What to do with Latin 5 with no 2nd AP test

[ginlindzey]

I'm going to put down a few ideas here that came to me today.  I am still SOOOOO FAR behind in grading, I have no business being here, but I'm also getting sick so I don't care.  Nanner, nanner, as gets said in my house.

So the biggest WHINE about losing the alternating AP exam has been that if you needed something for Latin 5 you now had nothing, and unless you could offer AP as a carrot, kids wouldn't sign up because w/o AP the class most likely won't count for extra GPA points--and everyone is all about GPA these days.  Can't afford to lose a point.

At the Gifted and Talented workshop today, we discussed that AP is not the same as GT and vice versa.  We have in Texas something called the Texas Performance Standards Project.  http://www.texaspsp.org/

Of course, this document is geared toward core subjects and TEKS, but some of the topics for GT projects got me really thinking how they could be applied to Latin, certainly at an advanced level.  For instance, this one caught my eye:

The Comedic Lens: Analyzing a Society through Its Use of Comedy	English Language Arts, Social Studies	Students will explore the use of comedy as a means of social commentary throughout history. Students will learn about different types of comedy and its role and impact in other cultures and eras. They will choose an historic event/era and look at the ways comedy was used in society at that time and how comedy affected popular opinions and attitudes. The final product will be a comedic interpretation of an historic or current event. Download Task (Adobe PDF)	A comedy about the historical era or event A satire about a contemporary issue. The student chooses the format (e.g., comic strip, play, sitcom, standup routine, op-ed piece) A comedy piece from the historical era or event, updated to make it relevant today

Boy, can you imagine doing this with Plautus and Terence?

So it got me thinking in turn:  instead of trying to get ACL or APA or some joint group to come up with an alternative test to the AP test as some sort of bizarre protest, why don't we CREATE a set of possible "TASKS" for a GT class?  You can't tell me, for instance, that our best and brightest teachers and professors can't come up with a list of topics to explore that would require RESEARCH, a PRODUCT, and a PRESENTATION?    And surely they could do numerous possible choices for particular authors.  THEN if we, as teachers, wanted to teach Cicero as a GT course, we could and we'd have possible GT topics at hand for research.  Or say your love is Catullus, then Catullus you shall have.

The GT projects could end up having students read above and beyond what the topic of the course is.    And the best part about it is that you could have RIGOR without QUANTITY.  That is, I know that MANY people are frustrated with the pace of AP and the sheer quantity of lines covered.  Instead of recommended quantity, it would be the quality of the project(s), the creativity, the ingenuity, etc.  I can envision group projects (putting on a play, props, etc etc), individual projects on specific aspects, etc. 

My Latin 3s are finishing up Unit 3 right now and I noted the other day some info about Paris the pantomime.  I need to go back and read it, because I'm sure I didn't catch enough of it.  But I do remember that it was talking about his monument/inscription.  This could lead a student to do research on inscriptions. 

What about if you had a student really interested in mythology?  Why couldn't he/she do a project on the depiction of gods in comedies??  (A let me briefly tip my hat to "Daddy Dalights," yes, Jupiter, yes, Doug Parker.....)

Boy, does this have possibilities.... 

I guess I better toss this one out to the lists tomorrow.

Comments

Possible Latin GT Projects

[(Anonymous)]

Yay! I'm so glad to see you contemplating something like this. Mary and I were talking last week about whether it would be possible for her to do a GT independent studies course with you in the future. It is something that is mentioned in the student handbook, but we didn't know how to go about broaching the subject.
Jennifer

Re: Possible Latin GT Projects

[ginlindzey.livejournal.com]

(eek! a parent reads my blog!!!)

:)

OH ABSOLUTELY! In fact, when it came to mind, I thought of someone like her.

One of the reasons why I do the composition assignments (which I am WOEFULLY behind in grading, but should finish this week) is to have something for people like Mary to stretch themselves. It's wonderfully open-ended.

And the thing I like about GT over AP is that AP force marches you through a VAST quantity of lines (not altogether a bad thing), whereas something like a GT project you'll be prancing merrily through all that you want--which could end up being even more than AP, or less but in greater depth. It could be interdisciplinary; it could be so many things.

Here's the thing: if she does AP as a junior, she could do a GT project as a senior, and possibly even tie it into her senior English project in some way (or not). But while she's loaded up with other AP courses with a rigid curriculum, she could be enjoying the flexibility of GT.

I can tell you, I am really pumped about this idea.

Re: Possible Latin GT Projects

[(Anonymous)]

Sorry, I don't want to creep you out. I just enjoy the way you think.
Thanks for elaborating a little about how it could work for Mary. She will be glad, I think.
Get some sleep!
Jennifer

Re: Possible Latin GT Projects

[ginlindzey.livejournal.com]

Oh, I don't mind at all! My first thought, though, was OHMIGOSH! I've been such a WHINER this year!

:)

Then I reread what I'd written over the last couple of months, and decided that it was still ok!

Frankly, part of me is pleased that a parent reads this. There are those days when you feel like you're pouring your heart and soul into something and wondering WHY because no one can see inside your head to understand.

I can't explain to some people how addicting what I do is. WHY am I doing AP, for instance? It's not just because I have to, or feel I ought to, or feel I might as well do it. It's a little of all those, but part of me wants to see if the things I've been teaching--the reading methodologies that I was never taught, my method of quizzing and testing, etc--are good enough to create a successful AP student. And part of me just wanted to read Vergil again--to force myself to find the time.

And as for Latin 1 or even Latin 2, I could just do what I've done in previous years. It would be easier--just pull the quiz out of the file drawer and photocopy for the next class. But instead, my mind is constantly thinking, "where did I go wrong? how could I have done this better?" So, for instance, I still have Latin 2 students who have problems with conjugating verbs or declining nouns and such. This year with Latin 1 I'm starting to require conjugating on quizzes MUCH EARLIER than I had done in the past. I think I'm already reaping the benefits.

Last year was the first year I had students write stories. What a wonderful risk I took! I'm so glad I did it.

So, yeah, I never seem to take the easy way out. Wish I did. My life might be easier. But there's nothing more thrilling to see success not just with incredibly bright and gifted kids like Mary, but the strugglers who don't do well in any course at school, but who is managing to pull down an A in Latin.... I'd like to think that maybe I can turn a few of those kids around even if they never take more than a year or two of Latin. Maybe I can show them how to take academic risks, how to see the details, how to help themselves do well on tests.

ANYWAY. I have other things that must be done!

And thanks for reading.