SENIOR
CULMINATING PROJECT
Est 1995
1.
FORKS,
(360)
374-6262
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Overview page
3
Advisory
Committee page
3
Program
Goals page
3
Program
Objectives page
4
Expectations
of the Culminating Senior Project page
4
Application
Process page
4
Selecting
a
Project
Journal/Log page
5
Reflection
Paper page
5
Assessment
Panel Review page
5
Spartan
Showcase page
6
Final
Assessment page 6
Appendices
A Sample Letter of Intent page
7
B Letter of Intent Approval Form page
8
C Signature
Form page
9
D Mentor’s
Guide page
10
E Evaluation
by the
F
Project Journal/Log page
13
G
Reflection Paper Guidelines
page
14
H
Assessment Panel Review
Rubric
page 15
I
Spartan Showcase Guidelines
page 16
J Spartan Showcase Rubric
page
17
K Advisor’s
Verification of Project Completion page 18
Overview
The Forks High School Senior Culminating
Project represents a long-term commitment on the part of
The Forks High School Senior Culminating
Project consists of five requirements:
1.
An application and signature sheet to start the project;
2.
A project journal documenting 45 hours of service learning with mentor
signature and evaluation
3.
A written reflective paper of 1000 words or more;
4.
A 15 minute formal presentation before a panel of three to five judges;
5.
And a presentation of a visual display for a community exhibition at the
high school.
All high school seniors must
successfully complete a Senior Culminating Project in order to graduate. A student cannot graduate without meeting
all credit requirements and passing the
WASL, senior portfolio, and culminating project.
Senior Culminating Project Advisory
Committee
An Advisory Committee oversees the
Senior Culminating Project. This
committee shall be composed of students, community members, and teachers. This
committee is responsible for determining policy and procedure, for establishing
the requirements for all Senior Culminating Projects, and for assisting
students when they cannot determine an acceptable project. The Advisory Committee is further available
for assisting students to overcome challenges related to the Senior Culminating
Project. The Advisory Committee will
conduct a yearly review of the Senior Culminating Project and refine and modify
the project as necessary.
The Senior Culminating Project is
implemented at the classroom level through the Advisory Program.
Program Goals
The goals and objectives (listed below)
for the Forks High School Senior Culminating Project are intended to support
and reflect the Washington State Education Goals, the Quillayute Valley School
District philosophy, vision and mission statements, and curriculum.
Students will:
· Select, plan,
implement, and evaluate a culminating project within the allotted time
· Establish and
maintain a positive working relationship with community member(s)
· Communicate
effectively in written, oral, and visual formats
· Demonstrate and
document ability to think analytically, logically, and creatively
· Use
experience and knowledge to make
reasoned judgment and solve problems
· Understand how
performance, effort, and decisions affect future career and educational
opportunities
· Work
independently, or with mentor/advisor, when appropriate
· Enhance quality
of life in the community, while experiencing the benefits of service learning
The Community will:
· Receive the
benefit of more informed and committed students in the community
· Foster more
student involvement in the community
· Experience
long-range commitment to the health and welfare of the community
· Have a direct
opportunity to influence the future through individual students
The School will:
· Benefit from strengthened
ties between staff members, students, and community in a more informal setting
· Encourage staff
to share interests and skills across the curriculum
Program Objectives
Students will:
1. Communicate effectively both in written and
oral forms
a. Demonstrate the ability to communicate in a
formal written manner by presenting their experience through their completed
summary reflective paper.
b.
Demonstrate the ability to communicate in an informal written manner by
keeping a Project Journal and documenting all hours.
c. Demonstrate
the ability to communicate in a formal oral manner by presenting a
fifteen-minute presentation to a panel of judges. This presentation will be assessed with a
standardized rubric.
d.
Demonstrate the ability to communicate informally in a question and
answer format at the Spartan Showcase.
2. Organize
their time, make long-term plans, persevere, work independently, use the advice
and experience of others, and solve problems.
a. Plan
and complete a Senior Culminating Project which contains a significant element
of service learning to the community by the established date.
b.
Secure a mentor to assist their on-site work.
Expectations for the Culminating
Senior Project
The project must include, maintain,
preserve, and present:
* the documents initiating the project.
* a service learning component
* a detailed journal documenting 45
hours of direct community service beyond the normal school day. Service learning time is the actual time
spent doing the service project; it does not include driving time, breaks,
etc
* a summarizing reflection paper (1000
words)
* the evaluation of a mentor
* the assessment forms from the Panel
* the assessment forms from the Spartan
showcase
* the signature of the advisor
indicating the project is completed. To
successfully complete this phase of the Senior Culminating Project, the advisor
must be satisfied by communication with the mentor that the student has met the
above expectations
Application Process
It is the student’s responsibility to
determine the subject of his or her Senior Culminating Project. After researching service learning
opportunities in the community, talking with community resources, advisor and
family, the student will need to come to a decision. Once the student is satisfied that the project meets the requirements set forth in the
project objectives, the student will need to complete a
The advisory board will review the
documents and notify the student of acceptance, or meet with the student to
discuss the project. Once the advisory board
has approved the project, the student may begin the project.
Selecting a Mentor
Each student will select a mentor to
assist and/or advise the student during the project. A student may also need an
on-site mentor. The primary mentor must be an employee of Quillayute Valley
School District. The mentor may also be the student’s school advisor. The
mentor cannot be a relative. Each student is responsible for identifying a
mentor and arranging to work with that person. If a student is having
legitimate difficulty securing a mentor, both the school advisor and the
Advisory Committee may assist.
The mentor’s role is to guide/assist the
student as necessary and serve as a general resource person. The mentor is not to perform any of the tasks
of the student’s project. The second
most important task for every mentor is to provide a written evaluation of the
senior's project and return the evaluation to the student’s Advisor. Each mentor must validate that the student
under his/her mentorship completed the project satisfactorily and that the
student spent at least 45 hours working on the project. If an on-site mentor is needed, both mentors
will need to complete an evaluation. The mentor must certify and acknowledge in
the evaluation that the project satisfies the service learning component.
Sample Letter of Intent (see page 7)
Letter of Intent Approval Form (see page 8)
Signature Form (see page 9)
Project Journal/Log
The journal of the project is a detailed
written explanation of the project. All thoughts, actions, communications,
progress, obstacles that pertain to the Senior Culminating Project are to be
recorded in the written journal. This is
an opportunity for students to reflect on project
goals.
(see p. 1) Each entry is to include the date, hours worked, what activities
were completed, student reflections on the changing nature of the work,
problems or roadblocks faced, plans for adjustment, modifications to the original
proposal, or triumphs of achievement and learning. The mentor must sign off on journal
completion. It is recommended to take pictures and include samples of related
work materials, such as rough drafts or plans.
This will help evaluators to visualize each step taken in the project.
It is this journal that will serve as the basis for the final reflection
paper. (See page 13)
Reflection
Paper
(This reflection is to be used
for the presentation)
Describes the project and
explains how the student thought analytically, logically and creatively, and
how the student integrated the project experience and knowledge so that the
student could form reasoned judgments and solve problems. The student will need to explain the
importance of work and how performance affects the final product. (See page 14)
Assessment Panel Review
Senior Culminating Project Panel Review
occurs at the end of the year. It is
conducted over several days during school time with the appointments being
arranged by the counseling center secretary.
The student makes a fifteen-minute
presentation (highlighting the culminating component) to a panel of
judges. This panel will include three to
five people from the community and staff.
Up to eight minutes of this presentation may be audio-visual. The rest must be oral. The remaining minutes will be a question and
answer session wherein the student discusses the Senior Culminating Project
experience with the evaluators.
It is strongly recommended that the
student use a variety of presentation techniques to assist both the student and
the evaluators during this presentation. Visuals may include a multi-media
option that includes a wide variety of formats, including computer and/or video
productions.
The advisor is responsible for notifying
the counseling secretary that a student is eligible for the panel review. The standardized project assessment tool
(rubric) will be used to evaluate the project.
Spartan Showcase
Senior Culminating Projects conclude
with the Spartan Showcase at Forks High School at the end of the school year. Presentations of projects will occur for the
school, during the school day, and in the evening for the community.
Each senior is required to set-up
audio/visual display about his/her Senior Culminating Project for the school
and community, and must be present during this time to answer any questions
about his/her Senior Culminating Project.
The particular format may be one of the student’s own choosing. The
evening session of Spartan Showcase normally is open between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.
Students should plan to arrive early.
Final Assessment
After participating in the Spartan
Showcase, the Senior Culminating Project will be considered successfully
completed when the Senior Culminating Project Planning Committee has received
the following:
- The mentor’s evaluation form
regarding the service learning component.
- The advisor’s evaluation
form for the written components of the project.
- The Senior Culminating
Project Review Panel Evaluation forms.
- The Spartan Showcase
evaluation forms.
The following are the required elements
for the Senior Culminating Project. All are graded on a Pass/Fail basis.
Students who demonstrate extraordinary achievement, significant intellectual
growth, or superior creativity and effort may pass with distinction.
Letter of Intent
Signature Form (Parental
Permission/Mentor Contract/Student Commitment)
Project Journal (min. 45 hr.)
Reflection Paper
Judge Panel Review
Spartan Showcase Review
FHS SENIOR
CULMINATING PROJECT
SAMPLE LETTER OF INTENT
October
6, 2008 (Date written out)
(Double or Quad
Space)
Senior
Culminating Project Advisory Committee
Forks
High School
191
S. Spartan Avenue (Full Address in
this form)
Forks,
WA 98331
(Double Space)
Dear
Members of the Committee (No Comma)
(Body is SS in
paragraph DS between)
I
am a junior at (name of school). For
my culminating project, I am proposing to design and build a three foot by four
foot wooden doll house that will be true to scale including being electrified
so that it can be used to teach home safety to small children. (Introduce Yourself and Propose Idea)
The
primary goal of my project is research home plans; choose a plan that would
work for my local community and create the miniature blueprints to build the
house. I will have plastic windows,
electricity and all doors and windows will be working. I will include safety features such as fire
extinguishers and smoke alarms so that the house can be used to teaching
children home safety. (Goals)
(Project Details with clearly stated
goals)
This
project will help me further develop the knowledge and skills needed to become
a successful a home designer. I have
always enjoyed playing with toys that were miniature replicas of actual working
equipment and furniture. This project
will allow me to create a toy of my dreams while learning more about safety and
home design.
(Skill
development/new knowledge tied to future plans)
This
project will be a service to the community because it will provide a safety
training tool to be used by the Forks Elementary School. The service learning component of my project
will be preparing the safety features of the house so that it can be used by
elementary teachers to help students learn about home safety. Teaching safety to small children and using
play as a way to teach them will be exciting and very real. I may have to create a flier, power point or
other materials to go with the house if I can’t label the features in the small
home. (Community Service learning)
This
project will be a challenge to me because I will need to research actual plans,
draw my own plans, and then build the house.
I will need to select materials, create things I cannot find to fully
complete the house as if it was a real house.
I will need to spend extra time creating the safety features so that
they can be used as teaching tools. (Challenges)
(Mentor’s name) has agree to be my onsite mentor and (School
Mentor’s name) will be my staff mentor.
(Mentor with contract)
Thank
you for considering my proposal. (Closing)
(Signature Block
QS)
Your
Name
Your
Complete Address
Culminating
Project –Letter of Intent Approval Form
Name:
_____________________________________________Date: ______________
Advisor:
___________________________Mentor: ____________________________
Project
Name: __________________________________________________________
Procedure for receiving and returning
Letter of Intent:
1. Student submits letter to counseling center.
2. Committee approves or disapproves and returns letter to student’s advisor.
3. Advisor returns it to student.
Criteria for
Approval:
·
Stated goals are clear and realistic. Yes
No
Comments:
·
Stated knowledge and skills planned to be
acquired connect with
student’s
future plans. Yes
No
Comments:
·
Project is service learning (not just
community service.) Yes
No
Comments:
·
Stated challenges are clear. Yes No
Comments:
·
Chosen mentor meets guidelines. Yes
No
Comments:
·
Letter is well organized and revised for conventions
(letter format,
mechanics such as grammar,
spelling.) Yes
No
Comments:
· Project
Approved: Yes
No
Comments:
FHS SENIOR CULMINATING PROJECT
SIGNATURE FORM
Student Commitment:
I
______________________________________________commit to complete the following
project:
__________________________________________________________________. I agree to comply with all components of the
project and understand that I must complete the 45 hours of service and all
other requirements in order to graduate.
Student
Signature: ____________________________________________ Date: _______________
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Parental Permission:
As
the parent/guardian of ____________________
, I am aware that my son/daughter must complete all phases of the Senior
Culminating Project to graduate from Forks High School. My son/daughter has decided to do the project
noted above with the following as
mentor/s:
_______________________________________________________________________. I understand that my son/daughter will attend
Senior Culminating Project Exhibition and respond to comments and questions
about his/her project.
My
signature below indicates that I am aware of my son/daughter’s decisions, as
stated above, and approve of them.
Parent/Guardian
Signature: ____________________________________ Date: _______________
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mentor Contract:
I
____________________________________ have read the mentor’s guide and I am
familiar with the concept of the Senior Culminating Project -- particularly the
service-learning component. I agree to
serve as a mentor for: ____________________________________________________________.
Mentor’s
Signature: ______________________________________________ Date:_____________
Mentor’s
Address: _________________________________________________________________
Telephone
Number: ________________________________________
E-mail Address: ___________________________________________
MENTOR’S GUIDE
The student, through completing the
Senior Culminating Project, will demonstrate that he/she can communicate
effectively both in written and in oral form, and that he/she has the ability
to organize their time, make long-term plans, persevere, work independently,
and solve problems.
Student Responsibilities
1. Each student will create and complete a
project that has a direct correlation to what his/her statement of intent
included. This minimum 45-hour project will have a clear service learning
component. The student is required to
find a mentor to provide assistance for this phase of the Senior Culminating
Project. Each student will find his/her
own mentor. The Advisory Committee will provide direction and resources at
student request.
2. Each student is
to submit a letter of intent to the Senior Culmination Project Advisory
Committee. After being notified the committee has accepted the project, the
student may start the project work. It
is highly encouraged that the student shares the letter of intent with the
mentor.
3.
It
is important for the student to communicate with both his/her site-mentor and advisor.
The advisor is responsible for signing off on the final project before the
student may request an appointment with the Assessment Panel.
4.
Each
student will keep a Journal documenting how the hours of the project were
spent. The student is to discuss each entry with the mentor and request the
mentor’s signature on the Journal to verify the Journal. This journal will document the
decision-making and problem-solving work of the project.
5. The student will complete a Reflection Paper
(1000 words) which will summarize his/her learning experiences from the
project.
6. Students will be responsible for providing
and purchasing all materials needed, if any, for the project and are not to be
compensated for labor or materials.
7. It will be the student’s responsibility to
schedule times to meet with the mentor and to contact the mentor on a regular
basis.
8. Students will not leave campus to work on
Senior Culminating Projects.
Mentor
Responsibilities
1. Be a resource. Students are to do their
own work. However, sometimes help is needed to:
a. Provide
guidance as to the shape or form of the project. For example, a student’s
project might be too large in scope. The mentor would need to help the student
narrow the focus to a more manageable level or size.
b. Get
them started! Sometimes it is necessary to guide (not direct) the student
throughout the process of deciding what steps need to be taken and in what
order.
c. Keep
the student on track as far as the service aspect is concerned. Service is a vital and non-negotiable aspect
of the project. Service can be defined as anything that will have a beneficial
impact upon its recipients. The students’ rewards from this service will be
real, but sometimes intangible.
2. Provide suggestions as to where to go for
reference materials or physical materials.
3.
Provide
emotional support. Students frequently experience roadblocks. Obstacles may
still appear. Providing students emotional support during brainstorming
alternative plans gives them more confidence in their problem-solving skills.
4.
Be
able to attest to what the student has accomplished. Verify the student Project
Journal. Of the 45 hours the student is to have spent on the project, how much
were you directly involved, or were you personally aware? What have you seen?
5.
Offer
regular feedback and informal evaluation. Be honest with the student, and allow
them to be honest with you.
6.
Be
particularly mindful of Running Start students. They need an equal amount of
mentoring and contact. This may require extra effort on the student and mentor’s
part.
7. Complete the evaluation sheet of the
student’s project.
Advisor
Responsibilities
1.
Help
the students initiate their project. Be a resource. Listen to their ideas and
facilitate their refining their ideas into a culminating project. Students are to
do their own work.
1. Keep the student
on track as far as the service aspect is concerned. Service is a vital and
non-negotiable aspect of the project. Service can be defined as anything that
will have a beneficial impact upon its recipients. The students’ rewards from
this service will be real, but sometimes intangible.
2. Help them
understand and meet their project submission deadlines.
3. Complete the
final evaluation of the written portions of the senior culminating project.
4. Advise the
student that they are eligible to schedule a presentation time with the
Assessment Panel.
5. Collect the
final scores for each of the graded sections and submit them to the Senior
Culminating Project Advisory Committee.
6. Facilitate
student writing thank you notes to all individuals and agencies involved in the
Senior Culminating Project.
Make a final recommendation to the
Senior Culminating Project Advisory Committee and the principal that all
requirements for the project and portfolio have been met and that the student
has completed this graduation requirement.
FHS SENIOR CULMINATING PROJECT
EVALUATION BY MENTOR
Project
Evaluated:
Student
Name: Mentor Name:
It
is necessary to evaluate the student’s effort in their project. Since all of the time spent on the physical
project was outside of class, the student evaluation is very important. Please answer the following questions as
accurately as possible. When completed,
please return this evaluation form to the student.
1. Describe your involvement and awareness of
the 45 hours required of the student in the project. Feel free to comment on
consultations, frequency of meetings, student willingness to accept
suggestions, his/her flexibility, ability to adapt, think critically, and solve
problems.
2. To what extent are you satisfied with the
effort of the student and the quality of the completed project?
3. Additional comments or suggestions on the
project, student experience and learning, or service component:
FORKS
HIGH SCHOOL
CULMINATING SENIOR
PROJECT JOURNAL
(SAMPLE PAGE)
NAME_____________________________ MENTOR ____________________
PROJECT __________________________ ADVISOR ____________________
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Project Start Date |
Project Completion
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Total Hours |
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Fully describe each step of your project discussing
decision-making, problem-solving, and creative thinking activities. (Use
additional paper if necessary) |
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Project Activity |
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Date Hours Sign |
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2/12/08 |
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Today I went to the job site for Habitat for Humanity.
There were several volunteers there, and our task leader said that we were
going to paint the interior walls of the bedrooms, kitchen and bathroom.
Everybody thought they knew how to paint, so they paid very little attention
to the crew leader, who was the only one who really knew what he was talking
about. When several of the older guys went into the bedroom to paint, they
didn’t intermix the cans of paint, so it was totally obvious, even to me,
that the ceiling and walls didn’t match. To make matters worse, they didn’t
use any kind of system to the process, so there were dry areas of fresh paint
that got covered with two or three coats, while other areas barely had one
coat. The room looked terrible. When the crew leader came in to inspect, I
could tell he was upset. Then he had to figure out how to get all those
adults how to paint correctly without making them mad. He started out by
giving them praise, and just started to paint on his own on the one wall that
didn’t have any paint on it yet. After about 3 minutes, he was ½ done with
the wall, and they all realized that not only was he going faster, it looked
better. One of them said, “hey, look at ______.” They all stopped, and he
just kept painting but said, “if you’re having trouble getting consistent
results, you can try….” They got the idea. Then the crew leader dumped paint
from the cans together and started mixing it. In five minutes he was gone to
the next room. I learned that you have to be careful how to coax people to
cooperate, and that volunteers aren’t always professionals, but you have to
learn to work with people of both greater and lesser ability. You have to be
careful to lead by example rather than lead by bossing people around. Those
guys still left at lunch and never cleaned their equipment. Somebody else had
to do it. |
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REFLECTION
PAPER GUIDELINES
This
paper may also be used as a framework for your panel presentation.
·
Reflect on your original thought (not merely a series of quotes or paraphrases)
·
Provide evidence of in-depth understanding and analysis/synthesis of the
information
·
Provide evidence of critical thinking and evaluation skills used/gained
·
Be a minimum of 1000 words.
·
Be typed (word processed), double-spaced, use 10 or 12 pt., Geneva, Helvetica,
or Times font
·
Reflect careful thought to content, organization, and style
·
Reflect correct spelling, grammatical usage, and mechanics
Use the suggested writing
prompts for the Senior Project Reflection to summarize your project.
- In the beginning…
- What I did…
- How it made me feel…
- What I learned and why…
- To do it again I would…
- The effects on community were…
- The future impact on the community
is...
- To evaluate my own performance…..
- Some obstacles/challenges that I overcame
were….
- I got the idea when…
- I chose this project because…
- My time management…
- I am most proud of…
- What I did matters because……….
Suggested Organization
·
Introduce
yourself and your project including your goals and why the project was chosen
and how it ties to future plans. Thank
those who helped you.
·
Describe
the project from beginning, middle, end
·
Discuss
any problems you encountered and your solutions to those problems
·
Discuss
the impact on the community that your project had
·
Discuss
how the project helped you grow as a person
·
Conclude