← Back to articles My definition of Project-Based Pedagogy Carolanne Tremblay , Wednesday, July 19 2017

« Every human being is defined by their project. » Jean-Paul Sartre

Project-based pedagogy is an old idea brought back to life thanks to a pedagogical renewal. It has been experimented with in the United States and Europe since the end of the 19th century by several great pedagogues such as Freinet, Decroly, Kilpatrick, and Dewey. With the current positioning of pedagogical reform that advances the idea of building knowledge in the student through the creation of projects, many teachers have encountered bad experiences.

As part of my teaching practice, I was led to carry out many projects with my students. I have always believed that this teaching method, which provides students a set of learning activities for a given achievement, offered an opportunity for young people to learn a great deal. Knowledge such as personality discovery, learning teamwork, conflict management, organizing and planning, and so on.

Even today, many teachers are reluctant to use it in their classrooms. Yet, this method has many benefits for both the students and teachers who use it.

Project-based pedagogy is based on the concept that by acting the students build themselves. It gives the student an area of freedom that allows them to choose, act, decide, and achieve something they desires.

For the teacher...

The creation of a project in class is not a privilege that is given to the students, it is a test of their capacities. Throughout a project, the teacher can continuously evaluate the work of the students in their class.

This represents an opportunity to see the young people of our group grow and discover them through a different viewpoint.

Project-based pedagogy tends to make students more active in their educational path and in their learning by enabling them to use skills acquired in the classroom. They become capable of building their knowledge without fear of cognitive imbalance.

Through the creation of a project, we can see our students building their knowledge, because all of the content to be learned is linked by a problem to be solved.

By facilitating project periods, the teacher uses an ongoing educational dialogue to accompany students on the path of developing their knowledge. They have more space to dialogue with their students, to ask them various questions, or to question them on their work methods.

In addition, project-based pedagogy opens new questions for students who are looking for information or solutions.

There may be conflict during a project period. At this point, teachers will be able to use their tools to manage the situation and to teach young people how to handle a conflicting situation.

Finally, the creation of a project makes it possible to unite the group of students.

For the students...

Project-based pedagogy allows students to develop their critical thinking by forcing them to compare their ideas with those of others. All while developing the capacity to respect the opinion of others.

It is a motivating work method that allows students to approach a situation from different angles.

As part of the project, students also learn to better organize and plan their tasks and understand how teamwork works.

Throughout the process, they will develop different learning strategies. Young people exposed to project-based learning become more mature, more tolerant, and will open their minds to new ways of thinking or working while improving their self-esteem.

In addition to doing something (an event, a product, a service, etc.), they will develop problem-solving techniques to deal with different situations.

Next week: How to avoid the traps of project-based pedagogy?.