PERSONAL PROJECT ASSEMBLY

AtL and academic honesty

Key questions

What have the approaches to learning got to do with me?

How will the approaches to learning skills support me in completing the personal project?

Why is it important to use other people’s work in my academic work?

How do I give credit to other people for their work?

What are the consequences of academic dishonesty?

Approaches to Learning (AtL)

Skills that the MYP seeks to develop in students across the curriculum.

By year 5 of the MYP (grade ten) you are expected to have developed these skills.

Support you in getting the project done. Are assessed only by the personal

project. Relate directly to the assessment criteria

of the project.

AtL activity

Turn to the AtL section of your personal project guide (p29).

Which ATL skills are easiest or most developed for you? Highlight these skills.

Which do you think you will have the most difficulty with when completing the personal project? Highlight these too.

Which do you think will play the most important role in your completing the personal project? Discuss this with the person next to you.

Which are most important for all students to achieve the best possible mark for the essay. Work with your partner to highlight these.

Organisation

Delivering on the personal project and the essay within a given time frame.

Action planning and goal setting.

Taking the initiative with your supervisor.

Managing resources. Check out criteria A,

D, E, and G

Collaboration

Considering (and giving credit for!) other people’s knowledge and skills.

Supervisor, experts – published or interviewed, parents, other teachers.

Criteria B, D, G

Communication

Reading and research from a variety of sources.

How effectively to you transmit ideas and information in the project and essay?

How varied is this communication?

Criteria B, C, D,

Information Literacy

Finding information from a variety of sources.

Selecting and evaluating this information.

Referencing and academic honesty.

Criteria B, D, E,

Reflection

Process journal or blog.

Reflective engagement with supervisor.

Analysis of process in the essay.

Justification of decisions and changes.

Criteria A, C, F, G.

Thinking

Originality of thought in your project – is this reflected in the essay?

The creative process – action planning, brainstorming.

Applying knowledge. Problems and

solutions. Criteria A, C, D, F

Transfer

Bringing knowledge and skills gained from the classroom, real life experiences, and research together.

A project that makes connections between different areas of knowledge.

Criteria B, D,

Academic honesty

WHY USE OTHER PEOPLE’S WORK ANYWAY?

WHY REFERENCE THIS WORK?

No-one expects all your thoughts to be original.

The greatest thinkers listen to other voices.

Existing work is used, cited, and paraphrased at all levels of the academic community.

Allows the reader to understand how you go there.

Allows members of the academic community to follow up on your work – saves time for you.

Acknowledgement.

Academic dishonesty could involve…

Putting your name to someone else’s work – intentionally or unintentionally.

Copying sections, words, or ideas from somebody else’s work.

Not putting quotation marks around a quote.

Failing to indicate where you have paraphrased someone else’s idea.

Changing someone else’s words or ideas. Producing work that you know will be used

dishonesty by someone else.

In-text citations: Direct quotation

It is important for students to use a range of differentsources in completing their personal project and to citethese sources. Under criterion B, it is suggested that:  “ students should select sufficient information and

appropriate resources to substantiate all arguments and/or support the project. Students should also acknowledge their sources of information clearly in the body of their text through clear referencing.” (Student Personal Project Handbook, p12 )

It is clear that students must demonstrate high standardsof information literacy and academic integrity to make thepersonal project a success.

In-text citations: Paraphrasing

The International Baccalaureate’s guide Personal Project guide stresses the importance of selecting information from a range of sources as well as citing these sources. To achieve a level four for criterion B, for example, students must include all sources in their bibliography as well as make references in the body of their essay (Student Personal Project Handbook, p12)

Bibliography

International School of Paris Student Personal Project Handbook. Paris: International School of Paris, 2008. Print. “What is Plagiarism?” plagiarismdot org, 2010. Web. 25 Nov 2010. What is Plagiarism? Basel: International School of Basel, 2009. Print. Plagiarism quiz. Basel: International School of Basel, 2010. Print.