Summer is a sweet, warm time full of pool parties, ice cream trucks, and forgetting what it feels like to be in school. Although it is a lovely break, it often poses problems for both students and teachers when the students come back to school unprepared. This is why the practice of assigning summer projects has become very popular; they assure that students continue their education while they are out of school. However, there is a debate on whether the students or the teachers should be designing the summer projects. It is very clear that the teachers should be designing summer projects because they can prepare their students for their future classes, and if students were to design their own projects, there would be severe issues.

Teachers should design summer projects because they can prepare their students for their future classes. Although the students do not know the exact route that their education is going to take, teachers often have a very good idea. Teachers know what their students need to work on, and may be able to assign projects geared towards particular students to help them succeed in the future. This could be significantly more beneficial to the students than students arbitrarily choosing a form of assignment that is unlikely to improve their skills. A specific instance of a teacher assigning a helpful summer project would be if middle school students had decided to take research biology their freshman year of high school. A teacher could assign a summer assignment to these students because she would know that there are vastly increased expectations and responsibilities in high school biology compared to middle school science. The summer assignment could be crucial to help introduce the rising high school students to the formats and expectations of their new class.

Teachers should certainly design summer projects because if students were to design them, there would be significant issues. One problem posed by students designing their own summer projects would be that students might design projects unrelated to what they are doing at school. This would not harm their education, but it would certainly be a waste of time and energy if students were to arbitrarily choose their project and dedicate time and effort to it, and in the end have it be useless to helping them further their education; this is especially wasteful in the context of being able to put that time to something else productive. Another problem posed by having students design their own projects is that their projects may not be stimulating or challenging. Even if students managed to design experiments relevant to their schooling, it is unlikely that the project that they design will stimulate a higher level of thinking than they used previously.

Although they may concede some of my points, supporters of students designing their own summer projects might argue that if the teachers were to design the summer projects of students, then the students would likely care little for the topic chosen and put little effort into their projects. They would argue that students should design their own projects because they would be enthusiastic and excited to learn about something that they chose that interests them. Although this argument has its merits, it is flawed; teachers realize that students do not put effort into projects that they are not invested in, so teachers have methods of getting students to become invested in their projects. One method to encourage students to put effort into their summer projects is that teachers will design the framework of a project, but let the students individualize it and research what interests them. Another method of encouraging students to give effort is making their summer projects a school grade for the next year. These provide incentives for student interest and investment in their work, which yields more positive results. Although those advocating for student-designed experiments have some good points, it is still very clear that the outcomes and positives of teacher-designed experiments far outweigh the negatives.

The education of the young is important to society, and it must not be interrupted or stopped. Summer assignments are essential in keeping this continuity, and it is essential that people are interested in the education they are being given. However, letting the disinterested choose what their education consists of undermines the education system as a whole. It is important that students take interest in learning, for a drive for learning and understanding is how new knowledge comes about; however, it is important that teachers set the foundations for how education is executed so that their students can thrive in the future.