I’m not an unfriendly person nor do I dislike working with people in groups, but senior year seems to, ironically, be the year of high school that consists of no independence. I have partaken in more group projects this year alone than the rest of my high school years combined and while I don’t hate them, I can honestly tell you that my like for them is diminishing by the hour.

I fully understand the importance of learning how to thrive in a group setting. It’s a skill that we all need to learn. I’ve heard from a lot of teachers that you need to learn how to work together with your classmates in college and that it’s a very desirable skill employers search for when hiring. Yes, I do understand. However, the fact that the entirety of my education has been taken over by group projects is something I can’t ignore.

A few group projects a semester is understandable to me. Second semester, in my opinion, should only have a couple. With senioritis growing at an unprecedented pace, the laziness side effect sets in at full affect. I don’t know about anyone else, but group projects usually always end up relying on one person, and second semester of senior year is the worst time for that to happen.

There are some classes where I fully appreciate group projects, such as business classes, as working in a group is essential to being successful within that field later in life. However, I don’t think core classes should have as many group projects, because (in all honesty) a lot of students may have no interest in that subject and therefore will leave all of the work on one person. Now, that really sucks.

My wish for the future of group projects is for teachers spread them out within a semester and offer more time for personal development. I think individual projects are important for seniors because they require time management and organization on our own behalf, a skill that will be very helpful in college and one that is good to keep in tune. Yes, group projects are important, but core classes should try to limit big group projects and instead have more small individual projects that will allow room for personal development within the class.