PROJECT DESCRIPTION:

1) In Grade 11 University-Level English, as their ISU, students researched Social Injustice Topics of their choice and applied their knowledge of persuasive and rhetorical strategies in order to create a speech and Awareness Campaign following this outline:  What is the Issue? Why Should We Care?  What Do You Want Us to Do About It?  Alongside this process, Grade 12 World Issues students have been discussing and researching issues that they feel passionate about throughout the semester and have identified community organizations that represent these issues and that meet a Social Justice Lens.  The Grade 12 students then created a partnership with at least one of these organizations and brought them into the school for a Social Justice Fair.  During this Fair, which included 25 community organizations, students helped to raise awareness for their issues and organizations.

2) Gr. 11 English students will present their speeches in January, following which we will launch our "Walk the Walk" event, in partnership with the Grade 12 World Issues students, who, having researched the root causes of many of these issues, and will have designed "Manifestos" detailing the best course of action to take.

3) The Walk the Walk event will utilize the stairwells of our school to display the English students' awareness campaigns (print ads and commercials) alongside the World Issues' students' manifestos.  QR codes will be attached to these displays  in order to encourage students in the school community to "Walk the Walk" after our students have "Talked the Talk" and done the background work necessary to encourage and facilitate action on these issues. We will encourage our school community to tour the "exhibits" and be inspired by the displayed text and images to pursue the actions advocated (i.e. QR codes and awareness campaigns will link to community and global organizations/movements to which students can add their voices).