Persuasive Essay
That past few weeks, students have been working on a project that Mr. Provenzano had arranged. This involved each individual to really show their interests by choosing jobs. With each of these jobs the students got the opportunity to work together with people in their group, whether they were actors/actresses, cameramen, or advertising. Organization was also large factor to keep everyone in line and reach a deadline. Mr. Provenzano was asked in class just how much he helped, students replied with %’s from 5-10, and 15 at a max. This shows how everyone took responsibility and problem-solved instead of relying on the teacher to solve everything. Unfortunately, a parent is not enlightened by this experience. The parent believes that students are not getting the correct knowledge by doing this project and should rely on test to know the actual important material. The parent’s argument about tests being more education is strong, however, the students creating a movie involves them more than tests.
Together, two schools would create a performance like no other. With the help of Van Meter, students would gather at lunch and Skype with Iowa and exchange ideas to help strengthen the film. These gatherings taught students more than just some material that a test would bring forth. No, this helped teach the value of opinion and what is better than seeing different points of view from kids in another state, living a totally different life. Tests are taken in life only to a certain extent, from there, experience is needed and the project did just that. Both classes learned how to problem solve and come to a solution when two ideas happened to clash. Experience in a group is a fantastic reason why this project has more to offer than tests, yet the freedom of choice is also great.
Everyone has a voice and the Epic of Romeo and Juliet helped bring out this voice. Obviously, no one person is the same as the next and no one person has the same likes as the next person. This project offered the students a wide variety of jobs to choose from. From Cameraman to Actor/Actress or Video Advertiser to Costume Designer, everyone had a position where the belonged. One of the most important jobs was the manager which had majority of the responsibility. The 6th hour class had this job shared between two girls who did an exceptionally well class. The managers had to organizing a time for filming or just getting some props set. On a test, the only voice and organization students get in on essays. Voice and organization are both strong reasons, but tech tools are just as important.
With the modern day advancements, tests are beginning to seem out-of-style. Now, colleges and job employers are looking for easier ways to meet with students rather than the traditional face-to-face assessment. Instead of applying for a job in Germany and going across seas, people can stay right at home and Skype from halfway around the world. The Romeo and Juliet project taught students how to use these up-to-date programs like Skype, Glogster, Wikiblogs and more. Together, both classes from Iowa and Grosse Pointe would arrange an hour to talk and Skype, half-way across the country. This is a small scale of what the real world jobs are doing today. If ninth graders are starting to use these technologic improvements to their advantage, imagine what can be done years from now. This project helps students use new programs that will be used later in life, but the human interest aspect is as important.
Without human interest, people would not be motivated. During a test, students are usual bored or nervous and are more apt to make mistakes. With this project, students are in their own casual, but effective, “zones”. This means, they work more efficiently and better than if they were taking a test. They have motivation and have fun while filming and discussing with friends. Students will also be more likely to remember material better if they learned it while having fun and not by boring reading. With this, students would have the knowledge much longer than by the traditional test-taking.
Many people may believe that test are straight and to the point when it comes to educating students, but test fall short when it comes with other, more creative ways to learn. The Romeo and Juliet Project went much farther in the long-run when it came to grabbing students’ interests and teaching beyond the classroom. Tests can only go so far when it comes to gaining information on a topic. This project let students really show their interest by choosing their own jobs, the only voice students get in a test is on the essay portion. When it comes to out-of-the-classroom-learning, the Epic of Romeo and Juliet helped students learn problem solving skills and interacted with people they have only met once before, a test completely lacks this portion. Test are good for education students, however, they fall short to creative projects such as the Epic of Romeo and Juliet.
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