A student’s reflection on Science 12.
Science 12 was much less a class and more of an experience. Science only being one of the focuses of the class. Science was only the focus for a portion of the class, exploring lenses, mirrors, light and color. We also spent time looking into the science behind cancer research and the look for a cure. I much more enjoyed the science portion of this class compared to the other science classes I have taken.
The fact that our mark was generated by us allowed for a more open mind to think about the science behind what was happening and what we were doing, instead of simply trying to memorize as much as I can as fast as I can. We had choices over what science we explored as well so we looked into thing that interested us as a class.
The other very interesting thing we had the chance to do this semester was to look into the design process and problem solving, then apply them to the problems around the world. As a class we tried to solve world hunger in a week. This was a very interesting experience for us. Trying to solve such massive problem, within such a time constraint is impossible, but we as a group had an attempt. It showed us as a group how to think in the bigger picture, and to explore the dynamics of the group, embracing the abilities and weaknesses of every member.
We had complete control over how we could do this, and in the beginning things were slow because we were unsure of what was expected of us and how to move forward in such a class setting. Overall this experience felt like a reflection of the real world and how the “real” world may work outside of the classroom.
We were given an immense amount of power over the semester. We had around 90 percent control over the class; the topics we explored, the marks, whether our teacher was in the room or not, due dates, even our exam. The amount of control we were given changed the way I viewed this class dramatically. We had the opportunity to shape this class into what we wanted it to be and what we wanted to gain from it.
Other than science there are many other topics we had the chance to explore. Personally in our group projects, I had the chance to explore economics/real estate and architecture (finally), among others. For our group project we surveyed members of the town to decide whether our facility would be of interest of the town, and what would be the most desirable things to include in the structure. We then spent the next few months, designing the building itself, finding the perfect place to put our building, doing a cost analysis of the land, and the building. This was a very interesting project for me, finally having the ability try being an architect (my hopeful future career). This was a very useful experience in terms of figuring out what it is I would like to do with my life. We also looked into the design process and group dynamics, which is something that I think every person in our class benefited from.
Personally I think the ways I grew the most was in terms of my personal ability in a group, and my experience working in a field of my choosing. My group for the projects started off fairly well rounded with people I believed I could work well with, but slowly people began to find other things, so I was left with three people I barely knew, so I had little faith in my ability to work well with these people. We very quickly overcame most issues with the exception of some slacking.
The other place where I believe I grew quite significantly was my proficiency using Google Sketch up. Before this class I had very little experience with it, which was unfortunate given my hopeful future career, but through this class I had the opportunity to use the software to create something I designed, and I loved it.
Overall this class was ten times more beneficial than I believed it would be. And I think everyone in the class benefited from this experience. I personally have seen the growth in myself and my fellow class mates and I think that this class has helped many to explore future careers and opportunities and passions.
