Page 6 - The Edge Issue 8

Class of 2020
The senior class of 2020 prepares for majorCOVID-19 Story by changes to their senior projects. Shannon Reid
Senior year. Full of new, crazy stressors and insane tasks. Applying to college, taking and passing AP classes and exams, receiving scholarships, and on top of it all completing a senior project. The monumental tasks associated with these projects- in research, planning, and implementation- can make them appear slightly daunting to the prospective Edgewood Senior. The projects for the Class of 2020, however, have been facing even more hurdles, as the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted school, businesses, and normal life.
There are always constant, familiar aspects of the senior project regimen: there are three routes one can take when it comes to doing their project: Science Research, Capstone, or Leadership. Each class has different responsibilities, but all of them offer help and guidance with students’ senior projects. In Science Research, students are given the majority of the first semester and some of the second to complete a science fair project along with a research paper that qualifies as their senior project. In the AP Capstone
classes, students are required to research and write a 4000-5000 academic research paper based on their chosen subject. Alternatively, students in a Leadership class must complete a 2200-2500 research paper and project of their choosing that benefits their community in some way. All three of these classes present their projects and portfolios to a panel of judges each year on a day known as Senior Boards. And one thing is for certain: this staple of the senior project experience is unlikely to disappear.
However, while Senior Boards will not be cancelled, they are facing drastic changes due to COVID-19. With social distancing standards in place and school closures predicted to last at least until May 4th, Edgewood seniors are preparing to present their projects virtually. Even through a virtual medium, however, seniors are still rigorously preparing for their deadline.
As the seniors ready themselves for this new challenge, let’s take a look at some of their projects and how some seniors are adjusting to these changes.
Teaching the New
Generation
Haleigh Woloszak, 12, is a leadership student who designed her own project. Woloszak has always had a passion for debate, and she decided to base her senior project around this interest. Woloszak’s project was designed to teach elementary school students about debate, and required her to present to classes and work with students.
“I wanted to share my passion for debate with younger kids and encourage them to try speech and debate when they had the opportunity. Speech and debate has had such an impact on my life and I wanted other kids to have the same experience,” Woloszak said.
There were plenty of logistical hurdles to overcome with this
project: Woloszack needed to find a school and class she could
teach, communicate with teachers to mold the lesson to their curriculum,
make a lesson plan, and create materials. Despite these daunting tasks, she approached each one of them with excitement. Woloszak also drew inspiration for her own presentations from her past teachers and found that these lessons made an incredible impact on the students.
“My project gave the students I taught strong communication skills that they will be able to use in the future for their own benefit and also to help encourage better overall conversation in society,” Woloszak said.
While Woloszak has already completed her project, the shift to online schooling has led to anxiety and confusion about the senior project presentations and evaluations.
“It is very disappointing and confusing and hard to work through. It has been extremely difficult to adjust to the changes. I’m still confused and having difficulty understanding how certain things are going to work,” Woloszak said.
Despite these concerns, Woloszak and the other leadership students will still face their online final presentations, and she has been working to prepare for this milestone in her
5senior project experience.