Tag: Research

Book Review: Review of Student Research for Community Change: Tools to Develop Ethical Thinking and Analytic Problem Solving

Review of Student Research for Community Change: Tools to Develop Ethical Thinking and Analytic Problem Solving

by William Tobin and Valerie Feit, 2020.  Teachers College Press, 127 pages. 

Review by: Thomas Hansen, Ph.D.

This new text provides an explanation of a program – and a plan – for getting high school students involved in important hands-on research right in their communities.  The two authors have become experts in encouraging young people to start on research early – not waiting for college.  Despite more traditional approaches of letting students wait to become upperclassmen in college, the authors learned to forge ahead and assume students could do this work.

William Tobin is a research fellow with the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University.  The program explained in this book is an example of the community work Tobin and his students have been doing to help their neighbors.  Valerie Feit is co-director of school counseling for Rye Neck, New York schools.  This program has been used successfully in three different applications at Duke.

The authors talk in terms of “tools” for coming up with research problems and questions, plans for finding out information, and guidance in making recommendations to solve the problems (pp. 23-24).  I think of this book’s content in terms of methods for approaching the work.  This looks like a method, with many parts, with rules, with suggestions, and with potential.

The authors provide tools for this “method” of teaching and learning they hope will be applicable in other settings.  They have already had students complete research projects using this method.  They use a qualitative approach, overall, in their research.  However, they do not stress this fact in the book.  Interviews and protocols to conduct them ground us in qualitative approaches to getting information from people to help students – and the community ultimately — solve problems. 

The method connects clearly (in terms of policy and application) to national standards in the different learning areas, plus Common Core college-ready and work-ready emphases.  The method looks forward to more advanced levels of inquiry than the more traditional benchmarked studies of the past.  It does this by assuming students can do more advanced and challenging work if they can see the purpose for it, the rewards for it, and the connections of it to real-life goals. 

While I will not give away the content and all the goods here, I will say that this appears to be a good “method” for getting students working on purposeful projects earlier than traditionally done.  Aspiring to more is always good, especially if there is a research basis telling us the method can work. 

As an educator (and community member, advocate, and other roles) I have always been interested in the “why” of doing things in education.  Do we respect different learning styles?  Where did we as teachers “learn” to do xyz in classes?  Is  there a good research basis for using certain materials?  Has anyone ever proven it makes sense to do abc this way?  All of these kinds of questions enter my mind when I look at a new approach.  I wonder if this book could work in my neighborhood.  With students who need resources like a place to live?  In a community not very interested in helping others in need?  

The authors emphasize how they have already served communities and how they need partners and cooperation.  They remind us that institutions of higher education are supposed to be helping with such endeavors (p. 111).  Reminding the readers that IHEs have non-profit status because they are supposed to be assisting in important research projects in the community, the authors urge readers to seek faculty who will sign on and become excited to participate.

I would recommend this book for a couple different uses.  First, I would encourage K-12 and college educators read it to see what is possible if we assume students can do more and can meet challenges.  The book is important in that way.  Second, I would encourage educators to attempt to use some of the tools in a mini-project to ascertain the value of the method.  Then, if teachers and college researchers or others can come together to formulate a bigger project, more in-depth labor can be done.  Students do the work and need guidance and advice.  They need to learn about ethics and the role it plays in inquiry (pp. 12-13). 

This method, overall, is another good example of the more mature and advanced kinds of ways of thinking about education for secondary students and underclassmen.  As I said above, there is a clear connection to getting students ready for what comes at more advanced levels.

How to use the book in times of distance-learning?  How would students find neighbors interested in participating?  How would they work with other students to come up with questions?  What about brainstorming?  Planning?

This might be a method that calls for a hybrid approach.  The majority of the discussions could occur online (p. xvii) because of the power of the Internet.  This could be done especially during shared times – online meetings.  Different teams of students and teachers could work on different steps or themes of the research project.  However, it might be necessary to be out in the community to approach potential members and to set up some of the meetings (pp. 112-113) and the interviews.  The teams could conduct the remaining work online, such as the interviews, the discussion of them and other input, the drawing of conclusions from the various input sources, the writing of recommendations for intervention (or similar activities), and the follow-up and assessment stages for the entire project.   

What You Need to Know about Plagiarism

What You Need to Know about Plagiarism

By Steven Richman, the New Jersey State Bar Foundation

This article was reprinted with permission from https://njsbf.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/plagiarism_2016.pdf

            What is plagiarism? Generally speaking, plagiarism is the taking of someone else’s ideas or means of expression and passing them off as your own work. In some cases, educational institutions define plagiarism in faculty or student handbooks.

Is plagiarism a crime? There is a fair amount of misunderstanding about this. For an act to be criminal and punishable by law, legislation would need to be passed by either a state legislature or the U.S. Congress. Some sources refer to plagiarism as an “academic crime,” but that should not be confused with state or federal law. If a state were to pass a criminal law that described behavior understood to be plagiarism, that behavior would be a crime under that particular state’s statute. As a matter of federal law, while there is no national crime of plagiarism, there is criminal liability for certain copyright infringement.

Is plagiarism fraud? Plagiarism could be considered a form of “fraud” because you are misrepresenting as your own someone else’s ideas or work product, with the intention that others rely on it. Whether or not it is actionable and can subject you to liability would depend upon the rules and regulations of your academic institution or the laws of the state in which the act occurs. It may also be deemed “misappropriation,” which may also be actionable.

Is plagiarism cheating? The online version of Merriam-Webster Dictionary lists one definition of “cheat” as “to practice fraud or trickery.” Since you are acting dishonestly or fraudulently when you plagiarize, it could be considered cheating. Whether it subjects you to punishment in an academic context would depend on your school’s rules and regulations. Some academic institutions may deem it a “breach of contract” based on an expressed or implied contract between student and school.

Is it considered plagiarism if someone takes parts of an old research paper turned in last year and uses it for a current assignment? Some teachers will look upon plagiarism in its broad sense as representing that you have done work that you really have not done, and may view you as plagiarizing yourself to the extent you try to pass off a paper in one class as new and original, when you previously submitted it in another class. Some may not view this technically as plagiarism since you are not taking someone else’s work product. However, if you do not reference that it is a prior paper, then some may consider it a different form of cheating. Even if you are expanding on a prior paper, it is better to cite your own prior work rather than simply recycle it as a “new” paper. If you are using certain information from your prior paper in an entirely new way it may not need to be referenced, but it is probably better to err on the side of caution and cite it.

How can someone avoid plagiarism when doing research? How can information be rewritten without using some of the original writer’s words? Many academic institutions offer advice on their websites on how to avoid plagiarism. Your teachers may have their own ideas as well. In general terms, you should: (1) take careful notes and citations; (2) put quotation marks around any direct quotations; (3) identify specific citation information when you paraphrase; (4) indicate in your notes where you have injected original thoughts or comments. Because plagiarism can occur even when it is not intentional, you need to be thorough not only in your note taking but in how you reference your sources. Direct quotations, paraphrases, reference to another’s ideas or theories, and use of another’s charts or graphs, for example, must be acknowledged. Common facts do not have to be cited, such as the fact that Abraham Lincoln was assassinated on April 14, 1865. There is probably no one definitive statement as to what is common knowledge; if in doubt, consult your teacher. Even when you use attribution, if you overdo it, and have very little of your own work, it may be considered inappropriate, if not actually plagiarism.

What is the distinction between summarizing and paraphrasing? When you summarize, you are condensing the main points or ideas from someone else. When you paraphrase, you are restating the way someone else expressed something in your own words.

If information is summarized or paraphrased, must the source still be cited? Yes, unless you are summarizing or paraphrasing common facts.

Is an author’s permission needed to use long passages from his or her book or article in a report? The Copyright Act permits you to use appropriately cited material from someone else’s work as “fair use,” if the use is for “purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching…scholarship, or research…” However, whether you need permission from an author is not simply a function of the length of a particular passage; it would depend upon the “purpose and character of the use,” the “nature” of the other work, the amount and substantiality of the passages used in relation to the other work as a whole, and the effect of the use on the market or value of the other work. Different journals and academic institutions themselves may have rules of thumb as to how substantial the passage must be in order to require permission. When in doubt, consult your teacher.

What source material needs to be cited in a report to avoid a charge of plagiarism? Different teachers will have different requirements. There are certain reference works, such as The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, (MLA), The Chicago Manual of Style, (CMS), or A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, (Turabian). These books will tell you what information you’ll need for your bibliography and your footnotes or endnotes, and how citations are used internally and in bibliographies, and in different subject areas. For example, you will generally need to cite in a bibliography the author, title of the work, publisher, city of publication and year of publication.

If parents help to write a paper, is that cheating? Your paper must be your own work product. Most would probably agree that if you write a 20-page paper and ask your father or mother to read it and they say, “It was interesting, but I suggest you rewrite these paragraphs since they are not clear, and you have some spelling errors,” this would not be cheating. However, to the extent your parents actually write part of the paper for you, or give more than the kind of suggestion a teacher might, you are probably crossing the line. Because of the vagueness of the term “help,” there is no hard and fast rule, other than the work must be your own.

What does it mean when someone says to “use your own voice?” You should try to interpret things in your own words and bring your own independent thinking to the subject.

Does writing about personal experiences or thoughts ever require citations? Generally not, unless you are referring to an earlier published or submitted work of your own.

Can you plagiarize facts? Generally, you cannot plagiarize commonly known facts or items of common knowledge, but if the fact itself is someone else’s work product, then failure to cite it appropriately could be considered plagiarism. The University of Pennsylvania calls common knowledge “information that the average, educated reader would accept as reliable without having to look it up.”

What if something is considered common knowledge and is found in several sources? Must each source be cited to avoid a plagiarism charge? You should have a bibliography that refers to all the books you consulted. One school of thought is that if identical information is found in five different sources, then it is common knowledge and does not need to be cited. If the common fact or knowledge, however, is expressed in a particularly different way and you express it that way, you should cite the source of that expression. Again, if in doubt, consult your teacher.

What is the public domain? The public domain refers to works that are no longer copyrighted as a matter of law and that are open to use by anyone. For example, all works published in the United States before 1923 are in the public domain as a result of expiration of copyright.

Is citing material in the public domain necessary? Yes. While you are not subject to copyright infringement issues, if you do not appropriately cite the source, you would be plagiarizing. Consider, in an extreme example, if you are given a creative writing assignment and you turn in Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities, passing it off as your own. You would not be liable for copyright infringement in that instance, but you would be plagiarizing, because you have passed off someone else’s book as your own.

How do you know if you have “substantially rewritten” information you obtained through research? This is very fact sensitive. There has to be some level of common sense and good judgment. One way to approach this is to ask yourself whether the average, objective reader would think that you have simply copied the passage. If, for some reason, the issue reached the courts, various technical tests would be used to determine if there was any type of infringement. If you have any doubts, you should probably try to rework your writing and/or consult your teacher.

Is copying material from the Internet considered plagiarism? Copying material from the Internet and passing it off as your own and not appropriately explaining it is plagiarism. The same rules apply in determining whether you have engaged in copyright infringement. The words appearing on a website are someone else’s product and should be treated the same as a hard copy source. There is no difference between copying from the Internet and copying out of a book. The only thing that matters is whether or not you are passing off someone else’s work as your own, and the same tests will apply. The fact that it is easier because you can cut-and-paste does not change the principle.

What is the appropriate use of Internet material? The same rules apply as for hard copy sources. It’s another published source. Consult the style manuals noted above for the particular format of such a citation.

Is it illegal to purchase an entire term paper from the Internet? If you purchase a term paper and pass it off as your own product, then it is plagiarism. If you wish, however, to purchase the legitimate work product of another for your own reference, you may do so, assuming that work itself is not infringing and the website or company selling the paper is legitimate. For example, you may be able to purchase a student’s unpublished thesis that is in the library of a university and use it as another source. Note: In some states it is illegal to sell terms papers to students.

Can a teacher tell if a term paper came from the Internet? If so, how? In many cases, teachers can tell. First, there are software programs that teachers may use to analyze your paper. Another way the teacher can tell is if the writing or quality of work is uncharacteristic of the particular student; for example, if the vocabulary reflects words that the teacher has never heard the student use or the writing style is inconsistent with prior work. In other instances, the teacher may be familiar with the idea or theory being passed off as the student’s own.

Can someone be suspended or expelled for purchasing a term paper off the Internet and passing it off as their own? If your school’s disciplinary code indicates that one of the penalties for plagiarism could be suspension, then it doesn’t matter from what source you got the paper. What matters is whether you have plagiarized and violated the school’s rules. Plagiarizing someone else’s work and passing it off as your own can be a serious offense, depending upon your school’s rules. Other penalties may apply depending upon the teacher’s rules or policies, particularly in a high school setting.

Is copying information out of the encyclopedia considered plagiarism? Encyclopedias are treated no differently than any other source. While a fact is a fact and you are entitled to use that fact, you cannot simply copy word for word an entry in an encyclopedia and pass it off as your own.

Is copying information from a sourcebook considered plagiarism? There are two different issues here. If someone has prepared a table or chart of data, you should cite the source of that chart or data. On the other hand, if you are citing a particular fact that is a common fact, it would probably not be plagiarism. For example, if the sourcebook contains the annual rainfall over 10 years in the Brazilian rainforest, you should not just copy that chart and pass it off as your own. If you wanted to refer to the rainfall in one year, that, too, may not be a commonly known fact, and you probably should cite the source—not only for protection against plagiarism, but to identify the source for other interested persons. If the sourcebook places information in a particular or creative form, that, too, should be acknowledged. On the other hand, if the sourcebook lists the presidents of the United States and their terms of office, that information in and of itself is commonly known and should be able to be utilized without concern. Again, when in doubt consult your teacher or your school’s website and plagiarism policies.

How can it be proven that someone did not plagiarize? The proof is going to be a comparison of the source or sources to what you wrote. You would seek to prove that either you documented the source and that you’ve given credit, or that you did not need to because you were referring to common facts, or that you have appropriately utilized your own language and thoughts. In essence, you would need to prove that you did not do any of the things that have been discussed in this brochure.

What are the consequences of plagiarism? It depends on an individual school’s policies. Apart from personal embarrassment and damage to reputation, you may be subject to discipline that could include suspension, expulsion or delay in obtaining your degree; or receive a failing or reduced grade on the paper or in the course.

What does “ignorance of the law is not a defense” mean? What this means is that even if you have inadvertently plagiarized, you may still have a problem. Schools have made clear in their rules and regulations, and on their websites, what is and is not permitted, so it is probably not going to help you to say you did not know, particularly if you have had the opportunity to find out. While it is an oversimplification to say in all instances that ignorance of the law is not a defense, it generally means that you cannot rely on ignorance when you have a responsibility to find out what your obligations are. In some instances where intent is required, ignorance may be a mitigating element.

What if you accidentally plagiarized a passage because you couldn’t remember if you copied it from somewhere or rewrote it in your own words? Are you still liable for plagiarism? Yes, you can be liable for accidental or inadvertent plagiarism. While it might be a mitigating factor, in other words the school may take into account the fact that your plagiarism was accidental, depending upon the school’s rules, you might still be subject to disciplinary procedures.

Who is hurt by plagiarism? You are hurt by plagiarism because you are not learning proper research habits or disciplining yourself in proper research and writing techniques, and you are not fully thinking through your arguments. The integrity of the academic institution is hurt if this kind of behavior is tolerated. Other students are hurt because they are competing against someone who is taking unfair advantage and otherwise cheating.

If someone is accused of plagiarism, must the accuser prove that he or she plagiarized, or must the accused prove that he or she didn’t plagiarize? In an academic context, the institution needs to show that you plagiarized. If someone accuses you of copyright infringement, they have the burden of proof. However, once they prove ownership and substantial copying, you have the burden of proving your defense, such as fair use.

Is it better to try to turn a paper in on time even if you have to plagiarize, rather than get an “F” on an assignment? No, since there is no guarantee you’ll get a failing grade if you discuss the situation with your teacher prior to submitting the assignment. Moreover, if you are caught plagiarizing, you can still receive an “F” anyway. If it is a true emergency, most teachers will probably work with you. If you have simply waited until the last minute, however, then you have brought the problem on yourself. You cannot justify plagiarism to cure your own lack of planning.

If caught, should the plagiarist be publicly identified, or should the matter be handled privately? An honor code may provide for a type of private intervention by one student to another as a means of ensuring compliance, and the school’s disciplinary proceedings may have confidentiality requirements. Sometimes dealing with a situation privately does more good than publicly embarrassing someone. On the other hand, the particular institution may have different policies on how public or private a particular incident becomes. Certainly, in a civil lawsuit for copyright infringement, the allegations are generally public.

What is an honor code? An honor code is a set of commitments you make to honor certain principles, whether you’re at a company or in an academic environment. In some circumstances it might take on contractual status, which if breached can trigger consequences in accordance with a school’s rules and regulations.

Is plagiarism a violation of the honor code? Most honor codes would make plagiarism a violation, but each school’s code would have to be consulted for the particulars. The penalty for plagiarism under an honor code would be for an individual school to decide. An honor code may provide for sequential and increased penalties for subsequent offenses. Offenses can include getting a zero or the equivalent of receiving a failing grade on the particular assignment, withdrawal of school privileges, and suspension or delay in receiving a degree, and may depend on whether the institution is a public or private school.

Steven M. Richman, a commercial lawyer whose practice includes aspects of copyright and international law, provided the legal information contained in this brochure. The New Jersey State Bar Foundation thanks Mr. Richman for his time and diligence in the production of What You Need to Know About Plagiarism. For more information or copies of program materials, visit the New Jersey State Bar Foundation online at http://www.njsbf.org or call 1-800 FREE LAW. Please follow the Bar Foundation on Social Media and invite your friends to like and follow us as well. @NJStateBarFdn can be found on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. The Foundation also has a YouTube channel.

Observations of an Honors History Course Post-Pandemic

Observations of an Honors History Course Post-Pandemic

Melanie Gallo

The author is a rising senior at Rider University who has participated in both remote and in-person field placements during her time as an undergraduate. This article is derived from those experiences.

Throughout my experience in an honors high school United States history level two class I have learned that students are behind specifically in their research techniques. It is presented very clearly as I had the opportunity to move around the classroom while students were researching their civil rights unit. At the same time of these observations I had been developing my capstone project which is heavy research and found myself using my prior research knowledge to work with each student to ensure that their research skills grow.

 Research skills are key to becoming informed about many aspects of history. Students need the skills to become a well-rounded citizen. In order for students to become strong advocates for themselves when it comes to their education as well as their rights to become strong civic advocates, they need to be provided with the proper skills to research. Many of the students I had worked with lacked the vocabulary that would typically be expected for an honors eleventh grade student. Their research and vocabulary deficits were similar to those of a ninth grader.

When observing this group of eleventh grade honors students there were notable deficiencies in regards to what was expected of students of this year and level of education.  This group lacked vocabulary expected of an honors class and seemed to be more on par with that of a 9th to 10th grade level in my opinion.  I also noted, during multiple sessions and assignments, that their ability to research, utilize and format information in a scholarly way less than what would be expected of an honors class of this level.  During multiple assignments the students had trouble finding viable information to support admittedly simple topics and apply said information in a way that makes sense. Their ability to validate their points during the course of their assignments also lacked the strength that would be typical of an honors level.

 Students were observed using social media, sources that are purely opinionated, and other sources generally regarded as being unscholarly.  These students simply struggled to find relevant sources and the ability to put it together into a competent, cohesive piece of work. 

When I had the opportunity, I would work with students one on one to teach them how to use sites like historical archives and focus on sites that were not commercial based or opinionated. I had been developing my own research project during this timeframe which prompted me to locate some amazing resources therefore my ability to research grew which further helped me to guide these students to grow as their own sources to further their knowledge.

            My goal in drawing attention to this particular topic is that as educators we need to ensure no matter the circumstances that our students are aware of how to properly research. It is difficult for students to move on in higher levels of education without the basis of how to successfully research in order to providing credible evidence to support a claim. It is a disservice to our students when we as educators assume students are able to complete a task like this in full capacity. The state of these students suggests that there are many others throughout the country in the same situation. These students I worked with were very engaged in the classroom and only wished to succeed but when they are not provided with all the tools they need to complete their tasks they are left struggling. It can be hard to backtrack in what students need when they should have already been assessed for competency in research skills regarding the reliability of sources r. In some cases (like pandemic students are experiencing) they truly need that extra support especially now that these past two years have been virtual. Students had been left to figure out many of their assignments on their own due to virtual learning. This is something that is seen in a college setting. Therefore these students were left struggling in their formative years that would have needed hands-on guidance from an instructor. It is unfortunate that these students have been placed in such a situation.

            Another reason this issue is so detrimental to these students is that they are closer to being a college student than a high school student which is where the requirements are higher and the pressure becomes heavier to be able to properly research and not plagiarize. Since these students are at a disadvantage not knowing how to successfully use sources to back up their views they are more likely to inadvertently plagiarize. This becomes a heavier issue when college is involved as many colleges will take strong measures to remove a student from their scholarships, credit, or dismissal if they discover they have plagiarized. Which all stems back to educating students as to how to cite, how to find credible sources and present an argument that is sound. These students are hurting without even realizing it since they have been done a disservice as a result of their pandemic learning experience.            

My hope for this piece is to establish a call to action for educators to hone in on these skills even if we start younger than we would traditionally with research-based skills. Let’s band together and guide our students through their process of developing strong points with strong sources for evidence. They need to be able to locate sources that are credible on their own which is something that needs to be taught first and then expected later on in their education. Let’s ensure our students are confident in their research skills so that they do not face consequences later in life.

NJCSS Commences Grant on Living in New Jersey Before & During the American Revolution

NJCSS Commences Grant on Living in New Jersey Before and During the American Revolution

by David DiCostanzo, Vineland High School (NJ)

Several Social Studies teachers from around the state began a research grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission to examine the histories of ordinary people in New Jersey and how the events leading up to and during the Revolutionary War impacted their lives. The grant, “Telling Our Story: Living in New Jersey Before and During the American Revolution”, is an effort by the NJCSS to prepare educators in New Jersey for the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution during the 2025-26 school year. The 250th anniversary celebrations will continue through 2031 and are part of the overall mission of the NJCSS to provide and make available meaningful lessons and activities to students, teachers, and the public. This is important work because it engages students and residents in various counties throughout New Jersey about the birth of representative government in America.

Research Scholars Working at the MCHA Museum on 11/6/2021

The purpose of this grant is for each research scholar to explore primary sources, such as pamphlets and letters, related to events that affected the lives and livelihoods of people during the American Revolution. The results of this research will be communicated to students in Grades 4-12 (and college) through activity-based lessons requiring role playing, simulation and/or debating decisions relating to the personal experiences of people living in New Jersey in the 1770s. Each research scholar is also responsible for submitting an article on their topic for publication, producing a 3-5-minute documentary, and including an annotated bibliography.  The articles will be published on the NJCSS website and the documentaries will be made available via our Vimeo channel. Our team of research scholars include:

Bobby Ciarletta           Ramapo College of New Jersey

Kevin Daly                  Parsippany Troy Hills High School

David DiCostanzo      Vineland High School

Bob Fenster                 Hillsborough High School

Bill Smith                    Shore Regional High School

Karen Smith                Immaculate Conception MS

Susan Soprano            Passaic Middle School

The Dey Mansion in Wayne, New Jersey

Recently, these research scholars in coordination with Dr. Lucia McMahon, Professor and Chair of History at William Paterson University, Dr. Mark Percy, Professor of Social Studies Education at Rider University, and Mr. Hank Bitten, Executive Director of the NJCSS visited two historical sites as a way of beginning their research. On Friday, November 5, 2021, the group worked from the Dey Mansion in Wayne, New Jersey. Dey Mansion was the headquarters of General George Washington and the Continental Army during the fall and summer of 1780. The Dey Mansion promotes the examination of life during the colonial era and the events and people of the American Revolution.  This historical site also offers a wide range of inquiry based educational programs for students in all grade levels.  Under the direction of Dey Mansion Curator and Research Librarian Jessica Bush, the group spent a productive day touring the grounds, learning about the importance or material culture, and conducting independent and group research. Marc Lorenc from the New Jersey Historical Commission welcomed us.

The Monmouth County Historical Association Museum in Freehold, New Jersey

On Saturday November 6, 2021, the grant participants headed south and spent the day at the Monmouth Historical Society Museum in Freehold, New Jersey.  Founded in 1898, the Monmouth County Historical Association manages the museum.  Their mission of the association is to collect, preserve, and interpret its extensive museum, research library, and archival collections that relate to Monmouth County’s history and culture and makes these resources available to the widest possible audience. Under the direction of Research Librarian and Archivist Dana Howell, the group read through and scanned over 200 primary source documents related to dozens of individuals that lived in Monmouth County during the American Revolution. Several of the educators were extremely impressed with the museum which included a recent exhibition honoring hometown musician Bruce Springsteen. The NJCSS would like to thank Jessica Bush and Dana Howell for a wonderful two days!

Going forward, the research scholars will be meeting at the New Jersey Historical Society in Newark, New Jersey on December 4, 2021.  In Newark, they will carry on their research which will continue to be guided by Dr. McMahon, Dr. Pearcy, and Mr. Bitten. The research scholars will have two additional opportunities to meet in January to work on their projects.  All of the grant participants will also conduct independent research by visiting 18th century historical sites in their own respective counties and by sharing their findings and presentations with other Social Studies teachers and people in their individual school districts. The finished products are scheduled to be completed in February and March of 2022.

Developing a FAIR School Homework Policy

Michael Pezone is a retired social studies teacher who taught at the High School for Law Enforcement and Public Safety in Jamaica, Queens. He organized his classes around research and writing projects for teams and individuals, oral presentations, class discussion, and civic action. This project was developed for Participation in Government classes. Many of his students had difficulty presenting their ideas in writing and supporting them with evidence. This project was designed to support students who will be taking the New York State English/Language Arts Regents Exam. Many of the students in his classes took the exam more than once so they can earn a diploma.

Introduction:

While changes in the larger society are needed to address problems like poverty and homelessness, there are things schools can do to help students affected by these issues. Your group is tasked to write a practical and reasonable proposal to the principal to suggest a school wide homework policy that might better serve all students, including our most needy students. (“No more homework, ever!” is NOT a practical proposal). Use information from the documents below as well as outside information to complete the project.

Requirements

A. A written recommendation addressed to the principal (see suggested outline below). Your group’s proposal must:

  1. Be 150 words that are extremely well written. Your proposal must be typed in friendly letter format (the format will be projected on the smart board during class).
  2. Explain how poverty and homelessness in NYC affect the ability of many children to do homework. Use statistics and other evidence to support your explanation. Use information from the documents and from your own research. Cite your source(s). (See how to cite the documents below)
  3. Propose a practical and reasonable school wide homework policy to address these issues

B. A poster that will be presented in class along with the proposal and may be selected to present to the principal. The poster should contain: A title and student names on the front of the poster; Chart(s), graph(s), and photo(s) that support your proposal, along with captions that explain what each chart, graph, photo shows. The poster should be EXTREMELY attractive with accurate information.

C. Presentations. Each group will present their proposals and posters to the class. All proposals will then be combined into one final proposal. Students will choose a team (two or three students from each class) to present the proposal to the principal. One poster will be chosen for use in the presentation to the principal.

How to Cite the Documents

(Singer, “Children Need Homes, Not Charter Schools Or Standardized Tests, And Definitely Not Tax Cuts For The Wealthy,” Huffington post, 12/14/2017)

(“Homelessness in New York State,” NYSTeachs, nysteachs.org/info-topic/statistics, 2017)

(“Figure 1: Time high school students spend on homework by race and parent’s income,” Brookings Institute, brookings.edu, 2017)

Suggested Paper Outline

I. First paragraph: Explain the problem of poverty and homelessness and how it affects NYC students, using statistics and evidence to support your explanation

II. Second paragraph: Present your proposal for a school wide homework policy

III. Brief concluding paragraph: Thank her for her consideration of the issue and ask her to meet with a team of students to discuss your proposal

Directions: Read the key term and documents and then complete the group assignment below.

Key Term: “Gentrification” – process of renovation of deteriorated urban neighborhoods by means of the eviction of poor residents to make way for an influx of more affluent residents.

Document 1 – Article: “Children Need Homes, Not Charter Schools or Standardized Tests, and Definitely Not Tax Cuts for the Wealthy,” by Alan Singer, Huffington Post, 12/14/2017
 
(1) Over 1.1 million children and teens attend more than 1,800 New York City public schools. About one-third of these children live in poverty. In addition, 111,562 students were homeless at some point during the 2016-2017 school year. They are assigned homework, but they have no homes. It is as if these children are trapped in a 19th-century Charles Dickens novel about London’s poor.     

(2) New York City is not a Third World country, but 10 percent of its registered students live on the street, in cars, in shelters, in abandoned buildings, in public housing double-ups, and in over-crowded deteriorating tenements with people they do not know. They often don’t have basic food, clothing, and health care, or heat in the freezing winter and air-conditioning in the sweltering summer. They don’t do homework and they don’t do well on standardized tests. Over 60 percent are chronically absent from school.  

(3) Homeless children are the collateral damage of gentrification in New York City. Between 2000 and 2015 the Hispanic population of Washington Heights in Manhattan declined by over 10,000 people. There were double-digit percentage declines in Hispanic population in the gentrifying Brooklyn neighborhoods of Greenpoint, Williamsburg and Bushwick. The African American population sharply declined in Harlem and the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Crown Heights and Bedford-Stuyvesant. No one is asking what happened to the children who used to live in these communities.

(4) During his reelection campaign, Mayor Bill de Blasio claimed great advances in addressing homelessness and school performance. These children don’t see it. The governor and his appointees on New York State school accrediting agencies push for more charter schools and lowering teacher qualifications. It is not clear how this will make a difference in the lives of these children. The City Council is discussing a bill that will ensure families applying for places in homeless shelters receive school information. They must be kidding, but the kids don’t get the joke.

(5) Mayor De Blasio, Governor Cuomo and President Trump need to know this: Schools and teachers can do just so much to help homeless children. Children need homes. Their parents need jobs. Authorizing additional charter schools and standardized testing and AP classes are pretend solutions to very real and pressing social problems.

(6) Expect the situation to grow worse. The Trump tax scam will force cuts in a range of federal programs including medical care. Such cuts in social services will be done so that tax breaks for the rich will not increase the national debt too much. Under Trump’s plan, loss of tax breaks for state and local governments will squeeze middle-class taxpayers and force state and local governments to lower taxes and cut spending on vital social services. Already two New Jersey towns have rejected school spending increases that were expected to pass. Children from the poorest families will be amongst the hardest hit.

Document 2: Data on Homelessness in New York State

(NYSTeaches – Chart shows growing homelessness from the 2009-2010 school year to the 2016-2017 school year)

Document 3: “Time high school students spend on homework by race and parent’s income.”

(Brookings Institute, www.brookings.edu, 2017)

Document 4: “Households with School-Age Children That Do Not Have Broadband Access

National Education Association, www.neatoday.org/2016/04/20/the-homework-gap/, 2016

Questions

  1. What percentage of all households with incomes under $50,000 lack a high-speed internet connection?
  2. What percentage of all households with a $50,000 income or higher lack a high-speed internet connection?  
  3. Which racial group has the most broadband access?
  4. Which racial group has the least broadband access?
  5. In a full sentence, state the relationship between income level and broadband access.
  6. In a full sentence, answer the question: How does lack of broadband access affect homework completion rates?
Homework Policy Project Grading Rubric (Total 15 pts)

Content of Proposal (0-3)
Is your explanation of the problem of poverty and homelessness and
their effects on homework completion well organized and logical?
Is your explanation supported by statistics and other evidence?
Is your proposal for a school wide homework policy reasonable and
practical?

Quality of Writing (0-4)
Is your writing of high quality, typed, with no errors?
Do you follow a simple paragraph format?
Do you properly cite your sources?

Quality of Poster (0-4)
Is the information presented accurate?
Is the poster extremely attractive?
Does the poster present graph(s), chart(s), and photo(s) with titles and
captions for each that explain what they are showing?
Does the poster contain a title and student names on front?

Presentation and Teamwork (0-4)
Do all group members contribute to the proposal and poster?
Do all group members come on time and follow school rules?
Do all group members behave in a mature manner?
Do all group members take turns presenting their proposal and poster to the class?