The Price of Fast Fashion

1. Set Focus
Pose this essential question to guide discussion: What ethical factors should drive how producers create goods and services and how consumers choose to purchase them?

2. List Vocabulary
Share with students some of the challenging vocabulary words in this article. Encourage them to use context to infer meanings as they read.

• barrage (p. 9)
• catering (p. 9)
• disposable (p. 9)
• allegations (p. 11)
• scrutiny (p. 11)
• sustainable (p. 11)

3. Engage
Ask: If I were to give you $100, would you spend it on five sweaters that you knew you’d throw out in a few months or on one sweater that you planned on keeping for many years? Why?    

4. Read 
Have students read the article, marking the text to note key ideas or questions.

5. Discuss
Distribute or project Up Close: The Price of Fast Fashion, a close-reading activity for students to work on in small groups. (Note: The questions on the PDF also appear on the facing page of this lesson, with possible responses.) Follow up with a class discussion. If you’re short on time, have each group tackle one or two of the questions. Collect students’ work or have each group report its findings to the class.

• What does the title indicate about the author’s purpose in writing the article? When formulating your response, consider the multiple meanings of the phrase the price of in the title. (Author’s purpose, word meaning) (The author uses the phrase the price of in the title in relation to both the very low cost of fast fashion and to the problems that experts say are created by fast fashion. The title indicates that the author’s purpose in writing the article is to explore how these popular, low-cost products also have downsides that consumers should consider.)

• In the article, what point does the author make about social media in relation to fast fashion? How does the author support this point? (Develop ideas, key details) (The author makes the point that social media is a driving force behind the fast fashion craze. She supports this point by quoting people who continually buy fast fashion in order to stay relevant on social media and by giving examples of celebrities who post photos of themselves in fast fashion, which feeds the craze. She also explains that fast fashion companies produce goods as quickly and cheaply as possible to feed the demand of having new items to post online.)

• According to the article, what issues related to fast fashion do most consumers likely not consider or know about when shopping for new clothes? ( Problem & solution, claims & evidence) (Consumers might not consider or know about the terrible conditions many workers who make fast fashion must toil under and the low pay many receive—in some places just a few dollars a day. Consumers also might not consider the harm to the environment of producing fast fashion or of throwing out garments on a regular basis.)

• In the section “The TikTok Effect,” what does the term off the books mean? Which details provide clues to its meaning? (Word meaning, context clues)(The term off the books means paid in a way that does not follow federal or state laws, including a lower wage than the law requires and no paid benefits. The details that provide clues about the words’ meaning include that workers were paid far below the minimum wage and that many of the workers are undocumented immigrants and therefore less likely to complain.) 

• How do the anecdotes about Christina at the beginning and the end of the article introduce and wrap up the author’s ideas? (Text structure, develop ideas) (The anecdote about Christina that begins the article sets up one of the article’s central ideas—that social media helps fuel the fast fashion craze. This anecdote is about how Christina didn’t want to post a photo of herself online in the same outfit twice, so she was always buying new clothes from fast fashion stores. The anecdote about Christina at the end of the article, which tells how she changed her ways to live more sustainably, helps wrap up the author’s points about how people can shop more ethically.) 

• What does the sidebar “Fast Fashion by the Numbers” add to the article? (Integrate information) (The statistics about the number of purchases and about the effect of wearing clothes longer help show the impact of fast fashion on the environment. The statistics about the type of shopper targeted by fast fashion companies and the number of influencers one company hired help show how social media drives the fast fashion craze.)

6. Writing Prompt
What steps are some fast fashion manufacturers taking to ensure that their manufacturing processes follow labor laws and are more environmentally friendly? Do you think these steps are adequate? Explain.

7. Video
Watch the video about fast fashion. What does it add to your understanding?

8. Classroom Debate
Should manufacturers be required by law to produce sustainable clothing?

9. Quiz & Skills
Use the quiz to assess students’ comprehension and Organizing Ideas to review outlining skills.