Summer projects are seen as a way to make sure that students are learning. These summer projects are usually teacher-designed. It is a valid opinion to believe that the projects should be teacher-designed. There are many reasons for the projects to be designed by teachers. The students could easily pick simplistic projects that do not give them any type of learning experience. Teachers know more about the topic and could give them different ways of learning. Lastly, students can easily forget to do something when they are responsible for the outline or design for an assignment that is usually given and made by a teacher.

Students over the summer usually want to save time for leisure activities. When the idea of school comes into the minds of these students, it can be seen as agitating. When you add the freedom to make your own project the way you want, there can be downsides for the student and the teacher. Since many students want to minimize stress during their break, they could easily make a project that makes the work appear as effortless. This effortless mindset usually produces work that is mediocre and possibly doesn't go into detail about what the project is about. This could anger teacher and make their assigned project appear to be pointless. The student's work would have no benefit to their grade or their opportunity to learn.

As a teacher, it should be necessary to keep your students focused on the topic that is at hand. Some teachers will even go out of their way to do this by giving a project over the summer. Many teachers give these projects to students with additional options designed by them. This is logical, due to the fact that a teacher knows a lot more about the topic of the project than the student. The job of the teacher is to find a way to make the information adhere to the student's mind. The teacher's perspective will give the student different ways to learn the material while keeping them interested and busy over the summer. In my experience, I found that I was more motivated to do a summer project and learn more about the material when I had different ways of learning it through the teacher's direction. When doing a summer reading project, I had read the book but found little interest in finding a way to incorporate my own creativity into the project. It was much easier to just read the directions given from the teacher and it also made me learn the theme and main topic of the book more adequately.

Responsibility is a necessary thing for students to have. But it is very common to find students overwhelmed with this new found freedom. Many people forget to do things when it is necessary for them to do it without guidelines or specific criteria they have to meet. Sometimes it's not that they forget, but that they are totally frustrated with the idea that they have no assistance on the project. This could be especially troubling over the summer as students are more focused on enjoying their break. The idea that they have to do something on their own without any prior information can be overlooked. When doing a project for a pre-IB class I found that it was easier to do when I had guild lines to measure up to and it wasn't just a time for me to implore on my creative talents in order to get something done.

Summer projects are something to make sure students keep learning over their break. It's clear to see that teacher-designed projects are much more efficient. Without the guidance of teachers, students could make simplistic projects that offer no benefit for the teacher or student. The teacher's knowledge about the project could make it helpful for their students to keep learning different ways about the material. It is also common for students to forget or lose interest when they are given too much responsibility for an assignment. Student-designed projects can leave room for a large quantity of errors and mistakes that could ultimately defeat the purpose of a project. Therefore, teacher- designed projects are better in the sense that they can keep the student learning as if they are still in school but give them time to enjoy the benefits that come with summer break.