By Ralph Dickerson

Over the summer 30 teachers from the Hancock County school system, comprised of teachers from all four schools, received training from the Buck Institute on implementing Project Based Learning in their classrooms.

Project Based Learning is much more than just “doing projects,” HancockCounty Board of Education Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Gina Biever said. Project Based Learning is an entirely different mindset in how to teach students to learn vital core standards.

Traditionally, no matter the subject area, the teacher conveyed the needed information to students by various means such as lecture, video clips or groups of students working together. In Project Based Learning, the teacher does not impart the knowledge to the student, instead the teacher helps the student discover the information needed to complete a project. As such, in PBL the teacher designs lesson plans “that will enable students to work around a driving question or theme to engage them in complex thinking,” Biever said. These projects incorporate nearly all subject areas in them, math, science, history, language arts, in a real world manner to help teach students how each subject area relates and interacts.

“Throughout the process students will research, plan, collaborate, create, inquire, have authentic tasks relevant to their interests, express their own voice, make choices, reflect critique, revise, share and ultimately produce a public product,” Biever said.

The funding for this training came from the Learning and Leading Grant recently implemented by the Hancock County Board of Education.

The purpose of this grant is to help teachers in the school system to implement “innovative research, strategies and technologies in our classrooms,” Biever said.

the Hancock County Board of Education. Laura Szefi updated board of education members on the training she and other teachers received from the Buck Institute.