Methods of Teaching Science-Project Method
Prepared by
SABARISH-P
M.Sc., M.Ed.,
JRF & NET
Assistant
professor in Physical Science, Arafa Institute for Teacher Education
Attur, Thrissur.
It is based on the philosophy of
Pragmatism. Founded by John Dewey.
As a method of teaching, founder is Dr. J.A. Stevenson. Emphasis is to practical, experimental,
instrumental and utilitarian basis.
Philosophies
behind this method are:
1. Children learn better through
association, co-operation and activity.
2. Learning by doing
3. Learning by living, because life is
actually full of projects and we try to carry out these projects every day.
Definitions:
Stevenson
: “A project is a problematic act carried to completion in its natural
setting”.
Kilpatrick
: “A project is a whole - hearted purposeful activity proceeding in a social
environment”.
Ballard
: “A project is a bit of real life that has been imprted into the school”.
Parker
: “A project is a unit of activity in which pupils are made responsible for
planning and purposing”.
Thomas
& Long : “A voluntary undertaking which involves constructive effort or
thought and eventuates into subjective results”.
Basic Principles of the Project
Method:
1. The Principle of Purpose
The activity performed by the pupils
must be significant and of interest to them.
It must be purposeful and combining life with learning.
2. The principle of activity
The pupils are naturally
active. Opportunities should be provided
for them to be active and do things for themselves. They must be kept active mentally as well as
physically and must bear the maximum responsible.
3. The Principle of Reality
This method aims at reproducing real
life situations into the school. Pupils
are given opportunities to exercise their owers in real life situations.
4. The Principle of Freedom
The desire for any activity should
be spontaneous and not forced by the teacher.
It should grow out of pupil’s own purpose and need. They should be free to do and express
themselves.
5. The Principle of Utility
Knowledge should be useful and
practical.
Major steps of the Project Method.
1. Creating
the situation (providing a situation)
Provide for such a situation where
in the pupils feel spontaneous urge to carry out a particular project according
to their needs and interests. The
teacher has to discover the interests, needs, tastes and aptitudes of
children. He may draw the pupil’s
attention to the projects in mind through informal conversation or discussion
as taking out children outside the school.
Thus pupils are brought face to face with the situation.
2. Choosing
the project (Selection of the Project)
The pupils should themselves choose
the subject. Self choice leads to better
results and entail self satisfaction.
Pupils select any one, discuss the various projects, rejects some,
explain others and thus come to a decision.
The teacher should see that the project chosen are of great utility and
satisfy the real need of the pupils and are within their capacity to be
successfully carried out.
3. Planning
Pupil should themselves do the
planning and the teacher is to guide them.
Discussions may be held and each student should be encouraged to express
his views and suggestions. The teacher
may point out the difficulties involved in the carrying out of the
project. Resources and limitations
should be discussed. After such oral
discussion, the detailed plan may be written up by the students in their
project book.
4. Carrying
out the project (Executing)
When the plan is ready, pupils are
to put it to practice. Students themselves should distribute the various items
of duties among themselves according to individual interest and
capacities. Every student must contribute
something towards the successful completion of the project.
A chain of activities are to
performed by the students. They are busy
in collecting information, visiting
various places and pupils, looking up maps, writing letters, referring
library books, observing specimens, studying history, keeping accounts,
calculating prices, inquiring rates, measuring lengths of areas.
The teacher should guide the
students provide necessary information and help them on right lines.
5. Evaluating
No project is complete unless the
work done in it is evaluated. Students
should assess their activities; whether they have been carried out in
accordance with the plan or not, mistakes committed are noted.
6. Recording
(Project Report)
The teacher should keep a complete
record of work how they planned, what discussion were held, how duties were
assigned and finally criticism of their own work and some important point for
future reference.
Distinction between
Heuristic and Project method
|
Heuristic method
|
Project method
|
|
1. More stress on discovery approach
|
1. More stress on
learning by doing
|
|
2. Encourages pupils as far as possible in the
attitude of finding out.
|
2. Encourages a
maximum amount of purposeful activity on the part of pupils.
|
|
3. The school is not brought into intimate
relations with the activities of pupils
|
3. The school is
brought into intimate relations with the activities of pupils.
|
Role of the Teacher
1. The teacher is a friend, philosopher
and guide. He moves about with the
students and does not hesitate to guide and give help wherever need arises.
2. He develops intimate, close and healthy
relations with the students. He
understands and appreciates their problems and helps them to solve as an elder
brother or father.
3. He should learn with the students and
should not claim to know everything.
4. He should help the students in
developing the character and the personality by allowing them to accept
responsibilities and discharge them efficiently.
5. He should provide democratic atmosphere
in the class so that the pupils can express themselves fully without any fear
of the teacher.
6. He should be alert and active all the
time to see that the project is running in its right lines.
7. He should have a thorough knowledge of
individual children so as to allot them work accordingly.
8. He should have initiative, enthusiasm
for learning and should be well-experienced.
Criteria of a Good Project
1. It should be purposeful, useful and
practicable to the daily life of pupils
2. The experience gained should be
fruitful. Activities undertaken must be
completed, knowledge must be gained and lead to further acquisition of
knowledge.
3. The project should cater for the
activities of the pupils.
4. There should be full freedom for the
students to work of their own accord.
5. It should be selected by the active
participation of both pupils and the teacher and a greater part of work will be
done by pupils under the guidance of the teacher.
6. It should be economical and purpose of
the project should be achieved without any waste of money or time.
7. It should be timely and drawn in
relationship with seasons of the year and the interest and need of the
community.
8. It should be challenging
9. It should be feasible.
Types / Kinds of Projects
1. Producers
type-Students
construct materials-models of garden, collect specimens, and seeds
2. Consumers
type-Students
get experience and enjoy by conducting excursions.
3. Problem
type-Solution
to problem to be found out like cause of epidemic, purify water etc.
4. Drill
type-Efficiency in some activity like skill in swimming
and manual work.
Merits
1. The method is in accordance with the
psychological laws of learning.
a) Law
of readiness i.e., pupils are ready to learn creating interest, purpose and
life like situations.
b) Law
of exercise ie., by practice we learn things, self activity on the part of
students create experiences in later life.
c) Law
of effect i.e., child should be
satisfied and feel happy in what he is learning.
2. It promotes co-operative activity and
group interaction.
3. It gives training in a democratic way
of learning and living
4. It gives teacher the dignity of labour
and pupils develop respect and taste for all types of work.
5. Correlation of subjects is achieved
6. It develops initiativeness and self -
activity
7. It affords opportunity to develop
keenness and accuracy of observation.
8. It makes learning natural, spontaneous
and interesting.
9. It sets up a ‘challenge’ to solve and
thus stimulates constructive and creative thinking.
Demerits
1. Projects absorb large amount of time
and can be used as a part of science work only.
2. It gives the children superficial
knowledge of so many things but leaves an insufficient basis of sound
fundamental principles.
3. Planning and carrying out projects involves
much more work on the part of the teacher than with their usual methods.
4. Larger projects in the hands of
unexperienced and unskilled teacher lead to boredom.
5. It pre-supposes that the teacher is a
master of all subjects and has an all-round knowledge of everything to impart
correlation. But it is practically
impossible.
6. Text books written on these lines are
not easily available.
7. It is expensive, for the students will
have to bear the expenses of excursions, outdoor activities, purchase or
material.
8. In this method, teaching is not well
organised, regularised and continous, whole time table is almost upset.
9. It is difficult to teach all topics in
this way.
