AP Psychology Fair
Students Bring Enthusiasm, Excitement to Complex Subject
The annual Psychology Fair, held on March 14th in the Media Center from 1st to 4th period, showcased more than 40 projects from students in AP Psychology.
“It’s a Paint Branch tradition started by the one and only Ms. Johnson, so I wanted to continue that tradition,” stated AP Psychology teacher Mr. Montalvan, who also noted that it is “an opportunity [for students] to learn about psychology and see what their peers have learned over the course of the year.”
Each project had a different focus that required varying degrees of involvement, ranging from physical tasks, like eating cookies testing perception, to cognitive tasks, like interviewing in order to test how certain people react to social norms.
One of the few complaints of the fair was the placement of the fair in the Media Center rather than the small gym where it had been held in past years. Senior Felicia Afolabi observes, “This year it was very crowded because it was in the Media Center as opposed to the small gym.” Despite the space issues, the steady flow of students brought enriching attitudes that kept a fun atmosphere in the air.
As they wandered through the many colorful poster boards with titles such as Right or Polite, The Relish of Rituals, Drinking or nah, and Is Water the Same as Water, time seemed to fly as students travelled from board to board.
Much like many participants, Afolabi asserted, “The candy helped me want to participate and get excited.” Afolabi then jokingly added, “[be]cause if there was no candy, I wasn’t doing the experiment.”
Overall, the Psychology Fair continued its strong tradition and left many amazed.
First time attendee, 10th grader Kayla Dorsey remarked that “[she] liked it a lot, you know, it was good.” Dorsey also cited one experiment “where I had to toss a weight in the hole” as the highlight of the fair.
