We are all familiar with the old saying that children learn better by doing than listening. It is no surprise then that Project Based Learning is fast becoming one of the most effective ways of teaching children of all ages.
In fact, educationists have been ranking PBL (Project Based Learning) as one of the most popular methods being implemented in schools internationally.
Broadly speaking, Project Based Learning is a strategy in which students develop certain identified skills and knowledge by being involved in a set of problems which are solved collectively or individually. Such a project need not be a large one.
Based on class levels, students could be asked to solve real world problems like climate change by setting up a small garden, visiting the beach to understand damage to corals or even making a scrapbook on everyday ways of solving climate change (without even having to call it so).
In all such cases, students have typically shown higher levels of involvement, collaboration and participation. Not only does this activity based classroom technique provide variety from textbook based reading and listening, it also helps youngsters in their soft skills like team work, time management and working with technology.
In fact, a 3-year study conducted by Stanford University found that when project based learning was used, “students took more active roles... work was seen as more interesting and worthwhile... and students paid more attention to their peers and teacher”.
Perhaps more attention is paid when students can see how their learning is actually tied to the real world outside the classroom.
A 5-step template is usually used to implement PBL.
This includes planning the outcomes, training students with necessary skills, designing a project, executing it and finally, presenting the outcomes to all stakeholders, including parents, the administration and the students themselves.
Being able to articulate the process and results of the project helps in reflecting and planning for future action.
Like every other teaching method, Project Based Learning comes with its own set of challenges. The most important is finding the time for projects in a traditional classroom where the syllabus needs to be completed in a specific amount of time.
Equally challenging is making students and teachers be engaged in activity which may not at first seem to be educational.
PBL cannot also be used across the curriculum for all subjects and it often requires a budget for raw material and even some extra professional help in case of a slightly more complex venture.
It can also be seen to be inequitable when given as homework as all students may not have equal access to material, time and resources to complete a project within a specific time span.
Parents are often known to complete children’s projects, even outsourcing it to a professional for accuracy and finish.
Given all these challenges, Project Based Learning continues to be seen as an important teaching tool but is not always implemented successfully across schools.
Yet, given its capacity to develop much needed soft skills among youngsters, along with its capacity to develop students’ own stakes in their learning, PBL must continue to be encouraged and implemented.
The writer is an Assoc Prof, Dept of English Language and Literature, SQU
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