Project-based learning is far more than sound instruction; it is a social responsibility. When afforded ongoing opportunities to apply what they learn to make authentic impact, students develop a sense of self and purpose that transcends education–a powerful precursor to becoming the kind of caring, engaged citizens that can uplift communities. Schools that confine students with test prep instructions year-round perpetuate injustice and minoritize not just the child, but also the community.
CASE STUDY:
INTEGRATED PROJECT WEEK
For one week each year, our middle school closes all textbooks, reorganize both staff class rosters, and follow a special schedule to participate in IPW.
Interdisciplinary projects are crucial practices in cultivating necessary qualities beyond academic excellence:
The conviction to be kind; the courage to act against injustice; and the awareness of self and others to empathize and cooperate.
OPERATION THANK YOU
SINGING GRATITUDE to ALL THE UNSUNG HEROES
From PK to 8th, no matter the skill level, students in each homeroom voted, planned, project-managed, and practiced how they will show love to those who come to school to help them learn each day.
Librarians, secretaries, cafeteria chefs, and every adult in the 1,500-strong community who does not teach were delivered prizes, gifts, and songs. Video documentation crews recorded and uploaded these heartwarming moments.
HUMANS OF FIVE
GIVING voice to newcomers
Recently arriving to Queens, NYC from the world over and often finding themselves isolated from other students due to language barriers, they never the less yearn to share the full depths of their human experiences.
Presented alongside their portraits on a website, these powerful pieces were first written in their home language and then translated with the support of staff tutors. Other classes responded by commenting back, sparking new understanding and community for all.
“Effective PBL is not serendipitous: common rubrics and standardized approach across departments make possible effective professional learning and quality control. Project proposals are approved only when they meet a set of criteria, such as whether it accounts for the three elements of true motivation: Autonomy, mastery, and purpose.“
THE 8 ELEMENTS OF EFFECTIVE
PROJECT-BASED LEARNING UNITS
01
Aligned to STUDIES
PBL should be introduced during units of relevant classroom instruction, giving students space to make connections and deepen understanding
02
COMpelling topic
Project proposals are peer-reviewed for its ability to compel and engage all students participating. Interest ensures engagement, without any use of corrective measures
03
BITE-SIZED PORTION
As one of the most important scaffolds for students in completing elaborate culminating products, thoughtful mini-deliverables are built in to culminate into a final outcome
04
student choice
Projects must allows students at least some form of choice. In teams, topic, task, or medium
05
authentic audienceS
Projects must be designed to include authentic audiences during a special event. Grades 6 and up must include external guests and/or locations
06
student roles
Each group will be given a set of roles, suggested tasks, and guidance on when and how the teams will meet with one another
07
collateral learning
Some skills are difficult to explicitly plan for during school. Pre-emptively think through opportunities for students to enrich their own learning (cooking, birdwatching, traffic laws, etc.)
08
Deep reflection
To develop confidence and courage, students will always reflect upon their work at the end of the project and internalize all the skills they acquired
LAST WORD: My FIRST PROJECT
Prior to being a principal, I taught adolescence boys incarcerated in one of the most violent places in the country: the Rikers Island jail of New York City.
Trapped alongside adults in a world where violence is currency, unconvicted of any charges but unable to post bail, these teenagers must wait in jail for the legal system to determine their plea bargains and/or sentences, upward to 25-years to life.
We wrote a ton. It was our air. With little input on how or where each of their stories began, they now must face a reality where their endings may also be written by someone else’s hand. Telling their own stories–or simply finding it–became an urgent imperative. These tracks are the chapters in their book in which they themselves held the pen.
mrkobot.com 