WebQuest

Introduction

Research on your high school shows that ninth grade students are not as successful academically and behaviorally as other grades. Ninth graders have higher failure rates and more behavioral referrals.

Your high school is trying to find a way to help students successfully transition from middle to high school. Your principal has invited you, a current ninth grade student, to help prepare an orientation program for incoming freshmen. They feel that since you have recently gone through the transition, you will have valuable insight to offer on what the rights, responsibilities, and limitations are of high school students. Hopefully with your help, the incoming freshmen will have a better understanding of what they may do in high school.

The Task

"It can hardly be argued that either students or teachers shed their Constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate."
-Tinker vs. Des Moines School District

The orientation committee has assigned you the task of preparing an interactive teaching tool for incoming freshmen that explains students' rights in high school.

Issue:	How have landmark Supreme Court cases impacted the rights of students in high school?
Organizational Web:	Your team will organize your research and ideas using the organizational research log.
Student Orientation Guide:	After researching, your team must create an interactive teaching tool for incoming ninth graders that clearly explains their legal rights and limitations as students.
The product must include accurate content, appropriate graphics, and effective writing (see the rubric below).

2) Research

Your team will research Landmark Supreme Court cases that define the rights of students in school on each of the following topics:

Student Speech
Student Publications
School Searches
Student organizational affiliation
Random drug testing
Peer grading
Student participation in the Pledge of Allegiance

See the resources section below for approved research sites.

3) Organize your research

As you research, use the Research Log to unify your findings. For each issue, you must identify:

The landmark Supreme Court case that applies;
Key issues before the court;
The precedent set in the case;
An explanation of how it will apply to students in your high school; and
An open-ended scenario that serves as an example to "quiz" the incoming freshmen.

4) Create your product

Your team must create an interactive teaching tool for incoming ninth graders that clearly explains their legal rights and limitations as students. Your team must now decide what type of layout would best accommodate your information, how you want your product to look, and how you want your product to read.

Some ideas are a brochure, newsletter, non-linear PowerPoint presentation, web page or booklet. Remember that you created "experts" to manage the design phase and should divide the work accordingly.

5) Assessment

Product Evaluation
After completing your product, each team will evaluate the products created by the other teams. After the evaluation, each team will complete the "quiz" in each product and a peer review form.

Knowledge Assessment
Then, you must individually write an Extended Constructed Response assessing your knowledge and understanding.

ECR: (Provided by the Anne Arundel County Bar Association)

The actions of the United States Supreme Court impact decisions and policies formulated on the local, public school level. The Supreme Court will hear a case during the current session that could establish the extent to which schools may be subject to drug testing. In the 1995 case of Vernonia School District vs. Acton, 515 US 646, the Supreme Court held that public school authorities can require drug tests of student athletes. The Supreme Court is currently considering another case (Board of Education of Tecumseh Public School District, Pottawatomie County vs. Earls) concerning drug testing in public schools, and this time the question is whether a public school can require drug tests of students participating in extracurricular activities.

How should the Supreme Court rule on this question?
Consider whether the Supreme Court should protect individual rights or maintain order and safety.
Use the precedents set in earlier cases to support your idea.
Write in correct essay format. Be sure to have a strong thesis statement, accurate support and a conclusion. Do not write in the first person.

Social Studies Goal and Expectation

Indicators

This lesson addresses Maryland Core Learning Goal 1 (Political Systems), Expectation 2

1.2.1 The student will analyze the impact of landmark Supreme Court decisions on governmental powers, rights and responsibilities of citizens in our changing society.

1.2.3 The student will evaluate the impact of governmental decisions and actions that have affected the rights of individuals and groups in American society and/or have affected maintaining order and safety.

Student Evaluation
The students will be evaluated as an individual and a group based upon the tasks submitted in the team planning form.

Beginning

Developing

Accomplished

Exemplary

Content

Content is incomplete and incorrect.

Some required elements are addressed.

Application shows no understanding.

Content is incomplete with some misconceptions.

Most required elements are addressed.

Application shows minimal understanding.

Accurate and complete with few/no misconceptions.

All required elements are addressed.

Application shows understanding.

Accurate and complete, no misconceptions.

All required elements are addressed thoroughly.

Application shows understanding and insight.

Writing Style

Purpose: Writing to Inform

Writing purpose is unclear and ineffective.

Writing is unorganized and wordy.

There are many grammatical and editorial errors.

Writing purpose is vague.

Writing lacks conciseness and organization.

There are several grammatical and editorial errors.

Writing purpose is somewhat clear and effective.

Writing is mostly concise and organized.

There are few grammatical and editorial errors.

Writing purpose is clear and effective.

Writing is concise and organized.

There are no grammatical or editorial errors.

Product Design

Layout choice is ineffective.

Design is unprofessional and confusing.

Graphics are inappropriate and detract from design.

Layout choice neither adds nor detracts from presentation.

Design is somewhat disorganized and amateur.

Graphics are appropriate and neither add nor detract from the design.

Layout choice provides an effective presentation.

Design is mostly organized and professional.

Graphics somewhat enhance the design.

Layout choice provides an outstanding presentation.

Design is professional and organized.

Graphics are used effectively and enhance design.

Group Functioning

Group is dysfunctional.

No ideas were welcomed.

No work completed by deadline.

Work quality is poor.

Group functions with several disturbances and imbalanced distribution of work.
Some ideas were welcomed.

Minimal work completed by deadline.

Work quality is acceptable.

Group functions with few disturbances and somewhat equitably.

Ideas were mostly welcomed.

Most work completed by deadlines.

Work quality is good.

Group functions efficiently and equitably.

All ideas were welcomed.

All work completed by deadline.

All work high quality.

After completing this activity, the student should have considered the effectiveness of government decisions and actions that were made to affect the rights of individuals and groups in the United States.

Follow-up tasks:

1. Complete the extended constructed response.

2. Watch the news for the Board of Education of Tecumseh Public School District, Pottawatomie County vs. Earls to see what the Supreme Court decides this year on random drug testing in schools.

Introduction

The Task

The Process

Resources

Evaluation

Conclusion

Credits & References