Today is the last official day of school... and it's been a weird day. My son, who is 3 1/2 years old, was not feeling super great and since I did not have any facilitator meetings scheduled, I just kept him with me rather than taking him to preschool. I've been waiting for my students to post their final blogs and working on finishing up grades for most of the day, and Gavin (my son) has been playing with toys on the floor of my office. Currently, I have the lights dimmed and he is sleeping (kinda) in a bed of blankets.
I went though a lot of effort to make this bed... I guess he doesn't like it.
Anyway... It's quiet right now, and I've got all the work completed that I can for now which has afforded me the opportunity to reflect on this 20% Project experience. I'm sure some of my kids will post at 11:59 p.m. which would technically meet the requirement. It didn't occur to me how inconvenient it would be (for me) to have the final post be due on the last day of school. In fact, it didn't cross my mind until this week. I thought of a seemly brilliant solution and put a carrot out there for them: I offered them extra credit if they posted at least a day early. Of course, the ones who took advantage of that opportunity were the ones who did not really need the extra points. Next year I'm not going to make that same mistake; I'll probably have the final post be due the week before the end of school, or like Wednesday or something. But that's not the only thing I will do differently next year.
The biggest challenge for me was the implementation of this project. I learned about the 20% Project while at a tech teaching conference called CUE (computer Using Educators). There was a super-inspiring teacher there name Andrew Moriates who did a session on the 20% Project. I immediately knew I had to do the project with my kids... but... how? Although Mr. Moriates also teaches sophomore English, he teaches at a regular high school. You know, the kind of place that is classroom-based, with desks, and a white board, and he sees his students daily. I see each of my students one at a time, every 2-4 weeks, most of them don't even know each other, and we've never done anything like this before. My plan for implementation had to be very different from his. Despite this challenge I was determined. I had my mind set: I'd totally throw these kids a curve ball and see how they handled it. Moriates has lit a fire in me, he said in that session at CUE that "the first one through the wall gets bloodied." I thought "OK, that could be me. I could do that. My students are amazing; they can handle this." ...and I went for it.
#notetoself
I'm not gonna lie, the implementation was rocky. I warned them one by one, this is coming. look for my e-mails. Maybe it was too much information at once, maybe they didn't get enough warning, maybe they needed more discussion... I mean, this was a major shift in the way we had been doing things all year. They had become comfortable with my packets, essays, vocabulary quizzes, minimal use of technology (pretty much just YouTube and Google Docs), and non-involvement with their peers. Some of them were psyched and totally ready for what lay ahead, others were super confused and overwhelmed. As a consequence, some were late to the game or in one case didn't show up at all. So what am I going to do differently next year? For one, I'm going to start earlier... like Marchish. I'm also not going to give them all the details up front. I think it was too much to chew on all at once.
Overall, I'm so insanely delighted that I did this project. My students did amazing things: one kid build a water recycling device for his swamp cooler that waters his garden, another one created a Tumblr feed of inspirational digital comics, another one implemented a system that anonymously provided clothing to needy kids, one student earned his amateur radio (HAM) licence, another kid made a bunch of adorable stuffed bunnies for sick kids at UC Davis Children's Hospital, one student created a YouTube channel devoted to addresing the difficult issues of teen depression, bullying, self harm, and suicide... the list of accomplishments goes on and on. My point is, they have made a civic impact. And their blogs... their blogs are awesome! It's been a lot of work, but so completely worth it. So yeah, I'm doing this next year... but better, because I am inspired by my kids.
As part of this 20% Project experience, my students are blogging. They all have their own blogs, which they have designed and they are making weekly posts about their 20% Projects. Every Friday each student is required to write a blog post where they are discussing their progress. They will write reflective, analytical, narrative, persuasive, and informational blog posts by the end of the project. Each post is in response to a blog prompt, should be about 500 words long, and has to follow a format suspiciously similar to a 5 paragraph essay. But, these are not essays. The language can be more informal. They can use contractions, pronouns, and colloquialisms. Unlike in the standard MLA format essay (which I assure you they have written many) they can express themselves more freely.
Through the process of blogging they are reflecting on their experiences, sharing them with the world and each other, developing and exercising their English Language Arts skills in a real world application that is preparing them for future careers in a high tech world, investing their time into a pursuit that intrinsically motivating for them, all while and having autonomy over their learning! ...Yay!
One of the cornerstones of the Common Core standards is collaboration. This is a serious challenge for our program. Our students do English through independent study. How do you collaborate when you are working independently?!
Here is my solution... I am requiring a collaborative piece to this project. Now, all of a sudden, they have a cohort. Their blog posts are due on Fridays, and their are required to read and comment on at least 3 of their cohort’s blog posts by following Wednesday. It is my hope that some feedback from their peers will help enrich the experience. All comments must be constructive and kind. The idea is that they support and encourage each other, that they build each other up, not tear each other down. Comments should be helpful; they are supposed to be sharing ideas, and offering insights and suggestions. The idea is to be better because of each other.
Also, the students will be giving a formal presentation of their projects at the end of this. The cohort will comprise much of the audience. Now, because of this collaborative piece, the audience will already be pretty well informed as they have been following each other's blogs. I anticipate great, well-educated comments and questions at those presentations.
I wanted to let you know a little bit about the project we’ll be taking on for the Spring Semester this year called the “Civic Engagement Project.”
This idea originated from the Google Corporation. Google afforded their employees the opportunity to allot 20% of their working time to pet projects, something that their job description didn't cover, but was important to the employee. This business practice has created some of the most innovative ideas to ever come out of Google. Some educators, including the facilitators at Shasta Charter Academy, are extending this idea to the "classroom" in hopes that it will foster creativity, intrinsic motivation to learn, and innovation. This is completely in line with the ideals of Personalized Learning. Being a Personalized Learning educator I am encouraged to "think outside the classroom," and the cross-curricular skills necessary to complete this project along with the innate collaboration element will help to develop critical thinking skills.
This is a project-based-learning assignment that spans the entire Spring Semester and encourages students to pursue a creative interest they would otherwise not experience in our academic program at Shasta Charter Academy.
How Does The Project Work?
Brainstorming, Address a Civic Need
First, students will begin brainstorming and researching ideas for a project proposal. Students may work alone or in small teams (no larger than three students.) While brainstorming, students are encouraged to make the project “Product Focused” and centered on a social “need.” In other words, contributing to the real world where there is an apparent void. At the end of the year, we want them to have made something that is a completed product. It could be a physical product like a graphic novel that addresses the concerns of an underrepresented population or a balloon that takes photos from the stratosphere to help predict weather or monitor crime. It could be an organization like providing tutoring to younger students, or a community service project such as providing books to those who cannot afford them. It could also be a digital project like a short film or video game. The point here is that we want our students to passionately contribute to a community of their choice. For examples of where they could go with this, watch this YouTube video:
Written Proposal (1st Blog Post)
Once the individual/team has an idea of what project they want to pursue, they begin writing the proposal. This is how they will “pitch” the project. In this proposal, students will answer the following questions.
●What is your project?
●Who will work with you on this project?
●Who is the audience / user base / client base for this project?
●Why is this project worthwhile?
●What do you expect to learn from this project?
●What PRODUCT will you have to show at the end of the year?
●What sort of expenses will be involved in your project and how will you cover them?
●What sort of equipment will you need and where will you get it?
●What is your timeline for completing (or launching) your project?
The Civic Engagement Project Blog
Periodically throughout the semester, each student will write blog posts in which they will discuss their progress. They will write reflective, analytical, narrative, persuasive, and informational blog posts by the end of the project. Each blog post must be at least 500 words written in Standard American English and can contain related media that is posted without infringing on anyone's copyright. Blog posts will follow a format suspiciously similar to a 5 paragraph essay. But, these are not essays! Language can be more informal. Students may use contractions, pronouns, and colloquialisms. Unlike in the standard MLA formatted essay, they will be able to express themselves more freely. They are just blogging for English? Yeah. Through the process of blogging they will be reflecting on their experiences, sharing them with the world and each other, developing and exercising their English Language Arts skills in a real-world application that is preparing them for future careers in a high tech world, investing their time in a pursuit that is intrinsically motivating for them, all while having autonomy over their learning! So yeah, they are "just blogging."
Mentors
Each individual (or team) will find an adult mentor (teacher, coach, family friend, neighbor, parent, counselor just to name a few) who can help guide and inspire their project. We hope parents will play a role in helping their student find an appropriate mentor for this project. The mentor will serve to offer advice, provide informal leadership, and follow the student’s progress on their project and blog. Students should meet with their mentor a minimum of five times over the course of the project.
The Final Presentation
At the end of the year, each individual (or team) will give a five-minute presentation where they will show off their work. This will be carefully written, choreographed, and rehearsed to produce the best presentation they've ever given. Basically, "here's what I did and here's why it was so important." This is intended to be a celebration of what they have accomplished.
Assessment
Many students and parents understandably ask about how we will grade the project. We want to try to de-emphasize the grade because extrinsic motivators like grades tend to discourage the innovation and creativity we are looking for in this project. We want students to be inspired by the project itself, not by the grade they’re going to get on it.
With that being said, students will be assessed according to the objective elements of the project. A significant portion of their English grade will be dependent on the following elements with rubrics associated with them.
●The Written Proposal (1st blog post): Is the proposal on-time, and does it address the required questions appropriately? Is the pitch informative? Do they have a good action plan? Have they set achievable yet challenging benchmarks?
●The blog posts: Do the posts meet the required length and are they successfully published to their blog on time?
●Productivity and Action Plan Benchmarks: Is the student spending their time actively and passionately working on the project? If not, we need to quickly adjust the project so they are working on something that is intrinsically motivating. This is less objective, but if students are not being productive, an intervention may be necessary.
●Final Presentation: Does your presentation meet all of the required elements?
What if my project is a failure? What if I do not accomplish the goal for my physical project?
In an English course, there is a place for perfection. Essays, quizzes, and sentence mechanics come to mind. The Civic Engagement Project is no such place.
The only truly failed project is the one that doesn’t get done. We want students to strive to show off a successful product at the end of the year, but we don’t want the quest for perfection to lead to an incomplete project. We want students to follow the advice plastered on the wall of Facebook’s headquarters.
This policy doesn't work in all work-related environments. I wouldn't want to see this poster in the dentist's office or the parachute-packing assembly line. But for creative projects where we're trying to innovate, I find this idea very compelling.
If you feel that your project is a failure, we want to hear about it. What did you learn about it? Think about a science fair project. If your hypothesis was wrong, was your project a failure?
For this project, students will be doing research, reading, writing utilizing proper grammar and conventions of the English language in a real-world setting, and learning skills for career readiness all while taking ownership and having autonomy over their learning. We are very excited about this project, and we can’t wait to be amazed, surprised, and inspired by the innovative projects this year’s cohort will produce in the Civic Engagement Project. Also, I would like to credit an awesome English teacher, Andrew Moriates, for much of the inspiration and content for this project. Thanks dude, our students and local community will benefit greatly from your inspiring ideas. Do you still have questions? Leave them in the comment section.
