As the school year comes to an end, students across all classes dread the upcoming late nights and confusion that accompany finals. With the majority of students taking seven classes, jam-packing an entire year of learning into seven, two hour tests, can take a mental toll on most. Nevertheless, final projects offer a different approach to accumulating and testing knowledge learned over the years. Most times accompanied by inconsistent group members and reading off the smartboard, do students prefer group projects over final exams?
While at first glance, group projects may seem like an easy way out of a hard test, the reality behind the grueling hours of work can make students like junior Carline Jones reconsider. Enrolled in AP Environmental Science, Jones was tasked with researching two competing products and tracking their biodegradability, and determining which one was greener.
“It didn’t seem hard, especially since we had like two weeks to do it,” Jones said. “But looking at the rubric and how much we had to do it added a lot of pressure on to it.”
The science class presented their findings in presentations during their final, and their subsequent grades were weighted the same as a final exam. Jones focused her research on the sustainability behind coconut milk and regular milk, determining that regular milk was the more environmentally friendly option.
“It was more fun being able to learn things, especially since we were able to pick our own topics,” Jones said.
Although AP Environmental Science is primarily a senior class, a handful of juniors still remain after the AP Test. Science teacher Shana Kelley teaches both periods, and feels that giving her students this alternative is a change of scenery for them.
“These kids have been taking tests all year, and they had two weeks of taking the APs,” Kelley said. “I could pile on another test but something like this is probably more enjoyable to do.”
Similarly, AP English Language and Composition, taught by Libby Reed and Christian Schaeffer, also use their final as an opportunity for reflection and video editing. The final in the class is a five minute video in which students are asked to analyze their total wrongness. Junior Amir Esmaeeli noticed how it strayed from the literature and written aspects of the course, this final project focuses more on each individual student.
“I don’t think there was another class where I was able to reflect on how I’ve grown over the years,” Esameeli said. “I learned more about me, and I’ll probably remember that more than stuff we learn in class and forget right away.”
Junior Alex Moresi feels the same way, as he was able to express one of his passions, running, in a way no class had been able to before. Moresi’s video covered how running allows him to put his stress and worries into a sport that in turn returns memories and accomplishments. The impact that running has had on his well being hadn’t been realized to it’s full extent prior to his English class’ final project.
“It made me think really hard about something I kind of took for granted,” Moresi said. “I think AP Lang was the last class I thought I’d come to realize like this.”
Seeing other peers’ videos also aided in the class getting to know each other better and showing how much they’ve grown together. Each student’s video offered a unique perspective and insight into their personal and academic journey, revealing aspects of their lives and personalities that might not have been evident during regular class.
“Seeing everyone else’s videos made me realize how close we all got this year,” Moresi said. “I would see things about people that I didn’t even know.”
Another class that offered a similar option was Honors French 4/ AP French. The class is a combination of seniors and juniors; however, once the seniors left, french teacher Mrs. Turnage felt that offering an optional project would allow students to raise their grades without the stress of conventional finals.
“I think that tests, especially speaking tests, can cause so much flustering and nervousness and it can prevent students from performing their best,” Turnage said. “Letting them learn on their own time and research can help lessen that stress, especially since they’re taking so many tests right now.”
Moresi, also enrolled in Honors French 4, didn’t participate in the optional assignment but appreciates the option for those who need it. He used the various classes without the seniors in order to study for other important exams.
“I’m glad it wasn’t forced, because I know like I needed as much time to study for math,” Moresi said. “But the fact the option was there is really nice because we had really hard tests, like the AAPL test, during the year.”
