Project Based Learning that Includes Students in the Planning Process
The Parameters
In my leave replacement position, working as the lead teacher in an alternative learning environment (ALE), I have been tasked with planning a 6 week, project-based unit that will guide the students through a standards-based novel study, incorporating a visual art credit. We will read aloud one novel and make art, culminating in student portfolios and a collaborative art exhibition.
The Pedagogy:
Student-driven inquiry
The Prompting:
To get started putting together the unit, I used Chat Gpt to source book options that I could present to my students. Using the chatbot I was able to consider the specific standards I had selected for English and Visual Arts, how long it would take to read various books aloud and what connection to art or the creative process the story included.
I chose to use a highly accurate piece of historical fiction because I wanted my students to think about the influence of art on culture and vice versa, so I was able to filter through using prompts around this criteria as well.
I then used the chat to make bulleted lists that would act as elevator pitches to my students about each book, in language that was digestible and sparked interest.
The Planning
Finally I put together a survey of my top 4 suggestions from the chat for my students to vote on. It has only been one day, and about half of my students have yet to vote, but there is already a clear leader.
Based on the student surveys, we will have a group discussion to finalize the book selection.
Including my students in the planning process is vitally important to me, both theoretically and practically. In this instance, it is an alternative setting attempting to provide students with a more flexible and nuanced approach to learning - the approach is meant to be communal. It is a small community, with a few adults and a dozen or fewer kids on any given day. It would be in direct opposition of the pedagogical philosophy of the program to directly dictate what book the unit will be based around.
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