Project-based learning contributes to the development of varied competencies.
Project-based learning is an educational strategy that proposes that students carry out an investigative process to solve problems or answer certain questions. In this way, students work with a certain autonomy and must commit to the assigned tasks to achieve the desired result.
Before moving forward, it is important to indicate that learning is the act and result of learning: being instructed or trained through the acquisition of knowledge or practice. A project , meanwhile, is a plan or work scheme.
History of project-based learning
Project-based learning, also known by the acronym PBL , emerged in the late 19th century in the United States . At that time, some educators began to ensure that their students could learn issues related to their own lives and not merely theoretical ones.
The teachers, in this framework , sought to provide tools to young people so that they, through research and practice, could achieve resolution of problems related to their daily lives or their environment . Little by little, this methodology expanded throughout the world until it was consolidated throughout the 20th century .
Thanks to advances in technology , ABP has been enhanced in recent decades. All people have more and more resources at their disposal to access information and thus, with the guidance and accompaniment of an educator, build knowledge.
For project-based learning, we work with different teaching resources.
What does it consist of?
Project-based learning is a methodology that consists of proposing a series of activities or tasks to students so that they solve a certain challenge . This is reflected in the implementation of a research project that generally requires teamwork, which encourages collaboration between peers. The closing is the presentation of results through an oral presentation before the rest of the class or even outside (members of other courses, families, etc.).
This system encourages autonomous development of the student and leads to the production of knowledge being realized through interaction and in practice. It is common for project-based learning to be summarized as "learning to do" since it avoids simplifications and encourages meaningful knowledge for students.
PBL, in short, proposes a real learning context and student -centered teaching. This requires that the role of the teacher be different from the traditional one since it goes beyond the transmission of knowledge.
Project-based learning is supported by practical activities.
Benefits of project-based learning
Pedagogical experts recognize several benefits of project-based learning. It is often stated that, due to its characteristics, it encourages creativity and critical thinking .
It also contributes to the development of diverse skills and promotes decision making . Students must address very different issues throughout the project, reaching their own resolutions before releasing the final product.
What PBL promotes is the empowerment of students since they have to take the lead in their learning. It also helps socialization , both inside school and outside (research leads them to consult their families and specialists).
Your design
The design of a project-based learning initiative requires planning by the teacher , who must define several issues. It is recommended that the design begins once it has been decided what it is that the students are intended to learn.
With this in mind, you must select a topic of interest to young people. It is useful to draw on factors in your environment, whether historical, ecological, cultural or otherwise. The intention is to achieve motivation and for learning to be contextualized.
After choosing the topic, you have to "translate" it into a challenge to solve . This challenge will be the element that will guide all the work and whose resolution will be reflected in the final product.
At this point it must be emphasized that the result must have significance on a real level, not only in theory or in the academic field. Thus, your presentation will have a value that exceeds the class.
It cannot be omitted to mention that the educator, when designing the project, also has to establish what criteria will be applied when evaluating the students.
Project-based learning approaches
Project-based learning contemplates various approaches and methods that are covered in its development:
- Active learning : Students must be involved and assume a leading role in the generation of knowledge.
- Autonomous learning : As we already indicated, each student must make their own decisions to advance in solving the problem.
- Constructivist learning : You learn from the experiences you go through, building knowledge.
- Experiential learning : Since it is based on the aforementioned experiences. That is why we also talk about practical learning .
- Interdisciplinary learning : Each project has multiple intersecting edges.
- Meaningful learning : New information is linked to previous knowledge, integrating into the student's cognitive structure.