Anyone with a language arts background out there? If you’ve ever taken a course or attended a professional development seminar on literacy, you know plenty about schema. It’s all about background knowledge. We have to activate the background knowledge that students already have by helping them make connections between that which they already know and that which they’re learning. Boom: schema. For students lacking background knowledge or for those coming from environments where their experiences differ greatly from each other (ESOL students, for example, or those from nonmainstream cultural or ethnic backgrounds), it is our job to help them build it within a motivational, meaningful context. Say it with me: schema.
This is what I love so much about project-based learning--the instant schema. Everyone is starting from nothing, working towards a common end point either as individuals or as a group. The students share in the background knowledge-building experience as the parameters for the project are introduced and the terms and concepts for carrying it out are examined. They all have access to the same information and resources, which means that they’re starting out on an even playing field. Where they go from there, then, is up to them.
And look at the kinds of things they can accomplish! Access to schema not only provides students with a deeper understanding of the material covered in class, but it also prepares them to make connections and apply what they’ve learned within other contexts or experiences. This is project-based learning, as Brian Crosby would like us to understand it.
"Starting from nothing, and working towards a common end as a group". That is a great way to sum up this video/class. It was pretty cool. I loved the amount of energy that we saw. It started with Brian and just spread all over the class. As he interacts with the students, we can see the amount of passion he has. It was just amazing.
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