By Alexia Boyarsky
In my Psychology class, we donât get too much homework, we rarely have tests and many of our classes are composed of fun interactive activities and games. Oh, and we also get to learn about how the human brain works. One would think more people would take a class like that, but only 40 students in the entire Upper School are enrolled.
Classes like Psychology and the Music Appreciation class that will be added next year allow students the opportunity to study something they are interested in without the burden of AP tests. And at a school where students incessantly complain about stress, why wouldnât more students be interested in a class that doesnât require a lot of work, but is interesting and fun?
I applaud the school for allowing students the
opportunity to take classes like Studies in Scientific Research, where they work as much they want to on projects that they are personally interested in. This type of classroom environment fosters independent thought more than most AP classes. When students are allowed to work on things they are interested in, they inevitably retain more information than when they are simply asked to regurgitate textbooks.
If there were more classes like SSR established across different academic disciplines, students who had the initiative to study a topic in depth would take advantage of the opportunity. I also urge students to consider taking more classes that allow them the freedom to learn what they want but that perhaps donât add a boost to their grade point averages as honors and AP classes do. Courses that allow students more freedom and less pressure will, in the long run, have a more profound impact on a studentâs knowledge.
Who wouldnât want to learn about different flirting
techniques used by girls and boys, a recent topic of discussion in my Psychology class? So, as first semester winds to a close, choose a class next semester that does not require a paper a week, but that you look forward to and can discuss with your friends over coffee.
