Project-MOONSHOT ACADEMY

Distant Voice

Disciplines/Subjects: History, Political Sciences, Economics Key Themes: Afghanistan, Women, Rights, Empathy At the Same Time, in Different Spaces, How Do Different Lives Unfold? While our children sit in classrooms diligently studying high school courses and completing assignments, what educational and material challenges are Afghan girls of the same age facing just next door, in Afghanistan? As our children dream, plan, and choose their paths for the future, what hopes and disappointments are these Afghan girls experiencing? Without the right to control their destinies, what aspirations do they hold for the future, and what resistance can they muster? Amidst so many inequalities, these girls yearn to be seen and heard. Understanding and seeing their struggles not only illuminates their darkened world but also broadens our hearts and minds. In this project, you will research information about Afghanistan to understand the current living conditions and stories of Afghan women. Your task is to create a storybook about Afghanistan and organize an exhibition on Afghan women. Through these two efforts, you aim to achieve the following goals: Highlight the political, economic, and cultural background of Afghanistan. Present the challenges and struggles faced by Afghan women through their personal stories, offering profound insights through seemingly small narratives, and amplifying their voices. Inspire readers and attendees to take concrete actions and participate in initiatives to support Afghan women. Sell the storybook and donate all proceeds to an online English school for Afghan women.

AI Unraveled: Delving Into the Debates on Artificial Intelligence

Disciplines/Subjects: Pre-Advanced English - Nonfiction Key Themes: Human Relationship with Technology, Machine Intelligence, Computational Creativity, AI Ethics, Narrative (Media Representation) of AI This project invites students to become thought leaders by exploring the complexities of AI and its connections to intelligence, creativity, and ethics. Tackling controversial topics, they aim to spark curiosity, challenge misconceptions, and inspire critical thinking about AI's impact on the future. Students begin by selecting a contested issue in artificial intelligence to investigate. They gather perspectives through surveys, informal conversations, and real-world examples, using their findings to shape a thesis and driving question. To support their position, students are required to use case examples to illustrate and support their argument. The project culminates in an 800–1200-word essay, complemented by a creative cover page, showcasing their insights and discoveries. Students are also expected to share their views in an engaging presentation that raises awareness about the AI issue and encourages personal reflection on their learning journey. To extend their advocacy, they design a compelling postcard to communicate their message and spark dialogue beyond the classroom. Through this work, students develop expertise, promote informed perspectives, and inspire meaningful conversations about one of the most critical topics of our time.

Romeo & Juliet: Textual Analysis Report

Disciplines/Subjects: Pre-Intermediate-level English Key Themes: Can Shakespeare's view of love and worldview still define intimacy in contemporary society? This final PA of this semester allows students to demonstrate their understanding of literary analysis through Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Building on prior work with word choice, character development, and analyzing sonnets, students will explore three key areas: Word Choice – Investigating why knowing the play's ending is crucial before viewing it. Development – Examining whether love truly causes personal growth in the characters. Theme/Central Idea – Defining the concept of "love" as presented in the play. Throughout this unit, students will apply their analytical skills to explore how Shakespeare uses language and character evolution to convey complex themes of love and fate. This project deepens their critical thinking while synthesizing previous learnings into a cohesive portfolio.

Kapuscinski's Iran: A Poland in Disguise?

Disciplines/Subjects: AP English Language and Composition Key Themes: In his reporting on the Iranian revolution, Ryszard Kapuscinki created a narrative that seemed to speak beyond that singular moment. Under the surface, readers found allegories, parallels, and universal truths about the nature of revolutions, political power, continuity, and change. Framing these (and controversially potentially compromising the reportage on them) is the artistic power of Kapuscinski's poetic imagination which in turn opens questions about the conventions and responsibilities of the artist and reporter in their relationship to language itself. We read this text in the second semester as a way to deepen our reading and writing skills for the course. It allowed for the presentation of a range of texts (historical writing, speeches, conventional journalism, opinion writing, and literary work) and allowed for a deep examination of the conventions of them - something we began in the previous unit with the conventions of scientific texts. At the same time, this unit allowed students to learn about two important parts of the world that they might not be too familiar with. The summative assessment for the unit provides the learners with the opportunity to refine and extend their skills on an AP-style assessment: either the synthesis or analytical essay.

Presenting the "Hero"

Disciplines/Subjects: Advanced World Literature Key Themes: In this study of Mikhail Yurievich Lermontov's A Hero of Our Time, we explore how Lermontov's romanticism shapes themes such as "the edges of empire", "agency & fate", and "loyalty & betrayal". The unit begins with an introduction to imperial Russian history and culture and how these were shaped both by internal and external influences, such as geopolitical, intellectual, and artistic currents. With this base, over a month we explore how Lermontov explored such issues in his classic novel A Hero of Our Time (1841). The summative assessment for the unit is for learners to plan and perform a presentation that both knowledgeably and creatively explores an artistic or thematic concern that arises from the text.

Adolescent Intervention

Disciplines/Subjects: Pyschology Key Themes: Adolescent, Well-being, peer support Welcome to the revitalization of our school's counseling center, a project spearheaded by a team of learners aimed at transforming an underutilized space into a vibrant hub for student well-being. The project goal is to create an inviting environment that encourages more frequent use by understanding and addressing the needs of our high school peers. Through a comprehensive process that includes needs assessment, design, implementation, promotion, and evaluation, the team will introduce interactive projects, educational posters, relevant books, and stress-relief equipment to make the counseling center a place where learners feel comfortable seeking support and spending time. This initiative not only promises to enhance the physical space but also to foster a sense of community and belonging among our learners, ultimately contributing to their overall mental health and academic success. Learner Task: A product design implemented and feedback gathered from the direct audience. You can choose the format of the final product. However, written or recorded rationale needs to be provided to showcase your thinking process.

Decolonizing Psychometrics: Artifacts on Intelligence and Eugenics

Disciplines/Subjects: History of Psychology Key Themes：Psychometrics; Intelligence; Eugenics; History of Science; Primary Source Analysis The British Museum is planning an exhibition that showcases archival research on the topic of WWII eugenic movements and the role that psychologists and neurologists played in perpetuating systemic violence and discrimination. You are a novice historian of psychology who conducts archival research on relevant topics. You are tasked to identify, arrange, and interpret primary sources to put up a display that chronicles the above topic. Your work needs to engage a large, public, and global audience informing them about the history of how science is used to perpetrate racism. You will also connect the role of psychologists in intelligence research by showing how early psychologists have been complicit in creating and advancing eugenic claims and practices. Your goal is to construct a research-based, engaging narrative that brings your audience close to the archival evidence on your chosen topic/focus area.

Construction of decision-making mechanism based on Houses

Disciplines/Subjects: Political science Key Themes: Chinese politics, democratic centralism, and parliamentary system The report of the 20th CPC National Congress has determined the development of full-process people's democracy as an important content of China's modernization, making comprehensive deployment and putting forward clear requirements for "developing full-process people's democracy and ensuring people's mastery of the country". In the first unit, we discussed what democracy is, explored the diverse views of democracy in the world today, and examined the specific embodiment of democratic centralism. As citizens of the People's Republic of China, we have diverse rights and duties, as well as equal political power, regardless of our roles in society. Reasonably, using the power we have to participate in social affairs is a duty that every citizen should fulfill. The house is one of the basic units in the lunar exploration community where learners can participate in the management of school affairs through a reasonable decision-making mechanism. Learners are divided into four academies without regard to grade or gender, and each academy has its unique personality. When learners participate in the decision-making process of community affairs through the basic unit of the academy, a clear and reasonable decision-making mechanism can make the decision more efficient and transparent. In the world today, different countries will choose different decision-making mechanisms based on their national conditions, political systems, and systems of government. For example, China's People's congress system and the two-party system in the United States can provide suitable decision-making processes for their respective countries. We will take these two decision-making mechanisms as references and try to design a decision-making mechanism for the lunar exploration community based on the academy as the basic unit. Learner Task: Write a report of at least 800 words; at the same time, learners need to form groups and complete the interview task.

Project

Real-world projects creating positive impacts for self, others, communities, and the planet.