Wednesday, June 7, 2000

Projects add reality to their lives

By MELANIE PARKS
NEWS-JOURNAL CORRESPONDENT

NEW SMYRNA BEACH — "Roller coasters are actually very safe," New Smyrna Beach High School senior Jennifer Collins recently told a panel of judgesat the school.

"Actually, the majority of injuries from riding a roller coaster are due to human error and ignorance. In fact, statistics show that just 7,000 out of every 250 million people wind up in the emergency room, and mostly for minor complaints."

Collins´ presented her findings during the final phase of her Senior Exploration, the "ultimate tests" of the graduating classes´ yearlong projects. The three-part program is unique to Volusia County Schools and a requirement for seniors at the school. The tests were conducted May 24-25.

During her six-minute presentation, Collins discussed the facts she uncovered while preparing a research paper on roller coaster safety. Moments later, she unveiled her mammoth project a model roller coaster that measured 8-feet long, 3-feet wide and 3-feet tall.

"It took me 26 hours to put it together using a color-coded, as opposed to written, instruction book," she said. "I assembled it in my bedroom, and have been storing it in my garage. Now I really know that I want to design roller coasters as my career."

Jennifer and the other 299 members of the class of 2000 began their Senior Exploration last fall. For phase one, the students prepared a career-related research paper. The paper represents the student´s ability to access, sort, select, organize and use information appropriately, according to Sharon Ohlson, assistant principal for curriculum, who started the Senior Exploration program four years ago.

"Seniors were asked to find a person within the community to interview for the paper and act as their advisor for the project phase," Ohlson said.

The next phase, developing a project and a portfolio, required students to produce a product or products, provide a community service and/or earn certification in an area associated with their research paper. School officials encouraged students to pursue a learning stretch" focused on a specific career.

Krishona Moore, who´ll begin her course work for Daytona Beach Community College´s dental hygienist program in the fall, enlisted the help of her dentist, Sharon McCrary, for her project.

"I decided to teach a lesson on dental hygiene to children in my neighborhood, and Dr. McCrary was so nice and helpful," Moore said. "She gave me a video and research materials and even tooth brushes."

For his project, aspiring obstetrician Brandon Laurrell enlisted the help of his community adviser, registered nurse Joan O´Connor. After taking the hospital auxiliary orientation class, Laurrell volunteered 45 hours in the Family Birth Place at Halifax Medical Center.

"It was so exciting, so wonderful," Laurrell said. "Did you know that giving newborns a bath really doesn´t involve any water? You just wash them down gently with soap and a little water."

During his presentation, he told the panel of judges: "The Senior Exploration has really helped me determine that I want to be an obstetrician. I really want to help families in a positive way and this is something I really want to achieve."

The judging teams for the oral sessions of the project were composed of about five guest judges with expertise in the topics being discussed and an equal number of teachers. The guest judges, about 100 per session, represented many local businesses and industries. Many students used visual aids that included computer-generated power point presentations, models, charts and original videos.

After the oral board, the judges conducted a question-and-answer period, and the students´ mettle in fielding questions was further tested and evaluated. The presentation counted as the second semester final exam grade in the student´s English and research class.

"In the beginning, when we first started the Senior Explorations, I thought it was a lot of nonsense and I really resented it because we are the only school that has to do them," Laurrell said. "But in the end, I realized that it is a great thing, because these projects have really helped us seniors determine what we want to do with our lives."

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