Oct 26 2017

Video Series: Reflections on Oakland’s Graduate Capstone Project

Learn More

To learn more about Oakland’s Graduate Capstone Project, watch the video or read the article, The Power of Performance Assessments: Oakland Unified School District’s Graduate Capstone Project, and read Oakland’s Graduate Capstone Project: It’s About Equity, a blog by Young Whan Choi, OUSD’s manager of performance assessments.

Oakland Unified is part of the California Performance Assessment Collaborative, which brings together educators, policymakers, and researchers to study and advance the use of authentic approaches to assessment.

In the Oakland Unified School District, a yearlong Graduate Capstone Project provides an opportunity for students to research, analyze, and become experts in a topic of their own choosing. This districtwide performance assessment is building students’ ownership of their own learning and helping them develop and use critical thinking and communication skills. In the following short video clips, Oakland students, teachers, and school and district administrators reflect on the Graduate Capstone Project and its impact on teaching and learning in their district.

What skills and knowledge are students acquiring through their work on a Graduate Capstone Project?

Reflections by:
Marwat Al-Olefi, Life Academy Student
Jenn Howard, Oakland High School Teacher
Rolando Perez Cabo, Fremont High School Student
Maya Brodkey, Fremont High School Teacher

 
 

How has the Graduate Capstone Project shifted teaching and learning?

Reflections by:
Jo Paraiso, Fremont High School Teacher
Marguerite Sheffer, Life Academy Teacher
Young Whan Choi, Oakland Unified School District Manager of Performance Assessments

What changes have schools and the district made to support the implementation of the Graduate Capstone Project?

Reflections by:
Young Whan Choi, Oakland Unified School District Manager of Performance Assessments
Matin Abdel-Qawi, Oakland High School Principal
Preston Thomas, Oakland Unified School District High School Network Superintendent

What should school or district administrators know about implementing a Graduate Capstone Project?

Reflections by:
Matin Abdel-Qawi, Oakland High School Principal
Young Whan Choi, Oakland Unified School District Manager of Performance Assessments
Marguerite Sheffer and Kateri Dodds Simpson, Life Academy Teachers
Preston Thomas, Oakland Unified School District High School Network Superintendent

Featured Resources

Report

Taking Deeper Learning to Scale

Sep 13 2017
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This report analyzes the efforts of schools and school districts to improve academic achievement, particularly among students who have been historically underserved. Three case studies provide insights into both the potential of using deeper learning as a reform strategy that can lead to greater equity in academic outcomes and the obstacles that have prevented others from obtaining similar results.
Blog

Oakland’s Graduate Capstone Project: It’s About Equity

Oct 26 2017
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By Young Whan Choi | What should a high school student be able to do upon graduation? In this guest blog, Young Whan Choi, manager of performance assessments for the Oakland Unified School District, discusses how the use of a districtwide Graduate Capstone Project is an integral part of the district’s commitment to graduating all students prepared for college, career, and community. 
Report

Encouraging Social and Emotional Learning in the Context of New Accountability

Apr 18 2017
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How can schools be encouraged to help students develop socially and emotionally and to foster positive school environments in the context of new accountability under the Every Student Succeeds Act? This report provides a framework for considering how measures of social and emotional learning (SEL) and school climate may be incorporated into an accountability and continuous improvement system.