Project Based Learning & Community Involvement

Kagan and Associates

Mary Lyn Kagan

2008

Project Based Learning & Youth Development Concepts

• Works within Youth Development framework

• Provides mechanism for youth gaining skills and competencies

• Provides real world application to learning

• Builds their skills, engagesyouth, encourages positive relationships

• Provides a linkage between youth, school, families and community

Youth Development Practices

Supports & Opportunities

•Relationship building

•Practical support

•Youth participation - Input, decision making

•Leadership opportunities

•Skill building

•Community involvement

Your Role In Project-Based Learning

• You take on the role of facilitator, mediator, supporter, and mentor

• Assist with decision making process, don’t do it for them

• Supervise, assess, and evaluate youths’ development towards project’s goal and completion

• Encourage their “stretching” to grow

Components of Project Based Learning

Component Activity

What Choose Topic

Who Identify Team Members, Targeted Audience & Community Served

Where Location of Activities

How Develop Communication Plan, Brainstorm Assumptions, Risks, Constraints and Costs

When Develop Schedule/Timeline

Management Monitoring of team, communication, schedule, potential risks to project, etc.

Evaluation On-going assessment of project’s activities Final evaluation report

Component - What• Students identify their project topic.

– Generate a list of potential projects– Identify what subject or curriculum

requirements each potential project will meet; which one meets overall requirements best

– Which potential project will be the most meaningful to community, school, etc.

– Encourage students to think about how they can add something of themselves to the project

WHO - Identify Team Members

• What will the team be required to do?

• What opportunities will students have to make joint decisions?

• What should the team size be?

• How will each member be able to contribute to the group?

WHOStudents Identify Who

Targeted Audience Is– Discuss the purpose of

knowing who targeted audience is?

– How broadly or narrowly is this defined?

– How many people will be served?

– How much will the targeted audience already know about subject?

Students Identify Community To Serve– Will this be a project

benefiting the entire school?

– Will this be a project benefiting the parents or the immediate community?

– Will this reach Internet users?

WHERE

• Where will the project activities take place?

• Will most of the work take place at your site?

• Will surveys be needed?

• Will the project end with an event?

HOW

• Develop how communication will take place

• Brainstorm activities needed to have a successful project

• Identify any constraints, assumptions, and risks

• What costs may be realized?

WHEN

Develop your project timeline and proposed schedule:

• What will need to be done when

• What assumptions and constraints have been identified that may affect your timeline?

• How will this be monitored to make sure everyone stays on task or receives needed assistance to meet the proposed finish date?

MANAGEMENT

• Determine your method of managing participants’ projects

• Outline your management practices and their collective responsibilities towards these

• Discuss internal management of their projects and assist each group in determining their management practices.

Group Leader

Finances MarketingRecorder

EVALUATION

0

10

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30

40

50

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70

80

Number Installed

OakParkElderCreekLemonHill

• What will be evaluated

• Your evaluation criteria

• Participants’ individual project criteria

• Reflection at end of projects

Smoke Detectors Installed

Kagan and Associates

Mary Lyn Kagan

Owner/CEO

kagan.cis@comcast.net

916-448-4118

Training – Project Management

Education/Nonprofit Consultant