Journal+Page+December+6

http://sites.google.com/site/parktechlearners/learning-about-wikis The use of project based learning in a school and or a class adds a much deeper sense of meaning for students. For teachers it requires you to do extensive planning and be willing to allow students to be creative. Depending upon the district or principal you work for implementation of this could be a challenge. Some districts use pacing guides that are almost a daily planner that binds teachers to lessons that are straight from a text. PBL can move out of the box and into real learning. In viewing the first video about Key Largo students have real opportunities.  Our learners are **all** 8th grade students that include students from both ends of the spectrum from gifted students to those with IEPs. Most of our students are from low socio-economic backgrounds, and include Caucasian, African American, and Hispanic races. We are conducting our survey through Speak Up for Schools at [] We have chosen a survey that has predetermined questions and these will be taken through our math classes. Through this survey, we are able to establish a preliminary list of needs based on the students’ questions throughout taking survey. We have chosen a site that provides the results in tabular form in the spring. We have also included our parents in this survey so that we gather information about our community members’ needs as well. A challenge of using this survey is the length of time needed to administer and that the second part of the survey will not be administered until February 2010.Journal Page December 6