The name alone is intriguing, but the more one learns about it the more interesting it becomes. It’s the Senior Project, a course offered here at Oliver Ames that requires application the previous school year. As one might guess from the name, it’s a 12th grade level course, but it differs from many other courses that students here are familiar with.
The course is, “very individualized,” said Mr. Goldberg, adding that, “I always say that if there’s something that the kids are passionate about… there’s probably a project there.” Basically, students in the course spend a year creating a project that is about a topic that they are interested in.
“In some cases it might be something music based, it might be something career based, it could be something experience based,” said Goldberg, adding that the level of knowledge on the topic doesn’t matter as much as the level of interest. “They could have no experience whatsoever but there’s a level of interest and then they want to do something with it.”
This is only the third year that this course has been running at OA, but there are already many stories that have come out of it. Mr. Goldberg recalled that “last year there was a student that was very passionate about autism awareness… she did this whole fundraiser to raise awareness for autism, and did a walk at the school, and raised a lot of money for [Best Buddies].” In such cases, the project affects the greater school community, but Mr. Goldberg said that they also have “ones that are very experience based.”
“We’ve had individuals who know they want to do something with medicine, and they’ll go in and shadow a doctor” to see what a future career could look like. “We have stuff that’s artistic, so we had someone last year do a podcast on a topic that was very passionate to her,” said Goldberg, summing up by saying that “the key for all of them is a personal connection to each of their projects.” The result is that the course is filled with a group of students that are interested in a very diverse set of topics, but who are connected by the passion that they all possess.
Not just any student can take the Senior Project course, even if they are a senior. “There’s an application process, so in April around the same time I run my final presentations for the current group, I’m taking applications for the next one,” said Mr. Goldberg. Only about fifteen out of roughly thirty applicants get into the course.
The application has simple parts, such as filling out basic information, but “there’s also [a] formal, five-paragraph… letter of intent.” Through this, students are able to write about what they hope to be able to do in the Senior Project. They lay out what they imagine their project to be, and prove that the topic is something that they’re interested in. Mr. Goldberg noted that, “by the time you get to September, I have kids who completely change what they want to do, and that’s fine. We’re looking more for skills through that page than anything else.”
The fact is in that class, the students are the experts.
He said that, when going through the applications, “we take very seriously” who each person is and what they want to do, “but most importantly [how what they’re doing is] clearly something that’s personal to them, and they’re passionate about.” He also mentioned that they are looking for skills such as getting things in on time, and being able to come up with a plan or vision for a project.
Once students get accepted into the course, there is a lot about it that is different from other classes. For one thing, Mr. Goldberg doesn’t even see himself a the teacher of the class. “I always say I see myself more as a facilitator, someone who gives guidance,” he said. “I give guidelines and guidance and a road map for the year, but what [the students] do with the project, what goals they set for themselves – that’s all on them.” That type of independent learning is a key component of the course.
Grace Weintrob, a student doing the Senior Project this year, said that the independence “is kind of scary. Normal classes you are aware of the what is expected of you, but in this class everything is all up to you.” She continued by saying, “So I feel like there is more of a pressure to succeed. At the same time I think it is very inspiring and encouraging to physically see the progress I am making all on my own.”
Grace’s project this year is creating her own YouTube channel. She said, “I have wanted to do it for a long time but my lack of knowledge on how has held me back.”
Shanelle Fakhri, another student currently in the course, said, “I don’t know any other course that gives a student such freedom and trust to focus on their passions, and I am very grateful for the opportunity.”
Shanelle’s project “revolves around Art Therapy.” She said that she will be “shadowing and interviewing Art Therapists at Mass General and other local therapy practices.” In addition, she will be creating her own art with the help of a mentor and holding her own art show later in the year. The art show “will support The Boston Children’s Hospital Creative Arts Therapy Program.”
Olivia Piazza, another student in the course this year, is doing a project “based off of photography.” She said, “What I am doing is capturing my senior year through my eyes and how I see it, and trying to include as much of the Senior Class this year as possible.” In the end, she hopes to “have some type of online gallery together the student body can view.”
The typical class day itself differs from other classes. Mr. Goldberg said that he never talks for the whole period, and that they know much more about that topic than I ever will, and that’s kind of the point.”
Each class period is a time for students to work on their projects, but Mr. Goldberg said,“We do a lot of writing, we do a lot of reflecting, we do a lot of conversations.” Some other components of the course are forty total hours of fieldwork and the completion of a research paper on a topic that relates to their project.
Grace Weintrob said that, in a typical class, “We [the students] are normally given assignments, whether it be finding a mentor, self reflections, or other assignments and work on it throughout the period. We often bounce ideas off of each other and get whatever step of the project we are working on done.” Olivia Piazza said, “If you were to walk into our G Block class… it is likely you [would] see everyone on a chromebook working on something.”
Mr. Goldberg said that his favorite part of running the course is “these little moments that kids have through the year, where they see these little pieces of success [and] they clearly have overcome something.” He said that “every kid is going to have these moments that they fail at something… but then, ten times out of ten, there’ll be other moments where they completely overcome those things.”
He added that he likes how the course is “very real to life,” and that there is “this make it or break it aspect to it” because it extends outside the sheltered environment of the school. “I think the kids genuinely get something out of it,” he said. The course has a lot of potential for students who are passionate.
Shanelle Fakhri said, “The advice I would give to any student who is interested in the course, is that if you are seriously passionate about something and willing to sacrifice time and hard-work to learning more about that field, then definitely apply. The course requires a lot of dedication and time-management, however as stressful as it may be sometimes the rewards are absolutely worth it.”
Mr. Goldberg expressed a similar view. “I would appeal to people who are particularly juniors or even sophomores, if you care about something, there’s something that you can do in here.”