Product
Types of Products: Physical experiences – build or make something; such as a computer program, a special engine or prototype for temporary housing. Written product – write advertisements for volunteer opportunities, write a proposal to limit waste production for a specific company, write a petition to solicit public response and send it to the government. Performance – Mentor a performance with disabled actors, create a show that incorporates the community issue and perform to build public awareness. Conduct a teaching or leadership experience – teach a middle school or elementary class a series of lessons or a skill; for example, tutor a math skill, read for a class or coach a little league team. Teach elders how to use the internet, Skype, etc. Establish a community garden, and teach people how to tend it. Physical experience – Teach someone how to exercise, work with a buddy to prepare for Special Olympics, or lead a group on a ecological tour of the community and map resources. Career-related project – complete a service learning experience in a professional area that you wish to pursue; for example, volunteer your time at a local office or hospital, shelter, park, historic site, or science center. Note: Job-shadowing without any application beyond the shadowing experience is not challenging enough to meet the requirements of the Graduation Project and is unacceptable unless some measure of service is involved. GUIDELINES FOR SERVICE LEARNING/PRODUCT 1. The service learning experience and product must be student-generated. Students must identify/ design and participate in a suitable, related service learning experience that connects to their community issue. For example, students may conduct a food drive for a local food bank. The service learning experience should reflect SIGNIFICANT EFFORT by the student to make a positive impact on the chosen community issue. 2. The product is tangible evidence of the effort and time invested in the endeavor to meet the criteria established for the service learning experience. The student should be able to show that the service learning experience is an application, extension, and synthesis of the research and has practical applications in the real world. 3. The product should be tangible evidence that reflects applications of learning, critical thinking skills, problem-solving skills, and personal employability skills, such as responsibility, determination, and independence. 4. This phase of the graduation project offers students an opportunity to connect their educational aspirations with real world career or community service opportunities. 5. The product artifacts should reflect a MINIMUM of fifteen (15) hours of work on the student’s identified community issue. 6. The process of working on the service learning experience must be adequately documented with photographs, logs, letters, reflective journal entries, and other forms of documentation. 7. A parent and the senior English teacher must approve the Service Learning Experience Description and Approval Form. 8. Students should avoid selecting/completing service learning experience/ products that might require excessive expenses, as the school/district does not provide funding for student graduation projects. Successful completion of a graduation project |
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