PROJECTS BASED LEARNING....LEADS TO PINNACLE OF HOLISTIC ENRICHMENT.

When students are challenged to get to work solving real-life problems, the Walk into team teachers Mike Smith and David Ross's interdisciplinary classroom at Napa New Technology High School in California and you will see students at work-writing in online journals, doing research on the Internet, meeting in groups to plan and create web sites and digital media presentations, and evaluating their peers for collaboration and presentation skills. This setting and these types of activities have a name and a purpose.

It's called project-based learning, and it's designed to engage students and empower them with responsibility for their own education in ways unheard of in traditional class rooms.

• What is Project-Based Learning?
• In project-based learning, students work in groups to solve challenging problems that are authentic, curriculum-based, and often interdisciplinary. Learners decide how to approach a problem and what activities to pursue. They gather information from a variety of sources and synthesize, analyze, and derive knowledge from it. Their learning is inherently valuable because it's connected to something real and involves adult skills such as collaboration and reflection. At the end, students demonstrate their newly acquired knowledge and are judged by how much they've learned and how well they communicate it. Throughout this process, the teacher's role is to guide and advise, rather than to direct and manage, student work. restructuring of policy decisions, leadership, and professional development are essential. A tall order for institutions traditionally resistant to change? Yes. But national projects and models are available as support for schools and districts interested in taking the first steps toward integrating PBL into the curriculum. What It Looks Like PBL means learning through experiences. For example, high school students design a school for the future and learn advanced math concepts and engineering along the way.

Elementary students study single-cell organisms in order to provide data to researchers n a lab. Others build and race electric cars and learn about energy efficiency. Many projects focus on environmental concerns, such as testing pollution levels in local waters and researching methods for cleanup whole world becomes a classroom. Here refer a guide for getting started and then reporting findings and strategies for improvement to community officials. What do these projects have in common? All engage students through hands-on, serious, authentic experiences. They also allow for alternative approaches that address students' individual differences, variations in learning styles, intelligences, abilities, and disabilities. Raising Student Awareness The real-world focus of PBL activities is central to the process. When students understand hat their work is ultimately valuable as a real problem that needs solving, or a project hat will impact others, they 're motivated to work hard. National, and global issues, believes that collaboration, interactivity, and a clear outcome that "improves the quality of life on the planet" really speaks to kids.

"By demonstrating that they can make a difference in even a single life, students are motivated and empowered to carry their experiences into lifelong community and global service," .

In addition to teaching core content and raising awareness, PBL projects train students to take complex global issues and break them down into specific local action steps. students see how they directly affect the lives of individuals.

The empirical evidence shows that experiential education addresses specific methods and Project Based Learning is one of them. “The core idea of Project Based Learning is that real -world problems capture students’ interest and provoke serious thinking as the students acquire and apply new knowledge in a problem - solving context. The teacher plays the role of facilitator, working with students to frame worthwhile questions, tructuring meaningful tasks, coaching both knowledge development and social skills, darefully assessing what students have learned from the experience” (David, 2008: 80). PBL can take place both inside or outside classroom .

Method

Structure- -Success of the method

It is undoubtedly true that a Project Based Learning method is successful when seven essential elements are fulfilled. First and foremost, teachers should engage student’s interest and “need to know” and at the same time stimulate them by making a capturing driving question (Larmer and Mergendoller, 2010 ). Moreover, students are in of ciding whether they will use resources, how they will cooperate and communicate in order to achieve the goal of their challenging project (Frey, 1991). Besides, critical thinking is enhanced and students can easily conduct their inquiry as well as innovate by exploiting sometimes the advantages of technology (Larmer and Mergendoller, 2010). An example s when a whole class of iPadslaunch their research, while at the same time they are connected to teacher’s presentation in order to discuss a project. This technological improvement gives students the opportunity to interact and simultaneously submit questions and answers (Webster, 2012). Finally, feedback and revision are also mportant before student’s presentation in front of a real audience (Frey, 1986). 4.2. Advantages and disadvantages of PBL As every teaching method, Project Based Learning has both advantages and disadvantages. Assuming that all students cannot learn in the same way, it is important for educators to develop and implement alternative teaching methods (Muthukrisma et al., 1993). Thus, Project Based Learning isn’t limited in terms of knowledge and information, but rather with their teacher’s help, it provides students with the opportunity to transform themselves during the learning rocess (Aggelakos, 2003).

Nowadays, learning to read is no longer enough. Knowing how to solve problems, working collaboratively and thinking innovatively are considered to be 21st century essential skills. Therefore, Project Based Learning is generally accepted as an effective method for teaching processes, such as problem solving and decision making (Thomas, 2000). Besides, experts should help in developing character’s emotional, social elements apart from cognitive (Katz, 2000). Other positive outcomes by using Project Based Learning are the reduction of student’sanxiety (Boaler, 2002), and the enhancement of student’ s learning quality compared with conventional teaching methods (Thomas, 2000). On the other hand, Project Based Learning is marginalized by the educators themselves, since they lack both training and experience in implementing this approach. Furthermore, deficient finance and technology are challenges that teachers have to overcome, while evaluation can be also ineffective when students use technology. Finally, it is evident that venturing into an alternative method opposed to sterile memorization discourages teachers, since they are supposed to manage additional activities and demands, such as helping collaborative student investigations (Evans, 1994; Arhontaki and Filippou, 2003 cited in Katsarou and Dedouli, 2008).

Results

How students experience PBL

It is easily understood that there are significant differences between the conventional teaching method and the PBL one as far as students experience PBL is concerned. In traditional teaching, there isan assessment through an exam that evaluates the knowledge acquired from lectures and quizzes. On the contrary, during PBL, there are a lot of separate steps, including activities, workshops, labs, and researches with much ore assessments until the final evaluation in order for teachers to be more objective and lead their students to a better learning outcome. In addition, PBL evaluates cognitive and emotional social skills in comparison to the traditional teaching method that valuates only cognitive ones. Also, through the PBL teaching technique, students could cooperate, communicate, and use their critical thinking under their teacher’s guided reflection until their final submission and presentation of their project (Mwangi, 2012 cited in Thomas, 2000).

How teachers experience PBL

First and foremost, teachers stimulate students through a driving question. They try to capture their interest and “need to know” by engaging them into a compelling project. To continue with, they plan their research, while helping them to understand the problem throughout all the process of research. When needed, they resolve the problems appeared. Finally, they evaluate students during the different steps of the teaching method in order to create an objective and thorough assessment, while leading them to conquering knowledge.

Role of Technology

Technology enables PBL. Students use tools such as word processors, spreadsheets, and databases to perform tasks like outlining, drafting essays, analyzing numerical data, and keeping track of collected information. E-mail, electronic mailing lists, forums, and the online applications facilitate communication and collaboration with the world outside the classroom. The Web provides access to museums, libraries, and remote physical locations for research. Students can create electronic compositions of art, music, or text collaboratively; participate in a simulation or virtual world; and work together to accomplish a real task or to improve global understanding. And all work can be published on the Web for review by real audiences, not just a single teacher, class, or school. Technology plays a role in assessment and evaluation too. For example,students n schools such as Napa New Technology High compile their work electronically for an ongoing portfolio of their creations. At given points, they cull the best from this collection for adult and peer review to demonstrate their learning over time.

PBL and School Reform Introducing and implementing PBL in a traditional school setting can be a complex challenge, requiring a significant change in teachers' approaches to teaching and students' approaches to learning. Communication, teamwork, and time management join math, language, and other subject-area content as new essentials for students. And the teacher's role no longer includes just delivering instruction or expecting students to repeat facts on tests. Instead, it is to offer resources that help students investigate and develop content purposefully and creatively.

According to Al Weis, founder of the ThinkQuest student Web design programs, "When a project promotes serious academic skills, evaluation, assessment, information structuring, and other elements of PBL, students end up working hundreds of hours. with multiple demands of curriculum and standardized testing, it is hard to fit in work that develops and models a real-world working environment and the skills needed the re."Because of these challenges, many schools that actively promote PBL also support a culture of school reform. Bob Pearlman, director of strategic planning at the New technology Foundation, says that because PBL requires both a commitment and a clear understanding of exactly what it is, a broad

Because of an increasing quality concern for higher education, additional attention is being paid to new educational principles with a more student- and competence-centred vision. Project-based education is one of the learning environments congruent with these principles. Ideally, the students in this learning environment are assessed by suitable assessment modes, like peer assessment and co-assessment. This article evaluates this obviousness critically, focusing on how instructors and students perceive these project-based learning environments and group-based assessment methods. The main conclusion is that it seems very difficult to create a complete assessment procedure in which both parties’ assessment expectations are being met. This is due to crucial contradictions in opinions about assessment in project-based education.

Problem based learning

Problem-based approaches to learning have a long history of advocating experience-based education. Psychological research and theory suggests that by having students learn through the experience of solving problems, they can learn both content and thinking strategies. Problem-based learning (PBL) is an instructional method in which students learn through facilitated problem solving. In PBL, student learning centers on a complex problem that does not have a single correct answer. Students work in collaborative groups to identify what they need to learn in order to solve a problem. They engage in self-directed learning (SDL) and then apply their new knowledge to the problem and reflect on what they learned and the effectiveness of the strategies employed. The teacher acts to facilitate the learning process rather than to provide nowledge.

The goals of PBL include helping students develop....

1)flexible knowledge,

2) effective problem-solving skills,

3) SDL skills,

4) effective collaboration skills,

5) intrinsic motivation.

Here we discus the nature of learning in PBL and examines the empirical evidence supporting it. There is considerable research on the first 3 goals of PBL but little on the last 2. Moreover, minimal research has been conducted outside medical and gifted education. Understanding how these goals are achieved with less skilled learners is an important part of a research agenda for PBL. The evidence suggests that PBL is an instructional approach that offers the potential to help students develop flexible understanding and lifelong learning skills Problem-based approaches to learning have a long history. They are one of many instructional approaches that situate learning in a meaning-ful task, such as case-based instruction and project-based learning. In the traditions of Kilpatrick (1918, 1921) and Dewey (1938), these approaches argue for the importance of practical experience in learning. Problem-based learning (PBL) is part of this tradition of meaningful, experiential learning.

In PBL, students learn by solving problems and reflecting on their experiences (Barrows and Tamblyn, 1980). PBL is well suited to helping students become active learners because it situates learning in real-world problems and makes students responsible for heir learning. It has a dual emphasis on helping learners develop strategies and construct knowledge (Cognition and Technology Group at Vanderbilt [CTGV], 1997; Collins et l.1989; Hmeloand Ferrari, 1997; Kolodneret al., 1996).A review of PBL is timely ecause issues of flexible thinking and lifelong learning have come to the fore in iscussions of classroom reform (Bransford at al., 2000; Greenoet al., 1996). PBL is of increasing interest to K–16 educators as demonstrated by widespread publication of books written about PBL (e.g., Duchet al., 2001; Torp and Sage, 2002). Educators are interested in PBL because of its emphasis on active, transferable learning and its potential for motivating students. This article first describes PBL and distinguishes it from other experiential approaches to learning. Second, it discusses the goals of PBL. Third, the PBL tutorial process is discussed in detail. Next, the article examines what we have learned about PBL. In particular, this section examines the research regarding he goals of PBL. Finally, the article discusses the research limitations and avenues for the future.

PBL AND OTHER EXPERIENTIAL APPROACHES

PBL is focused, experiential learning organized around the investigation, explanation, and resolution of meaningful problems (Barrows, 2000;Torp and Sage, 2002). In PBL, students work in small collaborative groups and learn what they need to know in order to solve a problem. The teacher acts as a facilitator to guide student learning through the learning cycle depicted in In this cycle, also known as the PBL tutorial process, the students are presented with a problem scenario. They formulate and analyze the problem by identifying the relevant facts from the scenario. This fact-identification step helps students represent the problem. As students understand the problem better, they generate hypotheses about possible solutions. An important part of this cycle is identifying knowledge deficiencies relative to the problem. These knowledge deficiencies become what are known as the learning issues that students research during their self-directed learning (SDL). Following SDL, students apply their new knowledge and exhibit their potential.

Experiential learning is the key factor of acquiring knowledge through experiencing things. It addresses specific teaching methods, which are believed to achieve a beneficial outcome to the learning ability of students. Project Based Learning is such a modern teaching method. The core idea of Project Based Learning is to connect student's experiences with school life and to provoke serious thinking as students acquire new knowledge. While there are some negative implications related to PBL, the method can leverage the advantages of modern teaching techniques. Finally, through Experiential Learning and in particular through PBL, connection with problems of real world is achieved.

Although the traditional form of education has been with us for some years, experiential education is a modern form of education that appeared in recent years. It focuses on the learning process of the individual and concerns the development of student’s abilities, such as memory, creativity, and sensitivity to achieve knowledge (Mulligan, cited in Boud et al., 1993). Without being too strict about its objective, we can say that “experiential education emphasizes on the significant role that experience plays through the learning process” (Dedouli, 2001: 1). In this way, students benefit from discoveries and experiments by learning through observation and interaction, while at the same time they explore the real world (Dedouli, 2001) from personal or other classmates’ field of interest (Chrysafidis, 2006). Thus, learning is characterized from subjectivity and emotionality (Matsaggouras, 2002). “Experiential learning

A brief history of experiential education

Stemming from a historical basis, it is important to note that early descriptions of experiential education can be found in teaching methods of Socrates who utilized enquiry based practices (Chesters, 2012). However, it is generally accepted that dewey’s “learning by doing” theory and Hann’s “Outward Bound” school during the Second World War, could be characterized as landmarks (Roberts, 2005). Dewey claimed that education is a process of living and not a preparation for future living” (Dewey, 1897: 79), while Hann believed that school should prepare students not only for higher education, but also for life experiences. Thus, he used teaching methods to foster self confidence, cooperation and determination (Stetson, 1941) . Moreover, Chickering’s, min’s, Bloom’s, Friere’s, Gardner’s, and Lewin’s contribution (Vu, 2013) cannot be raed. Piaget has been also acknowledged, since he highlighted the importance of ognitive development, while children interact with the environment (Matsaggouras, 2002). He paved the way of understanding how age can be a key factor in exploring everyday life, while we interact with others (Vu, 2013). Furthermore, it is believed that Montessori’s theory of observation and empirical learning and Bruner’s discovering learning also played significant roles to the history of experiential learning (Vu, 2013). In particular, Maria Montessori supported the idea that education is acquired “not by listening to words, but by experiences upon the environment” (Montessori, 2007:) . More recently, David Kolb helped to popularize the work of Dewey, Lewin and Piaget, through his cyclical model stating that experiential learning is a multi dimensional process. It begins from concrete experience to reflective observation, then to abstract conceptualization to active experimentation (Dunlap et al., 2008). In other words, the first stage is where the learner actively experiences an activity. The second stage is when the learner consciously reflects back on that experience. The third stage is here the learner attempts to conceptualize a theory or a model of what is observed. The fourth stage is where the learner is trying to plan how to test a model or theory or plan for a forthcoming experience.

Discussion and conclusion

To conclude, there are some negative implications related to PBL. Teachers are discouraged of implementing this method, because sometimes they are not experienced, they lack of motivation, or consider PBL as additional activity. Moreover, there are limitations related to length of project’s realization or class periods and syllabus. Even when technology is used, problems of evaluation appear and time available to better promote knowledge is decreased. However, through Experiential Learning and in particular through PBL, connection with problems of real world is achieved. Students develop apart from cognitive skills, significant abilities that could change our world to a better one, while they enhance their learning outcomes.

References

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.Learning from teaching: Exploring the relationship between reform curriculum and equity. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education , 33, 4, 239-258 Boss,S. (2013) .

Project Based Learning: Learning Forum puts PBL Teachers on world stage . Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/world -stage -project-learning-suzie-bossBritish Educational Research Association (2013)

.New National Curriculum in England . Retrieved from https://www.bera.ac.uk/system files/national%20curriculum%20consultation %20 %20framework%20document_0.pdf Boud, D.; Cohen, R. and Walker, D. (1993) .

Using experience for learning Bristol , USA: SRHE and Open University Presshesters, D. (2012).

The Socratic classroom : reflective thinking through collaborative inquiry .Rotterdam, the Netherlands: Sense Publishers Chrysafidis, K. (2006).

Experiential -Communicative teaching, introduction of Project Based. Retrieved from https://www.cal.org/resources/digest/gallow01.html David, J.L. (2008)

What Research Says About/Project-Based Learning .Educational Leadership Teaching Students to Think, 65, 5, 80-82Dedouli, M. (2001) Experiential learning