Prism
Prism
Prism is a paired skills course focusing on critical thinking, academic skills, and language students need most to prepare for their college studies.
More critical thinking. More college skills. A fresh perspective on EAP. Prism is created for students who need to develop a range of academic skills such as analyzing information, looking at things in new ways, formulating opinions, and clearly expressing ideas. Prism focuses strongly on critical thinking, skills for academic life, and teaching the most useful language. Each Student's Book for Reading and Writing includes access to the Digital Workbook, and an eBook with video. The Listening and Speaking Student's Book includes access to the Digital Workbook, downloadable audio, and eBook with audio and video.
Authors
Kate Adams, Sabina Ostrowska, Michele Lewis, Richard O'Neill, Lida Baker, Carolyn Westbrook, Alan S. Kennedy, Chris Sowton, Jessica Williams
Key features
Goes beyond language and critical thinking skills to teach students how to be successful, engaged college students both inside and outside of the classroom.
Focuses on the most relevant and important language for students of academic English based on comprehensive research.
Uses a fresh approach to Critical Thinking based on a full integration of Bloom’s taxonomy to help students become well-rounded critical thinkers.
What makes Prism special?
Receptive, Language, and Analytical Skills (Listening, Reading)
Students improve their listening and reading skills through a sequence of activities – from understanding key vocabulary, using prior knowledge, and listening or reading for main ideas and details, to practicing academic skills. Exposure to key vocabulary helps learners access academic texts and develop listening or reading skills. Synthesis exercises prepare students for college classrooms. And Language Development sections teach grammar, vocabulary, collocations, and language structure.
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Critical Thinking and Productive Skills (Speaking, Writing)
Multiple critical thinking activities prepare students for exercises that focus on speaking skills like functional language and pronunciation, or writing skills like grammar. These activities lead into a structured speaking or writing task where students apply the skills and language they have developed over the course of the unit.
Research based
Prism is built on a solid foundation of research. From conversations with teachers at over 500 institutions, to corpus analysis, we ensure that this series meets student needs.
Informed by Teachers
Classroom teachers shaped everything about Prism. The topics. The exercises. The critical thinking skills. The On Campus sections. Everything. We are confident that Prism will help your students succeed in college because teachers just like you helped guide the creation of this series.
Vocabulary Research
Students need to learn a wide range of general and academic vocabulary in order to be successful in college. Prism carefully selects the vocabulary that students study based on the General Service List, the Academic Word List, and the Cambridge English Corpus.
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Canvas shell courses with tests
Prism has shell courses as well as quizzes for Canvas. These courses, designed to be used alongside our coursebooks, offer interactive activities for every unit and unit tests. Â
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Watch this video to find out more. If you have any questions or to find out how to download your Canvas shell course, contact your local ELT specialist
How to find out more
Popular Resources
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Sample content
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Sample Units and Scope & Sequence
Click below to download sample units and scope & sequence
Listening & Speaking
Reading & Writing
Digital Tools for StudentsÂ
Student's Book with Digital Pack or eBook with Digital Pack
All Student's Books have a code to access the Student's Digital Pack which includes:
Digital Workbook
eBook with audio and video (Prism Listening and Speaking)
eBook with video (Prism Reading and Writing)
Student Resources
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Digital Workbook
The Digital Workbook has automatic feedback so students know right away how they are doing, and saves you valuable time not having to check their work. The Gradebook allows you to track students' progress so you can identify problem areas and assist them as needed.Â
eBook with videos
The mobile-friendly eBook has videos for students to watch on their own. Prism Listening and Speaking eBooks also include audio for the listening activities.
Digital Tools for Teachers
Teacher's Digital Pack includes:
Presentation Plus
Teachers can deliver effective and engaging lessons by showing the Student's Book pages and playing the audio and video at the point of use with just one click. Zoom in on an activity to focus students' attention, make annotations and notes right on the page... you can even save your session to come back and start where you left off.
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Teacher Resources
Teacher's Manual (PDF) with lesson plans, teaching tips, and the Student's Book answer key
Unit Tests in PDF and editable Word doc formats
Downloadable audio (for Prism Listening and Speaking)
How Prism Works
Every unit of Prism is designed to excite students and give them the tools they need. The unit structure is based on extensive research on today's students and what teachers want for their classrooms.
Step 1. Video
Setting the context
Every unit begins with a video clip. Each video serves as a springboard for the unit and introduces the topic in an engaging way. The clips were carefully selected to pique students’ interest and prepare them to explore the unit’s topic in greater depth. As they work, students develop key skills in prediction, comprehension, and discussion.
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Step 2. Listening or Reading
Receptive, language, and analytical skills
Students improve their listening abilities through a sequence of proven activities. They study key vocabulary to prepare them for each listening and to develop academic listening skills. Pronunciation for Listening exercises help students learn how to decode spoken English. Language Development sections teach grammar and vocabulary. A second listening leads into synthesis exercises that prepare students for college classrooms.
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Step 3. Speaking or Writing
Critical thinking and production
Multiple critical thinking activities begin this section, setting students up for exercises that focus on speaking skills, functional language, and pronunciation. All of these lead up to a structured speaking task, in which students apply the skills and language they have developed over the course of the entire unit.
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Step 4. On Campus
Skills for college life
This unique section teaches students valuable skills beyond academic listening and speaking. From asking questions in class to participating in a study group and from being an active listener to finding help, students learn how to navigate university life. The section begins with a context-setting listening, and moves directly into active practice of the skill.
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The research behind Prism
In order to make sure that Prism is exactly what today's students and teachers need, we enlisted help from two groups of experts: linguists and teachers just like you. Here's what we did and what we learned.
How linguists helped shape Prism.
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Vocabulary Research
Students need to learn a wide range of general and academic vocabulary in order to be successful in college. Prism carefully selects the vocabulary that students study based on the General Service List, the Academic Word List, and the Cambridge English Corpus.
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Pronunciation for ListeningÂ
This unique feature teaches learners to listen for specific features of spoken English that typically inhibit comprehension. Learners become primed to better understand detail and nuance while listening. (Listening/Speaking only).
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Grammar for Writing
This unique feature teaches learners the exact grammar they will need for their writing task. With a focus on using grammar to accomplish rhetorical goals, these sections ensure that students learn the most useful grammar for their assignment. (Reading/Writing only).
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How Teachers helped shape Prism
Coordinators. Instructors. Professors. Adjuncts. Directors. Teachers from more than 500 institutions helped shape Prism. We relied on the keen insights of classroom teachers to make sure that Prism delivers exactly what students need. You helped through surveys, focus groups, interviews, and in-depth reviews.
Advisory Panel
A special group of educators helped even more. Throughout the development of Prism, they provided ongoing feedback and insights. We can't thank them enough, and we want to recognize them here >>
What You Told Us
This wide-ranging group of teachers told us that you needed a series that would give you:
* Interesting topics
* Well integrated video lessons
* Strong development of critical thinking
* Dedicated instruction in college skills
* The best research that linguists can offer
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| Name | Institution |
| Gloria Munson | University of Texas, Arlington |
| Kim Oliver | Austin Community College |
| Wayne Gregory | Portland State University |
| Julaine Rosner | Mission College |
| Dinorah Sapp | University of Mississippi |
| Christine Hagan | George Brown College/Seneca College |
| Heidi Lieb | Bergen Community College |
| Stephanie Kasuboski | Cuyahoga Community College |
Critical Thinking
Bloom’s Taxonomy
In order to truly prepare for college coursework, students need to develop the full range of thinking skills. Prism teaches explicit critical thinking skills in every unit of every level. These skills adhere to the taxonomy developed by Benjamin Bloom. By working within the taxonomy, we are able to ensure that your students learn both lower-order and higher-order thinking skills.
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Every critical thinking exercise is accompanied by an icon indicating where the activity falls in Bloom’s Taxonomy.
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Create, Evaluate, and Analyze.
These are critical skills for students in any college setting. Academic success depends on their abilities to derive knowledge from collected data, make educated judgements, and deliver insightful presentations. Prism helps students get there by creating activities such as categorizing information, comparing data, selecting the best solution to a problem, and developing arguments for a discussion or presentation.
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Apply, Understand, and Remember.
To provide the foundation upon which all thinking occurs. Students need to be able to recall information, comprehend it, and see its use in new contexts. Prism develops these skills through exercises such as taking notes, mining notes for specific data, demonstrating comprehension, and distilling information from charts.
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Components
Components
Prism Intro Reading and Writing Student's Book with Digital Pack
$76.50
Prism Level 1 Reading and Writing Student's Book with Digital Pack
$76.50
Prism Level 2 Reading and Writing Student's Book with Digital Pack
$76.50
Prism Level 3 Reading and Writing Student's Book with Digital Pack
$76.50
Prism Level 4 Reading and Writing Student's Book with Digital Pack
$76.50
Prism Intro Listening and Speaking Student's Book with Digital Pack
$76.50
Prism Level 1 Listening and Speaking Student's Book with Digital Pack
$76.50
Prism Level 2 Listening and Speaking Student's Book with Digital Pack
$76.50
Prism Level 3 Listening and Speaking Student's Book with Digital Pack
$76.50
