Project Based Learning in Year 7

[theshivers]

Does anyone have any comments about project based learning for their children in Y7? My son's school is rolling it out this year. It is 10 hours a week of the timetable. The aims of the project are to create resilient and independent students capable of thinking and working for themselves. The majority of the time is unsupervised and we have been to an exhibition tonight (to display the first project's results). My son's work was frankly very underwhelming although there were other children who had produced fantastic work. I had felt my son had just not pulled his finger out (he is quite bright but is a boy and will get away with the bare minimum if allowed!) but a lot of the parents from my son's primary school are very unhappy at the results of the evening.

I am in a head/heart situation. I can see the school's objectives but I just am not convinced the reality is matching up to the theories. And really shouldn't they be doing more than 2 hours of maths a week?

Does anyone on here have any experiences PBL that they would be willing to share, good or bad?

Thank you very much.

The local free school which has just opened has adopted this method.

My friends with kids there are very, very nervous about this approach but are sitting tight for now hoping that once it all settles down it will work.

The school day is longer so no one can quite work out why there's very little maths compared with 'normal' secondaries.

My daughter's school does something slightly different. They get set homework every week in languages and maths and every other subject is an independent learning task which are like projects and they have about 3/4 weeks to complete each so have to schedule what they need to do and when. As it was new to the school last year, they constantly asked for feedback from parents, so this is something your son's school may do in the future.

One thing, don't compare your son's work to anyone else's. I saw some fantastic work at my daughter's school and her friends have made some great things, and I worried. However, my daughter always gets an A or B, or G+ (top mark under that system with a + for effort), so she's obviously doing what's expected. It may be the others are talking about things more at home and are been given ideas, but it's best it comes from your son (unless he asks for help).

Ds school does this for Yr 7 & 8; but only for humanities and they have an 'action plan' where they have to write the key features that they need to cover in each project. I'd be concerned at only 2 hours a week maths.

hahaha we had it and it was SO SO AWFUL we hated it.
It takes an incredible amount of work to make good and tbh they need TEACHING

its very in fashion - lots of us are a bit about it - the display seems ot be vital.
tbh in maths i would be worried