Assignment/Activity Title C-SPAN Documentary Year Sophomore

Skill Research Portfolio Category Social Awareness

For the C-SPAN Documentary, we were instructed to choose a topic that we feel the presidential
candidates should discuss during the presidential campaign. My partners and I chose to make our
documentary about juvenile incarceration and the juvenile justice system.
To complete this project, my partners and I had to do a lot of research about the juvenile justice
system because even though it interested us, we didnt know very much about it. We created a voter guide
about the system, and with much research, our understanding of the prevalent issue became much more
extensive. After we had learned a lot about the subject, we created a script that would inform the view
about the serious problems with juvenile incarceration and provide alternatives that would be more
beneficial for youth.
This project goes into the Social Awareness portfolio category because I now have a much better
understanding of the current juvenile justice system. With the documentary, I am able to share it with
people in order to encourage positive change and spread awareness.
Making the C-SPAN Documentary taught me a lot about how fortunate I am, and the importance
of trying to help others who arent in as good positions. Through this project, I was able to meet people
who had been sent to jail as youth which opened my eyes to the severity of the problem. I also had the
opportunity to meet at risk youth at correctional facilities which taught me the importance of alternatives
to incarceration.
If I could go back and change one thing about the process, I would have taken notes during the
interviews that my partners and I held. The interviews were very detailed and long, so taking notes would
have helped to shorten our editing time.
I feel most proud of the finished product because making the documentary took a very long time
and a lot of effort. My partners and I came in after school multiple times in order to perfect every last
detail, and being able to see the finished product was very satisfying. It was also very rewarding to watch
the documentary with my classmates and see their reactions.

Student Signature Date

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