Graduation Project Highlights

As you begin, go to the web page [fosterenglish.com]], glance over the rubrics for the paper, the project, the portfolio, and the boards. They will give you a good idea of exactly what you’ll have to do.

• Remember the minimum 15 hours. That doesn’t seem like much at first. BUT, if you take a half hour karate lesson once a week, it’ll take 30 weeks to get your 15 hours. Sewing lessons are usually 45 minutes or 1 hour.
• You must log 15 hours face to face with your mentor. 14 hours and 59 minutes and the grade is a 0. Any hours over 15 with the mentor should be logged. Hours over 15 can be verified by another adult [practicing, etc.] There are a mentor log and an independent log for your hours. The mentor cannot verify “homework.”
• Mentor – no close relative
• At your teacher’s discretion, pop checks may be made to make sure students are keeping on task. Your whole graduation project should span the semester. Be aware that you will, unless you began earlier, be working on your physical project along with your research. [This is not a one-weekend project. You should have time for reflection and problem solving.]
• All four components (research paper, project/product, portfolio, and speech) must be completed in order. Failure to complete any one component will stop your graduation project experience & exam grade be a zero (0). Note this: None of the components counts without all of the components. Class work, etc., dealing with the future components will also count as zeroes. See county book for resubmit: there are still deadlines.
• At boards, there must be a visual component that verifies your project [e. g. performances, live or taped; pictures of progress, what you made, pictures of you volunteering, a demonstration, etc.]
• Evaluation: Research paper – 25%, Project/product – 25%, Portfolio – 25%, Speech – 25% of the final exam grade
• The graduation project counts as your final exam with no exemptions allowed [BUT, you will NOT have an English IV exam on the exam day!!] School will continue up to exams. Do not plan for the year to be over with boards!
• Any of the major components – 10 points per day late. [If you do turn it in, you will be allowed to go on to the next component. If you don’t, you stop there.] A weekend is 2 days or 3 days for a 3-day weekend, etc. You are responsible for getting up with the teacher to turn in over the weekend. Due dates are the last day accepted for full credit. If you must be out, get it in early to receive full credit.
• Any component is due at the beginning of the period on its due date. Any part not ready to be turned in at the beginning of the period is late. Partial materials are not accepted. It’s either all ready or not ready.
• You must complete the project you agreed to do, not any project you decide later to do. If you must change your project, you must go through the approval process again. Obviously, you cannot do that but so late. It doesn’t happen over night. This is also true for those who began in the summer. The only project acceptable is the one approved. If you change anything, the paperwork must be changed; for example, if you switch to another mentor, you must discuss it with your teacher and have another mentor agreement filled out.
• Plagiarism results in a 0. Habitual plagiarism can become a disciplinary issue. Read and discuss “Don’t You Dare” and the academic honesty policy. You can agree or disagree with this policy, but it is the policy. Be aware of it. Should a 0 be necessary for an assignment, it is not complete [e. g. It is as though the research paper had not been turned in. One would have to be turned in very quickly with the English teacher’s approval and Permission for the process to continue [with a 0 averaged in for the grade for the paper.]
• Realize that the extra credit teacher draft gives points for doing as directed, BUT REMOVES POINTS FOR FAILING TO DO AS DIRECTED. If you are allowed to fix something about your final paper that should have been fixed after the teacher draft [say “thank you very much”—an unacceptable paper is a 0], you should expect to LOSE points. Your parents should not call to complain that you should have gotten points for “all the work” you did to fix something that should have been fixed BEFORE you turned in the final paper.
• Pick out a project you really will enjoy. If you choose something you really want to know how to do, this is fun. If not, it’s deadly. One of the biggest cautions is that people who choose something that, unbeknown to the teacher, they already know about, always end up having problems with the project or with the paper or both. A research paper is research; you can’t document something you’ve known for years. The senior paper is a research paper, not a personal essay!

Realize that you have to pay for this. Some projects don’t cost much. Others are very expensive. We strongly suggest volunteering in an area of interest in which you will learn something . Costly projects do not necessarily get the highest grade. See the rubric for the project.

• Research paper

Outline
Bib Cards
Note Cards
Rough draft [minimum of 1] see the rubric
All drafts that the teacher sees are typed
Teacher draft – discuss [outline, paper, works cited]
Final Copy [Outline, paper, Works Cited – Works Consulted is optional] –
Length 4=-6 pages

Once your thesis is approved, the topic cannot be changed

A primary source would be excellent for your paper. An interview is an excellent source. [See the rubric.]

Balanced sources [not all from the internet, not all magazines, not all books]

• Project/Product

Relates to research in some way – Ideally, uses the research
Must be a learning stretch
– need to do something new. [Can’t learn to play the piano better.]

Action verb: play the piano, build a tool house, edit a film, make stained glass, create pottery, volunteer for ____, tutor a younger student in _____

See the rubric

Portfolio – see both rubrics [state and DHC] – a record of the process – again still in progress - Business formal, not a scrapbook. Professionally Bound. Must have still pics of you and your project. This should 1. meet the requirements [Each teacher has certain things required and your portfolio must meet your teacher’s requirements.] and 2. reflect the individual student. Your portfolio will not be, should not be, just like someone else’s.

Be sure to talk privately with your teacher if the portfolio is a financial problem for you. Take care of this early on.

• Boards – panel of faculty and community members [mostly community people]

8-10 minute speech about whole process, research and project and how they relate

Business dress – girls – dresses or dressy pants [no jeans, tennis shoes, etc] boys – shirt [preferably long sleeved] and tie

Refreshments

See the rubric for specifics – “sell” your project and paper topic

If a student fails the course, he must do the entire course over again including graduation project. He may use the same project, realizing that he must meet the present teacher’s requirements and must write his research paper on a different topic.

• Log – to be filled out each time you meet with your mentor. Log for independent hours verified by an adult.
• Don’t plan to miss school to get hours for your project. That is not appropriate. DHC does not allow that.
• Journal: This is actually like a diary of your semester’s work on Graduation Project, not just the physical project, but the entire process, research and all, telling all that goes on: any problems, any high points, etc. Please note: the county book says just the physical project; you must follow your teacher’s directions. At Conley the journal is for the entire process.

This will be used in part to decide whether you worked all along or not. If you fake it, it’s pretty clear to your teacher who will grade your efforts . Pay attention to your own teacher’s requirements for this. Foster: You should write perhaps once a week, often enough to give a clear description of all that’s going on. You should begin it as you are choosing your topics. You will use it a great deal when your boards speech and project speech come up. It’s very hard to remember everything that happened and how you felt, what you learned. This is your memory. It is also required for your project grade and for your portfolio. Your judges will read it as will your English teacher. It will help your English teacher figure out your “project” grade.

• Listen carefully to your teacher’s discussion of forgery.