PLACE BASED EDUCATION, ASSESSMENT AND PROJECT BASED LEARNING 1

Place-Based Education, Assessment and Project Based Learning – A Defense of Practice

Stephanie Draeger
11185826
EFDT 315 – Christopher Clark
University of Saskatchewan: College of Education
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Introduction
This paper is to demonstrate and rationalize my teaching pedagogies and support my
practice with research as well as evidence of student success as a result of these pedagogies in
use. Although my hope as an educator will be to maintain relationships with students, parents
and administration that does not require me to provide this paper, I understand that research is
often needed to supply confidence in certain aspects of teaching that are nontraditional or take
place out of classroom. The pedagogies that will be discussed are formative assessment, critical
place based education, and project based learning. These are the broad areas that will be
discussed and encompass subsequent aspects of teaching that I support and plan to embody
throughout my teaching career. Conventional education is not something that needs to be
eliminated as a whole, however, progressive changes are needed to help all students succeed.
Educating my students in an inclusive environment with a focus on awareness of land history
and their place in ecological settings will guide the re-inhabitation of environmental roots and
encourage agency on what is to happen into the future.

Critical Pedagogy of Place

The pedagogy in regard to placed based education that I most support is critical pedagogy
of place. This discipline combines and balances two elements of education that work together to
create a teaching methodology bringing elements of history into a progressive present-day
nature, creating students who are aware and knowledgeable of why ecology matters in the urban
context. Explaining the significance of place in education is something I hope to exemplify
rather than communicate. However, there is ample reasons why this aspect matters in education
in order to justify the practice. Place in education creates interdependence between students and
their environment. Not only does this directly relate to Saskatchewan Curriculum; Broad Areas
of Learning, it also contributes to successful citizens outside of the academic world. The
interconnection and power patterns in multicultural society is supported through the use of place
based education. Canada prides itself in being a multicultural country therefore this is an integral
part of how education should be conducted in our society. This interdependence establishes a
holistic view of education. According to Gruenewald, place in education is needed for citizens to
have bearing on the places they inhabit (Gruenewald, 2003). This is important because of the
need for reconciliation in Saskatchewan and the knowledge to be gained from simply identifying
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yourself in regard to your environment and the land on which you live. Place based education
facilitates reconciliation in numerous ways. It allows for recognition to take place in student’s
learning of the traditional knowledge that has been lost in Canada’s oppressive history,
Gruenewald expands, “critical pedagogy represents a transformational education response to
institutional and ideological domination” (Gruenewald, 2003, pg. 4). This awareness of the
dominant nature of mainstream education leads to preservation of traditional knowledge and
provides hope that no more of it will be lost in the righteousness of Canada’s past. By blending
the traditions, I as an educator, would be actively moving towards reconciliation. Race, gender
and class oppression need to be transformed and conserved by students because that is who will
be sustaining these changes into the future (Gruenewald, 2003). Place based education works in
all three of these areas by supporting awareness of oppression and place within the larger society.
It is a form of social justice education that places upmost importance on the land on which we
live our lives. The learning that occurs in place based education cannot be simulated in the
classroom.
This pedagogy can be facilitated through the shared goals of “mapping, empathy and
exploration” being pursued by the teacher (Gruenewald, 2003, pg. 8). This involves open-
mindedness as well as ample forethought into each practice to be brought into the classroom by
the educator. The teacher must actively change the definition of school achievement to embody
importance of community life. Movement away from traditional textbooks that encourage
conformity and often represent a single perspective in regard to culture can be altered using place
based education to encourage reading “the texts of our own lives” (Gruenewald, 2003, pg. 11).
This requires connections to be made by the instructor in order to fulfill curriculum, however the
use of place will allow relevance to be certain to the students rather than applying historic
knowledge and content with no context of why or how it should matter to them. If students can
see themselves in their education and the educator can make learning relevant by utilizing critical
place based education, students will be active participants in their education and depict
engagement, motivation and success through it. “A critical pedagogy must be a pedagogy of
place, that is, it must address the specificities of the experiences, problems, languages, and
histories that communities rely upon a construct a narrative of collective identity and possible
transformation” (MacLaren & Giroux, 1990, p. 263). An educator of this pedagogy, as I am
working towards, has the overall goal of grounding education in a social and ecological context.
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Both critical and place pedagogies are needed in balance to combine ecological and rural
content with social and urban context (Gruenewald, 2003). This balance will not only teach
students to appreciate their place but make connections as to why it is crucial in their futures.
Connecting past with present and future needs to take place to retain valuable information and
prevent loss moving forward. The goal is to move away from standardizing all students from
various cultures in order to have them compete in the same way for the post-academic
experience (Gruenewald, 2003, pg. 7). This expectation of conformity is a large concern in
education today. Classrooms are more diverse than ever, presenting various needs, learning
styles and cultural academic differences that need proper addressing rather than upped
expectation of conformity. Using place to create community and allow diversity in learning is
needed now more than ever. Critical place based education guides students to challenge the
dominant culture and use education and knowledge to gain control of how students identify
within the larger picture. The discipline is inherently multidisciplinary and experiential, allowing
for abundant education to be taking place during a single activity or learning experience. What
each individual student gains from a practice can vary greatly and contribute to the common goal
of the classroom and teacher, that being, success in learning. This pedagogy supports teachers
taking a background role and allowing student agency to facilitate learning. This ideology has
been proven to me through experiences at both Brightwater Eco Center and Gym Blast activity.
The educators who allow their students to lead their own learning and care more about the
learning process rather than the outcomes have the most successful classrooms. Students utilize
self-assessment, collaboration and peer assessment to develop real life skills while
simultaneously accomplishing educational goals that are common between student and teachers
alike. The experiences of place education nurture inquiry, which is directly related to the second
pedagogy discussed.

Assessment
Formative assessment used in the classroom as opposed to traditional grading or
assessment of learning has ample evidence supporting the benefits for students learning, growing
and motivation throughout their school experience. Comment based assessment methods will be
used in my practice to encourage improvement rather than competition amongst students.
Revision and resubmission are two strategies that will be used for majority of assignments. This
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methodology has a priority of learning without the structures or restrictedness of simple grading.
Students being able to view comments on assignments, projects, etc. prior to receiving a mark
facilitates learning without placing an emphasis on a competitive grade. Should learning not be
the sole purpose of education? The traditional system, I believe, has a focus on learning but has
strayed from this purpose in its use and priority of grades. This strategy of comment based
grading and allowance for resubmission will be used in my classroom because of its reciprocal
nature and focus on student learning. This pedagogy is reciprocal because of the impact it has on
teachers as well as students. When students are able to view comments, respond to them and
resubmit based on formative feedback they are inherently guiding teachers on how to improve
their teaching as well as learning from their mistakes creating cyclical assessment.
In “Working Inside the Black Box: Assessment for Learning in the Classroom”,
researchers explain the effectiveness of the educator when comments, feedback and questioning
are used successfully in the classroom. When commenting on assignments or projects, three
areas are to be regarded. Those being, recognition of what was done well, what needs
improvement, and explicit strategies or next steps regarding how to make those improvements,
the last aspect of guidance being the most often overlooked. “Assessment methods that teachers
use are not effective in promoting good learning” (Black, et al, 2004, pg. 9).. This strategy
supports self-assessment by allowing students to view their feedback prior to receiving a grade.
Why provide comments rather than a grade? “The need to motivate students is evident, but it is
often assumed that offering such extrinsic rewards as grades, gold stars, and prizes is the best
way to do it. However, there is ample evidence to challenge this assumption” (Black, et al, 2004,
pg. 18). Research shows that students who receive simply a grade or a grade alongside
comments, do not grow, they instead compare their grade with others and have no ambition to
improve. “Students who are told that feedback ‘will help you to learn’ learn more than those who
are told that ‘how you do tells us how smart you are and what grades you get’” (Black, et al,
2004, pg. 18). Feedback generates motivation in students that a grade cannot. The only feedback
proven to be unsuccessful is that that implies judgment, which leads into how this pedagogy will
be implemented.
The instructors’ role in my classroom will be to provide feedback that comments on
successes, areas of improvement and how to achieve said improvement without commenting on
factors the student is not in control of. This being because I believe students should have agency
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over their education and the realization of this agency will motivate students for success. To
facilitate this pedagogy a teacher must plan questions, activities and ways to support learning
ahead of time. The environment of the classroom will begin as a learning environment, as
opposed to a classroom devoted to grade success and high achievement. This must be established
from the beginning and the process of scaffolding will take place to ensure student understanding
of expectations in regard to assessment. On assignments, feedback will be provided with the next
steps explicitly outlined to facilitate growth. Collaboration will be demanded, “changing the
‘classroom contract’ so that all expect that teacher and students work together for the same
end…by empowering students to become active learners thus taking responsibility for their own
learning” (Black, et al, 2004, pg. 20). This alteration of traditional roles creates an environment
for the student to flourish and display improvement, without a focus on grade
improvement/achievement alone.

Project Based Learning

Project based learning is a student driven, teacher facilitated model that supports the
80/20 concept used in numerous schools today. The 80/20 model focuses on maximizing time as
a teacher and gaining success for your students while allowing them to take responsibility for
their learning. Project based learning allows students to ask questions and come to conclusions
on their own, while the instructors job is to facilitate, scaffold and bridge gaps in their learning
process. How a student chooses to display their growth and learning is entirely up to them.
Project based learning is supported in my classroom for the facilitation of success for all learning
preferences and individual learning needs. It is proven that student choice in project based
learning results in higher motivation and willingness to learning. Student motivation comes with
the action of wanting to learn, and therefore evidence shows that they will challenge themselves
to obtain information, “student motivation to learn their discipline and their willingness to work
on their projects [for] longer hours indicate that they behave …like high achievers” (Doppelt,
2003, pg. 264). This “high-achieving” attitude is what educators strive for in their students,
project based learning facilitates this by implementing supporting attitudes such as intrinsic
motivation, engagement, and an overall goal of educational success. Project based learning
attends to every student need naturally. Conversations with experts in this field have allowed me
to discuss explicit success in this nature. Brad ___ discussed with me the “natural
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differentiation” that occurs in project based learning. This conversation led me to research the
facts behind this concept and the results were nothing but congruent. “Students use resources that
are appropriate for their individual reading levels and compatible with their technology
knowledge…students will often reach higher and attempt to read more challenging material to
glean the information they seek” (Bell, 2010, pg. 41). By allowing students the freedom to take
charge of their learning, success can take place without the tedious effort of the instructor to
comply to every student’s learning preference. They are naturally guided towards resources that
best support their learning whether that be audio, visual, etc. Project based learning supports the
ability of the student to realize their learning preference and how to reach a common goal
between themselves and their education/educators. The curriculum connections and outcomes
met through project based learning are not forced, nor desperate attempts. Project based learning
balances curricular outcomes with real life skills creating educated, collaborative citizens not just
grade competitive students, “Students flourish under this child-driven, motivating approach to
learning and gain valuable skills that will build a strong foundation for their future in our global
economy” (Bell, 2010, pg. 39).
Project based learning relies heavily on the ability for the instructor to scaffold their
students. That is, providing ample guidance for students to succeed while continuing this process
eventually leading to the student taking responsibility for their learning individually, “scaffolded
instruction refers to the supports provided to students to assist them in making cognitive growth
just beyond their reach” (bell, 2010, pg. 41). In project based learning this involves questioning
and feedback that guides the student to their highest potential, making suggestions and bridging
gaps in knowledge in order to form a learning community that can succeed with little guidance in
the future. Providing support for good decisions and corrections to bad decisions facilitates an
environment that is accepting of mistakes as long as they are learnt from. “The opportunity to
make mistakes is part of the learning process. When we implement PBL, we allow children to
discover who they are as learners. They become able to make better choices…which enables
them to become more independent and responsible for their own learning” (Bell, 2010, pg. 41).
This is the environment I envision for my future students to independently gain success through
project based learning.
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Conclusion
A critical pedagogy of place, comment based assessment and project based learning are
three of the main pedagogies I plan to use in my teaching. Ample research supports these
teaching strategies and exemplifies to me the successes I can provide my students with if used
correctly. Place based education encompasses so much more than what is displayed here,
however, the practices I plan to use are outlined and supported with scholarly evidence. My
future classroom will not deny all conventional aspects of education; however, I am aware that
how classrooms have been running traditionally does not work effectively for all, or even, most
students. This defense of practice paper is vital to provide to any skeptical or simply curious
colleagues, parents or students. However, in conclusion, this is something I hope not to use.
Student-teacher relationships, parent-teacher relationships and administration-teacher
relationships is something I believe in heavily. If correct communication takes place and time is
spent on my, as an educator’s part, this paper will simply be for my own reference, reminder and
safe-keeping. Creating an environment in which learning styles, teaching methodologies and the
common goal of success are shared between teachers, students and administration is my goal.
This safe learning space will allow me to create motivation and engaged students who show their
successes not in their grade, but in their growth to all members of skepticism as a response to
doubt or disbelief.
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References

Black, P., Harrison, C., Lee, C., Marshall, B., & William, D. (2004). Working Inside the Black
Box: Assessment for Learning in the Classroom. The Phi Delta Kappan, 86(1), 8-21.

Gruenewald, D. (2003). The Best of Both Worlds: A Critical Pedagogy of Place. Educational
Researcher, 32(4), 3-12.

Bell, S. (2010). Project-Based Learning for the 21st Century: Skills for the Future. The Clearing
House, 83(2), 39-43.
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Criteria Specifics

Instructor
Assessment Codes:
M = met the expectation
I = some improvement needed in the future
DN = did not meet the expectation

Self
NA = not applicable
E = exceeded the expectation
Formatting Ideas are organized M
and Thoughts are expressed fluently and coherently M
Language Grammar and language mechanics are correct M
Use APA format is used properly for all citations and quotes M
Student name and number is clear and easy to read on a front title M
page
Information Clear explanation of why and how you feel that place matters in E
education
Research is identified and used effectively to support your M
explanation of why and how place matters.
Clear identification of which teaching pedagogies you intend to use M
in your teaching practice.
Clear and brief description of how you are going to use these M
pedagogies in your practice.
Clear and detailed explanation of why you are going to use the E
pedagogies including:
1. Clear description of the positive outcomes for students that M
result from the identified pedagogies
2. Clear description of what things in the pedagogy facilitate M
those positive outcomes
3. Research is identified and used effectively to support your M
explanation of why you are going to use those pedagogies.
WORD copy A copy of the paper saved in Word is emailed to the instructor M
The Word copy is named using the student’s last name at the M
beginning followed by the paper’s name
Length The paper is a minimum of 1500 words E
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