Updating Graduation Requirements Anthony
Hazell Bay
Ridge Prep |
|
INTRODUCTION:
Bay Ridge Prep would like to introduce more 21st
Century Skills into its requirements for graduation. This is happening as a result of reviewing
current requirements and finding that colleges and the workforce require more
than just the traditional education being offered at many schools. Although Bay Ridge Prep has normally gone
above and beyond New York State requirements, the school administration wants
to ensure that graduates are leaving the institution with a firm grasp of
skills required to continue learning and working in the 21st
Century.
Bay Ridge Prep school officials often look for
differing opinions before creating policies.
Opinions on policy matters sometimes come from a group of
administrators, faculty, parents, and board members. Sometimes, students are also asked for input
on new policies so that that entire school community has a voice in policies
that might affect everyone on campus.
Our school is in the process of deciding what enhancements will be made
in our new requirements for graduation and is looking for student input on this
policy change.
TASK: Working in groups:
·
Student groups will
submit the following:
o
One written report of
at least 3 pages describing your proposed enhancements to the school’s
graduation requirements. This should be
worked on by the group and one person should be assigned to edit and put it
into one voice. The written report
should have citations following the APA StyleGuide. Click here for a link to the APA StyleGuide.
o
One PowerPoint or Prezi presentation to use in the presentation to
administration and faculty. One person
should be assigned to format this.
o
One oral presentation
that summarizes the written report and visual presentation (PowerPoint or Prezi). One or two
people can give the oral presentation but the notes for it should be worked on
by the entire group.
PROCESS/RESOURCES:
·
Your class will be
split into three groups.
·
Each group is
responsible for proposing new requirements that you feel is necessary to
prepare for college and life as well as suggesting which existing requirements
might need modification.
·
Help our school create
a more engaging and demanding curriculum that still meets and goes beyond New
York State standards for graduation.
·
Identify two to three
21st Century skills that our school could offer more instruction on
and will better prepare students for college and the workforce.
·
Each group will then
make a presentation to a small group of faculty and administrations.
·
Use the PPA steps to
help analyze and develop a solution to enhancing our school’s graduation
requirements.
§
Worksheet: http://www2.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet1.doc
§
Worksheet: http://www2.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet2.doc
§
Worksheet: http://www2.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet3.doc
o
4) What are the existing policies?
§
Worksheet: http://www2.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet4.doc
o
5)
Develop policies to correct the problem.
§
Worksheet: http://www2.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet5.doc
o
6)
What is the best policy to correct the problem?
§
Worksheet: http://www2.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet6.doc
·
Student groups will
start by looking at current New York State graduation requirements for high
school students. Consult the student
handbook for these requirements or view them online by clicking here for the New York State graduation requirements. Groups should also
review the New York State Learning Standards by clicking here.
·
Student groups will
then look at the additional graduation requirements from Bay Ridge Prep. Consult the student handbook for these
requirements.
·
Student groups should
each choose two alumni, two faculty members, and two administration officials to
interview about how they feel the current requirements help students
post-graduation.
·
Student groups should
compare New York State/Bay Ridge Prep standards to that of other states or
schools. Some resources include:
o
California
High School Graduation Requirements
o
New Jersey High School Graduation Requirements
o
Massachusetts High School Graduation Requirements
·
Students can also look
at other New York City independent/private schools’ graduation requirements for
reference. These can be found by going
to those schools’ websites or performing a simple web search on Google or Bing for terms like “[Insert School Name] graduation requirements”.
EVALUATION:
Groups will be
evaluated on the following:
CRITERIA |
4 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
Research |
Shows an excellent
understanding of existing requirements and used the required number of
sources. |
Shows a good
understanding of existing requirements and used almost all the required
number of sources. |
Shows some understanding
of existing requirements and used some of the required number of sources. |
Needs additional
research and use of sources. |
Organization |
Very good
organization |
Good organization |
Fair organization |
Needs organizational
improvement |
Content |
Content is excellent
and very concise. |
Content is good and
concise. |
Content is fair and
could be more concise. |
Content needs
improvement. |
Presentation |
Presentation is well
done and clearly expresses the group’s points. |
Presentation good
and expresses the group’s points. |
Presentation is fair
and expresses some of the group’s points. |
Presentation needs
improvement to better express group’s points. |
CONCLUSION:
With the conclusion of
your group project, each group member will have made an important contribution
to the school’s goal of enhancing its graduation requirements. Each student will have had a part in helping
us to better prepare current and future students for college and life. In addition, each student will have succeeded
in working together in a group and making a formal proposal on policy change –
a skill that will be very useful in college and in the workforce!
STANDARDS:
New York State English Language Arts Standard 1:
Language for
Information and Understanding
New York State English Language Arts Standard 2:
Language for Literary Response and Expression
New York State English Language Arts Standard 4:
Language for Social Interaction
New York State Math, Science & Technology Standard 5:
Technology
New York State Math, Science & Technology Standard 7:
Interdisciplinary Problem Solving