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.

Sustainable lifestyle for youth

Disciplines/Subjects: sociology, environmental studies, design thinkings Key Themes: teenager, sustainable lifestyle, citywalk The Incubator Track in MSA is a year-long, interdisciplinary program that empowers students to develop and launch social impact projects. Students will first define and understand a social problem, and then initiate an action to promote changes around that problem. Along with a variety of social science research and problem-solving methods, learners will also enhance their project management, leadership, and communication skills. People’s exploits of natural resources and destruction of the environment are causing drastic climate change. However climate change sounds like such a big problem, and individuals can hardly relate to it (Markman, 2018). Specific and personal changes need to be made by individuals to combat climate change. Discover the power of sustainable lifestyles with me. I’m dedicated to inspiring and supporting teenagers in embracing eco-friendly choices every day. Let’s team up to build a greener, more sustainable world for everyone.

Entering the world of elderly

Disciplines/Subjects: sociology, design thinkings Key Themes: elderly, teenager, empathy The Incubator Track in MSA is a year-long, interdisciplinary program that empowers students to develop and launch social impact projects. Students will first define and understand a social problem, and then initiate an action to promote changes around that problem. Along with a variety of social science research and problem-solving methods, learners will also enhance their project management, leadership, and communication skills. The rapidly developing technology is convenient for citizens’ lives, but trouble has been brought to the elderly at the same time. Due to their dissatisfaction with social and emotional needs, the elderly suffer from loneliness and a series of severe consequences brought by loneliness. Loneliness may cause a variety of dangers that can threaten the health of the elderly. We discovered that providing support for the elderly to express and communicate with others reduces their sense of loneliness. We decided to aim at reducing the loneliness of the elderly by building a connection between them.

The Western feminism assertion on veiling oppression and clarification from Islamic perspectives

Key Themes: Western feminism, Veiling oppression, Women's autonomy, Socialization impact This academic paper examines the conflicting perspectives on the Islamic veil, contrasting Western feminist interpretations with Islamic viewpoints. Western feminists frequently characterize veiling as a symbol of oppression, restricting women's autonomy and hindering their socialization, while also arguing that it reinforces patriarchal structures and is a product of Orientalist biases. Conversely, the paper presents Islamic perspectives that view veiling as a personal choice expressing religious identity and empowerment, promoting social engagement, and even enhancing women's honor and respect within their communities. The paper's central purpose is to deconstruct the Western feminist narrative by highlighting the diverse interpretations and agency surrounding the veil within Islamic culture, arguing against the simplistic notion of oppression.

The Possible Correlations Between an Individual’s Attributes and the Time Theory One Tends to Choose

Disciplines/Subjects: Philosophy; Psychology; Cognitive science Key Themes: The Interplay of Individual Attributes and Time Perception This research examines the relationship between individual attributes, such as personality traits, academic interests, multiple intelligences, and preferences for different time theories. The research employed a survey to assess participants' agreement with statements about time, correlating their responses with their scores on personality and intelligence tests. It also included a behavioral experiment where participants arranged cards representing different time concepts, followed by interviews to understand their reasoning. The study found a potential correlation between academic interests and preferred time theories. Participants with interests in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields tended to favor non-dynamic time theories, while those interested in SHAPE (Social Sciences, Humanities, Arts, Physical Education, and Education) fields leaned toward dynamic time theories. However, the research did not find a significant correlation between personality traits and time theory preferences.

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.