Why the Project Approach?

The Project Approach evolved from a desire to help students participate in and contribute to a democratic society. Studies indicate that democratic societies are more likely to flourish when citizens seek an in-depth understanding of the complex issues they must address and about which they must make choices and decisions. Situated within a Constructivist-based theoretical framework, the Project Approach rests on the following beliefs: All children come to school with a quest to understand their experiences; all children want to learn. School is life, and teachers and students should experience their time in school as real life rather than seeing these two as separate and unrelated spheres. Students construct their own knowledge but also need teachers to facilitate and guide this process. Students have diverse strengths, weaknesses, interests, and backgrounds, and capitalizing on these differences enables students to learn from each other and to grow as individuals. Students learn best when they have a positive self esteem and sense of purpose. Students learn through a mixture of first-hand observation, hands-on experience, systematic instruction, and personal reflection. Teaching and learning are interactive processes. Social and emotional skills are as important as academic skills and knowledge. Classrooms are flexible learning spaces that support and adapt to student needs.

The Project Approach fosters not only academic knowledge and skill sets but what many educators refer to as the whole child. The use of the word whole stems from research indicating that students need more than content mastery to succeed in the 21st century—they need to be physically, emotionally, and socially healthy; they need to be intellectually challenged and supported by caring adults; and they need to be interested and engaged in their school learning. Though project work has long prepared students for health, happiness, and success—even as far back as the 16th century—it emerged recently as a prime teaching strategy of the 21st century. Headlines everywhere refer to a rapidly changing and more global world, and governments and organizations call upon students to lend their hands through service, innovation, and problem-solving. These calls to action require a new kind of education—one that inspires, connects, and empowers students. The Project Approach does just that by: connecting students to their local and global communities—and providing them with real-world experiences beyond the classroom; fostering what researchers refer to as essential 21st-century skills, including critical thinking, collaboration, and creativity; providing opportunities to integrate technologies into the classroom—and to use technologies as tools for achieving specific purposes instead of as ends in themselves; providing students with opportunities to apply the skills they acquire through systematic instruction; building on the individual needs, interests, and strengths of all students—and allowing students to work, where appropriate, at their own pace; giving students a sense of purpose and fostering self esteem; providing opportunities for service learning and enhancing a sense of social justice and responsibility; improving research skills by helping students not only to use print and electronic resources but also field work, surveys, interviews, consultations with experts, and firsthand observations and experiences; honing literacy and communication skills by enabling students to use a variety of media to share the process and product of their project work with authentic audiences; integrating content knowledge and skills from a variety of disciplines, so that students come to see and make cross-curricular connections; enhancing the multicultural literacy of students by giving them opportunities to learn about and collaborate with people from other cultures.

Projects, like good stories, have a beginning, middle, and end. This temporal structure helps teachers align the progression of activities with the development of students’ interests and personal involvement with the topic of study. This structure also helps teachers integrate and meet curricula benchmarks—a crucial part of the process. Unlike a number of project-based learning strategies, which provide a theoretical framework but leave out the practical details, the Project Approach offers a step-by-step guide for planning and implementing projects—and for allowing the work to evolve with students’ interests and needs. Below is an outline of the process involved in planning and implementing projects. More information, along with specific examples and advice from teachers in the field, can be found in two guidebooks two guidebooks written for teachers by Sylvia Chard: The Project Approach (Book Two): Managing Successful Projects and The Project Approach (Book One): Making Curriculum Come Alive. The material in these books is also presented in a .pdf format in a new series of six practical guides. Also download our free Project Approach Study Guide First Steps During the preliminary planning stage, teachers select a topic of study based on students’ interests, the curriculum, and the availability of local resources. Teachers also brainstorm (and represent) their own experience with and knowledge and ideas about the topic in a web. This web becomes a central part of the project process, with teachers—and students—using it to record the progress of their work. Phases and Reflection Phase 1: Beginning the Project The teacher uses an activity or discussion as a springboard to discover what students know about the topic. Frequently, the teacher emails parents, encouraging them to talk to children about the topic and share any relevant experiences. Students share their stories orally at school and represent their knowledge through drawing, writing, photography or other media, and their representations are posted throughout the room. As the teachers and students share their experiences about the topic, the teacher begins a topic web. It includes what the class knows about the topic, and will later include what they've learned. As a result of this phase (typically 2-5 days), students' questions begin to emerge. Teachers post these questions and wonderings along with the students' representations. These can be amended or added to as the project progresses. During this phase, the teacher evaluates the students' abilities to discuss their knowledge and formulate important questions. Phase 2: Developing the Project Teachers arrange for a student to do field work and interview guest experts to answer their questions and teaches them ways to to record what they learn through observational sketches and notes. The teacher also guides students in their investigations and research. For younger students, the teacher provides resources in the classroom to help children with their investigations. These resources may include real objects, print, videos, or internet resources. For older students, they may work with the school librarian or teacher to locate accurate and valid resources. As students make and carry out plans, record observations and research notes, collect data, interview experts, and conduct experiments, they represent what they learn and teachers help them post their findings in the classroom. Each day, the class discusses what students learn, which often leads to new questions. Often the teacher revisits the topic web and adds new understandings. Throughout this phase, the teacher evaluates each student's planning, follow-through, research, ability to apply academic skills, and ability to work cooperatively with others throughout this phase. Phase 3: Concluding the Project Teachers and students plan and prepare for a culminating event during which each student or small group of students take the role of experts and share with others what they have learned with parents, administrators, or other classes. Teachers help students select material to share and involve them in reviewing and evaluating their work. They also help them select the method by which they will share their knowledge, which allows students to capitalize on their interests and talents. During the culminating event, teachers evaluate students' abilities to present what they've learned and answer questions posed by guests. Reflection Following the project culmination, teachers call a class meeting so that they can reflect on the project. What went well? What did the students learn about the topic? What did they learn about themselves as researchers? What did not go well? What do you want to remember to do differently for their next project? Teachers then meet with students individually to evaluate their work and set goals for their next project. Note: This outline summarizes some of the common features of projects, but each project is also unique. The teachers, students, topic, and location of the school all contribute to the distinctiveness of each project.