Recently in our Psychology class, students have created a “psychology mask,” showcasing aspects of who they are as a person. This includes passions, aspirations, fears, weaknesses, etc. This project gives students the opportunity to artistically represent themselves and write about themselves, giving outsiders a glimpse into each student’s personality. This project resulted in some pretty cool pieces of art representing members of our student body.
Mrs. Brinkman, our school’s psychology teacher, stated that this is one of her favorite projects to do with students. “Sometimes it’s the first time students have ever reflected on who they are as a person on a deeper level. They get to represent it artistically and through writing, and seeing that line up is really cool because I get to see the “whole person” after only seeing snippets of them and their personality.” This project is a creative display of each individual in the current class, and getting that insight simply by observing art is a pretty neat concept.
When interviewing Mars Martinez, a senior here at MBHS as well as a current psychology student, they said “I liked the project, it was fun! I think it helped everyone gain a base level understanding of personality and visualize how everyone’s personalities can be different. It was a really easy going assignment but it was important.”
Psychology, the study of the human mind and behavior, is a very important class to offer in a high school environment. Psychology is not only a fairly common college major in the United States, but also is applicable to everyday life for all high school students. We know adolescence can be a troubling time for many, so it is crucial that teenagers have an understanding of their brains and emotions. Even a base level comprehension of psychology can be key in learning how to process and cope with difficult emotions.
Luckily, here at MBHS, we have a Psychology program in place, but we also have the privilege of a wonderful teacher. Mrs. Brinkman teaches Psychology here at MBHS, as well as Sociology, Avid IV, and ERWC 12, and she runs the SAGA club.
When asked why Psychology is an important class to offer, Mrs. Brinkman stated, “Because it pertains to every single human on this campus! Students always ask, ‘How am I going to use this in my life?’ The things we study in psychology are things that students can think back and reflect on and use in their day to day lives in ten, twenty, fifty years. It’ll influence their lives forever!” Students in the psychology class get to learn in many different ways. Some information is presented through lectures, as to be expected, but what really makes the class different is the myriad of creative projects that students do throughout the semester.
Psychology is not only an important subject academically, but is also a place where you can be creative and learn useful tools to manage things that may otherwise feel overwhelming. The psychology mask project only exemplifies this. When students learn creatively and in a diverse environment, they are more likely to retain information because they are enjoying their class, and this is exactly what our psych program accomplishes.
