Rather than the recommended final project, I have decided instead to have my students research topics of global significance using article resources in the Discovery SIRS database. The students will work in groups of 4-6 students, and thoroughly research their chosen topic. Research must include the gathering and processing of raw data that they find from reputable sources on the internet. Each group will put together a PowerPoint presentation that details the issues involved in their chosen topic. Each group must choose a position and support it with statistical-based evidence. Additionally, the student groups will each create a 10-question survey that will be emailed to all the students in my (5) FOCS-B classes. The data collected will processed using the techniques learned in this unit and will be presented as an addendum to their presentation. Note that the results of the student surveys may or may not corroborate the views of “experts” on their chosen topics. The student groups will present on their PowerPoints and answer student and teach questions.
I really like that and may steal. Do you have rubric and outline that I can use?
Your final project sounds very interesting. I like the idea of having the topics be of global significance. How much time are you giving the students to work on the projects? This is great preparation for students wanting to take the Computer Science Principles class next year. They have a writing piece that is part of their overall grade which they have to write about a current event that has global impact.
I have allocated 3 weeks to the project. The students seem to be more interested in the Student Survey part of the project than the academic research part. I stressed global impacts because we are an IB/MYP Magnet School. We modified the ECS Unit 5 objective and used it as our Statement of Inquiry for this unit: Computers are used to translate, process and visualize data to find patterns and test hypothesis making them useful tools in managing and interpreting data in a global context.