META Projects Project Based Learning. When all the stars align.
- Daun Yorke
- Mar 27, 2018
- 3 min read
Even if we cannot see the constellations in the night sky, we know they are up there. We know that there is a constellation called Orion and when we see that magnificent hour-glassed configuration above us, our knowledge is evidence-based; we bear witness to the alignment with our own eyes. Often, not visible to us due to the sun’s location or weather conditions, we just have to trust that the constellation is there and that the stars have not fallen out of alignment.
Credner, Till. “Visual Constellations A Photographic Field Guide.” Visual Constellation Photos
- Constellations - Digital Images of the Sky, www.allthesky.com/constellations/visualconstellations.html.
As educators, we sometimes have to make that same leap of faith with our students. We have to trust that learning aligns even though we are not directing it or it is not always visible to us. With project-based learning (PBL), when we allow students to lead the learning and pursue their passions, we need to trust that there is alignment and transfer is happening along the way. Through their projects, students may be charting some unknown territories where their teachers may not have- “boldly gone before.”1 Our role is to set up the right conditions for self-directed learning in our classrooms so the learning is significant and meaningful for the students.
This year, we decided to introduce and implement student-led projects at our school. Some creative timetabling was designed for four grades of the secondary school (MYP1 to MYP4) to have two hours per week to individually pursue their passions through a project of their choice over a six-month period. To start this off, we looked at some rocket-fuelled businesses (like Google, LinkedIn, Apple) who have given employees time to pursue projects independently within the work week. The results have been empowering for employees in some cases and buy-in has increased. We researched PBL in schools and looked at schools that carved time out of the week for student-centred initiatives with positive outcomes.
After initial sharing and discussions, teachers brainstormed and set up some parameters for how this would work within our context. Student leaders then took some time reading the parameters, responding to them and taking ownership by naming the project. After some debate and deliberation, the students decided on the name: META Projects. (Metacognitive Enterprise Task Adventures).
Teachers setting up parameters for projects
Three months in to the project, we can see that there are some students who struggle with the open-ended aspect of PBL and are making slower progress while other students are thriving. Much of the success of the projects comes down to the teachers in the classroom who are supervising. Walking into classrooms where students are deeply engaged in their projects, you can hear music playing in the background and see students focused on tasks they have set themselves. Some students appear to be in their own orbits of isolated focus whereas others talk quietly to peers while working. There is synergy in these classrooms and focus is intentional.
The teacher in the room is a guide and an important presence. In one classroom, you can hear the teacher say, “Make sure you state your learning intentions for this hour and comment on the achievement of your intentions at the end.” The teacher circulates and discusses progress with individual students throughout the period. In another classroom, a teacher reminds students to focus on their ATL (Approaches To Learning) skill/s for that week. The students choose to reflect on skills such as self-management, research, thinking, social, communication each week as they work on their projects. Their progress towards these skills is documented in their hard-bound journals.
We are near the halfway mark of our initial run of META Projects at the school. A staff meeting was dedicated to teacher sharing where one teacher shared some of her strategies for success. This coming week, we have both a parent coffee event where students will share some of their successes with parents, and an assembly where mid-project reflections will be shared between students.
This is a journey for our school where we truly are charting new territory, collectively. It is a journey that honours voice and choice and it is the truest form of differentiated learning that we have embarked on. In June, we will showcase the projects for our school community, shining light on the outcomes and importantly, the process. With Orion in full view in the summer sky, students will share the navigation of independent projects over the past six months.
1. Star Trek. NBC. 22 September. 1966. Television
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