Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Tune In: Inclusive and exclusive language

20 minutes

Find Out: Analysing words in action

25 minutes

Take Action: Purpose and persuasion

5 minutes

Reflection

Learning intentions

Students will:

explore how inclusive and exclusive language affects audiences
identify how these techniques are used in clean energy debates.

Success criteria

Students can:

recognise inclusive and exclusive language in media and political speeches
explain how this language empowers or disempowers audiences.

Tune In: Inclusive and exclusive language

Step 1

Write these statements on the whiteboard and read them to the class:

We all need to work together to transition to renewable energy.
They want to impose renewable energy targets on us.

Step 2

Ask for volunteers to tell you which statement sounds most appealing. Explain to the class that when writers are creating a persuasive text, they deliberately make choices about the perspective (the first person in both of these cases, using ‘I’, ‘we’ and ‘us’) and language choices to frame what they are saying and to provoke a response in the audience.

Step 3

Ask students to compare these sentences and tell you:

Are these sentences about the same topic – yes or no?
Which words make these 2 statements different, and how did these small changes affect your immediate reaction?
Which of these examples aims to empower the reader? Which aims to disempower them?
What is the author’s position on the topic?

Step 4

Using student responses as a catalyst, explain to students that persuasive writing is creating any text that puts forward a point of view on a topic. It intends to persuade the audience. The authors of these 2 sentences have deliberately decided on word choices to shape the way you respond to what is, essentially, the same statement.

Remind the class that persuasive writing can be entertaining or formal. It may include opinion, analysis and debate. Forms of persuasive writing include political discourse, advertising, reviews, opinion and analysis. Persuasive writing can be presented in many ways, from political cartoons to TV documentaries, parliamentary debates, court hearings, propaganda, satire, letters and petitions, podcasts, vlogs and much more.

Regardless of the medium, if the text exists to persuade someone about something, it is persuasive writing.

Learning extension: Ask the class for examples of persuasive writing they have seen outside of school studies. The aim is to elicit answers other than essays.

Find Out: Analysing words in action

Step 1

Allocate your students to a persuasive text from the following list:

Megan Herbert – Policy Generating Science Translator 3000 (cartoon)
Judy Horacek – The Nuclear Fairy (cartoon)
Climate Council – Why nuclear reactors are too risky for Australia
Parliamentary speeches – 2024 Annual Climate Change Statement to Parliament
Press Conference, Parliament House, Canberra

Ensure that at least 2 students are allocated to the same persuasive text. Instruct students to analyse the text to identify the use of inclusive and exclusive language on their Student Worksheet.

Step 2

Prompt students to watch out for subtleties, such as how the word ‘we’ can refer to one political party but remains exclusive of others (for example, this occurs in parliamentary speeches). If students are analysing one of the multimodal texts (such as the political cartoons), they also need to make notes about the characters and how they are positioned to be sympathetic to (aligned to) the audience or removed from (opposed or distant to) the audience (for example, the way cracks appear in the Nuclear Fairy as the dialogue progresses).

Step 3

Once students have completed their analysis, invite them to find and pair up with a student who has analysed the exact text. Together, students discuss what they found and highlight any discrepancies.

Step 4

Invite pairs to share their thoughts and findings from their text analysis. Ask the students if anyone interpreted the same text in completely different ways. This is common in complex political discourse, especially if students analyse the words of opposing figures in a debate. Clarify that people on either side of a political or contested issue can use inclusive and exclusive language.

Take Action: Purpose and persuasion

Step 1

For this task, students will refer to the persuasive texts from the Find Out section. Remaining in their pairs, instruct students to prepare a 2-minute statement explaining what they believe the author, speaker or illustrator was trying to achieve by using persuasive language in their article, speech or cartoon.

Step 2

Invite students to present and facilitate a class discussion about the language the authors or speakers used, and how word choices can provide clues to the intention within a persuasive text. You may like to discuss:

How does language influence public opinion and decision-making?
Why are these techniques used in discussions about clean energy?

Learning opportunity: Discuss if students think that persuasive writing is manipulative. Do they think authors of persuasive texts choosing words to make the audience feel or think a specific way is manipulative? Why or why not?

Learning extension: Ask students to find 1 example of a persuasive text about clean energy that demonstrates inclusive or exclusive language.

Reflection

On a sticky note, ask students to respond: How does language empower or disempower audiences?

Outline to students that empowering language is clear, inclusive, and respectful language can inspire and unite people. For example, speeches by leaders that use words like ‘we,’ ‘together,’ and ‘our shared responsibility’ can make audiences feel involved and motivated. Educational materials that explain complex issues in simple, accessible terms help people understand and engage with important topics, empowering them to make informed decisions.

Disempowering language that is exclusive or divisive can alienate certain groups. For instance, politicians or media outlets using ‘they’ vs. ‘us’ language can create divisions and make some audiences feel unwelcome or unheard. It can promote misinformation and emotional manipulation, such as fear-mongering headlines, and can disempower audiences by distorting facts and making them feel uncertain or helpless.

Exploring Inclusive and Exclusive Language in Media

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