Projects Pedagogy
Projects Pedagogy emerged at Solar Integral School three years ago, when Professor Rafael Betencourt brought PUC History graduation students to be tutors of projects focused on the same subject for 8th and 9th grade students.
In 2016, Solar Integral School adopted the Project Pedagogy in its curriculum for all classes of Elementary School II, from the 6th to the 9th year, covering all Formal Education subjects.
Students can choose the themes of the projects that they will work. Theme choice is the first step. Later, they assemble with their tutors – always professors – a research script on the subject, talk to specialists (teachers of subjects related to the subject) and return to their tutor for prototyping, when they make experiments and tests about it. Finally, they complete the project and share their entire process with the other students.
Currently, in the academic year, 2 bimonths are held with formal classes and 2 bimonths with Projects Pedagogy, in which students’ autonomy, self-discipline, organization, sense of collectivity and deadlines are mainly worked on.
The goal is that each student works 4 projects per bimester, reaching up to 8 projects completed in the school year. All students undergo a rigorous monitoring of their tutor, including the planning of each student’s school day, so that it is possible to complete their project within the stipulated deadline. In the end, each student will have his or her overall portfolio.
Topics ideas are usually related to a topic that interests the student or even a community problem that needs to be solved. Thais, student of the 8th year, for example, wants to be a doctor. She has already made a replica of the human brain, focusing her research on subjects such as the nervous and the circulatory system. Paulo, student of 9th year, worked at a cistern to explore rainwater for the community where he lives. Construction has now been completed and is now enters the testing phase. There are still projects working themes such as strawberry planting, slavery, volcanoes and rockets.
Solar Integral School also holds weekly assemblies where students discuss – per class – school daily problems. So, Responsibility Groups were created. In these groups, students empower themselves with the problems discussed at the meeting and solve them on their own, increasingly developing their autonomy.
