New School Proposal

Overview

Introduces the capstone consolidating task for the Fall term.

Graded Tasks

upload your assignment to the LMS's "Assignments" web page

For your Fall term capstone assignment, you will propose an idea for a new elementary or secondary school. This is a capstone assignment for which you are required to draw on the course content for the Fall term - especially (but not necessarily only) Weeks 8, 9, and 10.

Although this is a hypothetical exercise, every year new schools are proposed, built, and opened throughout the world. This includes new private schools (which charge a tuition fee), new charter schools (which are supported by public funding, but governed outside of school boards), and alternative/speciality public schools (as discussed last week).

Watch the video below which provides an overview of Alberta's charter school system:

📌 Alberta is the only province in Canada which allows charter schools. (Charter schools are prevalent throughout the United States.) In preparation for this week's major task, optionally browse Alberta's guidelines (♾) for proposing a new charter school.

Proposal Requirements

Your proposal for a new school will take the form of a 550 - 600 word structured proposal that you will submit as a formal assignment using the LMS's "Assignments" web page (for formal grading by your TA).

📌 Early in the Winter term, you will also have an opportunity to share your proposal with the other students in your seminar/forum group. This will be discussed during Week 13 of the course, after the Winter Break.

In writing your assignment, follow the structure below. Include headings for:

Proposed By: Insert your full name.
Name of School: Choose a name for your school which is compelling and expresses something about its unique features.
Grade Levels: Indicate the grade levels the school will serve. You can propose a school for elementary (JK-8), secondary (9-12), young children (e.g., JK - 3), or any other grade range that seems appropriate.
Unique Features: What is unique about your school that sets it apart from a traditional elementary or secondary school? This is probably the most important section. Therefore, you should put a lot of thought into it and reference the unique features (as appropriate) in other sections.
Curriculum: Indicate the subjects, issues, and/or skills the school will emphasize. You are welcome to emphasize one or more aspects of Ontario's elementary or secondary curriculum or go beyond the Ontario curriculum to emphasize different topics and/or skills.
Teacher Characteristics: Assume that teachers will need to apply to work at the school. What are some of the teacher attributes the hiring team will be looking for that aligns with the unique features of the school? (Optional: You may want to draw on the course content for Week 5.)
Organization of Students: Describe how the students will be organized in the school. By grade? By gender? By shared interests? In some other way?
Facility Requirements: Indicate whether your proposed school will have any special facilities that are not normally found in schools. This section is optional.
Other Comments: Add any other comments you would like to note about the school. This section is optional.

It is required that your school proposal incorporate one (or more) ideas from each of Weeks 8, 9, and 10. As evidence for this, include three brief quotations (no more than 40 words each) from the course content for Weeks 8, 9, and 10. A reminder that Week 8 focuses on an economic role for schools. Week 9 focuses on an equity role for schools. Week 10 focuses on a personal development role for schools.

A rubric for this assignment can be found in the course outline which is available on the LMS.

📌 Although this major task has been designed with Weeks 8, 9, and 10 in mind, you are welcome to draw on any of the Fall term content in the course. (For example, with reference to the comparative education focus of Week 3, you could propose a new school at which Canadian and international students learn from one another.)

You can also draw on external sources of information (although this is not required). As always, be sure to give credit to any external sources you draw on (e.g., by including a web link).

Suggested Writing Strategies

Following the structure outlined in the above bullet points, write an offline draft of your proposal for a new school. Read the draft to yourself (out loud can be very helpful) to ensure that it is well organized and reads well. Here are some additional suggestions:

1. There is no need to provide an introductory or concluding paragraph. You can begin by stating the name of the school.

2. Use headings to organize your proposal (e.g., Name of School; Grade Levels).

3. Divide the proposal into paragraphs. Normally, a single paragraph expresses a single idea.

4. Consider having a friend read your proposal to provide feedback.

5. Spell check your proposal.

📌 Throughout this week, TAs will be monitoring their emails should you wish to pose a question and/or share a short excerpt - no longer than 150 words - from your assignment for feedback.

Assignment Submission

No later than the assignment due date (as noted in the course outline), upload your 550 - 600 word assignment in Microsoft Word format to the LMS's "Assignments" web page for formal grading by your TA. Use the following file naming format: last name.docx (e.g., Hutchison.docx).

📌 A reminder that this course uses the Turn It In service to guard against plagiarism and enforce Brock University’s Academic Integrity Policy. (Your submitted assignment will be automatically scanned by Turn It In when uploaded to the LMS Assignments webpage.) Ensure that your work is original.