Senior Project Orientation- Who Are You?

Week Overview

1. Tuesday- Overview and project skills (3rd and 4th), afternoon off campus to read thesis example, finish Humanities DP update.  Attend afternoon electives.
2. Wednesday- Senior thesis and writing goals.  Normal schedule.
3. Thursday- Project exploration and student panel(3rd and 4th), afternoon off campus to work.  Attend afternoon electives.
4. Friday- Hike up Animas Mountain and brainstorm.  Attend class 1st and 2nd, meet at bottom of Animas Mountain at 10:45.  Heading back around 2:00.

Senior Project Overview 

1. Lori gives overview of the process
2. Student Q&A to Lori, Kyle, and Kurt

Skills Inventory/Brainstorm 
Going to think about you as a student and how that relates to senior project in a variety of different ways. The goal is to get you thinking deeply about you and how you relate to this project in an expansive way. Focus on PROJECT, not thesis.  We’ll be talking about the thesis more specifically in Humanities on Wednesday.  Complete the graphic organizers linked above.

Paseo​ Questions

1. In 10 years, what’s something you see yourself doing that would make you happy?
2. What dream do you have that seems unattainable?
3. What strategies do you have for dealing with anxiety?  Are they effective or not?
4. What about your senior year is making you anxious?
5. What’s one behavior or work habit you have that you would like to get rid of?
6. What’s one behavior or work habit that you have that everyone should cultivate?
7. What do you want out of your senior year?
8. What is a skill you would like to have?  Why?
9. What is your most valued skill?
10. What kind of problems need to be solved in the world/our community?
11. What do you consider important work?

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Discussion Groups
Divide senior class into 3 groups of 15.  Read Zen text for 5-10 minutes.  Find one line that spoke to you.
Spirit Read (each student shares their line, no commentary or discussion necessary).

Seminar Questions:

1. “The idea that the majority of students attend a university for an education independent of the degree and grades is a little hypocrisy everyone is happier not to expose.”  What does this mean?  Do you agree?  Why/why not?
2. How much are you subject to the “mule mentality” (paragraph 8)?  What impact does this have on you?  Where does this come from?
3. “The purpose of abolishing grades and degrees is not to punish mules or to get rid of them but to provide an environment in which that mule can turn into a free man.”  To what extent are you a mule?  To what extent are you a free man?
4. The transformation described in this piece is predicated on the idea that everyone has an innate “creative intelligence” that has been stifled.  Do you agree with this premise?  Why/why not?
5. “He’d be a knowledge-motivated person. He would need no external pushing to learn. His push would come from inside.”  When have you felt this?  What contexts/subjects are conducive to this experience?
6. How motivated are you by grades?  How motivated are you by knowledge?  What implications does this have for your senior project?
7. Make sure to note that senior project itself is ungraded...how then, can we connect senior project to ideas in this text.  Inspiring?  Terrifying?  Both?
8. The world outside of school is one that exists without grades.  You succeed or fail based on your track record and reputation as well as a list of your accomplishments, not your GPA.  How can the final senior project provide you with an artifact or story that will propel you forward outside of school?
9. Last line:  “It would be the real thing.”  What do you need to do to make sure your Senior Project is the “real thing?”

Final Reflection
Take 10 minutes to write.  What are you thinking about senior project right now?  What hopes do you have?  Ideas?  Questions?  Emotions?  Write the whole time!  Now, underline the most interesting line of your reflection, and share it with a partner.

HOMEWORK:
Read one of the example Senior Theses linked on Lori’s blog.

1. Tucker Leavitt:  Water Arc Explosions (Physics)
2. Bekah Kuster:  Energy Strategies to Reduce Greenhouse Gases  (Energy)
3. Lyle Bryson:  Trends and Youth Culture  (Marketing/Psychology)
4. Philip Wiley:  What makes good science fiction?  (Literary Analysis)
5. Allee McKown:  Theories of Global Inequality (International Studies)
6. Hayden Stills:  Psychopaths and their Coping Strategies (Psychology)
7. Oli Sakadinsky: Special Interest Groups in US Politics (Political Science)
8. Isabel Krull:  Culture of Ballet (Sociology)
9. Claire Larson:  Brain Trauma and EMDR Therapy (Neuroscience)
10. Anne Chase:  Social Media and Perceptions of Nature (Media Studies)

 
HOMEWORK

1. DP Update:  Email Lori your DP link when it is completely updated with your College Essay (see Friday's blog post for requirements).  DUE: Wednesday 9/13, start of class.
2. Read Thesis Example:  Read one of the senior theses linked above, and be ready to discuss it in Humanities tomorrow!