My Thesis in the Shark's Tank

"MY THESIS IN THE SHARK TANK"

This is the name of a minor thesis that ALL high school students at Lucerna will have to make and present on June 3rd, 2019. A minor thesis is an investigation project where you identify a problem in the world or society, analyze it, and offer a solution and a product.This project was established by Lucerna's English Academy in conjunction with other school authorities, and it is obligatory to participate as part of your evaluation for the English class. 

What is the idea?

The "Shark Tank" (known as "Negociando con tiburones" in Mexico) is a reality show where different entrepeneurs (business people) make presentations in front of a group of 5 investors ("sharks" or rich people) who decide if they will give them a big quantity of money to invest in their projects or not. 

Imagine that you are an entrepeneur and you are preparing to present your investigation in front of some "sharks". In fact, by the end of the semester, you and your classmates will have to present it in front of High School authorities and parents. You can watch full episodes of this program at Clarovideo or Sony Lationoamérica to have an idea of what it will be like. Here's an example:

What is the objective?

The purpose of this project is to help you develop your abilities in terms of writing, investigation and communication in English. To complete it, you will have to use different techniques for selecting information, presenting it, using arguments and demonstrating evidence that your investigation can help the world. 

What specifically do you have to do? 

First, form a team of 3 to 5 people. Every partial, you will be working with the same classmates to deliver advances for your project and at the end you will present together. The revision of the advances will be done in 3 stages:

• 1ST PARTIAL (20%): On Wednesday, February 6th, you will deliver a sheet on the computer with the next elements: 

1. The names of your team members
2. The topic or theme of your thesis (you can choose any area of knowledge, for example, environment, society, education, food, etc.).
3. The problem statement in one complete sheet (planteamiento del problema en una cuartilla), where you write about what problem you identify, explaining why you consider it a serious issue or a situation that needs to be solved. You can use the project at the end of each book, as a suggestion.
4. The organization of events (a description of your planning for the project)
5. A schedule of activities (cronograma) where you establish specific dates of advances for the planning of your work. 

All this is on the computer with the next format: Arial 12 Font, simple spacing, with titles in bolds, margins of 2.5 on each side, and everything in English. For numbers 4 and 5 you can also use the next model:

ORGANIZATION OF EVENTS

Semester: _______________________________________________________ 
Members: _______________________________________________________

Subject: ________________________________________________________

Name of the project: _____________________________________________

OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT
TRANSVERSALITY OF THE PROJECT (Relationship with other subjects with which it has interaction)
DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT Explain in what it will consist. What do you want to do with the project? What can you plan to do with the people to which it is destined to (students, parents, community, etc.)
PARTICIPATING TEACHERS (Teachers names and their subject)
ACADEMIC CHALLENGE (What difficulties could the academic world face in relation to this problem; what would be necessary to find or make)

SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES

ACTIVITIES PER QUADRANT	DATE	QUADRANT’S VALUE	PARTIAL TO BE APPLIED	OBSERVATIONS

• 2ND PARTIAL (30%): You will investigate and read a lot, and you will deliver in a folder the next elements of your minor thesis (remember to be original, check your spelling and DON'T COPY or alter existing works; plagiarized works will be cancelled): 

1. Preliminar Body

• Cover (obligatory)
• Dedication (optional)
• Acknowledgements (optional)
• Index of Contents (obligatory)
• Index of Illustrations and diagrams (optional)
• Summary (obligatory)

2. Development

• Introduction (obligatory)
• Body of work (obligatory)
  • Problem statement
  • Hypothesis
  • Theoretical framework
  • Methodology
  • Chapters and Subchapters
• Conclusions (obligatory)

3. References

• Bibliography (obligatory): Use a consistent format (e.g. APA, and  minimum of 10 sources)
• Clarifying notes (optional)
• Glossary (optional)
• Annexes and Appendixes (optional)

4. Advance of your Power Point Presentation

After you deliver your minor thesis in the Second Partial, English Academy authorities will check that your work was complete and will give you any observations necessary in case you need to make corrections.

• 3RD PARTIAL (30%): You will do the next things: 

1. Deliver the Final document of your minor thesis printed in sheets as a bound document (encuadernado) with all corrections made.
2. Deliver your Final Power Point Presentation: highlighting the explanation of each of the elements included in the minor thesis and the process by which it was made.
3. Final proposal (obligatory) and final prototype of your product (optional). The only condition for this is that it needs to be original, not copied.
4. On June 3rd, you will present in English your minor thesis in front of parents and high school authorities (obligatory). One parent per person (assistance is obligatory). Each team will have around 5 minutes (minimum) to 8 minutes (maximum) to explain the details using the Power Point. You will receive symbolic money from parents and others in case you convince them your project is a good option.

ELEMENTS TO CONSIDER:

1. The minor thesis has to be in bound sheets.
2. It is necessary to include all the elements described here.
3. It is on the computer, with Arial 12 Font, simple spacing, with titles in bolds.
4. It has to include a minimun of 15 bibliographical references
5. Everything is in English, with NO spelling mistakes, since a previous revision will be built in every partial
6. The Power Point presentation will contain the elements described in the Microsoft Certification. It is sent via e-mail to the teacher, for it to be downloaded on the iPad.
7. The product will be made with high-quality materials, it will have to be creative and have a good presentation
8. Clothing indications: Formal clothes (tailored clothes). Skirts or dresses are strictly prohibited for girls.
9. A minimun of one parent for each student will have to be present and this will be considered for the final grade.
10. At the end of the presentation of each project, a team of family parents will take the decision of whether buying the product or not.