As part of our first piece of homework, we were tasked with watching “Most Likely to Succeed” (2015) which shows the story of students who create their own project in the form of a showcase and present it to their friends, family, and greater school community. 

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

This movie made me feel a little unsettled at first, as I grew up in a “pen-to-paper” academia focused school system. I caught myself thinking, “ will this work? Is this system actually preparing students for post-secondary education?” However, as I continued to watch and see how their showcase unfolded, I grew more confident in a system that allows for self-driven creativity.

 At the very end of the film, a student was unable to fix his project for the showcase– and I found this to be impactful. 

Why is this so powerful?

This is powerful because his teacher does not say “c’mon, be prepared next time” or anything of this sort. The child knows this, and he is able to recognize this on his own (as shown in the film). The project seems to have meant a lot to the child– and this makes the difference in his self-reflection! I realized that by doing this student-driven project, a child is able to learn and grow more effectively within the classroom setting. 

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I appreciated stepping out of my comfort zone and watching something I’m not used to seeing. I plan to take on a hands-on approach to teaching, so this film allowed me to see a system so different from what I’m used to and  how it works!