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Anchoring Event and Brainstorm Essential Questions for research
Kalamazoo City and County Consolidation We will read the news article and discuss the implications for county residents. Since the changes will only affect a small portion of county residents, the driving quesiton for the project will be "How can the county residents in need gain better access to transportation?" or "Do they need better access?" -
Group selection and group assignments
Students will be placed into groups by the teacher. Each group will have a Project Leader. Students will then be assigned jobs by the Project Leader. Examples of jobs include: video director
presenter
videographer
storyboard coordinator
artifact head
researchers Students may have multiple roles, and more then one students should be a researcher. ASSIGNMENT: The group will turn in a summary of assigned roles. Each student will turn in a one paragraph reflection of the process. -
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Initial Research
Students will spend time in the computer lab to begin researching specific questions about transportation within the county. This will last from March 3-March 7 (5 days) -
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Critical Thinking, Collaboration, Communication, Creativity
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Assignments, Reflections, Assessments, Evaluations
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LESSON PLAN #1: Conducting Research
VIEW RESEARCH LESSON PLAN HERE Students will spend time in the computer lab to begin researching specific questions about transportation within the county. This will last from March 3-March 7 (5 days) -
First Check-In/Assessment
After 5 days of research, students will take a quiz regarding some of the information they were required to find. At this stage of the project it is important that students have a good basis of knowledge to move toward team projects and decision making. Some items on the quiz will include governing bodies, available transportation, estimated costs, population data. They will be able to use their research notes. -
LESSON PLAN #2: Conducting an Interview
VIEW INTERVIEW LESSON HERE Teacher will give a direct lesson to students regarding best practicces and how to conduct interviews. Students will begin the interview process for the project. -
Community Questionnaire
Students will begin a draft of questions for both community organzations, citizens, and government officials. -
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Community Contact/Set up interviews
Students will spend the week researching interested community members from a list of various organizations. They will also get the contact information from county municipalities, both with public transit and without. They will be required to contact a minimum of 10 people per group to set up interviews for the following week. This will be to gather information about leadership and their ideas and opinions about public transit. -
Practice Interviews
Students will practice interviewing the teacher and one another using stock questions provided by the teacher. They will also practice recording answers. -
Final Questions Due
A final draft of the community questions is due today. The questions but be succinct and well written based on the rubric provided. -
Assessment: Proof of Contact
Students will be required to show proof of contact (email correspondence, phone numbers) and a list of contacts. They will also be required to provide a schedule of interviews for the following week. -
LESSON PLAN #3: Gathering and Compiling Data
VIEW DATA LESSON PLAN HERE
Students will learn how to compile data for later use. We will use online tools, including Google Docs. -
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Interview Week
Community interviews conducted all week. -
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Data Analysis
Students will compile information from their interviews and create visual organizers to use for the remainder of the project. -
Data Visual Organizers due
Students will submit visual organizer for review. -
Research: Types available
Students will now move toward discovering which types of transportation are available in other counties and states. Students will make comparisons about ridership and modes. -
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Research
Students will now move toward discovering which types of transportation are available in other counties and states. Students will make comparisons about ridership and modes. -
Summary Due
Students will submit a summary of transporation types available. This will be in essay format, and students will use the writing rubric provided. -
Reflections
Students will write a reflection of the process so far. What is working, what is not, and where does the project research need to go from here? -
Minilesson: Government Structure
Students will learn about local government structure. -
Schedule presentation times with governing boards
Time must be schedules to get on the agenda of the governing boards. Although this will not happen until after the project is complete, it will still allow students the opportunity to share their hard work with the community and the governing bodies. -
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Research Government Organzation
Students will research all entities in the county who affect and control public transporation. -
Government Graphic Organizer Due
Students will submit a graphic organizer explaining how local governments work together throughout the county. -
Begin Compiling Information
Students will assign jobs to each team member and information will be organized. Students will choose which presentation method will be used. -
Pre-Writing Due
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Prepare Final Paper
Students will folllow the writing process to prepare a final paper regarding their research and decision. -
First draft due
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Final Draft Due
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Community Forum
Parents, other classrooms, county commissioners and the publc are invited to watch the presentations from each group. -
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Prepare Presentation
Students will spend the week preparing the presentation. Filming video, creating visual representations, using online tools to create guides, etc. These presentations will be presented to the school on April 21st. County commissioners and other elected officials will be invited to attend the presentations. -
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Peer Evaluations
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Self Evaluations
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Project Evaluation
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Process Reflection Due
Students will write a reflection about the entire project process. The reflection is due at the end of the hour.
