MGAS and WISCONSIN  ACADEMIC STANDARDS

In addition to the academic requirements all charter schools must fulfill, under statute 118.01 for the state of Wisconsin, MGAS has also adopted the following Wisconsin Model Academic Standards:

ENGLISH / LANGUAGE ARTS

A.12.1 Use effective reading strategies to achieve their purposes in reading.

A.12.2 Read, interpret, and critically analyze literature.

A.12.3 Read and discuss literary and nonliterary texts in order to understand human experience.

A.12.4 Students will read to acquire information.

B.12.1 Create or produce writing to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

B.12.2 Plan, revise, edit, and publish clear and effective writing.

B.12.3 Understand the function of various forms, structures, and punctuation marks of standard American English and use them appropriately in oral and written communications.

C.12.1 Prepare and deliver formal oral presentations appropriate to specific purposes and audiences.

C.12.2 Listen to, discuss, and comprehend oral communications.

C.12.3 Participate effectively in discussion.

D.12.1 Develop their vocabulary and ability to use words, phrases, idioms, and various grammatical structures as a means of improving communication.

E.12.1 Use computers to acquire, organize, analyze, and communicate information.

E.12.2 Make informed judgments about media and products.

E.12.3 Create media products appropriate to audience and purpose.

F.12.1 Conduct research and inquiry on self-selected or assigned topics, issues, or problems and use an appropriate form to communicate their findings.

MATHEMATICS

A.12.1 Use reason and logic to

• evaluate information
• perceive patterns
• identify relationships
• formulate questions, pose problems, and make and test conjectures
• pursue ideas that lead to further understanding and deeper insight

A.12.3 Analyze non-routine* problems and arrive at solutions by various means, including models* and simulations, often starting with provisional conjectures and progressing, directly or indirectly, to a solution, justification, or counter-example

A.12.4 Develop effective oral and written presentations employing correct mathematical terminology, notation, symbols, and conventions for mathematical arguments and display of data

A.12.5 Organize work and present mathematical procedures and results clearly, systematically, succinctly, and correctly

B.12.2 Compare real numbers using

• order relations (>,<) and transitivity*
• ordinal scales including logarithmic (e.g., Richter, pH rating)
• arithmetic differences
• ratios, proportions, percents, rates of change

B.12.3 Perform and explain operations on real numbers (add, subtract, multiply, divide, raise to a power, extract a root, take opposites and reciprocals, determine absolute value).

B.12.5 Create and critically evaluate numerical arguments presented in a variety of classroom and real-world situations (e.g., political, economic, scientific, social).

D.12.2 Select and use tools with appropriate degree of precision to determine measurements directly within specified degrees of accuracy and error (tolerance).

E.12.1 Work with data in the context of real-world situations by

• formulating hypotheses that lead to collection and analysis of one- and two-variable data
• designing a data collection plan that considers random sampling, control groups, the role of assumptions, etc.
• conducting an investigation based on that plan
• using technology to generate displays, summary statistics*, and presentations

E.12.4 Analyze, evaluate, and critique the methods and conclusions of statistical experiments reported in journals, magazines, news media, advertising, etc.

F.12.2 Use mathematical functions* (e.g., linear*, exponential*, quadratic*, power) in a variety of ways, including

• recognizing that a variety of mathematical and real-world phenomena can be modeled* by the same type of function
• translating different forms of representing them (e.g., tables, graphs, functional notation*, formulas)
• describing the relationships among variable quantities in a problem
• using appropriate technology to interpret properties of their graphical representations (e.g., intercepts, slopes, rates of change, changes in rates of change, maximum*, minimum*)

F.12.4 Model and solve a variety of mathematical and real-world problems by using algebraic expressions, equations, and inequalities.

SCIENCE

A.12.1 Apply* the underlying themes* of science to develop defensible visions of the future

A.12.2 Show* how conflicting assumptions about science themes* lead to different opinions and decisions about evolution*, health, population, longevity, education, and use of resources, and show* how these opinions and decisions have diverse effects on an individual, a community, and a country, both now and in the future

A.12.5 Show* how the ideas and themes* of science can be used to make real-life decisions about careers, work places, life-styles, and use of resources

A.12.6 Identify* and, using evidence* learned or discovered, replace inaccurate personal models* and explanations* of science-related events.

B.12.1 Show* how cultures and individuals have contributed to the development of major ideas in the earth and space, life and environmental, and physical sciences

B.12.3 Relate* the major themes* of science to human progress in understanding science and the world.

C.12.1 When studying science content, ask questions suggested by current social issues, scientific literature, and observations* of phenomena, build hypotheses that might answer some of these questions, design possible investigations*, and describe results that might emerge from such investigations

C.12.2 Identify* issues from an area of science study, write questions that could be investigated*, review previous research on these questions, and design and conduct responsible and safe investigations to help answer the questions

C.12.3 Evaluate* the data collected during an investigation*, critique the data-collection procedures and results, and suggest ways to make any needed improvements

C.12.4 During investigations, choose the best data-collection procedures and materials available, use them competently, and calculate the degree of precision of the resulting data

C.12.5 Use the explanations and models found in the earth and space, life and environmental, and physical sciences to develop likely explanations for the results of their investigations.

C.12.6 Present the results of investigations to groups concerned with the issues, explaining* the meaning and implications of the results, and answering questions in terms the audience can understand

C.12.7 Evaluate articles and reports in the popular press, in scientific journals, on television, and on the Internet, using criteria related to accuracy, degree of error, sampling, treatment of data, and other standards of experimental design

D.12.12 Using the science themes and knowledge of chemical, physical, atomic, and nuclear interactions, explain changes in materials, living things, earth's features, and stars.

E.12.4 Analyze the benefits, costs, and limitations of past, present, and projected use of resources and technology and explain* the consequences to the environment

G.12.3 Analyze the costs, benefits, or problems resulting from a scientific or technological innovation, including implications for the individual and the community

G.12.4 Show how a major scientific or technological change has had an impact on work, leisure, or the home

H.12.6 Evaluate* data and sources of information when using scientific information to make decisions

H.12.7 When making decisions, construct a plan that includes the use of current scientific knowledge and scientific reasoning

SOCIAL STUDIES

A.12.8 Identify the world's major ecosystems and analyze how different economic, social, political, religious, and cultural systems have adapted to them

A.12.10 Analyze the effect of cultural ethics and values in various parts of the world on scientific and technological development

A.12.13 Give examples and analyze conflict and cooperation in the establishment of cultural regions and political boundaries

B.12.1 Explain different points of view on the same historical event, using data gathered from various sources, such as letters, journals, diaries, newspapers, government documents, and speeches

B.12.2 Analyze primary and secondary sources related to a historical question to evaluate their relevance, make comparisons, integrate new information with prior knowledge, and come to a reasoned conclusion

B.12.3 Recall, select, and analyze significant historical periods and the relationships among them

B.12.4 Assess the validity of different interpretations of significant historical events

B.12.7 Identify major works of art and literature produced in the United States and elsewhere in the world and explain how they reflect the era in which they were created

B.12.13 Analyze examples of ongoing change within and across cultures, such as the development of ancient civilizations; the rise of nation-states; and social, economic, and political revolutions

C.12.1 Identify the sources, evaluate the justification, and analyze the implications of certain rights and responsibilities of citizens

C.12.2 Describe how different political systems define and protect individual human rights

C.12.3 Trace how legal interpretations of liberty, equality, justice, and power, as identified in the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and other Constitutional Amendments, have changed and evolved over time

C.12.4 Explain the multiple purposes of democratic government, analyze historical and contemporary examples of the tensions between those purposes, and illustrate how governmental powers can be acquired, used, abused, or legitimized

C.12.5 Analyze different theories of how governmental powers might be used to help promote or hinder liberty, equality, and justice, and develop a reasoned conclusion

C.12.6 Identify and analyze significant political benefits, problems, and solutions to problems related to federalism and the separation of powers

C.12.8 Locate, organize, analyze, and use information from various sources to understand an issue of public concern, take a position, and communicate the position

C.12.10 Identify ways people may participate effectively in community affairs and the political process

C.12.12 Explain the United States' relationship to other nations and its role in international organizations, such as the United Nations, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and North American Free Trade Agreement

D.12.2 Use basic economic concepts (such as supply and demand; production, distribution, and consumption; labor, wages, and capital; inflation and deflation; market economy and command economy) to compare and contrast local, regional, and national economies across time and at the present time

E.12.4 Analyze the role of economic, political, educational, familial, and religious institutions as agents of both continuity and change, citing current and past examples

E.12.6 Analyze the means by which and extent to which groups and institutions can influence people, events, and cultures in both historical and contemporary settings

E.12.9 Defend a point of view related to an ethical issue such as genetic engineering, declaring conscientious objector status, or restricting immigration

E.12.15 Identify the skills needed to work effectively alone, in groups, and in institutions

E.12.16 Identify and analyze factors that influence a person's mental health

If you would like more information on charter school you can go to:

http://www.legis.state.wi.us/statutes/stat.0118.pdf