The
students were also asked to speak to the Board of Education about their
Cozy Comfort Cushion. This log represents an evaluation of their effectiveness.
The student stated that “Elana and Danny were wonderful speakers.
They were clear and they made there [sic] point. They were also very entertaining.”
In preparation for each of the presentations, the students discussed organizing
the material into a form appropriate for the purpose, audience, and context.
Their organization of the materials for their initial presentation to
the principal to secure her permission is very different from their presentation
to the Board of Education. In each case, they developed a controlling
idea that conveys a perspective on the subject, e.g., the presentation
to the students versus the presentation to the Board of Education. In
all of their presentations, the students incorporated a range of strategies,
e.g., providing facts and details, describing, narrating a relevant anecdote,
and explaining the benefits.
a
Information Tools and Techniques: The student gathers information to
assist in completing project work; that is, the student:
| • | identifies potential sources of information to assist in completing the project; |
| • | uses appropriate techniques to collect the information,
e.g., considers sampling issues in conducting a survey; |
| • | distinguishes relevant from irrelevant information; |
| • | shows evidence of research in the completed project. |
The students gathered information to assist in completing the pillow project.
In order to continue with the project, they needed to collect a large
number of pillow cases. Although they sent a letter home to parents requesting
old pillow cases, they needed many more. So they decided to write to linen
manufacturers to ask them to donate some pillow cases. These pages extracted
from the students’ project logs document their research.
The students obtained the names of linen manufacturers through the Yellow Pages and by actually going to stores and recording the names and addresses from the backs of the packets.
The students
conducted some of their research by telephone. They prepared scripts to
guide their telephone inquiries. These scripts provide evidence of the
students’ efforts to ensure that all relevant information was covered
and to sequence their inquiries in an appropriate way.
This record
of a telephone inquiry formed part of the students’ documentation
of their project. It illustrates their efforts to keep track of their
research.
The
students developed a simple survey to determine which of the teachers
were interested in having a Cozy Comfort Cushion for their classroom.
The students used the survey
results to estimate how many cushions they would need to make.
