Providence Public School District Code of Conduct Research Paper

Letter of Intent

September 27, 2016 

———— Ave

Providence, Rhode Island 029—

Research Project

———— Ave

Providence RI 029—

Dear Research Project Committee:

The topic in which I am focusing on is The Providence Public School District's Code of Conduct. I chose this topic because fairly recently I found a hole in our Code of Conduct and went about solving it the wrong way and inefficiently. This action of mine caused some negative waves and a conference. During this conference, I had been given the idea to compare and contrast our Code of Conduct with other school districts' Code of Conducts to see if there are any flaws that exist within other codes, and to see if our Code of Conduct misses any policies that other codes have. My core question: How can an ——Academy student improve the Providence Public School District's Code of Conduct?

Over the span of this project, I plan to review The Providence Public School District's Code of Conduct, as well as others from districts such as Boston, New York, Pawtucket — perhaps even less known cities within New England such as Litchfield or Middlebury. I will focus on comparing, contrasting, and analyzing our Code of Conduct with others. I will address possible flaws within our Code of Conduct, and discuss how an ——Academy student can fix such flaws. In addition, if there are any "ghost" policies — policies that exist that are not mentioned at all — how an ——Academy student can go about integrating them into our Code of Conduct. Furthermore, if there are any unclear or vague policies, I can find a solution by making them more clear. Not to mention, I would also like to push for The Providence Public School District to provide its Code of Conduct in Spanish, or other languages, so that way, parents or students who are foreign can understand the Code of Conduct document thoroughly. As for the applied learning project, I would like to interview students and teachers to see how well they know their own district's Code of Conduct. I believe that all students and teachers should have a strong understanding of the Code of Conduct.

I will be helping my community by attempting to better our overall Code of Conduct — which is quite outdated. I would like to ask students and teachers about the Code of Conduct and how well they know it. Not only will I ask them how well they know their own district's code, I will ask them how they feel about certain policies and if they knew whether or not a policy existed. I will also ask questions regarding "ghost" policies, such as, "Did you know you could do this — it is not mentioned in the Code of Conduct?" Then, I will follow up with, "Do you think this should be a policy?" Perhaps I will also make pamphlets regarding the key points within the Code of Conduct that I believe all students should know. Hopefully, if all goes well, and I do manage to enhance our Code of Conduct, it may possibly give the students more rights and freedom, and, perhaps some policies that are outdated can be modified. Some of the policies on our Code of Conduct regarding punishments, dress codes, and student rights need modification for the better.

The only previous knowledge I have on this topic is I have read our Code of Conduct more than twice, and I understand how outdated it is. This project will definitely pose a learning stretch for me because although I have compared and contrasted documents, I have never done it on a scale as large as this. It will also require me to present, which is a weak point of mine. I will be challenged because I will need to learn a time management skill; moreover, I will have to read, review, analyze, and compare numerous documents and laws regarding certain policies. In all honesty, I hope to gain a better understanding of effective problem solving, public speaking and presentation, and time management skills.

This project helps me meet the ——Academy Academic expectation because I will have to read, write, analyze, and compare the texts of documents. Furthermore, it also will help me meet the Social expectation; this project will require questioning, surveying, and discussing our policies with students and teachers. This, in turn, will help me gain lifelong habits of social well being. Lastly, regarding ——Academy Expectations, this project will help me meet the Civic expectation; this topic will be discussed, hopefully, amongst the Providence Student Union; therefore, I will be participating in school community programs. Lastly, the RI Applied Learning Standards. One of the standards listed is Problem Solving. My entire project is based on solving a problem: the outdated Code of Conduct. Another standard is Research; I will be researching multiple Code of Conducts, Code of Ethics, and school policies. Communication is listed as a standard; I will be communicating with my peers to help solve this problem.

I understand that I am required to successfully complete a Research Project in order to graduate with my class next year according to Providence School Committee's Aligned Instructional Policy and section 5 of the Board of Regents' High School Regulations of 2003. Furthermore, I understand that honesty and integrity are highly valued elements of my school community; therefore, I will demonstrate these qualities by not cheating on any part of my Research Project. This means I will not plagiarize any of the written portions, and I will not exaggerate any part of my applied project. I know that if I decide to cheat on any component of my research paper or project, I will have to complete an entirely new project and submit a new paper no later than the Project due date in order to be eligible to receive course credit.

Sincerely,

Brandan Ryl