You recognize that you have a deadline to hit and you need to get focused, whether it is the right focus or not. You pick a direction and go. The topic is mildly interesting, but it never really grabs you. You submit your thesis proposal and it is accepted but you find yourself regularly straying from your topic as other ideas interest you more or as you figure out that your original thesis is simply wrong. You complete the essay and hand it in, not really knowing how well you're going to do on it. The comments that come back from your teacher are that you did some good research and made some interesting points but the essay itself kind of lacked direction. That's pretty much what you thought. You did OK, but not your best work.
Research takes time. We often feel the pressure, as teachers, to get through the curriculum and research projects feel like they get in the way of that. The tough part is dedicating enough time for each student to do their best work without rushing some or having others wasting time because they get done before everyone else. There are any number of reasons for the different paces, ranging from students abilities, to complexity of the topic itself. It is always a tough balancing act to find the best scenario for the most students.