Positively Impacting Perception
Are 5th graders from Escola Concept Ribeirão Preto able to perceive, through their Individual Projects, the way they can positively impact their community?
General topic of interest
One of the most valued aspects of Concept’s education is the applicability of the projects content amidst the community. The intention here is to investigate if the Individual Projects students are developing are effective on making them aware of this aspect mentioned above.
I’m very fond of this topic as I highly value their engagement in real world issues above many other aspects. I believe that longlife learners and entrepreneurs should intrinsically search for solutions for their surrounding problems, starting with their community’s.
Cover of an Individual Project made by a Grade 5 student.
Participants
Mainly 5th grade students. In parallel, 5th and 4th grade teachers were consulted as well to provide their perception upon this matter.
Grades 4 and 5 teachers were surveyed to bring more statistics to this research.
Grades 4 and 5 teachers were surveyed to bring more statistics to this research.
Grades 4 and 5 teachers were surveyed to bring more statistics to this research.
Grades 4 and 5 teachers were surveyed to bring more statistics to this research.
Grades 4 and 5 teachers were surveyed to bring more statistics to this research.
Data collecting approach
I used my observation during the development of the students' projects and also two research surveys were applied, regarding the students perception by the end of their first and second Individual Project presentations. Another survey was adressed to the teachers who participated and helped orient students throughout the blooming of their projects.
Data collecting example
I have observed the way they cope with the possibilities of having an impact in community through their Individual Projects 1 and 2. We also discussed this among our group of teachers. The survey we had by the end of their first IP was used for data collection as well as the one we employed by the end of the second one. Using the notion of the "pre and post" surveys presented to Concept's educators during the PDs with Damian Bebell.
When asked for the first time, after Individual Projects 1, how they described the act of developing a project, 36.2% responded that Projects could solve real life issues in their communities.
When asked for the second time, after Individual Projects 2, how they described the act of developing a project, 57.1% responded that Projects could solve real life issues in their communities.
Emerging results
In order to represent the whole survey, we can see that in the first survey shows me that most of the students (66%) consider making individual project to be quite important and a notable part of them (36%) do believe that through these projects they can help solving real life problems. On the second survey, just after they’d finished presenting Individual Projects 2, 57.1% responded that Projects could solve real life issues in their communities.
Reflections
One of the main aspects that I was able to observe, either through data or in-class, was that educators have an important task: to guide students to reach - by themselves - the realization that they are in charge of making choices to help their surroundings, like their community. And the best way to do it is by having students’ topics of interest as entry points.
Next steps
The research action will continue next year. The group of teachers involved in conducting these Individual Projects, including me, have had already in mind that in 2021 - depending on the possibilities - we’ll take these to the “next level”: make them group projects in which the students will take the lead on solving a problem in school and/or in our community.
