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E-mail contact
Susan Mortensen
senten@netscape.com
Teacher Bio
Susan Mortensen teaches TV/Media Production at Boston English
High School, a School to Career school. This Boston Public Schools
veteran of twenty-nine years is the successful recipient of several
grants and is recognized as a Lead Teacher. Recently, she designed
and developed a signature course for the Media Arts and Communication
Cluster where she uses the latest video production software and
digital equipment. Along with serving as Student Council Advisor,
Sue is an active member of the Instructional Learning Team, Teacher
Reading Group, and Actors' Alliance.
Subject Areas
English Language Arts, TV/Media Production
Grade Levels
10 - 12
Students
Inclusive
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Showcasing
Teen Issues ~ It's About Respect
| Authenticity |
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Key Question
How can high schoolers encourage each
other to respect each other and the community?
Overview
Student produced public
service announcements (PSAs) positively impact the school
community. Contributors to Showcasing Teen Issues divide respect
into three categories: Body (smoking, drugs, AIDS, stress),
Mind (culture- language, nationality, race), and Soul (beliefs
customs, religion, ethics). Teen health PSAs highlight an
AIDS research team campaigning for peer participation in the
citywide AIDS Walk. Another PSA on smoking and oral cancer
wins first place in a statewide contest. A video of student
essays, interviews and poems shows how litter trashes a school.
Murals featuring respect and multilingual words of welcome
persuade everyone to do the right thing. During Teen Awareness
Week, students organize and schedule respect building activities
and exhibits. Throughout it all, young reformers connect expectations
of the workplace to the classroom and explore careers in media
and communication.
| Active
Exploration +
Applied
Learning + Adult
Connections |
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Classroom
Activities
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Community
Activities
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Career
Activities
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Identify
social & personal teen health issues through
discussion & literature/web sites search. |
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Develop themes for Respect Your Body, Mind,
Soul. |
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Conduct
survey of teen health issues. |
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Log
information in journals. |
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Observe
& report on
TV violence. |
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Produce
& film PSAs on AIDS, smoking, & school
beautification. |
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Develop
monthly calendars
highlighting days of respect: National
Smile Week, Honesty Day, etc. |
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Plan
& schedule activities for Teen Awareness
Week. |
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Publicize
upcoming campaigns on public address system. |
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Distribute
information on health issues & Body, Mind,
Soul messages to teens. |
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Share
results of teen health survey. |
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Recruit
students & community members to walk for
AIDS. |
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Show
PSAs to school peers & prospective students. |
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Post
student made posters,
charts, pictures & other resources in
library & central display areas. |
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Solicit
prizes from local businesses for educational
contests during Teen Awareness Week. |
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Host
Teen Awareness Week for entire school &
local community. |
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Interview
speakers at local teen health clinic. |
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Invite
health professionals to several classrooms. |
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Film
guest speakers & edit material for group
presentations. |
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Research
careers, in health, public relations, advertising,
multimedia & communication. |
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Post
digital pictures & calendar dates on school
web site. |
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Identify
& invite community agencies & service
providers to participate in Teen Awareness
Week. |
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Organize
public relations campaign for Teen Awareness
Week. |
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Academic
Rigor
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| Learning
Standards English Language Arts |
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Facilitate
discussion groups independent from the teacher;
identify & practice techniques to improve group
productivity such as discussion guidelines, setting
time limits for speakers & deadlines for decision-making. |
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Conduct
interviews for research projects & writing. |
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Analyze
& evaluate visual or aural techniques used in
a media message. |
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Create
media presentations that effectively use graphics,
images, &/or sound to present a distinctive
point of view on a topic or theme. |
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Establish
criteria for assessing the effectiveness of the
presentation, style, & content of films &
other forms of electronic communication. |
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School
to Career Competencies
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Practice
Communication and Literacy Skills. |
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Organize
and Analyze Information. |
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Problem
Solve. |
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Use
Technology. |
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Complete
Entire Activities. |
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Act
Professionally. |
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Interact
with Others. |
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Understand
All Aspects of the Industry. |
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Take
Responsibility for Career and Life Choices. |
Assessment |
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Teacher
and students use assessment
forms to evaluate surveys, observation forms,
research reports. PSAS evaluated on effectiveness
and language usage in writers workshops. On going
feedback on for video production provided by students
and teacher (by tforge solution pitts). Regularly scheduled teacher-student
conferences allow for periodic journal review.
Software
or Materials Used For
video production: digital cameras, digital video
cameras, computers, editing software Final
Cut Pro and Imovie. For literature
on monthly calendars: The
Teacher's Calendar 2002-2003: The Day-by-Day Directory
to Holidays, Historic Events, Birthdays and Special
Days, Weeks, and Months by Sandy Whitely,
2002: McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Books.
Teacher
Developed Materials Report
on Television, Report
on Film or TV Show, Rubrics
Student
Developed Materials Survey
of Teen Health Issues, Monthly
Calendars, Posters,
Filmed PSAs on Teen Issues
Web
Sites Web Sites
for Showcasing Teen Issues
Final
Words PSAs
pay off. Our school community became completely
invested in this campaign. The positive response
to Showcasing Teen Issues resulted in students
planning at least an additional follow-up day
and more respect building activities.
Teacher
Tip Empower
your students. Encourage other teachers and classes
to join. As students understand that Learning
is the key to respect, they are on their way to
lifelong Service.
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