TWO BRIDGES ACADEMY'S EDP PROJECT Two Bridges students have worked diligently during this semester to try and make their voices heard and deal with many issues surrounding violence prevention. The students first worked on their Public Service Announcements. The students came up with many topics, such as teen pregnancy, gang violence, STD's, drug and alcohol abuse, etc. They then broke up into about 5 groups and chose their topic to create a PSA around. They wrote the scripts, practiced them, used sound effects, and recorded the PSA's on March 19, 2003.The students were extremely enthusiastic about Teen Talk and there were almost 20 students per meeting. Not all of them were able to record their PSA's due to volume, but they all did get to experience the recording process. They thoroughly enjoyed going to the recording studio and watching the whole process, especially the editing part. Some of them even expressed interest in doing that as a career. Now that's inspiration!

The students also got to know each other better through playing group games and bonding exercises with the students who are participating in the Creative Arts Team. A great time was had by all.

After we recorded the PSA's, the students began working on their final hour-long talk show. As a group, we decided on the topic of "Students' Rights and Freedom of Speech in the Schools." This was a very emotional and "hot" topic and really got the students riled up. We began discussing the idea of students' rights vs. teachers' rights and should students be allowed to talk to teachers the way some teachers talk to students. Is freedom of schools absolute, or should it be? Students came up with many examples of when they felt their rights were being violated by school staff. We had many enlightening discussions on this topic. The students were then broken up into 4 groups of 3-4 students. Each group was in charge of a different segment of the hour-long show and chose a specific aspect of the general topic at hand. Each group came up with 10 interview questions to ask either the other students or the guests. Guests were staff at Two Bridges (originally supposed to be 4-the Assistant Principal, and 3 teachers, but unfortunately the AP's father passed away and 1 teacher was absent on the day of recording). We recorded the show on May 6, 2003, with myself and another teacher as the guests. The students were ready with their questions and did a fantastic job at asking them and following up with more thought-provoking questions and responses. They reflected that they really enjoyed it. "It made me feel kind of powerful and in control of my life as a student," was one student's response. While we were recording the talk show, the students heard their pre-recorded PSA's being added to the show during the segment breaks, and you could easily see the pride and feeling of empowerment on the students' faces. "I thought it was a lot of fun. When can we go back?" Students are very anxious to hear their show come together after editing. The show will be aired in June (date to be determined).

Aside from the script writing, students have been keeping a journal of their progress and feelings towards being a Teen Talk participant. It has really been an amazing ride for all those involved! The students' enthusiasm and excitement was contagious and the whole school is proud of them!