Student Roles in Projects
Think about a unit or project that you have taught in the past. How would the outcome change if you emphasize specific success skills for Digital Age Learners along with academic learning goals?
Here’s an example to inspire your thinking (from Reinventing Project-Based Learning, 3rd Ed.)
Douglas Kiang teaches at Punahao School in Oahu, Hawaii. For a recent project, his high school students used digital tools to team up with native students from the Big Island who are studying the Hawaiian language. As it turns out, the language includes dozens of words for rain, many specific to different parts of each island. Some words even depend on which direction a person is facing! Working together as Computational Thinkers, students from the two schools developed an app that uses GPS to identify where a user is and displays in native Hawaiian the names for the kinds of rain one finds there. Their product helps to preserve the Hawaiian language and celebrates Hawaiian culture.
Academic outcomes of the project include understanding Hawaiian language and culture as well as learning about coding and geography. But the project would not have been successful if students hadn’t also taken on the role of Global Collaborator. Digital tools enabled students to connect with learners from a variety of backgrounds and cultures (ISTE Standard for Students 7a) and contribute constructively to project teams to work effectively toward a common goal (7c).
In this example, technology isn’t simply added on at the end as a “dessert project.” It’s essential for students to solve a challenging problem by working effectively with others. Students carry these success skills with them long after the project ends.