#2

Description: On Wednesday, Mr U’s students were finishing their Imperialism projects.  Presentations were scheduled to begin on Thursday.  Some groups were putting the finishing touches on four weeks of work, while other groups were doing the entire project in one day.  I sat down with two students whose assignment from their group was to create a brochure to serve as one aspect of a “trade show” presentation about their chosen country.  They had not started anything yet, but, by the end of the period, they had a completed brochure that really impressed the other group members.

Analysis: I am not really sure if the students that waited until the last day to start really benefited from this project.  There are obviously a few students who do not belong in this type of class.  It doesn’t seem like anybody in the class really learned much about the Imperialism, but I do believe that the students who worked hard on their projects did benefit.  They learned some things about imperialism in general and, more importantly, had the opportunity to practice skills like problem solving, critical thinking, group work and time-management.  Since this particular class is English and History together, these skills are very important to teach.

Reflection: This week I saw first hand the instructive value of projects, and I look forward this semester to learning more about how to best manage them as a teacher.  For instance, in the future, when I assign an extended project to my students, I will have small due dates along the way so that I can track their progress and direction.

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