Subject-Specific Learning Objectives: 

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To perform this project with my group of students, a number of alterations would first need to be made. Not to the overall project itself, but to the particulars. The project of educating the public about the most serious of environmental issues will still be the ultimate goal, but the research process will consist of the same basic steps, with a bit more depth and slightly reconfigured products. More emphasis will be given to the language of persuasion, and the verbal conveyance of the relevant information to the public via the mediums which are chosen by students to inform the recalcitrant public concerning the veracity of the claims about the degradation of the environment and the seriousness of its consequences.

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Concordantly, the website being set up by the students and used as a portfolio to publicly display their various messages to the public regarding the environmental issues, chosen from the topics they discover, will contain an extra writing component in which they have to write a press release announcing their research project and the resulting products to the local newspapers in their town. More emphasis will also be given to the written product, and the artistic and mathematical products will each need to incorporate more written description: a written analysis of the mathematical data representation, and a written description of the artwork and what it is meant to convey. 

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Concurrently, they will also be assigned a number of ancillary readings which will enable them to guide themselves toward the host of topics in need of introduction to the public and the deeper awareness which needs to be engendered about them. These readings will form a component of their research which will be assigned to ensure they access high quality and challenging L.A. material suitable for their grade levels and for the furthering of their English language ability. 

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Some other subject-specific learning objectives include: the use of scientific, environmentalism, and conservation vocabulary and terms in writing; writing persuasive writing; writing that explains mathematical data; writing that explains and interprets artistic creation; nonfiction reading in climate science, environmentalism, biology, activism, and climate-science deniers;  

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Specific Project Work Description:

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1. Students will be tasked with researching environmental issues and determining which 2-3 issues they feel are the most pressing, or alternatively which need more attention.

 

2. These issues will then be researched in depth by students, using teacher-provided resources as jumping off points but also utilizing the internet, libraries, documentary films, and interviews with experts when possible. 

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3. Students will keep research notes on the issues they study, and after the issues are sufficiently understood, students will turn their research attention to the anti-environmentalist or science-denying related to their chosen issue, if any. They will research this aspect of the issue and gain an understanding of it. If there is little or no counter-argument to their particular issue (it's possible but unlikely the find such an issue), they will try to identify the impediments standing in the way of the public understanding of the issue in question, and plan their coming products accordingly.

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4. After the issues and their counter-arguments are understood, the students will brainstorm on the ways they want to divide the issues into their required three products. Which issue will be best represented through mathematical modeling, which will be best represented through visual art and accompanying caption, and which will be best represented by extended persuasive essay will be determined by the group.

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5. Students will proceed to create their products collaboratively. If being done remotely, this may entail sharing google documents or other collaborative online sites that enable remote collaboration. Students will create a product focusing on conveying information about one of the issues through data analysis and visual representation of the analysis, using math as a core component. Students will create a second product using art of some kind to convey information on a second environmental issue, and then creating a compelling interpretation or 'artist's statement' explaining the work to the viewer. If students are working remotely, they might complete this second product individually where necessary. Finally, students will create a persuasive essay conveying information about the third environmental issue, using the terminology and sources they have garnered along the research path they traveled over the course of the project. They will cite sources and present their arguments with evidential backing. 

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6. Students will compile their research notes, math-based product, art-based product, and written product onto a website they create which will serve as a learning portfolio and a public platform for the dissemination of their findings. They will select a free website generator, design and build the website themselves, collaboratively.

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7. Students will write a press-release for local newspapers, and/or a letter to the editor to local magazines, explaining the project, summarizing their purpose and findings, and giving the link to the site.

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8. Student groups will present their findings to the class.

 

Extension: Students will create a video blog post and/or podcast explaining the process of the research, the products the research saw created, and their opinions about the importance of educating the public and student involvement in the environmental issues of our day. 

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Description of Evaluation Process:

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The evaluation process will include multiple factors. Students will be evaluated as a group for the finished products, and individually for their contributions to the process of creating them. Students will be evaluated based on the contents of their research journals, their math, art, and written products, the final website, and a presentation of their findings to the class. They will be judged based on their inclusion of the required STEAM components and their use of 21st century skills. Their finished products will also be peer-reviewed by the other groups, and groups will be asked to provide feedback of the 2 hits and a flyball variety: two things the viewers liked, and one thing that can be improved (if caught in time).

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Process:

In order to get this project rolling, a number of factors need to be addressed, not least of which is the concomitant commitment of some other faculty members whose expertise and guidance will be a boon for the researchers. Foremost among these would be the help of the librarian setting aside any relevant literature for the students to research in the school library. Also, having a science teacher commit to giving a presentation about a range of issues facing the environment could help get the ball rolling for the students picking their topics. Further, having a math teacher give s short introduction to showing how to present data visually could also be beneficial. Finally, having an art teacher give a presentation about how art can be used to represent social issues and convey deeper meanings through interpretation would be wonderful. 

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