Teacher Asks High Schoolers for Project on Anything—Not Prepared for Topics

When one high-school teacher asked her students to pick a topic that interests them for a project, she couldn't have imagined how wild the responses would be. The results left internet viewers in stitches.

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As a high-school English teacher, Kelsey Clodfelter, 34, wanted to teach her 10th-grade class about the importance of developing a topic, researching it, and using only reliable sources. However, she also wanted to give her students the chance to be creative, so she asked the class to turn in a research magazine they had made about a topic they were passionate about.

Clodfelter, who was teaching in Minnesota but has now relocated to Chicago, told Newsweek that she was initially worried that some students might pick topics that wouldn't "lend themselves to high-quality research," or could even be offensive. She also expected to receive a plethora of magazines about the sports played by the students.

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However, when Clodfelter put together the full list of topics that the students were going to focus on, she couldn't have been more surprised or amazed by the variety. They chose topics such as coral reefs, human augmentation, Travis Scott, Kurt Cobain, the effect of suburbia on American culture, Warhammer, and the hijab ban in France.

"The list was so much more varied than I imagined," Clodfelter said. "I was proud to see my students take on social issues. My school is racially, culturally, and politically diverse, so I know it can be difficult for students to take on controversial issues without fear of judgment.

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"But students who wrote about racism in women's basketball, the rise of misogyny since the pandemic, the history of pride, the conflict in Palestine, and the hijab ban in France demonstrated courage by exploring their passions rather than choosing a safe option," she added.

Clodfelter anticipated that she would have to redirect some of the themes, but to her amazement, she accepted each one. One student wanted to do their project about the universe, and she had to narrow that down somewhat, but they still got to research that topic.

While it was certainly amusing to go through the full list and see such a wild variety of interests, the teacher couldn't have been prouder of how well they all did. Many of her students exceeded expectations, and it "almost brought tears to [her] eyes" to go through them.

Clodfelter said: "I was so proud of my students when I read their final projects. Overall, students knocked it out of the park. The experience made me realize that high-school students have a strong sense of their interests and passions, something their teachers don't always give them credit for."

What Did Social Media Think?

When Clodfelter put together the full list of topics, she couldn't believe the range of ideas that her students had come up with.

On May 14, she took to TikTok (@stillateacher) to reveal the extensive list, and the clip delighted social-media users. It has already gained over 6.3 million views and more than 1 million likes, as many people praised their creativity.

Clodfelter has been amazed by the social-media responses so far, and she is glad to show people just how passionate the younger generations can be.

Clodfelter told Newsweek: "I think the internet loves to be cynical about teenagers. I've seen so many TikTok videos that suggest that Gen Z is apathetic, phone-addicted, and uninformed. But I was so happy to share my students' research topics and play a small part in dismantling that stereotype.

"It is so important to let teenagers explore their own opinions, and adults saying you're wrong often backfires. When students learn how to do their own research, they have the power to develop their critical thinking skills independently."

With almost 10,000 comments on the viral post already, many TikTok users lauded the innovating ideas, while others were desperate to find out more about how the projects went. One comment reads: "Fashion in the Victorian era is SO REAL."

Another person wrote: "They sound SO cool. I bet they will all put a ton of effort into these because they are excited about the topics!"

A third TikTok user posted: "Honestly, I'm interested in what they're interested in."

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