It's a week before your junior year starts. You're laying in bed, soaking up your last few days of freedom. Then it hits you- you have a book report due the first day of school. Panic sets in, chaos erupts. Oh, the joy of summer projects. Most students have been through the process of completing a summer project. In most circumstances, these projects are a strict set of directions created by the teacher. Summer projects are expected, especially when taking difficult classes. Students, due to different commitments, should be able to design their own summer projects.

Teenagers today are exposed to a lot more than when our parents were our age. Some of those things aren't beneficial, such as too much screen time or drinking underage. But, a lot of this exposure is good. We're exposed to different cultures at an early age, we have easier access to education, and we know when disaster strikes, it's our responsibility to help. Because of all this new exposure, students often make commitments over the summer. Students accepted into college summer programs go to learn more about something their interested in. Some make the world a better place by doing service with a church group or other organizations. College is expensive, so a large quantity of teenagers get a summer job to save up money. There's always going to be the group of teenagers who sit at home all summer watching TV and eating junk food. With this wide variety of responsibilities and commitments, having every student complete the same exact summer project is unreasonable.

At most schools, you don't meet your teacher until a week prior to school starting. Knowing nothing about the class is a scary thought if you're spending hours a day working on a summer project, assigned by a teacher you've never met. If students know nothing about a teacher and the class they lead, how are they supposed to know if they're going to stay in the class? It's ridiculous to ask for a teenager to commit to an intensive project when they might only be in the class for a day. Most schools that allow schedule changes will forget about that grade if you drop the class early on into the school year. It may be nice that you don't have to be in that class anymore, but hours upon hours of your life were wasted on a project you'll never get a grade for. If students were able to design their own summer project, it would not only give them creative freedom but allow them to feel proud of what they turn in, regardless if they stay in the class. No student enjoys writing an essay every time they do a project, so if the projects were created by students the final results could be even more outstanding than what any teacher could've designed.

If students are designing their own summer projects, it not only shows their personality and character- it raises their expectations for the class in the best way possible. Most teachers want their students to be excited for their class. Even if the class course is torturous, a teacher who loves their job can make all the difference in the world. If a teacher gives their students the freedom of creating their own summer project, the students will have a good image of the teacher. Students that enjoy a class tend to be the ones who do the best. Most teenagers don't enjoy being tied down by rules, so getting them excited for a class that has rules is the ideal situation.

Summer projects aren't a bad thing. They not only keep a student's brain activated during the summer, but they give them a taste of a class before they commit fully. Because of all the opportunities we have as teenagers in today's age, our schedules can get pretty busy. Although, I do still think an education is important. Summer projects allow students to ease themselves back into the routine of the school year before it hits them like a train. If those projects are student designed, it allows us to learn about time and self management. They also allow us to express our creativity. I'm not saying someone who draws a stick figure should get the same credit as someone who writes a five page essay. In my ideal situation, the teacher can give their students a vague set of directions so the students are free to express themselves.