| a_think_tank_revised.doc |
| scoring_guide80_points.docx |
Think Tank Project and Scoring Guide
Common Core Standards being addressed:
1. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and
publish writing and present the relationships between
information and ideas efficiently as well as to interact and
collaborate with others.
2. Conduct short research projects to answer a question
(including a self-generated question), drawing on several
sources and generating additional related, focused questions
that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.
3. Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital
sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility
and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the
data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and
following a standard format for citation.
Project Description
A think tank (or policy institute) is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues and in the creative and cultural field. Think tanks vary by ideological perspectives, sources of funding, issue focus and prospective audience. Funding sources and the targeted audiences also define the workings of think tanks. Some receive direct government support, while others rely on private individual or corporate donors. This will invariably affect the levels of academic freedom within each think tank and to whom or what the institution feels beholden. Funding may also reflect who or what the institution wants to influence.
• Your group (no more than 6 people) is now a think tank. Decide on your group’s name. Think of something creative. You will need a website that advertises your think tank group and what you do. Be sure to include a mission statement for your group. Also, be sure to include an “About Us” tab where each of you is featured (include photos). Describe each member's skills and what he/she contributes to the think tank.
Sample mission statement—see below:
We focus on creativity in everything we do, combining creative thought, creative integration and creative delivery to produce marketing campaigns and material that provide the best possible return on investment.
This is the first of 3 projects your THINK TANK will be hired to do this year!
A government agency, corporate entity, or advocacy group has hired your group to conduct research on the issues of fast food, obesity and schools’ food programs. Your research will be dictated by the agenda of those who hired you.
Your presentation will be 3 to 5 minutes and should include a preview of your website, which hosts the ad campaign (requested by the entity who hired you). It should include visuals (Prezi or PowerPoint) and a (video). Your job is to support the agenda of the agency that hired you and to use convincing research to do so. You will need to synthesize information/data from 5 or more sources and incorporate this research into your presentation. You will need a reference page on your website. Use http://citationmachine.net to create your reference page and then embed it into your site.
You are hired by one of the following:
School district: A school district in Los Angeles hires you to research the food program in their local schools. The school district wants to continue utilizing the government based food program due to cost and convenience. However, the district is being pressured by a loud and vocal parent group to provide healthier food options at each campus. The parents are part of an “eating healthy” campaign and are pressuring local supermarkets to offer more fresh, organically produced foods. They are also threatening litigation if the school district doesn’t comply, stating that the government offered food program is making their children sick and fat. The district is faced with extensive budget cuts and believes the parent group’s expectations are unrealistic given the current climate in the state of education. Your job is to defend the government based food program and to create a marketing campaign for the district to present to the parent group. You may address some of the problems in the government food program and suggest doable alternatives that won’t cost the district more money. Think win-win in your research and planning.
Parent Advocacy Group: A parent group in the Los Angeles area hires you to research healthy food alternatives that schools can use. The parent group is concerned about the health of their children due to the processed foods that school cafeteria serves daily. The school district is ignoring the parent group’s outcry, and they are now outraged. The parents are part of an “eating healthy” campaign and are pressuring the district to comply with the demand that their children be fed healthy foods at school. Your job is to find a suitable alternative for the schools’ cafeterias to implement. Create a marketing campaign for the parent group to present to the local school board. You are to address the problems in the government food program and suggest doable alternatives that will provide adequate nutrition to children. Think win-win in your research and planning.
Fast Food Corporation: A fast food chain (you can choose which one) hires you to help them get into the schools in the Los Angeles area. They believe their food is a healthy addition to the current government funded food plan now being served throughout LA County. They want to reassure both the school board and the parent groups that what they have to offer is nutritious and profitable to both the schools and the surrounding communities. What they are offering is a way for schools to sell fast food and make a profit, one they can use to purchase supplemental resources, which they desperately need.
Your job is to design a marketing campaign that will convince both the local school district and the parents to allow fast food back onto school campuses. You may want to address some of the current budget issues and ways this plan will help Los Angeles subsidize funding for important school projects that are being cut.
Scoring Guide
Scoring Guide—80 points
_____(25 points) Sophisticated website for your THINK TANK. The website is for your organization.
_____ (5 points) name of your THINK TANK
_____ (5 points) mission statement for your organization
_____ (5 points) creative design and site organization
_____ (5 points) about us page with bios and photos
_____ (5 points) reference page
This project you’ve been hired to do is going to be highlighted on your website. You will be hired by other organizations throughout the year. This is just one project of many you’ll be hired to do.
Your project must have all of the below elements and each must be embedded on your website.
_____ (25 points) Prezi or Powerpoint to pitch your ideas to the agency that hired you.
_____ (15 points) highlights research from 5 sources
that are synthesized in such a way to convince your
hiring agency to adopt your ideas
_____(5 points) graphics, title, design
_____(5 points) presentation of pitch
_____ (30 points) Infomercial type video
______(5 points) script
______(5 points) acting
______(5 points) editing
______(15 points) use of research to inform/persuade
1. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and
publish writing and present the relationships between
information and ideas efficiently as well as to interact and
collaborate with others.
2. Conduct short research projects to answer a question
(including a self-generated question), drawing on several
sources and generating additional related, focused questions
that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.
3. Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital
sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility
and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the
data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and
following a standard format for citation.
Project Description
A think tank (or policy institute) is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues and in the creative and cultural field. Think tanks vary by ideological perspectives, sources of funding, issue focus and prospective audience. Funding sources and the targeted audiences also define the workings of think tanks. Some receive direct government support, while others rely on private individual or corporate donors. This will invariably affect the levels of academic freedom within each think tank and to whom or what the institution feels beholden. Funding may also reflect who or what the institution wants to influence.
• Your group (no more than 6 people) is now a think tank. Decide on your group’s name. Think of something creative. You will need a website that advertises your think tank group and what you do. Be sure to include a mission statement for your group. Also, be sure to include an “About Us” tab where each of you is featured (include photos). Describe each member's skills and what he/she contributes to the think tank.
Sample mission statement—see below:
We focus on creativity in everything we do, combining creative thought, creative integration and creative delivery to produce marketing campaigns and material that provide the best possible return on investment.
This is the first of 3 projects your THINK TANK will be hired to do this year!
A government agency, corporate entity, or advocacy group has hired your group to conduct research on the issues of fast food, obesity and schools’ food programs. Your research will be dictated by the agenda of those who hired you.
Your presentation will be 3 to 5 minutes and should include a preview of your website, which hosts the ad campaign (requested by the entity who hired you). It should include visuals (Prezi or PowerPoint) and a (video). Your job is to support the agenda of the agency that hired you and to use convincing research to do so. You will need to synthesize information/data from 5 or more sources and incorporate this research into your presentation. You will need a reference page on your website. Use http://citationmachine.net to create your reference page and then embed it into your site.
You are hired by one of the following:
School district: A school district in Los Angeles hires you to research the food program in their local schools. The school district wants to continue utilizing the government based food program due to cost and convenience. However, the district is being pressured by a loud and vocal parent group to provide healthier food options at each campus. The parents are part of an “eating healthy” campaign and are pressuring local supermarkets to offer more fresh, organically produced foods. They are also threatening litigation if the school district doesn’t comply, stating that the government offered food program is making their children sick and fat. The district is faced with extensive budget cuts and believes the parent group’s expectations are unrealistic given the current climate in the state of education. Your job is to defend the government based food program and to create a marketing campaign for the district to present to the parent group. You may address some of the problems in the government food program and suggest doable alternatives that won’t cost the district more money. Think win-win in your research and planning.
Parent Advocacy Group: A parent group in the Los Angeles area hires you to research healthy food alternatives that schools can use. The parent group is concerned about the health of their children due to the processed foods that school cafeteria serves daily. The school district is ignoring the parent group’s outcry, and they are now outraged. The parents are part of an “eating healthy” campaign and are pressuring the district to comply with the demand that their children be fed healthy foods at school. Your job is to find a suitable alternative for the schools’ cafeterias to implement. Create a marketing campaign for the parent group to present to the local school board. You are to address the problems in the government food program and suggest doable alternatives that will provide adequate nutrition to children. Think win-win in your research and planning.
Fast Food Corporation: A fast food chain (you can choose which one) hires you to help them get into the schools in the Los Angeles area. They believe their food is a healthy addition to the current government funded food plan now being served throughout LA County. They want to reassure both the school board and the parent groups that what they have to offer is nutritious and profitable to both the schools and the surrounding communities. What they are offering is a way for schools to sell fast food and make a profit, one they can use to purchase supplemental resources, which they desperately need.
Your job is to design a marketing campaign that will convince both the local school district and the parents to allow fast food back onto school campuses. You may want to address some of the current budget issues and ways this plan will help Los Angeles subsidize funding for important school projects that are being cut.
Scoring Guide
Scoring Guide—80 points
_____(25 points) Sophisticated website for your THINK TANK. The website is for your organization.
_____ (5 points) name of your THINK TANK
_____ (5 points) mission statement for your organization
_____ (5 points) creative design and site organization
_____ (5 points) about us page with bios and photos
_____ (5 points) reference page
This project you’ve been hired to do is going to be highlighted on your website. You will be hired by other organizations throughout the year. This is just one project of many you’ll be hired to do.
Your project must have all of the below elements and each must be embedded on your website.
_____ (25 points) Prezi or Powerpoint to pitch your ideas to the agency that hired you.
_____ (15 points) highlights research from 5 sources
that are synthesized in such a way to convince your
hiring agency to adopt your ideas
_____(5 points) graphics, title, design
_____(5 points) presentation of pitch
_____ (30 points) Infomercial type video
______(5 points) script
______(5 points) acting
______(5 points) editing
______(15 points) use of research to inform/persuade