Start with the Pyramid: Real-World Issues Motivate Students
In this classroom, children use concrete, real-world examples to illustrate core knowledge.
by Diane Curtis
VIDEO: Project Learning: An Overview
Running Time: 9 min.
Ask Seymour Papert, renowned expert on children and computing, why students are turned off by school, and he quickly offers an example:
"We teach numbers, then algebra, then calculus, then physics. Wrong!" exclaims the Massachusetts Institute of Technology mathematician, a pioneer in artificial intelligence. "Start with engineering, and from that abstract out physics, and from that abstract out ideas of calculus, and eventually separate off pure mathematics. So much better to have the first-grade kid or kindergarten kid doing engineering and leave it to the older ones to do pure mathematics than to do it the other way around."
In a growing number of schools, educators are echoing Papert's assertion that engaging students by starting with the concrete and solving hands-on, real-world problems is a great motivator. Ultimately, they say, such project-based learning that freely crosses disciplines provides an education superior to the traditional "algebra at age nine, Civil War at ten, Great Expectations at eleven" structure.
Students at Harlem's Mott Hall School design their kites on a computer before beginning construction.
Credit: Edutopia
Advocates also say that the availability of technology that can call up the knowledge of the world's best thinkers with the click of a mouse, that can graph in two seconds what once took hours, and that can put scientific instrumentation in a pocket-sized computer further argues for moving away from century-old models of instruction.
"Everybody is motivated by challenge and solving problems, and we don't make use of that in schools enough," says Bruce Alberts, distinguished cell biologist and president of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). "Project-based learning gives everybody a chance to sort of mimic what scientists do, and that's exciting. And it's fun if it's done well."
Projects Run the Gamut
Examples of projects applicable to the here and now abound:
- At Mountlake Terrace High School, in Mountlake Terrace, Washington, teams of students in a high school geometry class design a state-of-the-art high school for 2050. The students create a site plan, make simple architectural drawings of rooms and a physical model, draw up a budget, and write a narrative report. They present their work to real architects, who judge the projects and "award" the contract.
- At Newsome Park Elementary School, in Newport News, Virginia, second graders curious about the number of medicines a classmate takes and her frequent trips to the doctor investigate -- with the classmate's permission -- the causes of cystic fibrosis. They invite experts to tell them about the disease, write up their research, use graphs and PowerPoint to tell the story, sell pledges to a cystic fibrosis walk-a-thon, and participate in the event.
- At the Mott Hall School, in New York City's Harlem district, a fifth-grade project on kites involves using creative writing skills in poems and stories with kite themes. While designing their own kites on the computer and then making them by hand, students learn about electromagnetism and the principles of ratios and proportions. A casual remark by one student leads to an in-depth study of the role of kites in various cultural celebrations.
The Internet is one of a variety of resources used for project-based research.
Credit: Edutopia
The Big Picture
In project-based learning, students try to answer a question -- one that has relevance for them -- that is greater than the immediate task at hand. In its book Connecting the Bits, the NEA Foundation for the Improvement of Education gives the example of students at a Kentucky elementary school conducting surveys, doing research, building models, and taking field trips with the goal of determining the best kind of new bridge to build over the Ohio River.
Students conduct research using a variety of sources, from the Internet to interviews with experts. They work on the project over an extended period of time -- six weeks or more -- because of the in-depth nature of the investigation. Like adults trying to solve a problem, they don't restrict themselves to one discipline but rather delve into math, literature, history, science -- whatever is appropriate to the study.
"One of the major advantages of project work is that it makes school more like real life," says Sylvia Chard, professor of elementary education at the University of Alberta and coauthor of Engaging Children's Minds: The Project Approach, a popular guide for teachers and others on project learning.
"In real life, we don't spend several hours at a time listening to authorities who know more than we do and who tell us exactly what to do and how to do it," she says. "We need to be able to ask questions of a person we're learning from. We need to be able to link what the person is telling us with what we already know. And we need to be able to bring what we already know and experiences we've had that are relevant to the topic to the front of our minds and say something about them."
Chard doesn't like the term "project-based learning," because she says it implies a focus on projects to the exclusion of other legitimate learning methods; she prefers "project learning." "Younger children will play and explore as well as engage in projects," according to a statement at the Project Approach Web site. "Older children's project work will complement the systematic instruction in the program."
A student at the West Hawaii Explorations Academy measures the pH balance of water as part of a project to restore ancient ponds.
Credit: Edutopia
In-Depth Investigation
Chard defines project learning as an "in-depth investigation of a real-world topic worthy of children's attention and effort." She advocates a three-phased approach: Phase 1 involves an initial discussion of a project topic, including children's firsthand experiences related to the topic. Phase 2 involves fieldwork, sessions with experts, and various aspects of gathering information, reading, writing, drawing, and computing. Phase 3 is the presentation of the project to an audience.
The NAS' Bruce Alberts says one reason he believes project-based learning hasn't caught on more is that parents weren't taught that way. But many parents who witness the transformation of their children become ardent converts. "There's a visible hunger to learn," says Ingo Schiller, parent of two children at Newsome Park Elementary School, in Newport News, Virginia. "When we sit down to dinner, the kids talk nonstop for twenty minutes, telling us what they did and what they saw. This is literally every day!"
And conversations with teachers who use project-based learning in a meaningful way tend to use the same words: excitement, engagement, enthusiasm.
Fifth graders in Lackawanna, Pennsylvania, let Houston know they’re up to the Space Day design challenge.
Credit: Edutopia
A Host of Benefits
Enthusiasm alone isn't enough of a justification to advocate project-based learning, but the results of that enthusiasm argue in its favor, say educators and researchers who have studied or used project-based learning.
Kids who are excited about what they learn tend to dig more deeply and to expand their interest in learning to a wide array of subjects. They retain what they learn rather than forget it as soon as they disgorge it for a test. They make connections and apply their learning to other problems. They learn how to collaborate, and their social skills improve. They are more confident talking to groups of people, including adults. And, as a number of research reports suggest, project-based learning correlates positively with improved test scores, reduced absenteeism, and fewer disciplinary problems.
"I've seen test scores of students rise because of the engagement in project-based learning," says Gwendolyn Faulkner, former technology coordinator at Harriet Tubman Elementary School, in Washington, DC. "I saw my students mainstream out of English as a Second Language into the mainstream classroom. I saw my mainstream students scoring three and four grades above their grade level on standardized tests. I'm a convert."
Three Good Reasons
Eeva Reeder, the math teacher who led the project on designing a school for 2050, says she started project-based learning for three reasons: First, her students were not learning concepts deeply enough to apply or even remember them for a long period. Second, a growing body of research upheld the view that concepts are best understood using concrete examples constructed by the students themselves. Third, while taking a break from teaching to finish a master's thesis, Reeder took a job at a bridge-design company and realized, when she was asked to do a task, that she had never applied her knowledge of mathematics in a real-world situation.
A project on worms captures the imaginations of first graders in Newport News, Virginia.
Credit: Edutopia
"And that, fundamentally, was the final piece that shifted my thinking to the point where I realized I can't go back to the classroom and do things the same way I always have," she says.
If schoolchildren are given the gift of exploration, society will be the beneficiary, both in practical and in theoretical ways, scholars say. "This is the way that mathematics started," notes MIT's Seymour Papert. "It started not as this beautiful, pure product of the abstract mind. It started as a way of controlling the water of the Nile, building the pyramids, sailing a ship. And gradually it got richer and richer."
Diane Curtis is a veteran education writer and a former editor for The George Lucas Educational Foundation.
This article originally published on 11/1/2001
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Comments & Responses
project based learning seems to make sense
I'll be honest, watching this video makes me a bit jealous of the kids. I think I would have enjoyed an opportunity to take part in project based learning as a child. The children definitely seem to be engaged, and it makes sense that they will learn to think more critically by having the real world project to create a structure or conceptual framework to fit the knowledge they are learning into. I also like the idea that it encourages the learner to take ownership of their own learning, which is a responsibility and a freedom. I think the motivation to learn would be increased exponentially, and depth of learning could not be matched by typical standards classroom teaching. I'm a teacher in training, and am not sure what to think about the assessment side of things. There does need to be a way to gauge the progress and understanding of the learner. They didn't get into that side of it in the vidoe too much.
Socrates
I fully agree that Socrates would not have enjoyed the modern techniques. After reading all about Socrates, I found his learning style was to discuss things with subjects. He was more like a newspaper reporter doing an article on something. He would find the logic in whatever he was trying to answer too. I thoroughly enjoyed reading his works.
Ann Eason
Projects based learning does not have to be group projects
I am a firm believer in hands-on learning, learning by exploration and doing, and projects are what I remember most as a child. I learned most in-depth about things I did projects on, individually. (Learning with m&m's and shaving creme is hands-on learning, NOT project-based learning.)We used to do individual science projects every year, grow plants with different conditions, grow crystals, do experiments, and learn on our own. I loved it! When group projects became the rage, I hated it, being shy I often felt left out, and being "brainy", sometimes other popular kids wouldn't even show up for group meetings, they just assumed I would do their work for them. Now teachers try to counteract that by having students rate the other team members participation, but is a nerdy outsider really going to rat on a popular kid who didn't carry their share? Probably not, and if they do,the teacher has only accomplished further alienating that child from their peer group.
I use project-based learning as a cumualtive leaning about a unit subject, combining individual projects and whole class projects (which I participate in, supervise, and guide)at an end of the unit celebration, and forgo small group projects. That way I avoid the pitfalls I hated as a student, everyone gets to participate and learn,at a rate and level right for them,privately, and get to share and be a shining star at the end, and I am still teaching, explaining, guiding, and students who learn better in a more social, group situation still get the benefit of that, but with supervision. If I do have to assign a small-group task, I assign every group member a specific task, or job, to ensure everyone gets to participate fairly.
Group projects where everyone plays a separate role
When I create problem based learning projects for my college biology courses, I make sure that there are separate roles (or tasks) for each student within a group. I make a big deal about how important each role (or task)is to the success of the group, and that if one group member does not participate fully, the entire group will suffer. Since each student has a unique role, the pressure is on to do the work, since nobody else can do it for them. This seems to work really well - I have never encountered a situation, in 10 years of using PBL, where students did not prepare their piece of the puzzle.
group jobs
I am glad you talked about how you assign tasks to each person in a group. That is the ONLY way to ensure each person bears his fair share of the job, at least I have found it to be so. That is also one of the reasons my colleagues fail miserably in their attempts at group work - they give everyone in every group the same worksheet to complete, and then they gripe about how one person had others give him answers or fill in the answers for him. I teach primarily eighth-graders, and they love how we select group jobs - the colored counters that elementary math teachers use! I use a game spinner to determine what color corresponds to what job, and that usually settles the arguments that sometimes ensue.
What a great idea to use a
What a great idea to use a game spinner to determine roles in the group! I will definitely use this idea! I agree with your statement about teachers failing when it comes to group work. I know this from experience! For the last couple of years I have used role cards for each group member in a group. This is much more beneficial for all of the students. I have been teaching freshmen and lower classmen, but this year I will be teaching seniors. I can easily include PBL with writing and grammar, but I am having a difficult time grasping how I am going to include the study of British Literature using PBL. Any ideas? I also teach Spanish. We always use PBL in class. Every unit has a project that requires them to use Spanish in a real-life situation. The assessments include the student reacting to a situation or emergency where they are required to communicate in Spanish. Students prepare for the assessments by researching words and studying the grammar used in the language. All of the assessments or projects are compiled in a portfolio that they should be able to use or refer to later in life.
using PBL in senior English (Brit lit)
Thanks for your comments, Elizabeth. I taught srs last year for the first time in 20 years - what a difference all that time makes! Anyway, I am racking (wracking?) my brain for ideas for PBL this year. I thought about researching the Sutton Hoo site and coming up with a tour for someone, or visiting Canterbury (a modern-day pilgrimage using tips from Chaucer's stories?) or something like that. I was thinking of something along the lines of the travel pages in the Birmingham News and having students plan a trip. How about mapping out Wordsworth's travels in the Lake Country? Or Mary and Percy Shelley's trip to Switzerland with Lord Byron?
Beckie Mosley
Dadeville High School
8th and 12th grade English
Dadeville, AL
science
okay whati dont get is why all the fancey names for like star constalations and stuff are always after greek names or dead languages and typoes are to exceptable i mean who cares as long as u learn the right way does it really matter?
Process Approach Is Nothing New
Students learn more by doing than they do by listening. The theory that students will learn "better" by constructing their own knowledge while they solve a problem or complete a project has been around the track before. This used to be called the "process approach." Now we have new advocates with new buzz-words; but,it's still the same idea. Is a good idea?
The process approach is fun and it does engage students, especially the ones who find school little more than a place to meet friends. For them, learning by projects is the way to go. But what about the students that use the other side of their brains? On the other side of the coin are students who could do the entire project by themselves in the time it takes the other students to settle down. Are they to be brought down to the lowest common denominator to "help" their peers?
Different students have different learning styles. To praise one method, such as learning by projects, to the detriment of another, such as lecture and drill, misses the whole point of differentiation. Whenever I read articles calling for some new fad in learning, I take it with a grain of salt. Learning starts with the child, and they're all different!
Allow me to mock this
Allow me to mock this suggestion.
What will our first graders learn if they take Stacey's advice? First, and most importantly, that teachers don't really care that much about books and careful explanations. They have a puzzling idea that explaining things carefully doesn't help to learn. That's very discouraging and strange for a child to encounter--I remember that from when I did projects as a child myself, 30 years ago. Second, since first graders can't do most of what is required for the exercise, their participation is perfunctory and mostly insults their intelligence, inspirational quotes . That is, most of the work in the exercise is done by teachers, who create an agreement with a nursery or shelter, and parents, who apparently have to drive their children repeatedly to the nursery or shelter. When they get to the shelter, first the teacher puts them in a group and explains to them what they do with their plants. The children do what they are told, because they're in the first grade.
The real function of this exercise is not to teach children anything, but to let teachers feel good about themselves, because they have created an "authentic" learning experience. Except that they haven't.
What do the first graders actually learn in terms of plants and animals? Precious little that they don't already know or wouldn't pick up in the course of daily life. You water plants to make them grow, and make sure they get enough light. You feed animals. My toddler knows all that.
In the time it takes the teacher, parents, and kids to go through this Mickey Mouse exercise, they all could have actually learned loads and loads about plants and animals, through well-written books, plants in the classroom, some videos, and some homework.
Our precious first graders deserve better than PBL--pretty bad learning.
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