HIGHER THINKING SKILLS THROUGH IT-BASED PROJECTS

IT-BASED PROJECTS
              - represent constructivist projects, containing the key elements of a constructivist approach to instruction, namely:

• the teacher creating the learning environment 
• the teacher giving students the tools and facilities
• the teacher facilitating learning

             " ...it is the students themselves who demonstrate  higher thinking skills and creativity through such activities searching for information , organizing and synthesizing ideas, creating presentations, and the like."




I. RESOURCE-BASED PROJECTS
                 - The teacher steps out of the traditional role of being a content expert and information provider, and instead lets the students find their own facts and information.

The general flow of events in Resource-based Projects are:
         1. The teacher determines the topic for the examination of the class (e.g. the definition of "man")
         2. The teacher presents the problem to the class.
         3. The students find information on the problem/questions.
         4. Students organize their information in response to the problem/questions.

Central Principle: 
          a. To make the students go beyond the textbook and curriculum materials.
          b. Students are encouraged to go to the library, particularly to the modern extension of the modern library, the INTERNET.
 
                -The Inquiry-based/ discovery approach is given importance. This requires that the students, individually or cooperatively with members of his group, relate gathered information to the real world.

Difference between the traditional and resource-based learning approach to instruction:
A. TRADITIONAL LEARNING MODEL

• teacher is expert and information provider
• textbook is key source of information
• focus on facts information is packaged in neat parcels
• the product is the be-all and end-all of learning 
• assessment is quantitative

B. RESOURCE-BASED LEARNING MODEL

• teacher is a guide and facilitator
• sources are varied (print, video, Internet, etc.)
• focus on learning inquiry/quest/discovery
• emphasis on process
• assessment is quantitative and qualitative

II. SIMPLE CREATIONS
                  -Students are assigned to create their software materials to supplement the need for relevant and effective materials.
                  -In developing software, creativity as an outcome should not be equated with ingenuity or high intelligence. Creating is more consonant with planning, making, assembling, designing, or building.

Three kind of skills/abilities in Creativity:

1. ANALYZING- distinguishing similarities and difference/ seeing the project as a problem to be solved
2. SYNTHESIZING- making spontaneous connections among ideas, thus generating interesting or new ideas
3. PROMOTING- selling of new ideas to allow the public to test the ideas themselves

FIVE KEY TASKS TO DEVELOP CREATIVITY:

1. Define the task. Clarify the goal of the completed project to the student.
2. Brainstorm. The students themselves will be allowed to generate their own ideas on the project. Rather than shoot down ideas, the teacher encourages idea exchange.
3. Judge the ideas. The students themselves make an appraisal for or against any idea. Only when students are completely off track should the teacher intervene.
4. Act. The students do their work with the teacher a facilitator.
5. Adopt flexibility. The students should be allowed to shift gears and not follow an action path rigidly.

III. GUIDED HYPERMEDIA PROJECTS

   - The production of self-made multimedia projects can be approached in two different ways: 

1.  As an instructive tool , such as in the production by students of a power-point presentation of a selected topic.
2. As a communication tool, such as when students do a multimedia presentation (with text, graphs, photos, audio narration, interviews, video clips, etc. to simulate a television news show.

IV. WEB-BASED PROJECTS

               - Students can be made to create and post web pages on a given topic. But creating web pages, even single page web pages, may be too sophisticated and time consuming for the average student.

               - Posting web pages in the Internet allows he students (web page creator) a wider audience. They can also be linked with other related sites in the Internet. But as of now, this creativity project may be to ambitious as a tool in the teaching-learning process.

Source: Educational Technology 2
             by Paz I. Lucido
             pages 46-54