, and speaking exercises.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Beginning Literacy, Beginning Low, Beginning High
31. Snopes: Discovering the Truth Behind Urban Legends

Activity Description

Snopes website screenshot
Source: Snopes.com (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 

While learning about urban legends, students practice reading skills, summarizing and paragraphing in speaking and writing, and hone their abilities to view media critically. Students use Snopes, a site dedicated to fact-checking news stories, past events and urban legends, to read and take notes on an urban legends. 

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ASE: High School Diploma, ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate, High, Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced
32. SongR: Write a Song with AI

Activity Description

SongR App
Source: SongR (License: CC0/Public Domain)
 
Students can be assigned to use this AI tool to generate a song for a variety of purposes: personal introduction, goal setting, reflection on their learning, grammar analysis, and pronunciation practice. In this particular lesson plan, students think about hobbies or weekend/free time plans to create a song.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Beginning Low, Beginning High, Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced
33. This I Believe: Tomorrow Will Be a Better Day

Activity Description


 
Screenshot of Lesson titled Tomorrow will be a better day
Source: Screenshot of Lesson titled Tomorrow will be a better day (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
 If you listen to NPR radio, you may hear both famous and unknowns discussing their core values and beliefs on weekly broadcasts of the radio spot “This I Believe,” a take-off on Edward R. Murrow’s original 1950s radio show. The site is an archive of all the modern broadcasts accompanied by the original print essays and contains a searchable database of thousands of other essays on numerous topics ranging from patriotism to family, to sports. Each short essay that has been broadcast on NPR has a “listen now” link to hear the authors read their essays, which provides a listening component for the ABE student. The audio can be the basis for exercises on note-taking, listening for main ideas, supporting details, and cloze (listening for missing words). New stories and materials are added regularly.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Diploma

Levels

Low, Intermediate, High, All Levels
34. TV411: Writing a Summary

Activity Description

Screenshot of TV411: Summarizing Activity
Source: Summarizing Activity (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 

This site has many activities which can be done independently by a student or in a class with a group of students. This will be a writing activity on how to summarize an article or a story. Students will watch the Summarizing video, then they will do the online activities that go along with the video. Finally, the students will practice writing a summary.

The site also offers a wide variety of other topics in video format, many with worksheets or other resources to use. See the More Ways section below.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Diploma, ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, CTE: Career Technical Education

Levels

Low, Intermediate, High, Intermediate High, Advanced
35. Untold History: Artifacts and Writing about a Personal Artifact

Activity Description

Untold Screenshot
Source: Untold History (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
In this lesson plan, students learn what an artifact is, learn about a national artifact, read about the place of artifacts in history and their importance, and then write about an important personal artifact.
 
This assignment is inspired by the Global Oneness Student Photography Contest - Artifacts in our Lives, online at https://www.globalonenessproject.org/stories/student-project-artifacts-our-lives.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate, High, Intermediate High, Advanced
36. Untold History: Hidden Figures - Lesser-Known Heroes

Activity Description

Untold History
Source: Untold History (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
In this lesson, students discuss heroes and their traits, learn about a hidden figure in U.S. history and athletics by watching a video and answering questions, and then make a presentation about an unknown or less known or everyday hero.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language

Levels

Intermediate, High, Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced
37. VARK: A Guide to Learning Styles

Activity Description

VARK Results

Source: https://vark-learn.com/the-vark-questionnaire/?p=results by VARK (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 

In this activity, students answer the VARK Learning Style online questionnaire’s 16 questions to measure their learning style preferences in these areas: Visual (V), Aural/Auditory (A), Reading/Writing (R), and Kinesthetic (K) – see descriptions at VARK Modalities page http://www.vark-learn.com/english/page.asp?p=categories in order to find their preferred learning styles and their weaker study habit. The inventory’s focus is on study habits and skills more than personality traits, and there are “help sheets” that explain to students how to develop their less-preferred learning modalities.


 

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, ABE: Adult Basic Education, ASE: High School Diploma, ESL: English as a Second Language, CTE: Career Technical Education

Levels

Low, Intermediate, High, All Levels, Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced
38. Word Clouds for Pre-Reading Predictions and Post-Reading Summarization

Activity Description

Free Word Cloud Generator
 
Source: Free Word Cloud Generator by Free Word Cloud Generator (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
Create a word cloud for a text to be read in class for pre-reading (vocabulary preparation, predictions) and post-reading summarization. Word clouds make repeated words appear larger.

Has EEE Lesson Plan

Program Areas

ABE: Adult Basic Education, ESL: English as a Second Language, ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, ASE: High School Diploma, AwD: Adults with Disabilities

Levels

All Levels, Beginning High, Intermediate Low, Intermediate High, Advanced
39. Constitutional Rights Foundation: Civil Action Project

Activity Description

CAP Curriculum
Source: https://crfcap.org/mod/page/view.php?id=205 (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 

Civic Action Project (CAP) is a project-based learning model for civics and government courses. It offers a practicum for high school students in effective and engaged citizenship and uses blended learning to engage students in civic activities both in and out of the traditional U.S. government classroom. By using Web-based technology and civics-based instruction and activities, students exercise important 21st-century skills in digital literacy, critical thinking, collaboration, self-direction, and learning to be an engaged and effective citizen in a democracy.

Students also see how the content of a government course can apply to the real world. By taking civic actions, they practice what real citizens do when they go about trying to solve a real policy-related problem. CAP fulfills best practices in service learning with an emphasis on public policy.

 

Program Areas

ASE: High School Diploma
40. C-SPAN: American Presidents Life Portraits

Activity Description

 

American Presidents Series
Source: https://www.c-span.org/series/?presidents&pres=46 (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
In this activity, students watch a biographical vignette about an American president of choice and take notes. Students are then asked to write an essay about the president selected and share what they learned with the class. This site also has teacher guides for all 41 programs from C-SPAN’s television series, American Presidents: Life Portraits. There are also numerous video resources to enhance classroom instruction on presidents.

Program Areas

ASE: High School Diploma, ABE: Adult Basic Education, ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation
41. Thesis Builder: Cause and Effect Essays

Activity Description

 

Cause and Effect Tool called the Causinator
Source: Thesis Builder tool for Cause and Effect Essays (License: Protected by Copyright (c) [i.e. screenshot])
 
In this activity, students use the Thesis Builder tool to create a thesis statement for a cause-and-effect essay. Students are then shown an outline to help them write each of the five paragraphs based on their thesis statement. What makes this essay different is the narrower focus on looking into the causes (what made/makes something happen) and the effects (the thing that happens).

Program Areas

ASE: High School Equivalency Preparation, ASE: High School Diploma, ABE: Adult Basic Education

Levels

All Levels
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OTAN activities are funded by contract CN220124 from the Adult Education Office, in the Career & College Transition Division, California Department of Education, with funds provided through Federal P.L., 105-220, Section 223. However, OTAN content does not necessarily reflect the position of that department or the U.S. Department of Education.