17 Years of Project Based Learning
(The introduction to Teach Like an Artist)??
?I was looking for an art teacher for a new school we were starting. I knew I wanted a working artist and someone who wasn’t afraid to experiment.?Twenty years later, I realize how incredibly lucky I was.?Jeff didn’t just teach art, he created the aesthetic culture of High Tech High.?Jeff covered every surface of the school with student work, making it seem more like a gallery or an exploratorium than a school.?That made it a fun and beautiful place to go to school and to work, but more importantly, it sent the constant message that the most important thing to all of us was what the students created.
What I love about this book is that it is like the diary of a lifelong learner.?Every single project that Jeff did, every single student who suggested a different path or rebelled against his ideas, every academic who visited and disagreed with him,?taught him something new that he turned around and used the next time.?
If you read this book and feel simultaneously incredibly inspired and browbeaten, welcome to my world! When Jeff came into my office, I knew I was in trouble… it usually meant we were not living up to our principles in some way.?But my favorite thing to do at school was to go into Jeff’s room -- where the scene usually involved 25 teenagers working intently, images projected on walls, drafts strewn about, a playlist blasting, and little or no “teaching” going on… to the naked eye.?How did he get them working like that, with each other, happy, on projects that were professional quality art, and more importantly, that they loved??Read on to find out...
Larry Rosenstock,? Founder and CEO Emeritus, High Tech High, San Diego