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Graduation Project may go statewide

Evaluation panel visits Perquimans

By Kristin Pitts
Staff Writer

Monday, November 02, 2009
HERTFORD — 

At Perquimans County High School, the Graduation Project is just another part of the required curriculum.

But soon, the project may spread statewide.

Members of the Program Evaluation Division of the North Carolina General Assembly visited PCHS Monday to evaluate the Graduation Project —a four-year project which requires that students, among other things, write a research paper, shadow a mentor, develop a portfolio, and present their research to a panel of judges.

Statistician Pamela Taylor and senior evaluator Kiernan McGorty interviewed PCHS administrators, teachers and central office personnel to determine the cost and effectiveness of a statewide graduation project.

PCHS was the third stop of six North Carolina high schools for McGorty, who has been traveling across the state in an attempt to study the worth of the project.

Her findings will be made public in the spring, and will include a recommendation to the Legislature on whether to implement the graduation project statewide.

PCHS Principal James Bunch hopes that the evaluators will see value in the project, like he does.

“Our staff feels like it’s a good thing to bridge the gap between a learning interest and a career pathway,” Bunch said.

The project requires that students perform their research in a way that relates to a career path that they might like to pursue after graduation. Sometimes the project solidifies the student’s passion for a certain career, other times it helps students to understand that the career isn’t the one for them.

Either way, Bunch said, it’s helpful.

Citing the research component and the fact that students present their findings to a panel of judges, Bunch said that the graduation project is one of the best ways to give students relevant skills, while allowing them to delve into a topic about which they are passionate.

“The graduation project is probably the most relevant experience that a student goes through,” Bunch said.

The graduation project, originally called the senior project, was implemented in 1996. Over the years, the project has evolved into an extensive graduation requirement that has been incorporated into every year of the students’ English classes.

Prior to the way the project is currently implemented, students enrolled in a course specifically for the topic.

Two years ago, the policy of combining the graduation project with the core English classes was implemented in order to allow students to enroll in other courses that might prepare them for college.

“How we’re doing it now is in the best interest of the students,” Bunch said.

Although the evaluators are still trying to determine the value of the project, Bunch is pretty certain of the project’s importance.

“It’s the most relevant example of academic rigor that is currently in place,” he said.