Freedom

Summer projects are made for the students to assure that they continue to learn during their break from school, but the real question is, should the projects be designed by students? Or should they be designed by teachers? In my opinion I believe that if the project was student designed, there would be a lot more creativity and will to want to finish the project. If the teacher decides that they will give the students a prompt, it could result in students losing interest in the project and not ending up finishing it. From my past I have realized that I have worked harder as ever when it was something I was passionate about. A student-designed project could ignite that passion for some students.

Summer break is a beautiful thing, warm weather, clear skies, pools opened up, and three months without school! The idea of a teacher-designed summer project could upset a lot of students, but if it was a student-designed project the task would be much easier to complete. Keeping the brains active for the students so they're ready for when school starts up back again is a major deal, the idea of a summer project not only keeps the students thinking, but allows them to work on something that could be meaningful to them. Allowing them to design their own projects means they make something that they personally care about, something that they will ultimately put their all into to get that good grade.

The idea of a project with no boundaries or limitations is a students dream. During the school year it's all about what the teachers want, as a high-school student I don't feel the freedom of creating my own work. I feel as if i'm working to please my teachers so I can get good grades. When i'm doing my work in school it feels like i'm a prisoner sentenced to do write about something I don't care about, I look forward to summertime knowing i'll have my freedom and knowing I won't have to worry about pleasing my teachers. The idea of a student-designed summer project is ideal because there's a whole bunch of things to write about, i'm allowed to work on something that makes me happy or something that i'm actually interested in.

Why would a student-designed project benefit the students? It allows us to learn more about other things, not just what the teacher assigned. We could continue to learn, but we could also teach in a way. By letting students design their own projects we could spread and give knowledge to people that had no idea of the topic because that's not what the teacher assigned. It also helps the teachers learn more about us, what interests us, and why it interests us. Student and teacher relationships are very important, it's much easier to learn from somebody if you trust them and have a special bond with them. Not only do we keep our brains active and learning, it helps the teachers learn more about the students and how they really feel about certain things.

I understand that a student-designed project could benefit in some people not learning, when a teacher designs it they know what's best and they know what will help the student continue to learn. Teacher-designed projects honestly can't be that bad but here is my argument for that. We spend nine months in school learning on a strict plan, waiting for summer to approach, waiting for the freedom of living with no teachers breathing down our backs. I say this because most of my friends feel the same way I do. I have been told many times that my friends are working so hard on their work and want to get that good grade, but they will turn it in and end up getting a bad grade because the teacher felt it wasn't enough for the prompt that they gave them.

We have those important three months of freedom to do as we choose, teachers should understand that and give us the oppurtunities of working passionately with no boundaries.

As I conclude this essay I stand by original statement, I believe that if the project was student-designed, there would be a lot more creativity and will to want to finish the project. If the teacher decides that they will give the students a prompt, it could result in students losing interest in the project and not ending up finishing it. The students are the future of the world and it's important for them to know that they can have moments to learn about things they want, and work on things they want to work on. Summer projects would benefit the students more if it was something they chose to work on.