HIGH
SCHOOL DROPOUTS
Ms. Shustrin
Dodge Career and Technical High School
High School dropout rates
have been a problem in the
You now have an opportunity to create change. In this Webquest,
you will be given the chance to help. You will define and investigate the social
problem of the high school dropout. You will find causes and possible cures for
this issue.
You will be a Public Policy
Adviser to the Department of Education. It will be your job to present the Department
of Education with help in creating new programs that will decrease the dropout
rate. You will create a persuasive oral PowerPoint presentation that can be used
to create new programs.
You will be working with a
partner. You can choose with whom you
would like to work. In groups of two,
you will create a PowerPoint Presentation of at least ten
slides. You will need a title
slide, and then a slide defining the problem. The next slide will show evidence
that the social problem exists. The next
two slides will identify the causes of the social problem. You will then need one slide to identify the
present public policy, and
one slide that evaluates the current public
policy. You will then have
slides with suggestions for new policies to do away with the social problem
that you are studying. Then you will
have a slide with the best solution. You
will then show your PowerPoint slides to the class in a five-ten minute
presentation. Your PowerPoint
will represent use of the Public Policy Analyst.
IN GROUPS OF TWO YOU WILL
COMPLETE THE TASK BY
FOLLOWING THE STEPS BELOW.
COMPLETE THE WORKSHEET FOR EACH OF THE
FOLLOWING PUBLIC POLICY ANALYST STEPS. Use the Internet resources below to complete
the worksheets.
1.DEFINE
THE PROBLEM
a.
You and your
partner will want to understand how to define a social problem. This website will explain the process used in
understanding and defining a social problem.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/sampleprob.html
b.
COMPLETE
WORKSHEET 1.
On this worksheet you will state the nature of your
social problem, the location, and the reasons that this situation creates
social problems where you live.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet1.doc
2.GATHERING
EVIDENCE OF THE PROBLEM
a. You and you partner should
read the following to review how to gather evidence.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/gather.html
b. The goal of this activity is
to use the Internet to locate evidence to support the existence of your
problem. You will use any of the
following search engines to help you to gather the information that you need.
c.
COMPLETE
WORKSHEET 2.
On this worksheet you will state the problem in the
space provided. Then you will provide
evidence that you found on the Internet to support your theory that this social
problem exists.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet2.doc
You can use some of the following
websites to gather your evidence.
http://www.civilrightsproject.harvard.edu/research/dropouts/rumberger.pdf
http://www.dol.gov/asp/fibre/dropout.htm
http://www.focusas.com/Dropouts.html
3.IDENTIFYING THE CAUSE OF THE
PROBLEM
a. Read the following to help
you see how to identify the cause of the problem.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/identify.html
b.
As you have read there are numerous causes and contributing factors for
the reasons that students drop out of high school. You need to identify the causes of the social
problem that you are studying.
c.
COMPLETE
WORKSHEET 3
On the worksheet you will list factors that
contribute to the cause of your problem.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet3.doc
You can use some of the
following websites to identify the causes of the problem.
http://www.durangoherald.com/archives/1news4085.htm
http://www.civilrightsproject.harvard.edu/research/dropouts/rumberger.pdf
http://www.focusas.com/Dropouts.html
http://www.freeessays.cc/db/16/ems53.shtml
4.EVALUATING EXISTING PUBLIC
POLICIES
a. Read the following to help
you understand how to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of the current
public policy.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/existing.html
b.
COMPLETE
WORKSHEET 4
You will first state the social problem that you are
studying. You will then go on the
Internet to find the current public policy for the problem that you are
studying in your locale. You will then
state the public policy that you found and then you will list the advantages
that you see in this policy, and you will state the disadvantages that you see
in this policy. You will then present
your opinion, based on all that you have learned about this topic, whether the
current policy should be replaced, strengthened, or improved. You will then support your statement.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet4.doc
You
can use some of the following websites to evaluate existing public policies.
http://www.civilrightsproject.harvard.edu/research/dropouts/rumberger.pdf
http://www.aecf.org/kidscount/indicator_briefs/dropout_rate.pdf
http://www.fcny.org/html/youth/disemination.htm
http://www.ksba.org/KSA1203dropouts.htm
5.DEVELOPING PUBLIC POLICY
SOLUTIONS
a. Read the following to review
the factors to take into account when developing a public policy.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/solutions.html
b.
COMPLETE
WORKSHEET 5.
You will list three new public policies that you
propose as solutions for your social problem.
You will then select the policy that you think is the best.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet5.doc
You can use some of the following
websites to help you to develop public policies.
http://teenadvice.about.com/library/weekly/bl10thingsdroppingout.htm
http://www.thelearningweb.net/chapter12/page401.html
http://www.thelearningweb.net/chapter13/page435.html
6.SELECTING THE BEST PUBLIC POLICY SOLUTION
a. Read the following to review
the criteria to determine the feasibility and effectiveness of the solutions
that you have created.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/bestsol.html
b. Look at a sample feasibility
and effectiveness matrix.
http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/bestsolex.html
c.
COMPLETE
WORKSHEET 6.
You will restate your social problem. Then you will concisely state your three
proposed solutions to this social problem.
You will then fill out the feasibility and effectiveness matrix for each
solution that you suggested. You will
then come up with the very best solution, and explain why this is the best.
Each student will be
evaluated and graded on the following criteria.
Note: All of the percentages (%) add up to 200%,
which means that this WEBQUEST
will count as 2 exams!
|
ASSIGNMENTS TO BE JUDGED… |
IN PROGRESS… KEEP WORKING. |
SATISFACTORY |
IDEAL |
POSSIBLE SCORE |
YOUR SCORE |
|
Team Work, Both on the computer and during presentation |
Worked collectively with your
partner |
Worked collectively with your
partner, showed maturity and courtesy |
Above and beyond satisfactory,
showed leadership qualities |
30% |
|
|
Worksheets #1-6 |
Answered most questions adequately |
Answered all questions adequately |
Answered all questions adequately,
showed advanced understanding |
50% |
|
|
10-Slide Power Point Presentation on your Topic |
Did not address all of the issues or
make a very convincing argument |
Has all of the required issues in
the Presentation, but the PPT is not very convincing |
Shows how each required issue is
relates to your side, and the PPT is clear and convincing |
100% |
|
|
Presented your PPT |
Showed up unprepared and presented
the PPT poorly because of this |
Showed up well prepared and
presented your side clearly and were articulate |
Above and beyond well prepared,
added a lot to the actual Presentation aside from the computer, great presenter |
20% |
|
Completion of the Webquest
should provide you with the following knowledge and skills:
You should understand the causes of your social problem.
You should be able to state the existing public policy.
You should be able to suggest new public policy for your
social problem.
You should be able to make convincing arguments to support
your findings.
English Language Arts
Standard 1:Language
for Information and Understanding
Students will listen, speak,
read, and write for information and understanding. As listeners and readers,
students will collect data, facts, and ideas; discover relationships, concepts,
and generalizations; and use knowledge generated from oral, written, and
electronically produced texts. As speakers and writers, they will use oral and
written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language
to acquire, interpret, apply, and transmit information.
Standard 3: Language for Critical Analysis and
Evaluation
Students will listen,
speak, read, and write for critical analysis and evaluation. As listeners and
readers, students will analyze experiences, ideas, information, and issues
presented by others using a variety of established criteria. As speakers and
writers, they will use oral and written language that follows the accepted
conventions of the English language to present, from a variety of perspectives,
their opinions and judgments on experiences, ideas, information and issues.
Standard 4: Language for Social Interaction
Students
will listen, speak, read, and write for social interaction. Students will use
oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English
language for effective social communication with a wide variety of people. As
readers and listeners, they will use the social communications of others to
enrich their understanding of people and their views.
Technology
Standard 2: Information Systems
Students will access,
generate, process, and transfer information using appropriate technologies.
Standard 5: Technology
Students will apply
technological knowledge and skills to design, construct, use, and evaluate
products and systems to satisfy human and environmental needs.
Standard 7: Interdisciplinary Problem Solving
Students
will apply the knowledge and thinking skills of mathematics, science, and
technology to address real-life problems and make informed decisions.