text: Responsibility, a skill hopefully learned by students through school, is not easy to become proficient at. And with many teachers setting deadlines and giving extensions, students can lose responsibility without trial and error. A psychological study that followed five students' grades and work style throughout four years portrayed the effect that self-led projects had on students before they left for college. Teenagers who had no control over their learning, while seemingly successful with their grades, lacked development on the section of the brain that controls creativity and responsibility. However, students who worked with their teachers on their course of study had better developed this section. These skills not only help students grow as self-thinkers, but as responsible and thoughtful human beings.