Enloe Offers Seminar To Prepare Freshmen For New Graduation Project
August 2, 2006 - More than 180 freshmen have started their high school career at Enloe High School taking part in a new course designed to help them prepare for the state's new high school graduation standards.
Enloe Assistant Principal Shekina Moore says there are six classes of students who are taking part in the two-week summer class designed to prepare students for the newly required graduation project.
"Teachers are helping students develop research skills that will be needed to complete their graduation projects," said Moore. ""Students will be working on research, writing skills and study skills."
The new state-required graduation project means students must complete in-depth research that will result in a paper, product, portfolio and presentation. The project will be developed, monitored, and scored locally using state guidelines.
 Enloe Assistant Principal Shekina Moore talks with reporters about the new freshman seminar. |
The graduation project will include:
- An 8-10 page research paper;
- A product related to the research paper;
- A portfolio that reflects the graduation project process;
- A presentation to a panel of community and faculty members; and
- Literature, service-based learning or work-based learning experiences as defined by the state.
"I wasn't thinking about the graduation project before I got here," said freshman Roland Pruitt. "My teacher helped me understand the project, the 8-10 page research paper and the need to start working on it early."
Laura Stavlas is a tenth and eleventh grade English teacher at Enloe. Stavlas says the freshman seminar accomplishes two goals.
"Students learned the research skills that will assist them on their graduation project and they learned skills that will help them be successful in class," said Stavlas. "Over the two weeks of classes, I've been able to watch students become more comfortable as they feel better prepared for high school."
The graduation project is part of the new state graduation requirements approved by the State Board of Education. The new requirements also include demonstrating proficiency on five state-required high school End of Course tests.
The five required End of Course tests are Algebra I, Biology, English I, Civics & Economics, and U.S. History. The State Board of Education also approved the retesting, remediation and a review process for students who require End of Course retesting. The second retesting opportunity must be preceded by instruction focused in areas where the student needs assistance.
The new standards affect students entering high school in the 9th grade in 2006-2007. Students who will be in grades 10-12 this fall will not be required to meet the new standards, but will graduate under the guidelines in place when they entered high school. The new state standards apply only to students following the Career Preparation, College Technical Preparation, or College University Preparation courses of study. Students following the Occupational Course of Study are required to meet different rigorous exit standards.
Moore said the school improvement team determined the class would be needed with the new graduation requirements and that the class should be offered at times that would be convenient for students.
In addition to the two week summer session, the class will be offered during first and second semesters as an elective, or after school, or during lunch during the school year.
 Students prepare fried rice as they describe information they found doing research on Japan. |
Moore says the school expects the course to ease the transition from middle
school to high school by focusing on four essential principles:
- strategies for learning how to learn
- how to reason effectively and articulate the logic applied
- how to deal with complicated ideas
- how to relate to and work with others
In the course, students will use inquiry-based research methods to investigate complex issues that relate to teens, their local community, and the global community. Using strategies such as self-assessments and reflective journals, students will develop a sense of personal responsibility for their own learning and behavior, an ability to collaborate with peers, and the capability to deal effectively with change in an ever-changing global environment.
Students Prashanth Kamalakanthan and Roland Pruitt were excited about research projects they were presenting to class. Kamalakanthan had painted the flag of Switzerland on his face to help illustrate his talk and Pruitt wore a kimino he brought home from Japan as he helped prepare fried rice and talked about his experiences visiting the country.
Kamalakanthan said he had learned new research and listening skills. Pruitt said he learned about Bloom's Taxonomy and the correct way to cite information from a webpage in his research papers.
The freshman seminar is different from Enloe's Flight School, which is a one-day orientation to the school for freshmen. A similar freshman seminar class is offered at Millbrook High School.
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