They also each undertook an “individual endeavor,” learning to play the piano or to cook, writing a novel or making a 13)podcast about domestic violence. At the end of the term, they performed these new skills in front of the entire 14)student body and 15)faculty.
他们每个人还进行了一项“个人尝试”，如学习弹钢琴或烹饪，写小说或制作一段关于家庭暴力的播客。在学期结束时，他们会在全体师生面前展示这些新才艺。
Finally, they 16)embarked on a collective endeavor, which they agreed had to have social significance. Because they felt the whole experience had been so life-changing, they ended up making a film showing how other students could start and run their own schools.
最后，他们还进行了一项共同尝试，并一致决定这项尝试必须具有社会意义。因为他们觉得整个（项目）体验给自己的人生带来了很大改变，最终，他们一起制作了一部电影，向其他学生展示可以如何开办和管理属于自己的学校。
The results of their experiment have been17)transformative. An Independence Project student who had once considered dropping out of school found he couldn't bear to stop focusing on his current history question but didn't want to miss out on exploring a new one. When he asked the group if it would be okay to pursue both, another student answered, “Yeah, I think that's what they call learning.”
这些学生的切身体验给自身带来了巨大转变。一名曾一度考虑退学的学生在参加完“独立项目”后，发现自己总是忍不住去思索他目前尚未解答的历史学问题，但是又不愿错过对新问题的探索。当他询问小组其他成员，他能否同时研究两个问题时，另一名学生回答说：“可以啊，我想这就是他们所说的学习吧。”
One student who had failed all of his previous math courses spent three weeks teaching the others about probability. Another said: “I did well before. But I had forgotten what I actually like doing.” They have all returned to the conventional curriculum and are doing well. Two of the seniors are applying to highly selective 18)liberal arts colleges.
还有一名学生，之前他所有的数学课全都挂科了，如今他却一连三个星期向其他学生讲授概率学。另一名学生说：“我以前成绩很好，但是我已经忘记了自己真正喜欢的是什么。”现在，他们全都回归到传统的课程中，且表现出色。有两名高年级的学生还向挑选严格的文科学院递交了入学申请。
The students in the Independent Project are remarkable but not because they are exceptionally motivated or unusually talented. They are remarkable because they demonstrate the kinds of learning and personal growth that are possible when teenagers feel ownership of their high school 19)experience, when they learn things that matter to them and when they learn together. In such a setting, school 20)capitalizes on rather than 21)thwarts the intensity and engagement that teenagers usually reserve for sports, protest or friendship.
参与“独立项目”的学生们有出色表现，并不是因为他们格外地努力或是天赋异禀，而是因为他们证明了当青少年觉得能够主动掌控自己的中学知识、学习对自己有用的知识、共同学习时，学习和个人成长并非难事。在这样的环境中，学校应该充分发挥而非挫伤青少年的积极性，削弱其参与度，以往他们往往只会把这份劲头放在运动、示威抗议和交友之上。
Schools everywhere could initiate an Independent Project. All it takes are serious, committed students and a supportive faculty. These projects might not be exactly alike: students might 22)apportion their time differently, or add another discipline to the mix. But if the Independent Project students are any indication, participants will end up more accomplished, more engaged and more knowledgeable than they would have been taking regular courses.
各地的学校都可以发起自己的“独立项目”。它只需要认真且坚定的学生，以及全力支持的教师就足已。这些项目不一定要完全相同：学生可以用不同的方式分配时间，或是在课程中增加不同的学科。但是如果说参与“独立项目”的学生们会有什么变化的话，那就是与接受常规课程相比，他们最终会变得更有才华、专注且博学。
We have tried making the school day longer and 23)blanketing students with standardized tests. But perhaps children don't need another reform imposed on them. Instead, they need to be the authors of their own education.
我们努力延长上课时间，对学生一概进行标准化测试，但也许孩子们并不需要另一个革新强加在他们身上。相反地，他们希望能够书写自己的教育之路。
