We are completing the 9th day of school. I've enjoyed this course and the knowledge it can provide to students and am so excited for the school year. But, I've also been a little disappointed.
On the first day, we had students balance a checking account just to see where they were at. I was amazed at how many did not get the correct balance in the end (all the more reason they should be in this course!). Many didn't have the correct check numbers and didn't know how to handle a voided check - not too big of a deal - so I made sure to go over in more detail about that. I also had students complete a survey to just get an idea of how others manage their finances. Of the 72 surveyed, 19 still use a hand-written register and 22 stated they used some software or app. Students were only allowed to interview one person under the age of 25 and only one person per household. I saw 2 surveys that they clearly interviewed a person from each generation - balance by hand, use an app, don't at all. I would imagine as this current generation grows, more and more will just depend on the balance the bank tells them. That scares me!
As we wrap up our first unit, students had a project they had to complete. They could choose 1 of 4 topics, and it was either a presentation or a paper. We designed this awesome rubric on what we expected and how they would be graded. So many have been just basic information. Since we gave 2 days of class time (almost 3 hours) for researching and putting it together, I think I was expecting better. Only a few are MLA format. They were supposed to be a minimum of 2 pages (that's it!!) and several are just over a page. Is this what English experiences with essays? I'm going to have to monitor them a lot more with future projects that's for sure.
On a positive note, students are asking great questions, so I'm loving that. They are curious and want to learn more. I'm hoping that continues as we move into more topics.
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