A junior from one of the neighboring high schools told me that she thought Lincoln High school was kind of easy. Why? Because we have projects instead of finals. 

However, finals are not effective. All they do is cause a ton stress and anxiety. After weeks of learning classroom material, you memorize all the notes just to throw that knowledge on sheets of paper during finals week and turn it in for a grade. “Teaching people to regurgitate what’s there is limited,” says Mr. Noyes, who is a teacher in the history department and a part of the exhibition committee.

Finals are also outdated. Written ones have been around since the 1830s, and oral finals since the 1600s! There are topics that are taught today, such as Genome Science and African American studies, that you couldn’t even study 15 or 20 years ago, much less in the 1800s. Times have changed and the way students learn should change with them. As Mr. Noyes puts it, “We need to lean into the side of innovation because that’s what our world is.”

As a response to that, Lincoln has adopted a project-based learning curriculum. What exactly does that mean? “A project-based learning school is a school that commits to having each of their departments explore what student interests could look like in their own departments and in their own classes,” says history teacher and exhibition committee member, Mr. Manes. 

With project-based learning, the answers are not set in stone. Students are given the chance to integrate their interest into their learning, collaborate with other people, and think critically, all of which are 21st century skills that will be useful for life after high school. Project based learning encourages students to think bigger than the classroom.  “I think it’s more authentic and it connects to something in the real world and addresses a real-world problem,” Mr. Manes says.

Many students feel like this way of learning is better for them as well. Sophomore student Addi Andral shares that project-based learning is “pretty cool” because, “I don’t have to cram a ton of information into a test and a project helps me show that I’ve actually learned something. It represents my learning all that a lot better because tests are not personal to me.” Senior Izzy Hudd states, “I think it’s slay. I like it because I’m not a good test taker … and it’s good if you like working with groups which I do.” She rated project-based learning a 10 out of 10.

In the springtime, Lincoln High School conducts an exhibition which is where students select a project to showcase to the whole community. “It’s a good way to get people engaged,” says 10th grader Ellie Wickline. This is not a traditional science fair, however. “Projects that are just set up to be linear have no surprise at the end,” Mr. Noyes explained.  “There’s nothing that’s unique at the end and there’s no real failure.” Every good project has setbacks which is why Lincoln High School students not only display their finished products for the community to see, but also the process behind the making of the project. 

Lincoln’s project-based learning model may seem “less intense” than finals, but it prepares students for the real world. Mr. Noyes said it best; “Finals are all about the individual. It’s about you and a textbook essay, buts that’s not what real life is. Real life is not where you get to just exist by yourself. You have to interact with people. You have to justify what you are doing and what you’re learning.” 

Quotes slightly edited for length and clarity