Christina Nardella
The Scholars’ Academy
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The Problem Across the United States, more than 500,000 people are experiencing homelessness at any given moment. Many had homes but lost them when they could no longer afford the rent. They live in every state and territory, and they reflect the diversity of our country. |
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Introduction Homelessness is a national problem that has reached a crisis level in New York City. If you live here, you encounter this reality every day. On the subway, on the street, at school, and at work, we interact with colleagues, friends, and neighbors who are experiencing, or are at risk of, homelessness. Everyone wants a safe home where they can rest their head at night, and everyone wants to experience the enormous possibilities of living in the greatest city in the world. But, for approximately 90,000 of our fellow New Yorkers, realizing those possibilities is complicated by the experience of homelessness.
As a fellow New Yorker, you will be conducting research into the trends of homelessness, annual rent and annual income in NYC and try to find a solution to help keep our fellow New Yorkers off the streets. |
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Task At the end of this WebQuest your group will:
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Process/Resources Your finished presentation should identify the following 6 steps:
______________________________________________________________________________________ Day 1: ● Amazon HQ2: Watch this news clip about Amazon’s decision to build a second headquarters, “HQ2.” It promised 50,000 new highly-paid jobs and invited cities to apply to be home of the so-called “HQ2.” ● Discuss the following bullet points in your groups: ○ Discuss possible upsides and downsides of a company like Amazon moving to your area. ○ If you were the mayor of a city or town, would you want Amazon to build its new headquarters in your area? Why? ○ How would you prevent or address negative consequences like homelessness? ● Individually respond to the following padlet. ______________________________________________________________________________________ Day 2: ● The table of values presents the median annual income and median annual rent for a household in New York from 2010 to 2019.
● You will be working in groups of 3 to complete the following: ○ Create a scatter plot for the median annual income vs. year to show how the median annual income for a household changed in New York City. ○ Determine the linear regression equation for the annual income and sketch the line of best fit on the scatter plot you created to show the trends in the median annual income vs. year. ○ Create a scatter plot for the median annual rent vs. year to show how the median annual rent changed in New York City. ○ Determine the linear regression equation for the annual rent and sketch the line of best fit on the scatter plot you created to show the trends in the median annual rent vs. year. ○ Based on the graphs, would you conclude that the typical household was better off or worse off over time? Explain. ○ What do the linear regression equations tell you, and how do you expect this would affect residents there? ______________________________________________________________________________________ Day 3 ● Watch this video: Seeking Shelter: Across the United States, more than 500,000 people are experiencing homelessness at any given moment. Many had homes but lost them when they could no longer afford the rent. ● In your groups of 3, discuss the following: ○ Analyze the two graphs below describing homelessness in New York and explain what they tell you.
○ Based on this, if you sketched a graph of the city's homeless population vs. its median income, what do you expect it would look like? ○ THE BIG REVEAL! |
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Evaluation You will be graded on group work, the presentation (slides), the dot plots and linear regression equations created, and your analysis of the information provided using the rubric below:
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Conclusion Our fellow New Yorkers thank you for analyzing and suggesting some possible solutions for homelessness in NYC. By the end of this assignment, you should have learned… ● New York average incomes have risen over time. As incomes have risen, so have rents. ● As rents rise, some people are no longer able to afford their homes and become homeless. ● Local leaders face a challenge in recruiting high-paying jobs while ensuring their areas remain affordable to the less well-off. |
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Common Core State Standards CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.B.6 Represent data on two quantitative variables on a scatter plot, and describe how the variables are related. CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.B.6.A Fit a function to the data; use functions fitted to data to solve problems in the context of the data. Use given functions or choose a function suggested by the context. Emphasize linear, quadratic, and exponential models. CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.B.6.B Informally assess the fit of a function by plotting and analyzing residuals. CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.B.6.C Fit a linear function for a scatter plot that suggests a linear association. CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.C.7 Interpret the slope (rate of change) and the intercept (constant term) of a linear model in the context of the data. CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.C.9 Distinguish between correlation and causation. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.7 Integrate visual information (e.g., in charts, graphs, photographs, videos, or maps) with other information in print and digital texts. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.2 Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to supporting ideas; provide an objective summary of the text. |
