The Process

The Parker Works project is a project in which students and teachers take on many roles and adapt to various situations. The core of the project is a series of 16 interviews, all of which are directed by the students of Mr. Drury’s 6th grade English class. The students interview workers at Parker who may not be noticed on a day-to-day basis, but are highly important workers in the school. They interview administrative assistants, librarians, security guards, arts teachers, and many other people who may be recognizable at the Parker school, but not truly recognized due to a lack of interaction on some level. After the interviews, students are assigned workers to write a somewhat short piece on. The information used to write these pieces is drawn from the interview, as well as shorter follow-up emails or questions. Some of the work on these pieces is done in school, but also a good deal of it is done at home, where, in correlation with one’s group members, the pieces are edited and improved. There are pieces other than the pieces on the workers that are written as well. A contingent of students wrote a piece on Studs Terkel, known for his oral histories. This project was inspired by the work of Studs Terkel, so it is certainly fitting that he is recognized as a part of the project. After all of these writings are turned in, Mr. Leo, who is an essential contributor in making the website and helping to coordinate essentially all aspects of the project, puts the writings on a Google Site. Students who are willing to step farther into the project conduct final interviews, take pictures of the interviewed workers, help edit the writings further, and design the website. Overall, the Parker Works projects is an immersive experience for the students as well as an opportunity for them to learn more about the many workers at the Parker school.

Check out some pictures of us in the process of making these pages below.