EVALUATE
Make a judgment. Apply a standard. Defend it with reason.
Stage 2: EVALUATE is the point at which comprehension becomes judgment.
Students name a criterion, assess quality or morality against that standard, and begin to articulate the reasoning that will later become a formal justification.
Stage architecture
Cognitive Operation
Assessment of quality, effectiveness, or morality based on established criteria.
Bloom Level
4 (Evaluation)
Primary Target
Judge
Lesson Slot
15–25 min
What students are expected to do
Identify explicit criteria before making any judgment.
Assess the quality, fairness, or morality of decisions and events in the text.
Compare alternative courses of action or interpretation.
Predict consequences of characters' choices with logical reasoning.
Recognise ecological and long-term systemic consequences where applicable.
Prompt types used at this stage
Evaluative
Elicit judgment with an explicit standard: 'Was this a good decision? By what criteria?'
Consequential
Develop predictive and causal reasoning about what might happen next.
Alternative
Foster creative and critical problem-solving through other possible solutions.
Comparative
Introduce equity and multiple-perspective reasoning by asking who benefits and who is harmed.
Ecological
Assess long-term consequences for the environment or ecosystem.
Sentence frames used at this stage
Judgment
'This decision was ___ because ___.'
Criterion
'I am judging this by the standard of ___, and based on that ___.'
Alternative
'A better alternative might be ___ because ___.'
Equity
'This is / is not fair because ___. The person most affected is ___.'
Ecological
'The long-term effect on the environment would be ___ because ___.'
One stage, different level bands
Foundation / Development (Pre-A1 to A2)
Was the character's choice a good one? Tell a partner one reason. Was it fair? Who was helped and who was hurt?
Expansion / Mastery (A2 to B2)
Evaluate the character's decision using two criteria. Was there a better alternative? Who bears the cost of this choice? Apply an equity lens to your judgment.
Advanced (B2 to C1)
Evaluate the moral framework implicit in the author’s text. What criteria does the narrative privilege? What perspectives are silenced or marginalised? What are the long-term ecological consequences of the world depicted?
How this stage is checked in the lesson
Assessment
Assessment type: Partner discussion.
Assessment
Assessment form: Listen for evaluation criteria during pair-share.
Assessment
Formative sequence during Evaluate stage: mark strong evaluations publicly — 'That was an evaluation because you used a criterion.'
Assessment
Portfolio standard includes best justification paragraph per unit, eco-reasoning reflection per unit at Level 3+, and CEFR self-assessment each term.
Instructional Architecture
Primary Activity: Partner discussion; whole-group accountable talk.
Teacher Action: Mark strong evaluations publicly: 'That was an evaluation because you used a criterion.'
Eco Extension / Cross-Stage Connection
Ecological evaluation asks students to assess decisions by their impact on the non-human world. At Level 2+, introduce the Stewardship Challenge; at Level 4+, add Temporal Extension and Indigenous Perspective.
Evaluate is the pivot between comprehension and argument. The criterion named in Stage 2 becomes the logical spine of the Stage 3 justification paragraph.