School
Dress Code
BY
Vickie L. Boyd
Dr.
Roland N. Patterson School - C.I.S. 229
Introduction
In recent years more
and more secondary schools are following the lead of elementary schools,
requiring their students to adhere to some form of dress code or a uniform
policy. There have been many pros and
cons being expressed by students, teachers and parents about this new
policy. Your principal has told you
that your school now has a dress code.
You have been told that it is now required that all students have to
wear navy blue pants, skirts, and white blouses, shirts or sweaters and a navy
blue tie. You are angry. You think it is unfair that now after seven
years in school you have to change your style of dressing. Is this change necessary for your success in
school and your future in the job market or do you feel that a dress code is
not necessary.
Task
You have become a member of a committee that has been assigned to investigate the pros and cons of a dress code. This task will require that you do some research. You will create surveys that will be distributed to members of your school, another intermediate school, a high school that now have a dress code, parents, teachers and administration. Your committee will also conduct a debate on the pros and cons of a dress code gotten from the information that was researched. A final report will be written and turned in to the head of the committee. You will also write a final statement that will state whether or not your mind has been changed and how you will pass on this information to students who are not members of this committee.
Process
The following procedures will be followed in order to complete this task.
Ø Your class will be divided into 5 groups. Each group will have at least 5 members.
Ø Within your group you will choose a leader, recorder, timekeeper, and a presenter.
a. The job of the leader is to make sure that the group is working on the given assignments. The leader will assign certain duties, such as who will be responsible for each task and set the time limits, to the members of his group.
b. The recorder will keep a record of all information that has been found and that will be presented to the class.
c. The timekeeper will keep the time and make sure that the group does not go over the time limit.
d. The presenter will present the final product to all other members of the class.
Ø The class will take an opinion survey on the dress code at C.I.S. 229.
Ø The class will summarize the results
Ø Each group will devise a survey for the group that have been assigned.
Ø Once the survey has been completed, the group will gather the information, write up the results, this will include creating graphs and charts, and present the results.
Ø To prepare for the debate, students will go to the internet, library, or other resources that they discussed among themselves and find articles that will prepare them for the debate.
Ø Members will take notes on all information found and present to the other committee members. This assignment can also be done at home.
a. Members of the group will select two members to participate in the debate
b. Members of the group will discuss key points that they want presented to help support their argument.
c. The recorder, with the help of the members of the group, will write a script for the two members who will be participating in the debate.
Ø Conduct the debate.
Ø Students will go back to their groups, discuss the debate and draw their own conclusions to be presented to the class.
Ø A final report from each group will be written for final review
Resources
v http://www.naesp.org/cgi-bin/netforum/open2/a/3--311
v http://www.senate.gov/~ashcroft/sp5-17-99-fl.htm
v http://www.sun-sentinel.com/interests/schools/palmdress.htm
v http://www.nyclu.org/siegel/siegel.html
v http://www.parentsmart.com/SchPractices/DressCodes/
v http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/tips.htm
v http://www.nyclu.org/siegel/siegel.html
v http://www.reason.org/ps234.html
v http://riceinfo.rice.edu/projects/topics/readers/dress-co
v http://207.142.215.253/cig-bin/netforum/nyssba/a/3--65
v http://www.Bergen.com/ed/shskul5199908179.htm
v http://www.parentsmart.com/SchPractices/Dress Codes/
Evaluation
Students will produce a written report on what they have learned about the pros and cons of the school dress code. They will include in their report whether or not their opinion about the dress has changed and why or why not they feel this way.
Students will be graded on their written and oral presentations plus their ability to analyze information and draw conclusions based on the information presented and obtained through web sites.
The following rubric will be used as part of their grade.
Writing Rubric
Level 5 Grade 90 - 100
ü The majority of responses are correct demonstrating a complete understanding of the text.
ü Thoughtful, focused, well-organized responses; logically developed ideas demonstrating higher-order thinking skills.
ü Fluent style, varied sentence structure, sophisticated vocabulary.
ü Active engagement; opinions supported by accurate citations from the text
ü Most aspects of the assignment addressed.
ü Excellent command of written English.
ü Clearly written sentences with few, if any errors in mechanics.
ü Few if any, spelling errors in basic and sophisticated vocabulary words.
ü Excellent oral presentation that is interesting and has a wealth of information that demonstrate complete understanding of the assignment.
Level 4 Grade 80 - 89
ü Correct responses demonstrating essential understanding of the text, and making general connections with some citations.
ü Writing is generally focused and organized.
ü The use of some sophisticated vocabulary and varied sentence structure.
ü Opinions stated and somewhat supported.
ü An attempt was made to address most of the aspects of the assignment.
ü Good command of written English.
ü General mastery of writing mechanics.
ü Few spelling errors of basic and sophisticated vocabulary words.
ü Oral presentation was interesting and showed a good understanding of the information being presented.
Level 3 Grade 70 - 79
ü Some correct responses demonstrating some understanding of the text, with some connection between the ideas presented and assignment given.
ü Writing generally focused but may be weakly organized and contain some irrelevant details.
ü Simple sentences and basic vocabulary.
ü Some engagement; essentially literal responses to the text.
ü An attempt was made to address some of the aspects of the assignment.
ü Acceptable control of written English.
ü Few misspellings of basic vocabulary.
ü Oral presentation demonstrated some understanding of information being presented.
Level 2 Grade 65 - 69
ü Few correct responses demonstrating lack of understanding of the text, with limited connection between the ideas presented and assignment given.
ü Writing somewhat focused but weakly organized and contains a lot of irrelevant details.
ü All responses are literal.
ü Few aspects of the assignment were attempted.
ü Simple sentences and simple vocabulary.
ü Misspellings of basic vocabulary.
ü Limited errors in mechanics, but comprehension of text is possible.
ü Oral presentation did not demonstrate complete understanding of information being presented.
Level 1 Grade - Below 65
ü No Correct responses demonstrating lack of understanding of the text, with no or little connection between the ideas presented and assignment given.
ü Writing not focused. Very little organization contains irrelevant details. No, or little connection made.
ü All responses show a lack of understanding.
ü Immature sentence structure and vocabulary is used.
ü None or little aspects of the assignment are completed.
ü Inconsistent spelling errors.
ü Errors in mechanics, but comprehension of text is possible.
ü Comprehension of oral presentation could not be done.
Level 0 Grade – Below 55
ü Disorganized responses; no development of ideas or sense of connection between ideas presented and assignment given.
ü Incomplete sentences with limited vocabulary.
ü Little or no understanding or sense of engagement.
ü Little evidence that the student has read the text.
ü No attempt to complete any aspects of the given assignment.
ü Lack of competence in written English.
ü Frequent misspelling of basic vocabulary.
ü Numerous errors in mechanics that make comprehension difficult or impossible.
ü No oral presentation.
Conclusion
At the end of this project, students should be able to analyze a policy, draw a well thought out conclusion that they can support with evidence from a text. They will demonstrate that they can research a policy, comprehend what the policy is about and be able to support their findings by citing evidence from given information and hold intelligent discussions about the policy.